Forever and Always, Olive

Chapter 2

I simply nod a few times before walking around the car and back to Vivica, who looks angry. "Did he say yes?" she inquires even though she already knows the answer. I slowly nod, still shocked myself that he agreed. Her eyes narrow at the ground as her lips purse together.

"Uh, we can't give you a ride home. We have cheer-leading practice at a nearby school," Chelsea states and I stare at her, slightly stunned. Like clowns, they all pile into the car and speed out of the lot.

I swear under my breath as I take out my phone and dial my aunt's number. There's no response so I groan. I have no money for a cab, and even if I did, I don't even know the address. It's difficult to remember. My old one was simple: 12 Taverness Drive. This one has a list of numbers and I'm not sure if it's a lane or a drive or what.

Rubbing my eyes, I sigh and prepare to go into the office to ask where my aunt even lives. "They left you?" a low voice from behind me asks.

I turn around and nod, feeling embarrassed. "Yeah, they did," I mutter.

He looks hesitant as he bites his lip. "Do you need a ride?" he asks, appearing unsure as to whether or not he even feels up to giving me a ride.

I'm surprised at the fact that he asked me so I slowly nod. "Yeah."

"Come on," he grunts as he kicks off his car and opens the door for himself. I shuffle over to the side and tug open the door, in fear that he'll leave me if I tell him that I have to run inside for a minute to get my new homes' address.

As he starts the car, I grow curious. "Aren't you waiting for someone?" I wonder as I look back at the large building we were just released from.

"Nope," he concludes as he backs out of the parking space and drives out of the lot. "We have to stop and get gas."

"Okay," I nod at him.

As we reach the gas station, he gets out of the car. Before he closes the door, he leans forward and looks at me. "Don't touch anything."

"No promises," I murmur as I look around at the clean interior. He harshly stares at me and I roll my eyes. "I'm joking!" Maybe I shouldn't do that with him.

When he gets back into the car after filling up the tank, he turns to look at me. "What's your address?" he asks as he prepares to leave the lot.

"I don't know," I answer after a moment of trying to pull the location from thin air.

He stares at me and blinks a few times. I look back at him and awkwardly meet his eyes. He has very pretty eyes. The thought causes my face to burn so I avert my gaze and peer out the window. Hopefully he sums it up to me being embarrassed at his staring. He probably thinks I like him. I mean, I'd understand if he does. I asked him to homecoming and I barely know him. And whenever I look at him, I blush like an i***t.

"What do you mean you don't know?" he asks with slightly narrowed eyes as he drags me back to reality.

"I just came to live with my aunt on Friday," I clarify with a meek shrug. "I didn't have time to memorize the address."

"Do you even know the street name?" he questions in bewilderment.

"No. I just know that it is twenty five minutes from school...and the house is blue...and the number of the house has a five in it," I inform him as I purse my lips in thought. He stares at me before letting out an exasperated sigh. I try to think of something he may know. "Do you know where Vivica lives?"

"No, why would I?" he retorts with a slight scowl. I have a feeling that he doesn't like Vivica very much.

"Don't get an attitude with me! This is a particularly small town; I just assumed that people know people!" I respond as he parks the car outside of the gas station. "I think I might be able to retrace the drive from the school."

He sighs yet again and makes his way back to the school. I can tell he's thinking that I'm more trouble than I'm worth. I can't help but think that, too.

+ + +

Thirty minutes later and we're still driving around. "Left?" he wonders as he stops at another similar looking street.

"Yeah," I respond and he turns. "Wait, no! I meant right!"

He groans noisily and glares at me. I notice how his knuckles turn white on the steering wheel. "I'm wasting gas on you," he repeats once again.

"I'll pay for it," I tell him for the third time.

I stare at my cell phone and see a response from my aunt. It's the address. I quickly read it out to him and he slowly turns to look at me. "We're a half hour away from there. You took us in the opposite direction of your house," he snaps with an irritated look on his face.

"I've been here for, like, three days, okay? I don't have the entire town memorized," I retort defensively. He glares at me and I sigh quietly. "How much do you need for the gas?" He doesn't respond and we sit in silence for a good block of time. As we get closer to the house, I turn to look at him. "You know, we don't have to go to homecoming together. I-I, uh, I was dared to go. I didn't expect you to say yes, and the girls didn't either. You probably have other stuff to do." He remains silent.

If every moment spent with him will be this tense, then I don't want to spend four straight hours with him. I wait for a response but he doesn't say anything. Instead, he keeps his eyes narrowed as he reads street signs. A few moments later, he pulls onto a recognizable street and slows down.

"Which house?" he questions me. I nod to the blue one at the corner, which is covered in wind chimes that are twinkling here and there. He pulls up to a stop in front of it. The white porch swing is empty, as is the driveway. Hopefully, my aunt's car is parked in the back. I don't like being home alone, especially in a house that isn't mine.

"I'll give you the gas money tomorrow. I'm not completely unpacked and my piggy bank is still in a box somewhere. Will ten dollars cover it?" I wonder as I look to him curiously. Again, he withholds his words so I awkwardly unbuckle my seatbelt. "Well, thanks," I mutter as I close the car door.

"Tell Vivian to lose my number," Maddox calls once I reach the sidewalk. I turn to him and nod. Vivica, I want to correct him but decide against it.

As I continue up the steps to the house, he yells out to me again. "What?" I respond as I turn around with a confused look on my face. He couldn't have said all this when I was still in the car within hearing range?

"Wear red," he repeats. I furrow my eyebrows as he drives off down the street.

Homecoming, I remember.

So he actually wants to go.