Walking the Crimson Road

by Perrie Patterson

  We walk hand-in-hand back to our table and sit next to each other sipping our champagne.

  I get a text from Bella with words in all caps U R AT THE BEACH RIGHT NOW?

  Yep, quite the surprise, I may win best romantic date. And the photo I just texted you is going on my VSCO ltr. I might also become Valentine date VSCO famous, too. LOL.

  Bella texts back, “Holy Crap, will u be home 2night?”

  Yes, in about two hours or so. There might be a private plane ride involved.

  U r telling every single detail when you get back 2nite. Don’t even think about leaving anything out, and BTW, you’ve won Valentine Queen for the rest of your freaking life. VSCO fame or not.

  I burst out laughing.

  Lane says, “Should I even ask?”

  “Just girl stuff.” I shrug and tuck my phone back inside my purse. “I’m going to walk inside and use the restroom before we get back on the plane. I don’t really want to go home,” I say, giving Lane a pleading look.

  The limo is waiting when we walk out of the main restaurant. We slip into the back and snuggle up close as Lane pushes the button on the privacy window and we watch it go up. His fingers gently move up and down my arm, lingering near my neckline, I lean in, and we kiss nonstop until the limo parks in front of the plane. Lane helps me up the steep airplane steps and buckles me in.

  “I want you to come with me over spring break next month. My family is getting together on Cape Cod, and I’d like for you to meet my family,” he says, after we are in the air.

  Totally surprised by the invitation, and not sure of what to say. I say the first thing that pops into my head. “I don’t know if I would be able to do that. My parents are spending money to fly with me to New York a week after spring break. I don’t think they’ll pay for me to fly to Cape Cod or even allow me to fly that far to spend a week with a boy.”

  “We would fly this plane from Tuscaloosa to New York. My new car would be waiting at the airport, and we’d drive that to Cape Cod. You would have your own room and bathroom in the house. My entire family, including my niece and nephew and my sisters would all be staying there. Your parents wouldn’t be spending any money on the trip. I can ask them for you if you’d like.”

  I smile at Lane. He’s being so sincere and serious. “You are so sweet to offer to do that, but I know that won’t help. My parents are very old fashioned about me dating. Each time I had a date, I would have to bring him inside to meet my family first before we were allowed to go out together. Going on vacation with a boy would be out of the question.”

  Lane looks gloomy. “I really want you to come with me and meet my parents.”

  “I’d really, really like to.”

  “What would you normally be doing over spring break?”

  “Last spring break I was with Lexi, Bella, and Cat. We stayed in one hotel room on the beach in Gulf Shores. It was all very tame. Seriously, the only wild things I’ve done have been with you, and those haven’t really been wild, just crazy fun. I would probably be with Bella, Lexi, and Cat again at the beach this year.”

  Lane tries to give me a puppy dog sad face. “The house we would be staying at is right on the beach and has a heated pool. I love you, Bex. I want you to be with me over spring break somehow.”

  We stare into each other’s eyes for a minute, then I say, “I’ll think it over and see.”

  I lay my head on his shoulder and fall asleep. Lane kisses the top of my head and gently wakes me up.

  “We’re back home, baby,” he says quietly.

  I blink as my eyes adjust to the light. We get into the first limo and arrive in front of Phi Mu within a few minutes. Lane walks me to the door, kisses me, then places soft gentle kisses down to my collar bone.

  “Goodnight, I love you.”

  I whisper, “I love you, too.”

  I suddenly realize that I left his gift sitting on my desk. I quickly say, “I got you something, come inside for a second while I run up and get it.”

  I run into the room. Bella is asleep. I grab the box and run back down the stairs, trying to be as quiet as possible. I hand Lane the box. He opens it, and a happy smile appears on his face.

  “The music festival. I love this. This will be fun.”

  “I’m so glad. I had no idea what to get you.”

  “It’s perfect, babe.”

  He hands me my bouquet, then kisses my cheek before opening the door.

  I slip off my heels and carry them and my roses to my room, then lay the roses across the desk. Quietly, I slip out of my clothes, crawl into bed, and think about skipping my first class in the morning. I fall asleep easily dreaming about private plane rides, the beach and being in love.

  41

  #YOLO

  Surrounded by papers covering the floor, I’m studying when Bella walks in and leaps to her bed to avoid stepping on my mess.

  “Shhheeesh,” Bella huffs.

  “Hey, girl. Sorry about the mess. Hard day I presume?”

  Bella rolls over, looks at me, and says, “Just long. I’m tired.”

  “I know that feeling. I’ve been studying for almost two hours.”

  Bella slides off the bed onto the floor next to me.

  “I bet you’re kinda glad last night was the last game you had to dance at this season?”

  I look over at Bella and give her a side nod. “Yeah, sort of. It’s a long season with practices starting in September and going through the end of February and sometimes into March. So, it’s good to get a break for the rest of the year.”

  Bella rolls onto her stomach and props up on one elbow. “I wish someone would crack my back.”

  I put down my pen. “Do you want me to stand on your back?” I ask.

  “Yes, as long as you’re barefoot.”

  I carefully stand on Bella’s back with my bare feet, and we hear a crack.

  “That felt great. I’m feeling better already. Oh, look what I found under the bed.” Bella pulls out a balloon from Valentine’s Day. “Look, it’s still blown up but super tiny.”

  “Awwwwww, maybe it was meant for me to save,” I say, with nostalgia in my voice. “I would never have guessed I’d meet someone like Lane.”

  Bella looks at me questioningly. “Like how? You’ve got that dreamy look again. Do you mean someone really good looking or really rich?”

  “I don’t know. I guess both.”

  “You don’t give yourself enough credit, Bex. You’re very smart, very talented, in your case a true triple threat, and if this writing gig you’ve got going doesn’t work out, you can always be on Broadway. You’re drop dead gorgeous.”

  I reach over, grab Bella’s arm and pull her over for a hug. “Thanks, bestie, I love you too. You’re a fantastic friend. I don’t know what I’d do without you. Seriously, you keep it real.”

  “Any time,” she says, smiling at me.

  Bella gets up, grabs a drink out of the fridge, and sits on her bed. “We should start planning spring break. It’s a little less than four weeks away.”

  I lean back against my bed with my knees up and look at Bella, “You know what Lane asked me on Valentine’s night? That was several weeks ago, and I haven’t really thought about it again until you said we need to plan spring break.”

  Bella shakes her head at me. “No, what did he ask you?”

  “He wants me to go to Cape Cod and stay the week with him and his family. He said we would use that same private plane. It flies him into New York whenever he needs to go home. His car will be waiting for him there, and we would drive to his vacation house. He said he really wants me to meet his family.” I start cleaning up all the papers I have scattered around me.

  “Wow, what did you say?”

  “I said I’d love to go, but my parents would never allow me to go on spring break with a guy, especially that far away. We haven’t talked about it since. I mean, I guess if my parents think I’m at the beach with you guys they’d never know.”

  Bella sets
her drink down, looks me in the eye, and says, “Wait, what? You want to sneak off with him, fly to New York or Cape Cod, and tell your parents you’re at the beach with me, Lexi, and Cat?”

  I exhale loudly. “I don’t know, Bella. I want to be with Lane, and he really wants me to go. I guess I figure everything will be fine, and what they don't know won’t hurt.”

  Bella shakes her head and says, “Yeah, I don’t know. I see your point, but it’s a bit risky, I think.”

  “I know it is. I won’t decide today. But if he asks me again, I may just tell him I’m going. Sometimes I lose all contact with reality when I look at him. It could happen that I magically say I’m going, and the next thing you know I’m on another private plane ride.” I stand with my hands on my hips and give Bella a smarty pants face, as if to say, you know what I mean.

  She rolls her eyes at me. “Oh, my gosh, Bex. Well, I know Lexi is in for the beach for sure. I need to text Cat and book our hotel room in Gulf Shores. Oh, by the way, now that the weather is warming up, some people were talking about going up to “the cliffs” this weekend.”

  “I’ll be at Tucfest with Lane.”

  “Oh, that’s right. You got him those concert tickets for Valentine’s Day.”

  I turn on my phone to look at the weather for Saturday.

  “Saturday will be sunny and 78 degrees, gotta love it,” I say, smiling at Bella.

  *****

  I’m digging through my dresser drawer trying to find my favorite cut off shorts when I get a text. I look at my phone. Hey, babe, what time should I pick u up for the concert?

  I’ll be ready in 30.

  I find my shorts and a white knit top that’s open in the back, put them on, then French braid a long strand of hair down one side. I wander down the hall to ask if anyone has any glitter. I could only get red, silver and pink, so I mix all three colors together with some hair gel and add glitter to my braid. Then I apply some around my eyes, using a little Chapstick for the adhesive. I open the closet and find a cute pair of strappy sandals that tie around my ankles. Bella and Lexi walk in, both wearing swimsuits and cut off shorts.

  Lexi says, “Hey Bex, you look awesome, love the glitter!”

  “Thanks. You guys headed up to the lake to hang at the cliffs today?”

  “Yes, we’re looking for Bella’s beach towel.”

  I bend over to tie up my sandals. “Y’all have fun. I’ll be back late tonight. The concert probably won’t be over until around 11:00.”

  “Okay, see ya, Bex,” Bella says, as she picks up her towel and flip flops. I wave bye and walk downstairs to wait for Lane.

  There’s already a line by the time we arrive, at least a hundred people or more. As we walk through security, we’re handed a seat saver which allows us to leave our seats to get lunch, meet the band members at their meet-and-greets or shop the vendors at the festival.

  We end up with center row seats about half-way back from the stage, so the seats are pretty good. Lane and I put our seat savers across our seats and tear off the claim tickets. We each take one then we head over to check out the food truck vendors.

  I brought a small blanket with me to sit on and spread out under the shade of a tree. We sit on the blanket eating our lunch, listening to the warm-up band playing, totally chillin’ and enjoying the music and food.

  “I’m curious, what’s on your playlist?” I ask.

  “I don’t think I have any music from any of the bands playing today on my playlist. What’s on yours?” he asks.

  I open Spotify on my phone. “I have a few Coin songs and Kid Rock.”

  Lane laughs and says, “I don’t think I know many Kid Rock songs.”

  I smile and put my hand on his knee. “I think you’d like them. Can I look through your playlist?”

  Lane opens Spotify and hands me his phone.

  I scroll through. “Wow, a lot of old school stuff. Boston, The Police, Steve Miller, a lot of rap music, oh and John Mayer. I like John Mayer, too.”

  Lane holds out his hand, “Show me your playlist.”

  I had him my phone. “Mmmmmm, no old school stuff at all.” He reads my playlist aloud as he scrolls through. “A lot of country music, AJR, 21 Pilots, Rainbow Kitten Surprise, Post Malone, John Mayer, The Killers, Ed Sheeran, Jonas Brothers.” He laughs.

  “Our playlists are a lot different.”

  “Well, not too different. We both like Ed Sheeran, Post Malone, and John Mayer. I think the main difference is I have a lot of country music on mine. I think you could get into some of it.” I give him a coy smile.

  The opening act ends, and Lane and I pack up our picnic and head back to our seats. Coin comes on, and I’m up dancing. Lane seems to be enjoying himself, too. When their hit song “Talk too Much” comes on, I sing along and get Lane to dance with me.

  “I could totally get used to this. I didn’t think I could love watching you dance more than during the halftime show at the basketball game, but this is great.”

  When Coin’s session ends, we decide to walk around and check out some of the vendor merchandise. I see some friends from dance team, and Lane and I walk over so I can introduce him. They invite us to stand in line with them to meet Coin for photo ops. I look at Lane.

  “Go ahead, babe. I’ll grab us some drinks and meet you back at our seats.”

  I give Lane a quick kiss and happily join the girls in line, laughing and giggling about taking selfies with the band members of Coin.

  By the end of the third set, Lane and I have had several beers. We decide to get some snacks and more drinks. I drink a little water, but I’m definitely feeling buzzed. The last band is about to come on, and Lane walks up with more beer. Kid Rock opens with “Tennessee Mountain Top” and I dance and sing along. I notice Lane watching me with a smile out of the corner of my eye. I’m feeling really good. I know all the words. I stand in my seat and continue dancing. I hear whistles coming from behind me. I look down and smile at Lane. He has a permanent grin on his face. I throw all my inhibitions to the wind and let loose a little more as I enjoy Kid Rock’s amazing performance.

  After the concert I take off for a potty break, and Lane tells me to meet him at the docks just below the amphitheater. It’s late at night and a little cooler as I walk down to the river. He puts the blanket around my shoulders, and we sit on the dock with our feet dangling just above the water. The moon is full, the stars are out, and things are quieting down after a rowdy day. We lie back on the dock and stare up at the stars. I’m still feeling lightheaded like I’ve had way more to drink than I should have. Lane pulls me onto his lap, my legs straddle him. He kisses me passionately and slowly, then pauses, looking into my eyes.

  “I really want you to come with me on spring break, Rebecca.”

  “I will,” I say, and continue kissing him.

  When he drops me off back at the house, we kiss goodnight, and I run up the stairs to the bathroom. I splash a little water on my face to wake up a bit. I walk into my room and find Bella and Lexi watching Netflix.

  “Hey, how was the music festival?” Lexi asks, pausing the movie.

  I walk over to the fridge and get out a bottle of water. “It was so much fun, but I think I drank a little too much. I was dancing a little wild during Kid Rock. Like standing in my seat and getting whistled at and all.”

  Bella says, “Wow, Bex, that’s not like you.”

  “I know. I was having a great time, though.” I sit down on my bed, untie my shoes, and kick them off.

  “Did Lane like the concert?” Lexi asks.

  “Yes, I think so. Mostly he was enjoying watching me dance. So, I’m pretty sure he had a great time, too,” I say with a grin.

  “We saw your Instagram post with Coin. That was cool,” Bella says.

  “Did you meet any other bands?” Lexi asks.

  “No, I stood in line with some friends to meet Coin but didn’t want to stand in the long lines for the rest of the bands. I would have stood in line to meet Kid Rock, but
it was getting late, and Lane and I walked down to the dock after the concert.”

  I start changing into an old t-shirt then stop and look at Bella and Lexi.

  “I told Lane I would go with him on spring break.”

  I hear them gasp. “What do you mean?” Lexi asks.

  “He asked me on Valentine’s Day, and I told him I would think about it. I told him my parents wouldn’t allow me to go that far away with a guy they’ve only met a few times. I had a little too much to drink today and got caught up kissing him on the dock tonight after the concert. I really want to go, like really bad. I’m not going to change my mind.”

  Bella and Lexi get up and sit on my bed on either side of me. Lexi puts her hand on my shoulder. “What are you planning to do? Will your parents think you’re with us at the beach?”

  I look at Lexi then over to Bella and nod. I lean my head down on Bella’s shoulder.

  Bella looks at me, “You’re my best friend, Bex. You know I’ll support you.”

  I grab Bella and Lexi by the hand. “Operation spring break is a go!” I say, lifting our hands in the air.

  42

  #Nobrainer

  I stay in bed most of the day Sunday trying to recoup from my slight hangover. By two o’clock I take a shower and work on homework. I send Mom a text letting her know that I’ll be at the beach for spring break again this year with Bella, Lexi and Cat. I’ve never lied to my parents like this before, and it feels odd. I add another quick text before she can answer me, I think the following week after spring break I’ll go to New York to meet with the editors. I suggest the Thursday/Friday meeting dates just like Mom wanted so it will be a long weekend with the family. Maybe this will consume her thoughts more than my spring break plans and she won’t get suspicious.

  Bella and I came up with the plan of how many Instagram posts we’ll do while we’re gone and plan to make some of the pictures look like I took them by the way they’re tagged. I’m planning to take some at the beach in Cape Cod and change the location to say Gulf Shores. Spring break is only a week away, and I get goose bumps thinking how fun it will be to go away with Lane for a whole week. I’m hoping the excitement will overcome the guilt I have about lying to my parents. I mean keeping this from them stops them from worrying about me being on vacay with some boy far from home anyway, right?