Nine Hours

Nine hours
I get into the car
A grimace on my face
Knowing what was in store

Eight hours
Shifting uncomfortably
Stopping for a restroom
Wanting to turn back

Seven hours
Car sickness at full blast
Singing to myself
To distract myself with music

Six hours
Soda gripped in my hand
Book lying forgotten
Looking at passing landscapes

Five hours
Pulling off for lunch
A bad feeling in my gut
When we head back to the road

Four hours
Finally out of the state
Passing the halfway point
But not wanting to go on

Three hours
Stopping at what seems
Like the hundredth rest stop
Wanting to prolong the end

Two hours
Biting my lip
Resisting the urge
To curl up and cry

One hour
I count each minute
Each second
As the time slowly runs out

We pull up your driveway
And hear your cruel welcome
But then the alarm rings
Waking me from my nightmare