Contagious

Martin was only half asleep when his cell phone started to vibrate on his nightstand. He reached over for his, sheet falling from his bare shoulder, and saw Parker's name flashing across the screen. Confused, he answered quickly, trying to keep his voice low so he didn't wake Dallas, who was sleeping next to him. “Hello?”

”Hey, Martin.”

“I thought you were in New York,” he commented.

”We're...somewhere. I think in Connecticut?”

“You think you are?” he asked. He heard her sigh and he felt his stomach twist. Something had to be wrong otherwise she wouldn't be calling him. He knew he wasn't her favorite person in the world. “What's wrong?”

”Well... Orion's car is a piece of shit...”

“Cut to the chase, Parker,” Martin said, sitting up in bed. He felt Dallas shift next to him but he ignored it. “I know you wouldn't call me unless you needed something.”

”Or unless I was forced to...”

He heard Paul yelling in the background and smiled in spite of himself.

”Her car broke down. The engine is...fucked. And she's passed out in the driver's seat because she drank too much. And the car won't start and we're stranded somewhere on fucking...I-95 or some shit. And...we didn't know who else to call...”

“Are you guys okay?” he asked, jumping out of bed and pulling on his clothes that had been discarded around his room. He nearly fell over as he tugged on his jeans, hitting his shoulder against the wall. “Fuck.”

”Yeah, we're all okay. We just...”

“I-95, you said?”

”Yeah.”

“Okay, yeah, I know that road,” he told her, taking the phone away from his ear while he pulled on his shirt. “Do you remember the last exit you passed?”

”I see a sign that says Exit 48 is half a mile away.”

“Okay, you're not that far then,” he said, sliding on a pair of socks, followed by his Vans. “You guys stay in the car, I'll be there as soon as I can.”

”Martin...”

“It's okay, Parker. I'm not leaving you guys stranded,” he told her. “Just sit tight. I'll drive as fast as I can. Call me if you need me, okay?”

”Thank you.”

He smiled. It had been so long since she had used that tone with him; the one that held no malice, no hate, and pure gratitude. “Anything for you, Parker,” he whispered.

”Thank you so much.”

“I'll see you soon,” he told her, hanging up his phone. He grabbed his wallet from his night stand, along with his keys, and walked over to the door.

“Where are you going?” Dallas asked, sleep evident in her voice, as she sat up, the sheet falling from her bare shoulder.

Martin looked away. “I gotta go pick up Paul.”

“Then why were you talking to Parker?”

“She's with him,” he told her. “Their car broke down.”

“Convenient you're the only one in their entire life who can go get them,” she spat.

Martin sighed. “They need me right now, Dallas.”

“Where are they? I'll come with you,” she said.

“Connecticut, I think,” he told her. “And you're not going.”

“Why? You want time with your stupid little ex girlfriend?”

“Shut up, Dallas,” he said quietly. “I'm not in the mood to deal with this.”

“It's spring break! It's supposed to be our time to spend together!”

“And we will!” He groaned and ran his hands through his hair. “Keep it down or you'll wake my parents. You can either stay here until I get back or go home, but you're not going with me.”

Dallas frowned and reached for one of his sweatshirts that hung over his headboard, pulling it on. “You can't tell me what to do, Martin,” she said, climbing out of bed. His sweatshirt was just long enough to cover everything that needed to be covered and she followed him to the door.

“I'm not,” Martin said. “But I don't have enough room for all six of us.”

“You have an SUV, Martin, someone can sleep in the back,” she told him, crossing her arms and frowning.

He shook his head. “Not happening,” he said, opening his bedroom and door and walking quietly down the hallway and out to the garage, where his SUV was.

“Martin, if you leave me to go get your stupid—“

“Parker is not stupid, Dallas!” Martin said, unable to keep his voice from rising. “I've known that girl for over half my life and I would walk through fire for her. You can't make me feel bad about this.”

Dallas groaned. “If you go get her, we're done.”

He rolled his eyes. “You always say that,” he told her, walking over to the living room and pulling two blankets off the couch and grabbing a couple of pillows as well. He walked past her, ignoring her glare and the words she was spouting, and walked into the garage, slamming the door shut behind him and in her face. He couldn't bring himself to care about her threats. He tossed the blankets and pillows into the back seat and climbed behind the wheel. He sent Parker a quick text, tell her he was on his way, before speeding out of the garage and down the road. He had too many thoughts running through his head but one stuck out: he had to find Parker.

+

“He said he's on his way,” Parker said, shoving the phone back into the pocket of her jacket, before she walked off to the side of the road where concrete met grass.

“Thank God,” Ross commented, before climbing back behind the wheel to avoid the slight breeze in the cool air.

Paul followed Parker and sat down next to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “Are you okay?”

She nodded, readjusting the hood on her head, as she watched the cars pass. “I just want him to get here soon so I can get home. I don't like being stuck out here.”

“Yeah,” Paul said, nodding slowly. He rested his head on her shoulder. “Thank you for calling him. I know it was hard.”

She shrugged. “There was no one else.”

Paul didn't respond, he simply nodded once more before slowly drifting off to sleep.

Parker wasn't sure how he could sleep on the side of the road, with the wind whipping around them and cars flying past, but he did. She couldn't. She saw Ross and Orion, sleeping in the front of the car and wished she could do the same. But she was too busy thinking about Martin. She dug her phone out of her pocket and sent him a quick text.

thank you again. you have no idea how much I appreciate this.

She set the phone down on the pavement in front of her and it was maybe two minutes later when she received a text back.

you know i'd do anything for you.

She bit her lip. Her relationship with Martin was so tumultuous that she never knew where they stood. They would fight and say they wanted nothing to do with each other and then they could turn around and be civil and share moments like that. She wanted so badly to be over him but she knew, deep down, that wasn't going to happen anytime soon. She was so caught up in the thought that Martin had to be over her since he had a girlfriend that she never stopped to think about how much she was really hurting Paul.

She sighed and looked over at the man who was sleeping on her shoulder. Paul had never hurt her. Paul had never lied to her. Paul wasn't trying to turn her life upside down. Paul never fought with her. Paul never yelled at her. He was almost the opposite of Martin. She constantly fought with Martin, they would scream at each other until their throats were raw. But she had more of a history with Martin—he had known her for years and they had just as many good memories as bad ones. And that was one thing she couldn't deny, their history.

you're amazing.

She sent the text before she could talk herself out of it and sighed. She had to talk to Paul but she knew it wasn't the right time. She wanted to wait until she knew what she was going to say. She wanted to wait until she knew what she was going to do. If she did end it with Paul, she would have no one to fall back on. Just because she could still see a future with Martin didn't mean he saw it the same way. Her phone rang a minute later and she answered it automatically, seeing it was Martin.

“Where are you?”

”Just turned around so I'm headed your way on 95. I'll drive slow.”

She slowly moved away, cupping Paul's head to lay it down on the pavement and hoping he didn't wake up. She stood up and walked towards the side of the road. She only saw two cars coming their way. “Do you see me?” she asked, waving her arms slightly.

”Yeah, I do.”

Parker smiled in relief as his silver Mazda SUV pulled off onto the side of the road, behind Orion's car. She walked over to him quickly and threw her arms around his neck the minute he was out of the vehicle. “Thank you, thank you, thank you.”

A ghost of a smile found its way onto Martin's lips, his hands resting on her lower back. “It's okay, Parks,” he said quietly.

“No, it's not. You didn't have to drive two hours out here,” she told him, pulling away.

He shrugged. “I made it in a little over an hour so it's no big deal.”

She laughed softly. “How fast did you go?”

“About ninety five?” he said, shrugging. “Is everyone else sleeping?”

She nodded. “Let's get 'em into the car.”

“We'll just put them all in the back so they can sleep,” Martin said, walking over to Paul and nudging him. “Hey, Paul? Wake up, man.”

Paul yawned and sat up slowly, cracking his back. “You're here already?”

Martin nodded.

“Crazy driver,” he muttered, walking over to Martin's SUV without another word and crawling into the back cargo space. He pulled a pillow and blanket from the backseat before curling up and falling back asleep.

Parker laughed. “And I thought I could sleep anywhere...” She walked over to Orion's car and opened the driver's side door, poking Ross' shoulder. “Martin's here.”

Ross opened one eye and glared. “I was sleeping.”

She nodded towards his car. “Back seat's free.”

Ross looked over at Orion. “We're probably gonna have to carry her.”

Martin laughed; Ross hadn't been lying. It took all three of them to carry Orion the the backseat of the Mazda, buckling her in. Ross climbed in next to her, allowing her head to rest on his lap as he buckled up himself. He pulled the blanket over Orion before slowly drifting back to sleep himself.

Parker shook her head, buckling up in the passengers seat. “My friends are insane.”

“Just a little bit,” Martin agreed, re-starting his car. He turned the music down a little bit and the heat up, so everyone would be warm. After a few minutes of silence, he finally spoke up. “So did you guys have fun?”

She nodded. “A lot of fun. Until the car broke down.”

Martin laughed softly. “Yeah, that tends to put a damper on everything.”

“Agreed,” she murmured, looking sideways at Martin. His hair was a mess and she could tell something was bothering him. “I didn't...tear you away from anything when I called, did I?”

He shrugged. “Just Dallas.”

“Just Dallas?”

He nodded. “She's trying to put me on a guilt trip again,” he told her, signaling as he got off at the proper exit.

“Because you came to get us?”

He nodded again.

“I'm sorry.”

“Eh, don't be,” Martin said. “The girl...loves her drama. It's why she loves school so much. She can control everyone, everyone listens to her, and she loves it. But I don't let her control me and she hates when I choose anyone else over her.”

Parker didn't respond, she just listened and let him talk.

“And I think she's great, I do. But this roller coaster shit is getting on my nerves. It's a constant battle. She's either incredibly happy and everything is great, or I'm a shitty boyfriend and she doesn't want to be with me. It's like she can't make up her mind, you know?”

She nodded.

“For the longest time, we've been planning on the talent show at the end of the year, you know? It sounds so stupid but she's an amazing singer and we sound great together,” he explained. “I've...been working on a song. The one we were going to sing. And part of me wants to stay with her just so we can have that moment on stage.” He paused. “That sounds selfish, doesn't it?”

She shrugged.

“You know, you can actually say what's on your mind,” he told her, sending her a sideways glance. “I know you want to say something.”

Parker smiled. “You know me too well.”

“It's what I do,” Martin said, smiling himself.

“I just think that's a shitty relationship to be in. No one should be happy half of the time,” Parker said quickly.

Martin nodded. “I know. But sometimes I feel like she's all I have.”

Parker sighed. “I know what that's like better than you think,” she whispered.

“So...how are you and Paul?” he asked, the tension rising.

She shook her head. “Are we really going to talk about that?”

“Just...trying to make conversation.”

“About awkward topics,” Parker said.

Martin smiled and kept his eyes on the road. He wasn't sure if it was the silence in the car, or the thought that no one else was eavesdropping on their conversation, but he suddenly felt more comfortable. “I miss you.”

Parker looked over at him, her hazel eyes wide. Three words she had wanted him to say for a while. “Really?”

He nodded. “More than you realize.”