I'm Amazed That I Got This Far

John and I drove around Tempe for a few hours, before we finally decided on a place to go eat dinner. John drove down the street from the place, and pulled into an empty parking lot. He put his car in park and turned it off, before getting out. He walked around to the back and I heard him open the trunk, as I climbed out of the passenger seat.

"What are you doing?" I asked, as I walked around to the back of his car.

"Getting our suitcases out." John shrugged, as he looked at me. "We gotta look spiffy tonight, don't we?"

"Well, yeah." I nodded. "But where are we going to change?"

"In the car?" He said slowly, like I should've known the answer. "Unless you want to go find a bathroom somewhere."

"The car's fine." I said.

"Okay." He sighed, as he opened my suitcase. "Choose your outfit and I'll get mine, while you're changing in the car."

I nodded and dug through my clothes, before pulling out the nicest shirt and pair of jeans I had. I shut my suitcase and John put it back in the trunk, before taking his out. I walked back to the passenger side of the car, and got in, so I could change. I climbed into the back, so random people wouldn't see me as easily, and quickly changed my clothes. When I was finished, I got back out of the car, to see John already in his new outfit.

"You already changed?" I asked.

"Yeah." He nodded, with a smile. "I just changed my pants when no one was looking."

"Wow, John." I giggled. "Where are we staying tonight?"

"I want to find a motel." He said, as he looked around. "Maybe we can find someone at the restaurant to ask. I really want a bed."

"Well, don't plan to stay in a five star hotel." I shrugged.

"I know, Mother." He smiled. "I just want some sort of bed!"

"Well, we'll find you one!" I said, as I wrapped my arms around his right arm. "So, what now?"

"Ready to get some dinner?" He asked, as he looked down at me.

"Sure." I nodded.

"Then let's go." He said. "Do you want to just walk since it's like, right down the street?"

"Yeah." I said, as John locked the doors of his car, and shut the trunk.

He put his keys in his pocket, as he grabbed my hand, and laced our fingers. We walked across the parking lot, and went across the street, once we made sure it was clear. The two of us walked down the sidewalk, trying to avoid running into random strangers, before we arrived at the restaurant. John opened the door and I walked in, with him behind me. We walked over to the man that was standing at a podium, and he looked at us.

"How many tonight?" He asked.

"Just two." John said, as he wrapped his arm around my waist.

"Name?"

"O'Callaghan." He replied.

The man nodded and smiled, before telling us it would be a few minutes. John and I walked over to the wall, and he leaned against it, his arm still around me. The two of us stood and waited for a few minutes, before they called John's last name. We walked into the dining room, with a woman, that was wearing black pants and a nice, white shirt, leading the way.

She set two menus down at a table, that was covered with a maroon table cloth, before John and I sat down. She smiled and told us someone would be right with us, before walking away. John looked at the menu, as he played with the silverware that was wrapped in a white cloth napkin, and raised an eyebrow, before looking around the dining room.

"Do you have a problem...?" I asked slowly.

"No. This is just really...nice." John chuckled. "But I like it."

"Me too." I smiled.

"I'm just the best date." He joked.

"Right, right." I nodded. "Indeed you are, John."

"I know." He sighed, with a smile. "So, after this are we just gonna hit the sack?"

"Yeah, unless you want to do something else?" I shrugged, as I looked down at the menu.

"Not really. I just want to actually sleep." He said, as he rubbed his face. "I'm so tired, you don't even know."

"But you were the one that wanted to come." I smirked.

"I know." He said, with a slight laugh. "I didn't think it'd be this hard. We've met like no one, besides a girl that's probably infested with STDs."

"This is true." I nodded. "We have to do some things to meet people. We can't just drive, sleep, eat, and drive again, John."

"I know." He sighed. "I guess we'll see."

I nodded again, as a man dressed in a white button up shirt, a black tie, and black dress pants came over to us. "Hi, I'm Joshua and I'll be your server tonight. Can I start you two off with something to drink? Some wine? Champagne?"

"Oh, we're under 21..." I smiled.

"Sorry about that." He said, with a small laugh. "What can I get you two to drink?"

"Just water, please." I said.

"Same." John sighed, as he looked up at our waiter. "Thanks."

"No problem. I'll bring those right out, to give you a few minutes to decide what you two want." Our waiter smiled, before walking away.

"Kalen...don't talk." John smiled. "I wouldn't mind some wine!"

"Oh, shut up." I chuckled.

"Hey, they would've never known." He shrugged, as he looked at the menu.

"Yes, they would have." I nodded. "You don't look 21, John."

"Then why did he offer it?" He questioned, as he folded his arms over his chest.

"Because maybe he's supposed to?" I smiled. "Just look at your menu."

"Fine." He said, heaving a dramatic sigh.

I rolled my eyes and sighed to myself, before looking back down at my menu. When our waiter came back with our drinks, we ordered what we wanted to eat, and he walked away, to go put our order in.

"What do you think we'd be doing in school right now?" John asked, as he looked over at me.

"I don't know." I said, as I looked at him. "Tests?"

"Probably." He nodded. "Getting thrown out of my house...sleeping in the woods."

"And that." I nodded. "And not having a disconnected phone."

"We still have my phone." He shrugged. "I'm pretty sure my parents aren't going to do that, in case I decide to come back home or something, which isn't going to happen."

"How are you so sure?" I asked.

"I just don't want to go home." He replied. "I want to stay here and find a band."

"Well, good." I said.

"And I want to be here with you." He smiled. "Because I like it when it's just the two of us."

"I do, too, John." I grinned, as I felt my face heat up.

"Even though you have to sleep in a car?" He chuckled. "And not shower for days at a time?"

"Yes, John." I nodded. "Anything I do with you is always fun."

"Good." He said, as his cheeks turned a light shade of pink. "I'm glad you came here with me."

"I am, too." I said happily.

After John and I talked for a while longer, our food came, and we started to eat. When we were both finished, John paid and left the tip, before we stood up, and walked out of the restaurant.

"Thank you, John." I smiled, as he wrapped his arm around me.

"You're welcome, Kalen." John smiled back.

"Now we need to find someone to talk to about a motel." I sighed. "Look for someone nice."

"No, I'm going to look for a really mean person that's like 300 pounds of muscle, with a mustache." John said sarcastically.

"Shut up." I chuckled. "You're so mean."

"I am not." He laughed, as he pulled me closer to him. "You love me."

"Sadly." I giggled.

"And you say I'm mean? Psh." He scoffed, with a joking smile.

I rolled my eyes as I looked along the sidewalks, trying to find some nice and approachable looking people. I saw a girl with blond hair standing against a building with a guy with long, brown hair. They were both smiling and laughing, which was a sign they were at least a little nice, right?

"John, how about them?" I said, as I nodded towards the guy and girl.

John looked over at them and squinted his eyes for a minute before nodding. "Sure."

I grabbed John's hand and started across the street, once it was cleared, and over to the guy and girl. The girl looked over at me and smiled, before looking at John. The guy must've saw the girl smiling, because he turned around and looked at us, with a confused look on his face.

"Hi..." I said slowly. "I'm Kalen and this is John. We're new here and we were wondering if you knew of any close motels in the area?"

"Hi. I'm Britton." The girl grinned. "And this is my boyfriend, Kennedy."

"Nice shirt." John laughed, as he looked at Britton's shirt that said 'I'm with Stupid', and had an arrow pointing to the Kennedy guy next to her.

"Thanks." She chuckled.

"Hi." The Kennedy guy said, with a smile.

John and I waved and Britton looked around. "Well, there's a cheap motel that's like...fifteen minutes away or so? But it's like super cheap."

"That's fine. We just need a place to stay for the night." I sighed. "Maybe two."

"Well, there's one down there. It's called like, Pink Motel or something." Kennedy said. "And then there's a hotel that's a few blocks down, but it's not really that cheap."

"We don't have a ton of money right now." John said. "We need somewhere cheap. We kind of ran away from home."

"Dude, that's so badass." He chuckled.

"Is that your boyfriend?" Britton asked me, as she nodded towards John.

"I mean, we were best friends and now we're like...somewhat a couple." I replied.

"He's a cutie!" She smiled. "Get it!"

I laughed slightly and nodded, as John and Kennedy got into conversation. "Yeah, he's a great guy."

"Good." She grinned. "So, you two just ran away?"

"Well, I mean, yeah." I shrugged. "John wants to come here because he didn't like Phoenix, so we just left school and our homes and came here."

"Where are you guys staying?" She wondered.

"In John's car..." I smiled. "It's down the street from here."

"Damn! That sounds like it sucks." She laughed. "That's so cool, though. Kennedy would never have the balls to run away."

"I heard that." Kennedy said, as he looked over at Britton, before smiling. "And so what?"

Britton rolled her eyes and smiled, before looking at me. "So, are you guys seniors?"

"Yeah." I nodded.

"Skipping out on senior year. Nice." She nodded. "We're just about done with our senior year, too."

"That's good." I smiled.

"And we're off of school tomorrow, so Kenny and I are just wondering around." She shrugged.

"Awe, that sounds fun." I said happily.

"Hey, John and I are going out tomorrow." Kennedy said, as him and John randomly joined our conversation.

"Like...a man date?" I asked.

"Not a man date." John smiled. "Just to grab something to eat."

"Wow. Whatever." Britton smiled, before looking at me. "Give me your number and we can hang, while they go on their man date."

"It isn't a man date!" Kennedy stated. "We just have similar interests."

"Like running away from home and skipping out in senior year? I bet you do." She nodded.

He rolled his eyes and smiled, before handing John his number. "That's my number. Call me and we'll go out or something."

"On a man date." Britton said. "Right?"

John laughed and nodded. "Yeah. We're going on a man date."

"Don't think about kissing him." She joked, as she handed me her phone. "Put your number in."

"I'll try my hardest to restrain myself..." He said slowly.

"Good." She nodded, before taking her phone back, after I put my number in. "We'll see you guys around! Call Kennedy if you can't find the motel and we'll help you guys."

"Thanks." I smiled.

"No problem! Bye, guys." She waved.

"Bye. It was nice meeting you guys." John said, with a smile.

"You guys, too." Kennedy said happily, before taking Britton's hand, and starting down the sidewalk.

"So, let's go find this motel." John sighed, as he laced his fingers with mine. "Ready?"

"Yeah." I smiled.

He nodded and we headed back across the street, so we could return back to his car. Once we got to the parking lot where his car was, we got inside, and John started it up. He pulled out of the lot and turned off of the street, before taking off.

"How do you know where it is?" I asked.

"Kennedy told me how to get there." John replied. "He's a nice guy."

"That's good." I nodded.

"Did you like Britton?" He questioned.

"Yeah. She's nice." I said. "They're seniors, too."

"Yeah, that's what Kennedy was saying." He smiled.

"John has a boyfriend." I laughed.

John started laughing and rolled his eyes. "Right, Kalen."

"You guys are totally going on a date." I smirked.

"We're just getting lunch! I'm not gay!" He chuckled. "I already have someone that is a woman."

"Good. Don't leave me for a man." I said.

"I won't." He smiled.

After a while, John and I finally found the motel that Kennedy and Britton were talking about. There was a small building in the front, where a man was standing at the front desk, and there was a building with seven or eight rooms, that was next to it. The buildings looked pretty worn down and old, and the windows of the front desk area were barred. I looked over at John and he looked at me.

"This is uhm...interesting." He said, as he opened the car door. "Come on. You're not staying out here by yourself."

I slowly took off my seatbelt, before getting out of John's car. He locked the doors and grabbed my hand, as we started walking towards the building, where the front desk was at. We walked inside and a bell jingled, before the man looked at us. He was short, skinny, and had gray hair with glasses. Definitely looked like the creeper type that would run a motel like this.

"How may I help you two?" The guy asked, as he looked at me, and then at John.

"Can we get a room here for two nights?" John said, as he pulled out his wallet.

"Sure can." He nodded, and he punched something into his computer. "One or two beds?"

"Just one." He replied, before looking at me, as if to ask if that was okay.

I nodded and rested my elbows on the counter, as the man punched something else into the computer. "It'll be $120 for two nights."

John nodded and got some money out, before handing it to the guy, who took it from him, and set it next to him. He grabbed a key and handed it to John, before smiling.

"Have a great stay." He said. "You two are in room five."

"Thanks." John said, as he grabbed my hand, and led me out of the building.

We went back out to John's car and got in, before he started it back up, and pulled it up towards the room we would be staying in, which was room five. John pulled into the parking space that was next to our room, and he turned off his car, before we got out. We grabbed our suitcases from John's trunk, and we went to the room door. John stuck the key into the dirty doorknob, and slowly opened the door, as it creaked loudly.

John rolled his eyes, as the door creaked louder, and flipped on the light. The room was small, the walls were a gross yellow, and the bed sheets looked like they've been used millions of times, over and over again. The carpet looked disgusting, and there was a tiny TV, that sat on a small dresser, in the corner.

"I'm not taking my shoes off." I said, as I looked at the floor. "This is so nasty."

"Well, it'll do." John said, as he shut the door behind us.

"Ew." I whined, as I set my suitcase down on a small chair, that was next to a tiny table, by the window.

John locked the door and set his suitcase down on the dresser, next to the TV. "Ready to hit the sack?"

"Yeah." I nodded. "Unfortunately."

He laughed to himself and opened his suitcase, so he could get his pajamas. "There's probably towels in the bathroom, if you want to put them on the bed and sleep on that?"

"I'm good." I sighed, as I pulled out a long sleeved shirt and a pair of long pajama pants. "I just won't touch the sheets."

He smiled and rolled his eyes, as he pulled off his shirt. He tossed a different shirt on, that he was going to wear to bed, before going into the bathroom. I quickly changed into my clothes, and tossed my other clothes into my suitcase. I heard John yell, before the bathroom door flew open and he came out.

"There's a bigass bug in there!" He exclaimed, as he grabbed his chest. "Oh, my God. Gave me a heart attack!"

"Wow, John." I laughed. "Did you kill it?"

"Yes." He nodded. "With my fucking foot!"

"Ew!" I said. "John, that's nasty!"

"Well, I wasn't using my hand! And I was wearing socks!" He said, as he held up one of his socks. "Now it has bug guts all over it and ew."

I rolled my eyes as he stuck his sock into his suitcase, and pulled out another one. He slipped it on and the two of us grabbed our tooth brushes, before going over to the sink. We brushed our teeth and washed our faces, after we put our tooth brushes back in our suitcases, not wanting them to touch the dirty bathroom vanity.

Once we were both ready for bed, John turned off the light, and we went over to the bed. I laid down on it, as the springs creaked loudly from under me and John laughed. He plopped down on the bed, and it made a loud thump noise. He laughed again, before laying down and turning towards me.

"This is scary." I frowned, as I looked at John, the light that flooded in through the closed blinds casting thin lines across his face.

"I mean it's not so bad..." John trailed off.

"Yes, it is!" I sighed.

"Do you want John to hold you?" He asked, in a baby voice.

"Shut up." I smiled, as I turned away from him.

I heard him laugh, as I felt him shift on the bed, before he wrapped his arms around me tightly. I turned my body around, so I was facing him again, and he smiled. I smiled back and wrapped my arm around his waist.

"This isn't so bad now. Is it?" He chuckled.

"Nope." I giggled.

He smiled and press his forehead against mine, before kissing me softly. I kissed him back, and I could feel him smile, as I felt the butterflies in my stomach start to multiply. John pulled me closer to him, before pulling away and kissing my forehead. I felt my face get beet red, as I buried my head in his chest and let out a giggle. John laughed quietly, and squeezed me tightly.

"Goodnight, Kay." He whispered.

"Goodnight, John." I said quietly.

The two of us fell silent, and I closed my eyes, trying to go to sleep. When I was just about to fall asleep, I heard a loud noise outside, before hearing a bunch of guys start yelling and laughing. I sighed and tried to block them out, as they continued to yell and scream. I heard John sigh loudly, and he sat up.

"Who the fuck is out there?" He asked.

"Don't ask me." I shrugged.

He got out of the bed and went over to the window, before pulling back the curtain. "There's just a ton of weird looking guys out there. They've got a ton of beer!"

"Stupid boys." I mumbled.

"Let's go get some." He joked.

"Go to sleep, John." I smiled.

"How can I sleep with this racket?" He sighed, as he walked over to the door.

"What are you doing?" I asked slowly.

"Telling them to shut up." He replied, before unlocking the door and opening it. "SHUT THE FUCK UP! SOME PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO SLEEP."

"YOU SHUT THE FUCK UP. GO COMB YOUR MULLET." I heard someone shout, before John laughed.

"YOUR MOM LIKES MY MULLET THE WAY IT IS, BRO!" He yelled back.

I heard a beer bottle break. "YOU LITTLE FUCKER. WELL, I OUGHTA--" The same guy screamed, before John slammed the door shut. "Oh, shit. He's not very happy with me."

I sat up in the bed and threw my arms up. "John!?"

"I was just having a nice conversation with him." He said, as a beer bottle hit the door.

John jumped and took my suitcase off of the chair, before setting it on the ground. He grabbed the chair and stuck it underneath the doorknob, so the door couldn't be opened, and he smiled proudly. He stood there for a minute, and when he realized the guys weren't going to bother us, he came back into the bed and wrapped his arms around me again.

"Now goodnight." John smiled.

"Goodnight." I chuckled, before closing my eyes, and drifting off to sleep.