Hold on for the Long Ride

‘You’re a cunt!’ I screamed at my step father, he looked at me with tears in his eyes; my mother was crying of disappointment, I hadn’t cried for five years and I wasn’t starting now.

‘You’re throwing away your life.’ He shouted at me, you must be thinking I’m crazy, he throw my approve letter from oxford at me, my step brother and sister were looking at me,

‘You’re wrong.’ I told him, my sister was screaming at me to stop shouting.

‘Alex, please don’t do this.’ My brother told me.

‘You don’t know a thing about me.’ I screamed at my stepfather.

‘Then tell me’ he shouted back at me.

‘Why? I hate it here I just want to get as far away from you as possible. Why move me half way across the world, to somewhere I hate I wouldn’t know a fucking thing, I want to stay’

‘Don’t you dare leave!’ my mum said finally finding her voice.

‘Why?’

‘Because I need you, more than ever Alex pleases’ mum told me.

‘now you need me, were where you five years ago when I said that to you when I came running to you with the cuts down my arms with the tears down my face, when I told you everything, oh wait I was forget about, just like now, I’m turning that letter down from oxford, I don’t want to go to fucking law school.’ I replied, finally getting off my chest everything I needed to.

That was almost 12 days ago, now you may be thinking why the hell I had that argument with my step father. I had been given my first ever approving from Oxford University. I didn’t want to go my whole way through school doing well to impress my father he died almost 5 years ago, he was forever telling me to do well, my mother then married a cunt of a step father, I hated him to bits, but when my acceptance letter came from oxford I was happy but when my mother announced we were moving to America, I could get accepted into a university easily, but I wanted to stay here, I loved being able to go were ever I wanted to go, have my friends, they were the people I realised on.

I was now sitting in the middle of my new bedroom, it was plain white, apparently I could paint it how I wanted, Florida, home of the sun I sighed and got up and walked over to the window it was raining, perfect I thought to myself, I picked up my leather jacket that was sitting on the side, I pulled my arms through the sleeves and left the room, I walked straight past my so called family, and walked straight down the street the rain wasn’t that heavy, I walked straight until I came to a little shop, a music shop I smiled and walked in, it was warm in here, I shut the door behind me and looked around at the guitars and drums, this was where I belonged somewhere, where I could keep calm, there was no-one else in the shop expect for a boy sitting on the counter listening to music tapping a beat and writing down things as he went, I looked at the boy, he couldn’t have been that old, he had long ginger hair that looked like it had been brushed in a long while, he was wearing a top that had been cut into a tank top, you could see some of the beginnings of his tattoos which looked like they were going to be a part of a sleeve, I smiled, then looked at his face, he’s lip was pierced, I watched him write something down then carried on looking around the shop I dug my hands into my pockets to see I had 50 dollars in it, I smiled, I put this in here yesterday as a ‘just in case’ money, I looked at the guitar straps, I needed a new one and to be honest I wanted to speak to the boy, he’d be this first person I’d spoke to since getting here. I pulled a purple one of the rack and smiled ‘this one.’ I thought to myself. I walked over to the counter and placed it next to the boy; he took out his headphones and jumped off the counter.

‘Hey.’ The boy answered with punching some buttons on the cash machine

‘Hi.’ I simply said. The boy looked at me

‘You British?’ he asked me.

‘Yeah? Why?’ I answered with; I’d actually forgotten that I wasn’t at home anymore.

‘I like your accent. You on holiday then?’ he told me I smiled.

‘I wished, no I just moved here’ I replied with.

‘Really? I thought I hadn’t seen you around before.’ he told me.

‘Yeah, moved today.’ I told him.

‘Ah right, so what made you come here then? This music shop?’

‘I walked down my road, carried on walking until I found this.’

‘Well todays your lucky day I’m Travis.’ He told me.

‘Alex.so why work here then Travis?’ I replied, Travis, now that’s different.

‘I was forced, it’s my friend’s dad’s shop and I said I’d work here to pay back the money I owned him.’ he told me. Swiping the strap.

‘Why, what did you do?’ I asked him handing him the fifty dollars.

‘my band and I borrowed his van, we didn’t have enough money to pay him back then so I said when we came home I’d work here to re pay him.’ he told my getting my change for the strap.

‘You’re in a band then? Where did you go?’ I asked him, maybe too many questions.

‘Yeah. I am. It was just around Florida and a bit more up north.’ He told me.

‘Ah right, makes sense now.’

‘You should come see us play.’ He burst out. ‘We’ll you don’t know anyone and I could
introduce you to my friends, they’d love to meet you I’m sure.’ He finished with, I really could
use with some friends seeing as I had to leave mine.

‘You’re on then.’

‘Wicked, is tonight okay? We normally go rehearse then go for dinner or something.’ He told me bagging my strap up.

‘Yeah that’s fine.’

‘Let’s have your number then, I can come meet you before.’ Travis told me, I pulled out my phone and handed it to him, he typed in his number, I watched him ring it quickly then hang up,

‘What time roughly?’ I asked him once he’d handed my phone back.

‘7 ish?’

‘Okay cool I’ll see you then,’ I told him, he handed me my bag and the change.

‘Bye alex.’

‘Bye Travis.’

I walked out the door and straight back to my house, and up to my bedroom, my so called mother had paid someone to put everything together, I walked into my walk in wardrobe and put my strap on the floor, I rummaged through my band t-shirts and tops, I felt a vibration in my back pocket I reached into it to see it was Travis.
‘I’ll be over about 6:30, where do you live? Xxxx’ he texted me.

‘Okay! 63, hunter’s road. Xxxx’ I replied then locked my phone and put it on my shelf, I looked at my clothes once again and pulled out my Def Leppard top .Then found my white shorts, I walked into the main part of my bedroom, my makeup and hair products were all placed out and my bed made, I found my iPod already plugged in to my docking station, I pressed play and on came, N A T I V E S. I stripped into my underwear and got into my shorts and top it was 6 now, to be honest I wanted to look nice, first impressions and all that bullshit.

I walked over to my hair things I turned on my hair straighteners and pulled them through my hair then added shit loads of hair spray in to my hair, I applied some makeup then looked at myself, hey I looked okay, I found my money and pulled out another 50 dollars that I put into my back pocket, I then looked at the time once again, it was half past now, I pulled my phone out my jeans that were now sitting on my floor, I had a text, I opened it, it was Travis.

‘Here! Xxxx’ it read it looked at it, he had just sent it. I grabbed my black leather jacket and my boots and ran down the stairs.

‘Bye.’ I shouted pulling on my shoes and opened the door and walked out shutting it behind me. I spotted Travis leaning up against a car. He waved at me and I waved back, he walked to me and pulled me into a hug.

‘Heyy again.’ He told me once he had left go of me.

‘Why haii there.’ I replied with.

‘you ready?’ he asked me and I nodded he lead me to his car then opened the door to it, I got in and he followed after starting the engine, I pulled my seatbelt on and he did the same he drove down the street past the music shop.

‘Do your friends know I’m going to be there?’ I asked him, the thought had only just crossed my mind, I wasn’t too worried about being the only girl there I just didn’t want it to be like quiet and why you here questions.

‘I texted them, they’re cool with it, anyway normally Charles is there and Snake I’m sure we could use someone else’s view’ He told me turning into a street.

‘Right okay.’ I told him leaning back into the car seat.

‘you need to be back before any time tonight it’s just because we normally don’t finish band practice till 11 then we go and get food.’

‘Don’t worry, I don’t have a curfew, I’m not really on speaking terms with my family at the
moment.’

‘Oh right, why?’ he asked me.

‘Didn’t want to come here.’ I shrugged my shoulders. Travis pulled into a drive and cut the engine.

‘I’m glad you came here.’ He told me, getting out the car, I followed and I watched him pick up a guitar from the back of his car, he held out his hand and I took it, I followed him down the path and for the first time in years I felt nervous, I never get nervous it’s me come on!? Travis knocked on the door and it opened to reveal another boy he must have been a similar age to Travis, he had deep brown long hair. He stood out the way to let us in, Travis walked in and I followed, the boy shut the door behind us.

‘So you’re Alex?’ he asked me.

‘That’s me.’ I replied with.

‘Danny.’ He pulled me into a hug.

‘Come on the rest are in the back.’ Danny told us and walked straight forward and through
some opened double doors and down the grass.

‘Travis?’ I whispered to him.

‘Yeah what’s up?’ he replied.

‘What’s your band called?’ I answered with.

‘We the kings. Don’t worry you’ll be fine.’ We reached a brick building; it wasn’t that big about the size of an average apartment.

‘And here’s where we practice.’ Danny told me opening a massive white door to reveal a small hall way, he walked in and I followed, he took us to a what could be a living room but was a room with sofas and guitars. There were two other boys sitting down.

‘Guys this is Alex.’ Travis told everyone, and the two boys got up.

‘I’m Hunter.’ One of them said.

‘Coley,’ the other said.

‘And as you now know I’m Alex.’ I told them, smiling.

‘Seeing as we’re only doing a bit of recording today you can relax.’ Hunter told me. He wrapped his arm around my shoulders and took me to another room were Travis and Danny were, it was fitted with a lot of high tech computers and in a cut of room a drum set was waiting.

‘Right Travis, you’re recording your vocals.’ Danny told him taking a seat by the computers. Travis nodded and went into a room that I could currently see into.

‘Alex come here you can help me.’ Danny told me pulling out a black swirly chair I sat down on it and pulled myself closer to the table.

‘Just watch the computer screen make sure the blue lines don’t go above the red. If they do look at the times and right it down. Got it?’ he asked me, I nodded.

‘Ready? Travis?’ Danny asked Travis and he nodded I heard the bass come in over the speakers then the drums and Travis began to sing, I looked at the screen just like Danny had asked checking to make sure it didn’t go over the red lines, to be honest he kept in the middle of them. I stopped paying any attention I was lost in Travis’ voice and how he used it. He stopped singing and I suddenly jumped back into reality.

‘Right, hunter you ready?’ Danny asked him, I watched as Travis came out the room and picked up a drink off the side. He then came over to me and he ushered me to stand up I did and he sat down on the seat and grabbed my waist and pulled me onto his lap. He lent my head back into his shoulders and I watched as hunter went into the room again, this time he had a guitar he hooked it up and started to play it. He gave a thumb up to Danny and he hit a button I watched as hunter played the guitar, Travis put the drink in front of me.

‘Want some?’ he whispered in my ear. I nodded and lent up to take it out his hands. He wrapped his arms around my waist and I took a sip of the drink then placed it on the table and went back to the same position and watched hunter play.

After hunter had finished Coley went into record his and this time Travis was looking at the computer clicking on things I wouldn’t understand he still had one arm wrapped around my waist and the other on the mouse.

‘See Florida’s not that bad.’ He whispered into my ear. I smiled and he took his hand off the mouse and started to play with my hair. I hadn’t let someone do this to me for a while and I missed it. I relaxed into Travis.

We both stayed like this when Danny went to record his drums, Travis had to do the same thing that Danny had just done, but he never let go of me he always had either his arm wrapped around my waist or on my thigh.

There was a ring from a door bell and Hunter got up and went to answered it, Coley then followed him. Danny was still recording his drums it was just me and Travis.

‘Who’s that?’ I asked Travis.

‘Charles and Snake, don’t worry they’ll love you,’ Travis told me placing a small kiss onto my scalp.

I heard the door open and some unfamiliar voices, I wasn’t as nervous as I was before, I had found myself here. I watched as two people walked in.

‘Sup guys’ one of them said.

‘Charles this is Alex.’ Travis told Charles the boy who had greeted me.

‘Charles. And this is snake.’ Pointing to another boy walking in.

I got on pretty well with all of the boys they had a good taste in music, it got to about half 11
when Danny finally gave in.

‘Right I’m starving!’ he announced.

‘Diner?’ Travis asked, we hadn’t moved for ages, he kept having to record different things but
would come back and sit with me again after. The boys all agreed and we left the room and went back into the house which now had more people.

‘Alright boys?’ the woman asked when we went in.

‘Yea.’ They all replied.

‘And whose this?’ the woman asked.

‘Oh mom this is Alex, she’s Travis neighbour.’ Danny told her, the woman who I know knew was Danny’s mother, and Travis told them how he met me right?

‘Hello Alex.’

‘Hello.’ I replied

‘Well you kids have fun out be back at a reasonable time please Danny.’ She told us and we
left the house, I and Travis got into his car while the others got into Danny’s. Travis started the engine and left towards the diner.

‘Travis?’ I asked him.

‘Yeah?’ he replied.

‘Did you tell them how you met me?’ I asked him, looking down at my feet.

‘I did but Danny’s mother doesn’t think we own anyone money, so he told me he’d think of a cover, I didn’t think he’d use it.’ He told me.

‘Oh right.’ I replied.

‘Come here.’ He told me removing his hand from the steering wheel and gestured for me to come to him, I pulled myself to him and he wrapped his arm around my shoulders, and went back to driving.