A Single Daffodil

“I still can’t believe Monster Energy sponsors you, Jayden.” I was balancing on a wooden plank as I leaned over the metal wired fence that stood between me and Jayden, who was standing on the motocross track. The laminated VIP Pit Pass dangled around my neck, clinking against the fence as summer’s gusty winds filled the stadium. “It’s both a blessing and a curse because now I have four cases of the energy drink sitting in the trunk of Harry’s car, thanks to your manager. He was trying to convince me that’ll last me a good month.”

“You need five more cases to last you a month.” Jayden laughed, holding onto the metal railing as he kicked the excess dirt off his boots. He was completely decked out in his racing gear, except for the goggles and helmet, both of which were sitting on a stool near his bike behind him. His body armor protruded slightly beneath his red, long-sleeved shirt that bared the Monster Energy logo. He started cracking his knuckles and neck, which was something Jayden would do whenever he got nervous.

“That’s what I’m saying!” I laughed. “So. Are you nervous?”

Today was Jayden’s Thor Mega Series race, which was a big event for all Motocross competitors. Riders from around the nation have been competing all weekend at Miami’s biggest Motocross arena. I’d been here many times before to support Jayden, but this particular race was the most important for Jayden because he was competing against the top professionals. Ever since he was featured on the cover of Motocross Magazine and was (somehow) tagged as one of America’s “hottest riders” in Esquire magazine and GQ, a lot of people have been paying attention to him. He was one of the top dogs now, and I don’t think Jayden really knew how to handle all the newfound attention.

“Nah, not really.” Jayden shrugged, pulling out his racing gloves from his back pocket. He carefully started to pull them over his hands. I knew Jayden well enough to know he was lying. He quickly changed the subject. “Is everyone here? I put everyone’s name on the guest list.”

“Yes, everyone’s here.” I smiled, quickly looking over my shoulder to peak up at the VIP section of the stadium. It had an indoor area and closed off balcony for guests to overlook the entire racetrack. “Liam bought a foam finger and Niall ate all the Dorito chips. I was actually about to grab some cheesy nachos for Niall before heading back up there.”

Jayden gave me a tight smile as he continued to crack his knuckles. I bit down on my lip as I watched him. He was tense and had a hard expression on his face. I knew his pre-race jitters were getting to him, especially since a lot was riding on Jayden for this race. If he scores in the top three, which I know he will, he’ll earn enough points for the AMA Pro-Am Motorcross event, which will then lead into the Supercross--that’s the most important event of all. Jayden was an amazing athlete and was completely dedicated to this sport. While he’s pretty indifferent and casual about most things, he’s adamant and resolute about biking. He evolved into a different person when he put on his racing gear. He was strict and exhaustingly insistent on being the best that he could be.

“Hey.” I said seriously, reaching over the railing to put my hand on his padded shoulder. “You’re going to be great and you’re going to win. And when you do, we’re going to drink tons of Dr. Pepper until we explode.”

Now Jayden was genuinely smiling. “I think I’m going to need something a little more...grown up than soda after this race.”

“Well then it’s a good thing I have a bottle of rum hidden in my bag upstairs!” I grinned, knowing full well it was what Jayden would want after today.

“I love you.” He sighed a breathe of relief. “I better go. I still have an interview at the Monster Energy stage, and then I have a tech test with the bike.”

“Love you, too.” I hugged him tightly before letting him go. “Good luck! We’ll see you after the race.”

We parted ways, Jayden walking towards his propped up dirt bike and technician crew and me heading towards all the food trucks located behind the stands. Jayden wouldn’t race for another thirty minutes, so I had enough time to grab myself a large Dr. Pepper and Niall’s cheesy nachos.

Just three or four steps underneath Miami’s roasting Sun was enough to get you winded. The middle of summer in south Florida was a nightmare to walk around in if you weren’t at the beach. Not even my loose, flimsy white tank top and denim high-waisted shorts were enough to keep me cool in this muggy weather.

I moaned when I noticed there was a long line waiting in front of the nacho truck that was parked opposite of the stands. I grudgingly pushed myself forward, stopping behind the last person in line. I knew if I didn’t get the stupid nachos for Niall, I wouldn’t hear the end of it from him or Sophia.

I lamely waved my phone by my face, attempting to keep myself cooler as I melted under the blaring sun. God, it felt like I was getting molested by a thousand suns. I couldn’t help but fantasize about how nice it was going to be when I return to the VIP section, where the cold air conditioning was waiting for me. I was ready to bathe in it.

I tried to fantasize about anything cold-related at this point, and cautiously avoided the mirages that were blurring my eyesight from a couple feet away.

Like the mirage of Jessica Franklin, for example. I had to take a double take to confirm if it was really her walking towards me in a bikini top and short denim shorts. Honestly, the shorts could pass as underwear.

Please, God, only be a mirage and not the actual Jessica Franklin that I’ve grown to despise over the years.

I pretended like I didn’t see her, immediately looking down at my phone as if I was reading an incoming text. Unfortunately for me, she recognized me instantly and came over to me.

Great.

“Well if it isn’t my little famous basketball cutie, Vita Spoelsta.” She greeted me in her usual high-pitched girly voice. It made me want to gag. “Fancy seeing you here.”

She was alone, surprisingly. Jessica Franklin was the type of girl who had an entourage of followers behind her at all times. It was like a security blanket for her, otherwise she was too exposed.

“Jayden is racing today.” I responded stiffly, hoping she’d get the point and leave me the hell alone. She was either too stupid to realize I hated her or just enjoyed it, because she decided to pester me some more.

“Duh! Of course!” She giggled. “And where’s your new boy toy? I’ve seen you two on the internet a lot recently. Don’t think I haven’t heard about you stealing him away from my girl, Tanya. That wasn’t very nice, you know.”

I turned to face her and slowly lowered my Ray Ban sunglasses to show her my irritated stare. “Oh, I’m sorry, did I insult Tanya by preventing her from raping Harry at your party? He was nearly unconscious from that stupid Billy drink that you gave him. You knew exactly what you were doing and quite frankly, I didn’t appreciate it.”

She laughed, like I said something funny. “It’s not like I forced him. Don’t be so prude, Vita.” I was about to ring her neck right then and there, but she kept speaking before I could do it. “But, wait. Are you guys, like, dating now?”

“Yeah. What’s it to you?” I asked defensively, looking over the person’s head in front of me to see if the line to the food truck had moved at all. It hasn’t.

“Cute.” She whined in the most condescending tone of voice ever. I had no idea where she was going with this. “It’s gonna be a real drag when you guys do the whole long distance thing when he leaves Miami, huh?”

I turned away from the food truck to give Jessica a puzzled look. She was smirking, like she was prepared for that reaction this whole time.

“Oh! Oops. You guys haven’t talked about that yet, have you?” She giggled again. I almost punched her in the face. “My bad. I don’t know how you guys are going to do it, to be honest. Isn’t his band on the road, like, all the time? You’ll see him like what? Once a year? Yikes! That’s gonna suck.”

I gulped away the rage I felt bubbling up in my throat and tried to ignore the sudden bad taste in my mouth. The line had moved a couple of feet forward. I stepped forward before addressing the dumb hoe next to me. “That’s none of your business, Jessica.”

“Ugh! You’re so right!” She pretended to moan, but I knew she was pleased with herself. “Well, I’m outtie. I’m on the hunt for an iced coffee stand. Enjoy your...” She paused, looking at the nacho truck I was waiting in line for. She made a ‘yikes’ face. “...nachos.”

And with that, she cut in front of me and continued walking. I watched after her with a grim expression. I was angry for letting her win that one. What she said really got to me, and I hated myself for it.

“Bitch.” I muttered the word under my breathe with absolute disbelief. She had every intention of getting under my skin, and congrats to her, she did, but why? For Tanya’s defense? Probably. She had no idea what she was talking about with the whole long distance crap.

But then again, I had no idea what I was talking about either. The truth was, I never put any thought into what would happen after Harry went back to England. I was living in the now, because that was enough for me. I didn’t worry about the future.

Until now.

I ordered the cheesy nachos and walked back to the VIP section in a daze. I couldn’t shake the twist of irritating worry that completely consumed my entire being. I realize now how brainless I’ve been for thinking the honeymoon phase with Harry would last forever. Summer was almost over and so was One Direction’s recording time at their studio. The thought made me sick to my stomach. Were we even going to talk about it?

After showing my Pit Pass to about twenty security guards (they doubled up on security for the VIP section after realizing who One Direction was), I walked inside to see that everyone was already out on the balcony except Niall and Sophia. They were canoodling on one of the many couches in the sitting area.

“I just climbed the highest mountains, swam the seven seas, and journeyed through the Sahara desert to get you these damn nachos, Niall.” I practically threw them at him. “You better enjoy every single one of them like its your last.”

He grinned up at me, gratefully digging into them. “You’re the absolute best, love!”

I turned on my heels and journeyed over to the balcony, where I spotted Harry and the rest of the boys leaning against the railing. I lingered by the open sliding glass door, watching Harry cheer along with Liam to the sound of the presenter’s voice echoing Jayden’s full name to the stadium. Watching Harry made me realize that I had been living in the sweet region of ignorance. The silver lining that I had apparently been stuck in since the moment I’ve started dating Harry was about to disappear. I wasn’t ready for it. Things were so good. Too good, in fact. And as cliche as it sounded, I couldn’t imagine what it would be like without Harry around. I’ve been craving this kind of relationship for...what felt like forever. Was Harry even considering a long distance relationship when he leaves? Thinking about all of this was suddenly making me dizzy.

I finally walked over to the railing and leaned into Harry’s lshoulder. He looked down at me and grinned with excitement. “There you are! I was wondering where you wandered off to!”

“Sorry.” I apologized meekly. “The line at the food truck was awful.”

Harry caught onto my solemn mood quick. “Hey, you alright?”

“Yeah, yeah. Just a headache from the sun.” I lied, focusing my attention towards the racetrack. I could see Jayden lining up his bike next to six other bikes in the race. “I’m good.”

The dirt bike engines revved to life, and reverberated around the closed in arena. The crowds started cheering --Liam was waving his new foam finger--and the timer was counting down. Harry easily wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me closer to him. I felt his hand push back my blond curls away from my face as he leaned in to plant a kiss on my hair.

The timer rang at zero, the crowds cheered, the seven dirt bikes jerked forward, and the race had begun.