Page 64 of Somewhere Only We Know
If I wasn’t so terrified I would find this over-the-top. Like, a scooter ride through a foreign city—are you serious? Was Jack Tom Cruise? Also, were westealing?
With a sudden jerk, we were riding away from the crowds and I gasped, grabbing him around the waist before I could go flying off the scooter.
We wound through the narrow street, the fans growing smaller behind me along with the flashing of the light show, and it was so, so exhilarating. Without my hat, my hair was whipping everywhere, and I saw Jack bat it away from his face.
“Do you know how to drive one of these things?” I yelled.
“Sure!” he yelled back. “Well, kind of!”
We swerved around a couple crossing the street and they screamed as we drove by. Oh, God.
“Iknow how to drive a scooter!” I yelled. “Pull over!”
“What?”
“PULL OVER.”
I felt his hesitation and I pinched him, hard. He finally parked on a side street. I slid off and motioned for him to scoot back. He grinned, his hair sweaty and stuck to his face, and then he did as he was told.
I sat in front and grasped the handles. “Hold tight,” I said in a low growl, mimicking him. He laughed and did just that, his arms wrapped around my waist, his hands holding his elbows so that he was folded around me like an animal plushie with Velcro paws.
We pulled into the main road again, and I was careful to stay withtraffic, following behind a particularly confident and competent taxi. “Where are we going?” I hollered.
“I’ll navigate!” he yelled back.
So I followed Jack’s directions, turning right here, left there, shooting down an alley. Colorful neon storefronts blurred by in a dizzying rainbow streak, and the delicious smells of food wafted over us in quick bursts. One second you’d get a whiff of salty grilled meats and then suddenly it was the sugar-laced scent of egg waffles.
Through it all, Jack’s arms stayed hooked firmly around my waist, steady and strong. He leaned into me, pressed against my back. He surrounded me with warmth and a sense of security, even as I wondered if he had been lying to me the entire day.
Riding through the city like this, the wind in my face, the sound of the motor buzzing—I was able to focus on the acute feelings of this very second. Not thinking back and not thinking ahead.
“Let’s pull over here,” Jack finally said, his voice close to my ear. We were in front of a vintage shop lit up with small twinkle lights.
“This is it?” I asked as I parked curbside.
“Yeah. You need a disguise.”
Oh, right. I felt the top of my bare head after we got off the scooter. Jack crouched down to look at the name of the restaurant on the side of the scooter. “I’ll call the number to let them know where the bike is,” he said.
“How did you even turn it on without a key?” I asked.
He shrugged. Suddenly, I wanted to throttle him. The adrenaline from earlier had died down and I felt rage replace it.
“Whoareyou? Did you know who I was this entire time?”
There was a split second where I could tell he was going to lie to me.Again. But the hesitation turned into defeat, his eyes tired and his shoulders drooping. “I found out last night after you already passed out in my bed.”
“Lastnight?!” I screamed. A woman walking by us did a double-take and I covered my face with my hands. I couldn’t be spotted again so I walked into the vintage shop, the brass bell hanging on the door ringing as I entered.
Michael Jackson was playing quietly in the background and incense was burning, wafting over me aggressively. Incense was putrid enough on agoodday.
I nodded to the owner in quick greeting and feigned perusing a rack of nubby cardigans when Jack walked in, the bell signaling his arrival.
He came over to me immediately. “Hey. I’m sorry.”
I ignored him as I flipped through the sweaters, the skin of my fingertips already drying out from the wool.
“I found out last night, but I swear I didn’t know who you were until you were already at my place. And then after that… well, I kind of wanted to play along with the fantasy day you wanted.” His voice was soft, and while I wanted to cave and be okay with everything, I couldn’t. I was so comfortable with him and that comfort was because I thought he likedme. Not Lucky.
