Page 53 of Stops Along the Way
I want to channel that energy, to be good in a crisis, but I’m hiccupping, still fighting back tears.
“It’s all right,” Amelia says, pulling away from the phone once more, hearing me sniffle. “Triple A will be here soon.”
“You called them already?” Reaching out, I drag my sister’s arm to move her away from another circling dragonfly.
“On the call,”she mouths, nodding toward my phone and putting the speaker of hers under my chin. “Can you read the card number that Dad just texted?”
Consulting the group chat, I read aloud the number for the AAA representative waiting on the other end, then Amelia puts the phone back to her ear. “Did you get that?” She nods and continues arranging our tow.
“What happened?” Grady calls out. The guys are finally nearby and watching the smoke emit from the car’s hood.
“No idea. It started shaking and then all this smoke,” I say, gesturing to Amelia as she wraps up the phone call. “We’re getting it towed.”
“Dang.” Declan shakes his head and looks from the car to all the vehicles speeding by on the highway before swatting at what must’ve been the sound of a bug buzzing by his ear. “Good spot to wait…”
“You guys don’t have to stay,” I insist, feeling like it’s somehow my fault that we’re all going to be stuck here. “I don’t know how long it will all be. You can head on home and—”
Declan gives me an angry look, his brow furrowed in a way I’ve only seen once before, when he was wrapping up that call in the Roll Again storage closet. “You seriously think I’m going to leave you here on the side of the highway?”
“No, it’s just—”
“That’s never going to happen.” He wraps his arms around me, and I no longer care what our siblings may or may not have picked up on as I lay my head against his chest, listening to his heart beat just as fast as mine is.
“We can all go sit in the SUV,” Grady offers.
Amelia hangs up the phone. “I’d rather wait here.”
The look on my sister’s face right now is downright murderous, but Grady doesn’t seem deterred. “Isn’t that the whole point of having a support vehicle on this journey? So you don’t have to stand on the side of the highway?”
“They said it’ll only be about ten minutes,” Amelia counters, shaking her head as a bug flies too close to her, causing her to growl and wave her hands around in commanding frustration.
“I guess ten minutes isn’t too bad,” Grady replies, undaunted. He’s doing his best to channel his cheery voice, the one that has a tendency to feel fake, but right now it has an air of reassurance and stability. Like we could all scream and cry and rage yet he’d still be here, with that ridiculous smile on his face, ready to make the best of the situation. He reaches forward to guide the persistent dragonfly away from my sister while handing her his water bottle. “Here. Have something to drink.”
I know this mood of Amelia’s all too well and half expect her to slap the bottle away, but she accepts it and takes a sip, looking back up at Grady with a warm, grateful smile. I blink from the roadside debris in my eye…and from the feeling of déjà vu.
.....
The big tow truck arrives, pulling off the highway ahead of our car. Even though I know they’re coming to our rescue, it’s frightening to watch a giant vehicle veer in our direction. Themechanic who hops out is younger than I expected, close to our age, with spiky blue hair and a tailored jumpsuit with a name tag that readsSam.
They walk around our car, checking it briefly to make sure there’s no imminent risk, before heading over to us. “Hey, you all all right?”
“We’re okay,” Amelia says.
“It’s not going to blow up?” I ask, feeling ridiculous for asking while also needing verbal confirmation.
Sam chuckles. “Not typically.” Then they hold out a finger, counting the four of us. “Though I’ve only got room to drive two. I thought you said—”
“Don’t worry,” Grady reassures, gesturing farther up the highway. “We have another car parked down that way and just walked back to make sure everything was okay.”
“Oh, good.” Sam nods. “Do you have the keys?”
I’m reluctant to admit this in front of my sister, but, hey, we had to evacuate quickly. “I think I left them in the car. It should still be unlocked.”
“Not a problem,” Sam says. “Y’all can wait in the truck while I load this all up.”
We walk over, and Grady opens the large side door, offering a hand to help me, then Amelia up into the truck. “We’ll drive along behind you guys?”
“Sounds good,” my sister says, squeezing Grady’s palm in appreciation before letting go.
