I can’t help but think about him asking me if I trusted him, and how somehow, even as we’re gaining speed, I feel more safe than I have in a long time. I can feel him laughing underneath my arms as if the faster we go, the more of the weight that was surrounding him at his house leaves him.
I grow concerned when he takes a turn, which leads us in the opposite way of my house.
“This is the wrong way?” I shout. I’m not even sure if he can hear me, but he nods his head, pulling the throttle more and shooting us forward. “Where are we going?” I shout again, but he shakes his head. I panic, trying to figure out how I’m going to get off of this bike before he gets to wherever we’re going. He rolls to a stop at a light and I try to rip my arms from around him, but he grabs onto them, holding me in place.
“Stop.” He demands me. “You’re fine. Just taking a ride, clearing my head.” Something about his voice calms me immediately and I know it sounds completely insane. The light turns and we take off once again.
I lean my head against his back and, just like he’s doing, I let the sound of the engine attempt to clear my own.
I’m surprised when he suddenly serves to the side and quickly rolls to a stop. I unlock my arms from around him and he turns, looking at me as he turns off the engine. “Tell me something.”
“What?”
“Why were you on the property? You said you were getting some air cause you and your boyfriend had a fight.”
“Yeah, that’s what I said.” I nod my head telling him yes.
“30 miles away from your house?” I don’t want to answer him because I have a feeling the actual answer will piss him off, so I just nod my head as we just stare at one another. “Let me guess, you live with him, don’t you?”
I hesitate as I nod my head again.
“I had a feeling.” He shakes his head. “So tell me, why were you so far away from your house, lost?”
“Um.” I pause, breaking eye contact with him and looking down at the ground. I watch his hand as it comes up, and he tilts my chin to look at him. Something about his eyes drawing the truth out of me. “We were on our way home and we were fighting. He pulled over and kicked me out of the car.”
“What the fuck?” He snaps out as he looks away from me and when he looks back, I can read the rage in his eyes. “He kicked you out of the car, 30 miles from your house, and left you there?” He asks as if to recap just to make sure that he had all the details correct.
“Yeah.” It’s a barely there whisper. He shakes his head as he turns back around. He cranks the bike up again before pulling the throttle back, and spinning the bike around. I can smell the burning of the rubber on the asphalt as he does so. I cling around him tightly before we’re moving back down the road.
I’m almost ashamed as I try to bury my face against his back, not looking at where we’re going. So I’m surprised when I feel the bike turn and look up, seeing the same gravel road that we rode down on the way out.
“Where are we going?” I shout as the bike rolls close to the gate and it opens. He doesn’t answer me, though.
When we roll into the garage, and he turns the engine off. “This doesn’t look like my house.” I can’t help but mutter and he chuckles, looking back at me.
“I’m not taking you there. At least, not yet.”
“Why?”
“Because your boyfriend left you on the side of the road.” He shakes his head as he pushes the button and the door closes again. “He left you there, like you were trash.”
“Because you strike me as the chivalrous type.”
He laughs, nodding his head. “What do you mean by that?”
“I mean, we met with you having a gun in my face.” His smirk grows as he kicks off of the bike and walks towards the door, walking into the house, and leaving me. “Wait.” I mumble, stumbling off of the bike and walk after him into the house. “Whoa.” I gasp at the inside of the house. Even if all the lights are off inside, I can still see the lavish kitchen. “Where did you go?” I call out, but he doesn’t respond, but the only light that’s on is coming from a door across the kitchen.
The door leads to a staircase which I can only guess leads to a basement. I hesitate. “You’re not going to kill me down here, are you?”
His laughter echoing up the stairs as the only response.
I’m uncomfortable as I walk down the stairs, but the further I walk, I see that it’s not merely a basement, but a completely finished hallway. There are doors on both sides of the hallway, with one standing open with a dim light on inside of it.
I see him standing with his back to me as I walk in.
“Also, you strike me as the type who doesn’t really date.”
He turns around and shakes his head. “You’re right.”
