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“But it’s all concrete. In the distance, you can see the river, but looking out to this,” I said pointing to the landscape in front of us, “it makes you feel alive.”
Cali looked at the view as if seeing it for the first time. He took a moment to admire it and then turned back to me.
“Are you ready to go?”
“I’ve been ready since the moment you told me,” I said with a smile.
“Then I have a surprise for you,” he said with more excitement than I had ever seen on him.
“What’s that?”
“Let’s head out,” he said leading me through the house and onto the front porch. There was a truck parked on the driveway that I hadn’t seen before. “How about you drive?”
“You want me to drive?”
“Yeah. It’s your truck. You may as well get used to driving it,” he said, cracking a smile.
“My truck?”
“It’s not much but I figure it’s better than being stuck here all day. It’s yours for as long as you need it.”
“You’re giving me your truck?”
“It’s not mine. It belongs to a friend. But he doesn’t need it, and since you lost your car in the accident, we both thought you should have it.”
Stunned, I stared at the truck and then turned to Cali. I barely knew what to say.
“I know it’s not much to look at…”
“No, it’s beautiful. No one’s ever done something so nice for me before.”
“You only say that because you haven’t driven it,” Cali said with a chuckle. “Believe me, it’s not that big a deal. But I want you to be able to get around if you need to. It’s the least I can do.”
I wanted to kiss Cali so badly that my heart hurt. He had to be the sweetest, kindest guy I had ever met. I stared at him not knowing what to do with myself. I was torn between collapsing into tears and throwing my legs around his waist and losing my tongue down his throat.
“We should head out. We can take the long way to give you a little practice driving a clunker like this.”
Getting into the truck, I had a feeling I never got driving in any of my family’s fancy cars. There was something about this ten-year-old pickup; it felt like love. There’s a difference when you get a gift from someone who has everything compared to getting one from someone who has so little.
Cali’s gesture made me feel special. Like I was valued. Nothing my father had ever given me made me feel like that.
Pulling away, the rumble of the engine gave me a thrill. Gripping the oversized wheel, I felt like I was reigning in a monster. It definitely took some getting used to. But by the time we pulled up to his friend’s two-story ranch house, I was feeling confident.
“What are your friends’ names again?” I said staring at the place nervously.
“It’s Quin and Cage who live here. Quin goes to school with me and Cage graduated two years ago. Now he teaches football at our local high school.
“Titus will also be there with his boyfriend Lou. Claude will be there, and I think Kendall will be there as well. Kendall is the boyfriend of Cage’s brother. Cage’s brother plays professional football. I’m not sure why he’s not in town right now, but Kendall is a part of the group so he’s here.”
“Marcus isn’t going to be here?”
“Marcus?”
“Yeah, he’s the only other person I know.”
“He’s not really friends with Quin or Cage, and they’re the ones who usually host.”
“Do you not like Marcus, or something?
