Chapter Thirty-Four

Jamie:

We regret to inform you that you have not been selected to attend our university for fall semester.

“Regret,” I said, my voice growing louder. “Regret. Here's what I'll do with your regret!” My fist curled around the letter, crumpling it into a ball and flinging it with all my strength. It flew out my open bedroom door, striking the wall with little impact.

That was the last one. They all said the same thing. With a GPA that was barely enough to graduate, I didn't know what I was expecting. Maybe that my dad's status as a state senator would hold some sway on my future.

Great. Just my luck. My father's footsteps, slightly muffled by the carpeting, came down the hall. I couldn't look at him as he stopped to pick up the ball of paper.

“Throwing things?” he asked, reaching to hand it back. Before I could take it from him, he thought better of it and started to flatten it out. “Hmmph.” His only response. I braced for his reaction, but he only released the letter, letting it float to the ground, and left without another word.

I had to get out of there. My fingers grazed the phone in my pocket, itching to call Callie, but all it'd do was prove that I wasn't good enough. Not for my father. Not for her.

Grabbing the shirt hanging on the back of my desk chair, I slid it over my head and swiped my keys off their hook. I was in my car and heading down the road in record time. Rolling my window down, I felt the warm spring air blast my face and pressed down harder on the gas pedal. Weaving in and out of cars, I knew where I was heading.

Dixon road was lined by preserve on one side and horse ranches on the other. It was deserted save for the odd car. I sped up, adrenaline pumping through my veins. The car slid toward the center of the road when I took a curve too fast, but I veered back over quickly.

Graduation was only a month away. I am ped up the speed. I had no idea what was next. I cranked up the stereo. Everyone I knew was going off to college or travel. A scream ripped through my chest.

Not everyone, I suddenly remembered, easing up on the gas. Callie had been trying to talk about this for months. She was just as scared as me. I slowed some more, breathing deeply with the need to see her.

The road curved as a cross street came in on the left next to an old, run-down barn. I tried to turn, but the car had other ideas.

I should have been frightened. I should have screamed.

Instead, I closed my eyes, stomping my foot down as hard as I could on the brake.

The car screeched. She protested, fought me with everything she had.

I slammed forward, my face bouncing off the steering wheel with a mighty crack. My eyes sprang open as I was jostled, the wheels bouncing along the rough terrain. Then it was over. I won. The car stopped five feet away from a large Florida pine that seemed to pop up from nowhere.

Breath returned to my chest with a whoosh as I panted and gasped, feeling at once relieved and exhilarated. I wiped an arm under my nose, my sleeve coming away bloody.

“Crap.” The word left me with a laugh. “That was close.”

My mind worked a mile a minute, slowly letting reality creep back in. My reasons for being out here, for needing the speed. Dad. College.

Needing something to do, I rummaged around, finding a napkin. Tearing it in two, I stuck an end up each nostril to staunch the bleeding. I turned the keys, only eliciting a loud coughing sound. “Dammit.”

Stepping out of the car, I was careful not to touch the burning hood. It smoked slightly. Looking around, I was glad to see I hadn't gone too far off the road.

Just as I started to get my bearings, a pair of headlights moved closer, all but blinding me in the process.

“You okay?” A man's voice yelled. He cut the lights, and I saw him get out of his truck. He was solidly built, walking with the confidence of someone in authority.

“I think so,” I finally answered.

The man looked back toward his truck, and it was the first time I noticed he wasn't alone. A girl sat in the passenger seat, but I couldn't make out her face.

“You need a ride somewhere?” he asked.

“Uh…” I looked at him skeptically, holding out my phone. “I can call my buddy.”

“Oh.” The man laughed suddenly. “Guess I should introduce myself. Logan Andrews.” He held his hand out for me to shake.

I took it, but still didn't get it.

“You know my sister Amelia.” He gestured up to the truck.

I swallowed hard, narrowing my eyes.

“We saw you veer off the road,” he explained. “She thought we should help.”

“What? Help you hide my body?”

“Come on.” Logan clapped me on the shoulder. “I have a buddy who can come tow your car.”

He made it nearly impossible to refuse his offer, and before I knew it, I was in the backseat of Logan's truck. Amelia turned in her seat to look at me.

“Jamie Daniels, you sir are an idiot.”

I jerked my head up to look at her and she continued.

“We saw how fast you were going. Dixon road is no joke.”

I leaned back, crossing my arms and looking away. “Give it a rest, Amelia.”

“No,” she stated. “We just helped your ass, so I have a right to say a few things to you.”

“And I have a right not to listen.”

“You're infuriating.” She turned to her brother. “Let's go to Jessie's.”

“Take me home.”

“No.” We stared at each other for a long moment before I couldn't take it anymore.

Jessie's was a coffee shop nearby. It was fairly quiet when we got there. Amelia ordered me to a booth in the back, and I had no choice, so I obeyed. She sat across from me with Logan beside her.

After ordering our drinks, she fixed me with a stare that didn't seem much like the girl I'd known. Had we really known each other at all?

“Tell me,” she said simply.

And I did. I didn't mention my dad other than his disappointment in me, but I found myself telling them about the colleges I'd applied to and been rejected. It felt good to talk to people who had no expectations of me, no hopes. Amelia was easy to talk to, and I suddenly found myself wondering why we'd never done much of it back when we were together.

Callie. That was why. I never put much effort into my relationship with Amelia because she wasn't the one I'd wanted to be with.

“Why do you want to go to college?” she asked once I was finished.

That was something I'd been asking myself since I'd applied. To make my family proud? To have some direction? Was it enough?

I shrugged, occupying myself by taking a long sip of coffee.

“Have you thought about doing something else?” Logan spoke for the first time since we'd sat down.

Again, I shrugged.

“I'm technically going to college,” Amelia started. “But not your typical school. Air Force Academy all the way.”

“Wait, really?” I looked at her in shock.

“Shows how much you paid attention.” Her worlds held a hint of scorn. “I've been working toward it for years.”

“Yeah,” Logan jumped in. “Because she's a traitor.”

“Y'all just need to get over it,” she responded with a laugh before turning to explain to me. “We're an army family. Three uncles, two cousins, and this big lug here.”

“I'm home on leave, but I head back to base in a few days.”

A sudden interest struck me, and I found myself leaning forward. “Are you glad you joined up?”

Logan's face brightened. “Best decision I ever made. Before, I didn't know anything. I was always getting in trouble. There's something about fighting for something bigger than ourselves that lets us figure out who we really are. It changed my life. Let me prove to people that I was more than the person I'd been.”

His words cemented themselves in my brain, and I knew without a doubt that they weren't ones I'd forget any time soon.