We've Got This

The next morning I was up before my alarm, so I turned it off before carefully getting out of bed without waking Tyler. I maneuvered around the dark room with ease, grabbing clean clothes before heading into the bathroom to get dressed and brush my teeth as Tyler snored away in my bed.

When I was finished in the bathroom, I was expecting Tyler to still be sleeping, because I didn’t take that long. But I was wrong. When I opened the bathroom door, Tyler was standing right on the other side. “Holy shit,” I gasped, clutching my chest. “Why are you up?” I asked, moving past him back into the room.

“Good morning to you, too,” he chuckled. “Why are you up so early? Your appointment isn’t until nine, and it’s only six thirty. I figured after last night you would still be sleeping,” he replied.

“What do you mean, after last night? Yes, I cried myself to sleep, and I’m sorry about that, but that doesn’t mean that I was going to sleep any longer,” I said. I looked over at him as I turned on the light, and he looked hurt. I sighed. “Look, I’m sorry. I just absolutely hate crying in front of people; I try to be a very non-emotional person. It’s just easier sometimes. That, and I’m just not a morning person. I’m sorry,” I repeated, walking over and wrapping my arms around his waist in a hug.

“It’s okay, I understand. But crying and showing emotion doesn’t make you weak, if that’s what you’re thinking. It actually makes you really strong, so remember that,” he said, lifting my chin so I was looking him in the eyes.

I sighed and nodded, and he leaned down and kissed me sweetly. “I think what I need is one good, long, hard cry. One good meltdown to get all of this out of my system,” I replied. He chuckled a little bit with a cheeky grin on his face. “You thought I was gonna say dick, didn’t you?” I asked, smirking knowingly. He blushed and nodded. “Get your mind out of the gutter, Seguin,” I chuckled, leaving his grip and heading out of the room.

We went down to the kitchen and saw that Dad was already up. “Morning,” he said as he poured himself some coffee. “You guys want anything for breakfast?” he asked.

“No thanks,” I replied. “Tyler, do you want anything to eat?” I asked.

“I’m good, thanks though,” he replied.

“Don’t forget about your appointment,” Dad said. “When were you planning on leaving?”

I shrugged. “Probably about eight thirty or so. Maybe earlier because traffic on 53 sucks on the morning,” I replied.

We just sat at the kitchen table and talked until it was time to head over to the doctor. “Now don’t laugh at my car, she’s pretty old and not as fancy as your cars,” I said as we headed outside and to my car, which was always parked on the street. My car was a teal 2002 Pontiac Grand Prix. For some reason Tyler smiled when he saw it. “What?” I asked. “I know, it’s not much compared to a Maserati, but it’s gotten me where I’ve needed to go for a long time.”

He held his hands up defensively, but kept the smile on his face. “I wasn’t gonna say anything,” he chuckled. “I just think this car is very…you,” he added, getting into the passenger seat.

It took us about twenty minutes to get to the doctor’s office. Luckily it was past the time of morning rush hour, so the highway wasn’t super crowded anymore. I think I scared Tyler a little bit with my super aggressive driving, because he had a small look of horror and relief when we finally got there. I just looked at him and laughed. “You didn’t die, did you?” I chuckled.

He rolled his eyes and shook his head. “You are never driving ever again,” he replied, holding the door to the office open for me.

“Well, that’s going to be a little difficult for you, seeing as we drove my car, and you have no idea where anything is,” I quipped. “Sooo, I think you’re stuck with me driving this weekend,” I chuckled, lightly tapping his face as I walked past him and into the office.

“There’s this little thing called GPS, my dear,” he replied, lowering his voice because we were in the waiting room now. “I’d rather not risk my life with you behind the wheel anymore. Besides, the man should drive his lady around anyway, not the other way around,” he said, wrapping his arm around my shoulders and kissing my temple.

“You do know that we’re in the twenty-first century, right? Women can drive men around as well,” I replied, standing up because I was called for my MRI. “See you in a bit,” I said, leaning down and kissing him quickly before following the technician further into the office.

I hated MRIs. I hated how you had to stay absolutely still for what felt like forever, but I was also a bit claustrophobic. But, luckily for me, although the test took almost half an hour, I wasn’t completely inside the tube; I was only in up to my waist. I even got ear plugs because the machine was so damn loud, so I stayed perfectly still with my fingers holding the ear plugs in.

When it was finally done, I breathed a sigh of relief as I stood up off the table. I was then escorted out of the room and back out to the waiting room; to a waiting Tyler. He didn’t notice me at first, because he was messing around on his phone, so I scared him a little bit when I tapped on his shoulder from behind. “Jesus Christ!” he exclaimed, jumping out of his seat and turning to face me, making me laugh hysterically. “Why?” he asked, trying to catch his breath.

“Because it’s fun, and funny,” I laughed. “But anyway, are you ready to go? They’re gonna call my mom with the results later,” I added, picking up my purse from the seat next to the one Tyler was sitting in a moment ago.

He nodded. “Yep,” he replied, taking my hand and intertwining his fingers in mine, making me smile. “You’re still gonna show me around, right?” he asked as we walked to the car.

“Do you still want me to? I mean, you did almost die on the way here,” I said, sarcasm dripping from every word with a smirk on my face. He just gave me a look as he got into the passenger seat. “Oh my God, he’s risking his life again!” I exclaimed, still standing next to the car.

“Just shut up and get in the car!” he shouted. I rolled my eyes and chuckled, opening my door and getting into the driver’s seat. He immediately grabbed my face and turned me to him, planting a short but passionate kiss on my lips, making me smile like an idiot. “You better enjoy driving me around today, because I’m driving for the rest of the weekend,” he added as I started the car.

“Boo, you’re no fun,” I said, frowning at him. “And besides, you don’t know where anything is; we’ve been over this. You don’t know how to get to where we need to go for the game tomorrow, and you certainly don’t know how to get to Six Flags on Sunday. Hell, even I don’t know how to get to Six Flags,” I said as I turned onto the highway.

“But you know how to get to the Cubs game?” he asked.

I nodded. “We’re not driving the whole way; we’re taking the Red and Blue Line ‘L’ trains. We’re parking at the station,” I replied. “That way, we can drink as much as we want and not have to worry about driving right away. That, and it’s much cheaper than trying to find parking in Wrigleyville.”

He nodded. “So, where are you gonna take me first on this little journey?” he asked.

I shrugged. “I dunno. Where would you like to go?” I asked.

He took a moment to ponder before responding. “Well, why don’t we start with where you went to school?” he asked.

I scoffed. “I am not driving all the way out to Macomb,” I laughed.

He rolled his eyes. “Not college, Miss Sassypants. You’re other schools.”

“Ah, got it,” I said with a smirk as I took an exit off of the highway. “Well, we can drive over to my middle school. My grade school and high school are both within walking distance of the house,” I continued, and he nodded.

About ten minutes later we were pulling into the parking lot of my middle school. “Here we are; Hellen Keller Junior High School. In all its glory,” I said, putting the car in park and letting a sigh escape.

“Small school,” he said.

I nodded. “Yeah, but it’s more long. It was a bitch having to get all the way across the school with practically your entire locker in your arms in three minutes,” I grumbled. “And before you ask, no, we weren’t allowed to carry out backpacks around during the day,” I added.

“You don’t seem very happy to be here,” Tyler said hesitantly.

“The two years I spent here weren’t the best,” I replied. He gave me a concerned look. “I was a very unfortunate-looking when I was here; glasses, braces, face full of zits, bigger boobs than normal for a 13-year-old, the whole ten yards, so I was bullied a bit; especially on the bus. I don’t really want to talk about it,” I said, putting the car in drive and pulling out of the parking lot. “There isn’t really much else for me to show you besides my schools, so we’ll figure out something else to do when we’re done,” I continued as I drove home.

When we got back to the house I turned to Tyler. “Ready to see my high school?” I asked. “We’ll go there first, because it’s farther, so we’ll hit my grade school on the way back,” I added.

“Yep, I’m ready,” he replied with a smile, holding his hand out for me. I smiled and threaded my fingers through his as we started the short walk to my high school.

“Here we are,” I said as we approached the building. “I wish I could show you the inside; I still remember where my locker was,” I chuckled. “Oh! I can show you the atrium on the other side,” I added, picking up my pace again.

“Wow,” he said when we go to the other side of the building. The atrium was the newest addition to the school, and it housed the science wing. The atrium was all windows, so we could easily see the inside. “I only had classes in this part of the building for three years; it was still being completed when I started here. Most of my classes were upstairs and, let me tell you, it was an absolute bitch getting in and out of this part of the school,” I said, looking through the window.

“Why’s that?” he asked.

“Because there wasn’t anything connecting this part to the rest of the school on the second floor; you could only get in and out of this part from the first floor, through one set of doors. So, you can imagine, passing period was hell getting out of this part and going all the way across the school in five minutes. But, I was pretty good at bobbing and weaving through the throngs, so I was never late for my next class. But I think they’ve knocked out a wall and connected the second floor since I’ve been gone.”

Tyler nodded, taking in everything I was saying. “Did you have an easier time here than in middle school?” he asked.

I shrugged. “I guess, but not by much. I wasn’t bullied anymore, if that’s what you mean. I met Tommy here, but look how that turned out. I just didn’t have very many friends, because I was so different. And the friends I did have, I didn’t fit in very well with; I conformed a lot, so even though I was having a good time on the outside, I never really knew who I was. I was a good student and athlete, but other than that, I couldn’t really identify with anyone. I felt like I had to go along with what everyone else was doing, aside from drugs and alcohol and all that; I knew better than that. I was just so scared to be different, because to me, being different meant being alone. And I didn’t want to be alone.

But in eleventh grade I had a sort of awakening. The girl that had been my best friend since kindergarten just up and stopped talking to me; kicked me to the curb. I was a way better friend to her than she was to me, and I guess she realized that she couldn’t control me anymore; that I had a mind of my own and could think and make decisions for myself. I was so much better off without her, and she helped me realize that it’s okay to be different; to do what I want to do and be who I want to be even when people don’t approve. Her kicking me out of her life was probably one of the best things to happen to me in high school, even though I didn’t realize it at first. She made me the sassy bitch I am today. So I guess I have to thank Satan for something,” I chuckled.

Tyler then pulled me close in a tight hug. “I guess I have to thank her, too,” he said.

“Why’s that?” I asked, looking up at him.

“Because she helped turn you into the amazing woman that I’m falling in love with,” he replied softly, tucking some loose hair behind my ear before leaning down and kissing me passionately.

Notes