A Story from the Road

They were out of Arlington before anyone knew that they were gone. They had passed out early the night before, exhausted from a day of touring the monuments. No one stirred as they packed their bags and grabbed Snacks, they were used to being unnoticed. Their aunt hadn't driven in years, not since an almost fatal collision scared her into taking the bus permanently. It could be years before she noticed that her car was missing from the garage down the street.

   He took the first driving shift because he was older by 5 minuets. She was happy to sleep through the border into the next state. The post card with the picture of the San Antonio river walk was on the dashboard, it had been sent a year ago. "Love Dad," had been almost entirely smudged away by her thumb. She liked to trace the curves to see if any of them mirrored the lines of her own writing.

"What if he's not there anymore?" She asked again.

"It's as good a place to start as any," he said. "Put your seatbelt on, you know we can't get pulled over."

The sun was only just beginning to light the sky. Their aunts alarm broke into the relative darkness and she reached out to postpone her day for another five minuets.