Mr.Right novel Chapter 15

"Are we taking a left turn or a right one?"

"Uh... And how am I supposed to know that?" Maverick asks rhetorically and I cuss under my breath. He sighs. "April, please tell me we're not lost."

I bite my lip. "We're... Um...not lost." I say obediently.

"Good. Now say it like you mean it."

"Ok, calm down," I say, twiddling the steering wheel. "I'm sure the fair's just around the corner..."

Even I don't believe myself.

Somehow, I managed to end up in the driver's seat of Maverick's car, after a slight argument about who was going to drive. My very narrow streak of stubbornness chose to kick in and I suggested a fair game of Rock, Paper, Scissors to decide.

Because, yeah. I'm childish like that.

Two hours later, I'm pretty sure we've stumbled into a completely different continent. It got dark hours ago and starlight twinkles above us.

Maverick turns to me. "You said you knew the way."

"I used to know the way," I reply. "I never said that I still do."

He lets out a frustrated sigh. "We are so lost."

"Um, yeah," I say. "I think we are." I knew that from the moment the cars around us faded into trees and bushes and silence. "I'm just going to turn the car around and turn on my phone's GPS."

"I told you to do that two hours ago," says Maverick, slightly grumpily and I shake my head.

"Well, you should've sounded more convincing,"

I can tell Maverick's trying hard not to get mad because I can hear him grinding his teeth.

This is the first time I've seen him looking pissed. He usually has this huge smile plastered on his face... But the frown lines appearing on his forehead right now look menacing.

The car's ignition roars to life when I turn it on but it dies immediately after.

Oh, no. This is not good.

I try five more times, but I'm pretty sure luck isn't on my side today. When the car remains lifeless, I stare into the dark night and begin devising of ways of killing myself.

"So," I hear Maverick say, sounding calm despite the look on his face. "The car's battery has died. What are we going to do now?"

The guilt inside me doubles ten times more as I place my head on the steering wheel and groan. "I'm sorry."

I'm half expecting him to yell at me but, instead, I hear a clicking sound as he steps out of the car to open the car's hood.

Maybe not everyone is like Tony.

The hood covers him completely, but I can still hear him when he says, "You have to go to the road and call for help - see if anyone's around. We'll be stuck here, otherwise."

I raise my head off the steering wheel and glance down at my shoes. I bought them weeks ago, but I still adore them. I don't really fancy walking through a load of dust. "But my shoes are going to get soiled."

He snorts. "I hope your shoes can get us out of here."

I keep my eyes on my feet.

Maybe I'm being inconsiderate. I know for a fact that I was the one who got us in this mess. It's hardly the time to start worrying about my shoes.

I pick up a flashlight from the back seat and I get out the car, muttering at every speck of mud that dares to slime up my shoes.

The main road isn't too bright because there aren't many streetlights, but I can still see a car coming towards us at full speed. Its front lights are blazing and I'm not sure the people in it have seen me, so I throw my hands up in the air in an attempt to flag it down.

Unfortunately, it speeds past me without slowing down, and even leaves fumes and dust all over my shoes.

Come to the fair He said, it'll be fun He said. How fun is this now?

My phone's screen lits up and I see Jim as the caller ID. Speak of the devil.

"Hey buddy," I say into the phone, hoping to sound breezy, but I yank it away from my ears when Jim yells into the phone.

"One job, April! You had just one job to do and you blew it!"

I massage my temples. "Look, I can explain..." I begin, but he cuts me off.

"Save it. I'm putting Jacqueline on the phone." There's a little bit of rustling in the background before Jacqueline's throaty voice fills my ears.

"Mon Amie!" she exclaims. "We missed you at the fair - is everything all right?"

"Yeah, everything's fine." I wince at the hugeness of the lie. "And I understand that you wanted to hang out... But, um, something huge has kind of come up. I hope you guys had fun without me."

Jacqueline laughs. "I didn't. Jim wouldn't let us take the Ferris wheel because he thinks it's 'too dangerous'. He refused to admit he was scared."

"Is he okay?" I ask.

"He'll be fine. He can't be mad at you for long. You're his April, after all."

"Doesn't it feel weird saying that?" I ask curiously. I've always wondered how Jacqueline feels so comfortable with me being close to Jim, even after she knows we dated.

"Saying what?"

"Never mind." It's probably just me overreacting. "Just have a safe trip back to France tomorrow. And remember to call every day."

I wait a moment for her response but I'm greeted with quietness.