Chapter 14
Sarah stepped out of her car in front of the Harper house just as Brian came storming out the door. Brian didn’t notice her and climbed into his new car. Sarah knew instantly that he was upset. She smiled when he closed his eyes and revved the engine as if it would eat away all his troubles. With a rose in her hand she looked up at the house and then changed her course for Brian. She stood next to him for a moment watching as Brian let the vibrations lull away any negative feelings. That was something the two of them did in common. “Hey you.” She giggled when she finally decided to greet him. “Gonna take her for a spin?”
Brian was startled to death by the interruption and jumped sky high. He looked up at the girl of his dreams and for a moment thought he’d fallen asleep. “Sarah!” he gasped, “What are you doing here?”
“I didn’t mean to interrupt you.” Sarah laughed, “I can go if you’d like.”
“No.” Brian said quickly. He blushed a little as he gathered his composure. “You just surprised me.”
“Sorry.”
Brian shook his head. “It’s a welcomed distraction.” He promised.
“You did seem pretty focused, everything alright?”
“Yeah,” Brian replied resisting the urge to sigh. “I’m just trying to get out of here before my father drags me off to some boys club meeting.”
“Sounds exciting.” Sarah teased.
“Exhilarating.” Brian smirked.
“Well I’ll let you get going then. I’d hate for you to get stuck hanging out with your dad all day.”
Brian forced a smile. He really didn’t want to get stuck going to Ann Arbor with his father but he couldn’t make himself leave when Sarah was standing there. Sarah looked around the house and frowned. “Did I miss Nick?” she asked when she noticed Nick’s shiny red corvette wasn’t anywhere to be seen.
Brian looked up and was suddenly grateful that his brother decided to use the garage for once. “I don’t know where he is.” He shrugged. “But he did tell me that he planned on being gone all day. He’s probably trying to hide from my dad too.”
“Bummer.” Sarah said wrinkling her nose in disappointment. She held up the rose in her hand. “I wanted to thank him for the flowers. I told him I would go to the lake with him yesterday before I knew I was going all the way to Chicago. He waited for me all day. I hope he wasn’t too upset.”
Brian felt bad for lying to her, but he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to keep Nick and Sarah apart. “Nick’s a pretty easy going guy. I’m sure he understands. Besides, I didn’t really give you much choice in the matter.”
“No you didn’t.” Sarah laughed, “I’ll just tell him I was taken prisoner and pretend it was horrible.”
“Pretend?”
“Well I can’t exactly tell Nick I enjoyed being held hostage all day, now can I?”
Sarah winked playfully at Brian and he was glad he was sitting because he felt his whole body starting to turn to jello beneath him. He forced a smile and tried not to stare like a like an infatuated schoolboy. “All right,” Sarah said stepping back from the Porsche, “I’m sure you have things to do, so I’ll get out of your hair. If you see Nick tell him to call me.”
Brian nodded knowing he would never give Nick the message. “Actually I really don’t have anything-
Brian was interrupted when the front door swung open and he cringed at the booming sound of his father’s voice. “Brian! I’m glad I caught you before you left.”
“Actually I was just on my way out Dad.” Brian said dismally.
He knew his attempts to get out of his dad’s plans would fail. Somehow he always got sucked in. Sarah felt bad for the poor guy and whirled around to face the man approaching Brian’s car. “Hi Mr. Harper.”
“Well hello there Ms. Thompson.” Brian’s father greeted back. “Boy did you grow up into a lovely young woman.”
Sarah blushed from the compliment while Mr. Harper offered her a firm handshake. “But I hear you still inherited your father’s mechanical genius.”
“I don’t know about genius.” Sarah laughed.
Mr. Harper glanced at his watch and then smiled at Sarah. “It’s good to see you again honey. Tell your father hello for me.”
“I’ll do that.” Sarah agreed.
Mr. Harper turned his attention to Brian. “Did Nick tell you about the alumni lunch today?”
“Yeah he did, but I was just going to-
Mr. Harper cut Brian off completely ignoring his response. “We have to get going if we’re going to make it on time.”
Sarah saw all the emotions behind Brian’s eyes that his father seemed oblivious to and immediately understood what her father meant the night before about Brian’s dad being overbearing. She felt bad for Brian and wanted to help. “Actually, Mr. Harper,” she said stepping next to Brian’s car. “Brian and I were just about to take the new car for a test drive.”
Both Mr. Harper and his son stopped bickering and looked at Sarah with wide eyes. They were equally surprised but Brian’s was the only mouth to drop open. His father’s instead curved into a smile. “Really?” he asked with a hint of amusement. He noticed the rose in Sarah’s hand and smiled. “My oldest son is actually spending time with a beautiful young lady?”
“It’s hard to believe, I know.” Sarah laughed glancing down at Brian with a smirk, “But I’m a sucker for fine automobiles and after seeing it yesterday, I absolutely insisted he take me for a drive.”
Mr. Harper’s face lit up. “Why don’t you come with us to the lunch? I bet the guys would get a kick out of you. It’s a nice drive to Ann Arbor and God only knows the last time Brian had a date.”
Brian sat in his car with his heart racing a million miles a minute. He was horrified and humiliated and yet strangely excited at the same time. He had no idea what Sarah was talking about. He wasn’t sure why she was telling his father about plans that didn’t really exist but he wasn’t complaining. He could hardly keep up with the conversation. His face turned bright red when his father mentioned his lack of female companionship and yet that embarrassment felt like nothing compared to the fact that his father was now trying to suck Sarah into the meeting as well; although he had to admit that the day would be a lot less horrible if Sarah were with him. He looked nervously up at Sarah when she laughed at his father’s suggestion. “Thank you Mr. Harper, that’s a very kind offer.” She said making Brian’s heart sink at the polite rejection. “As much fun as it sounds to defend my decision to go to UC San Francisco to a bunch of proud Wolverines over lunch, I don’t know that it’s the most ideal setting for a first date.”
Mr. Harper’s eyes darted back and forth between Sarah, who was smiling angelically at him and Brian, who was now pale and could barely managed a bewildered shrug. “I really had my heart set on going to the Festival of the Sun over in Lansing and today is the last day.” Sarah continued, “Another time though.”
Mr. Harper looked her over curiously one more time and then cracked a smile. “Alright.” He laughed giving in to the young woman.
Mr. Harper escorted Sarah around to the passenger side of the Porsche and helped her into the car with a twinkle in his eyes. “You kids have fun today, but you make sure my son in a gentleman.”
“I’m sure he will be.” Sarah replied.
She tried not to laugh as she looked at Brian. “Shall we?” she asked.
Brian wasted no time backing out of the driveway. Sarah waved goodbye to Mr. Harper as they pulled away. “And just like that, you’re free.” Sarah laughed when she and Brian were safely out of sight from the house.
Brian didn’t know what to say. He wasn’t sure what to do either. He didn’t know if he was supposed to be driving around he block until his father left or if he should really be driving to Lansing. Sarah giggled when she saw the confusion. “You don’t really have to take me out.” She said, “Unless you want to. I was serious about the festival. I go every year.” Sarah grinned wickedly and laughed, “All kinds of great foods on a stick.”
Brian laughed for the first time since seeing his father. “I was going to ask Nick if he wanted to go.” Sarah continued to explain, “But you said he’s busy all day and I’d still love the company.”
Brian couldn’t believe what had happened. All he had to do was say yes and he would be spending yet another day with the girl of his dreams and this time it was her idea. He’d never been more nervous in his life but he still managed a smile. “You sure you want to want to spend the day with me again?”
“Turned out ok yesterday.” Sarah teased. Then she flashed Brian a brilliant smile. “Besides, I really have been dying to ride in this car since the moment I saw it.”
Brian loved the way Sarah’s face lit up when she was truly excited about something. He was so in love with her smile that he wanted to make sure it stayed where it was. He pulled over and Sarah watched with a confused look as he got out of the car and opened her door. It wasn’t until he dropped the keys in her hand that she understood what he was doing. “I can’t remember how to get to Lansing.” He teased. Maybe you should drive.”
Sarah released a giddy squeal and quickly hopped behind the wheel. Brian made himself comfortable in the passenger seat satisfied with the fact that he could now spend the drive watching Sarah instead of the road.
For most people the drive from Whitmore Lake to Lansing is an easy forty-five minute drive on a fairly busy interstate. Not too much traffic but not a lot of peace either. On a clear summer day as nice as it was, in an antique Porsche with the top down, taking the expressway would have defeated the purpose of the trip. Sarah tingled with excitement all the way from the fingertips that gripped the leather steering wheel to the toes that held down the accelerator as she opted to take the scenic route. The quiet two-lane highway cut gracefully through the wooded Michigan landscape and with the exception of the wild rabbits and curious squirrels poking their heads up every so often to catch a glimpse of the passing strangers, Sarah and Brian were completely alone.
Brian stayed pretty quiet as he enjoyed his unexpected company. He was content simply sitting next to her. Sarah noticed the lack of conversation but the silence was a comfortable one so she relaxed and enjoyed the piece of engineering genius beneath her. The low purr of the engine and the blowing wind were all the conversation she needed. She did however, manage to steal a couple of glances Brian’s direction. The way his body seemed to mold perfectly into his chair made him look more relaxed than she’d ever seen him. And the smile that his mouth pushed up into his eyes causing them to sparkle erased all the wear and tear that the stress of the last year had put on. At that moment Brian seemed like an entirely new man. Sarah had never taken the time to notice him before because she’d always been blinded by Nick, but she decided that, in his own way, Brian was every bit as good looking as his brother when he smiled. She looked at him again and this time he met her gaze. She returned his relaxed grin and said, “You know, that smile is a really good look on you. You should wear it more often.”
Brian smirked. “You keep rescuing me from my father and whisking me off to exotic places and I just might.” He teased.
“I’m serious.” Sarah replied with a lighthearted laugh.
“So am I.”
“Your father didn’t seem all that scary to me.” Sarah chuckled, “And Lansing is hardly exotic.”
“Spend as much time locked up in school as I did last year and even Downtown Detroit starts to look good.”
This time Sarah’s laugh was more forceful than lighthearted. “Wow!” she said, “Your dad was right. You really do need to get out more.”
Brian’s eyes quickly darted back to the road before he had to see the look on Sarah’s face. “So you did hear that completely embarrassing comment my dad made about my nonexistent love life.” He said.
He hoped he sounded like he was joking and he tried his best not to turn red in the face, but the giggle he got from Sarah told him it wasn’t working. “It’s a parents’ duty to humiliate their children whenever they can.” Sarah laughed, “I should know, my father’s an expert. But don’t sweat it, I’m not exactly little miss social either.”
“Yeah right, a girl like you?”
That response was meant to be only a thought but somehow his brain messed up and the words came out before he could stop them. All the nerves Brian had managed to suppress rose to the surface when Sarah peered peculiarly at him. With a gulp he forced himself to elaborate. “I’m sure you had all those California boys fighting over who got to escort you to the parties on Saturday nights.”
Sarah smirked thinking that Lance was always fighting to get her to go out with him on the weekends but that wasn’t quite the same thing. “There may have been one or two.” She admitted with a shrug, “But nothing serious.”
“No boyfriend?”
“No.” Sarah laughed, “No boyfriend.”
Sarah instantly felt stupid for laughing. It made her sound like she thought she would be eternally single. She wanted to get the attention off of her before Brian realized that she was almost as pathetic as he was. She’d been asked out many times in California but hardly ever went on a second date because no one ever measured up to Nick. She knew that was a really unhealthy habit and did not want to have to explain the twisted logic to Brian. She laughed nervously and then with a shake of her head said, “Anyway, what about you? It can’t really be as bad as your father made it sound.”
Brian laughed but Sarah sensed the nervousness behind it and her curiosity was peaked. “Just how long has it been?” she asked.
“Since what?”
“Since you hade a date.” Sarah confirmed.
“Do I get to count yesterday?” Brian asked with a hopeful look.
“Only if you consider kidnapping a date.” Sarah teased.
“That’s not fair. I didn’t MAKE you come with me.”
“After you told me we were going to Chicago, would you have taken me home if I’d asked?”
Brian thought about it for a moment and grinned. “No.” He replied with a smirk.
“Then you can’t count it as a date.”
Brian feigned a pout but the pout turned into a real frown. “Even with you refusing to speak to me for the first five hours, it still went better than my last date did.”
“That’s pretty bad.” Sarah said with a giggle.
“You have no idea.” Brian said trying not to grumble at the memory. “After that I sort of swore off dating forever.”
“Aw you poor baby.” Sarah playfully said in mock sympathy. “And how long ago was that?”
“Long enough that the girl I went out with is getting married this week to a guy she met after our date.”
“Ouch.” Sarah said putting her giggles aside. This was no longer a laughing matter. She sobered herself up and then asked, “She isn’t THE girl, is she?”
“What do you mean? What girl?”
“What girl?” Sarah repeated incredulously, “The one you were telling me about yesterday. The girl you want to spend the rest of your life making happy.”
Brian’s face went pale in the blink of an eye and he felt a hint of moisture begin to condense in the palms of his hands. “Oh.” He choked, “That girl. No. It wasn’t that girl.”
“Well that’s a relief. I would hate for us to have to break up a wedding.” Sarah teased.
Brian forced a smile at Sarah’s kindness but he couldn’t help his thoughts from turning to the fact that his situation was worse. Getting married was one thing, people do it all the time. But Sarah, the love of his life, was in crazy, hopeless love with someone else. Married or not she would never be his. His smile faded fast and he became quiet again the way he had the day before. Sarah offered Brian a genuinely sympathetic smile this time. She was amazed at the way his mood turned at the mere mention of this mystery girl. Whoever she was, she’d obviously done quite a number on his heart. Sarah didn’t want to, but she pitied Brian. He was tormented by love and Sarah of all people knew what that felt like. She studied him for a minute and then became determined to help him forget his heartache. She flashed him a perfect smile and said, “Well I don’t care what happened on your last date. You can’t swear off dating forever so we’ll just have to make sure that this date goes extra well to make up for last time.”
Had Brian been a little older his heart would have given out entirely when Sarah confirmed that what they were on was in deed an actual date. Instead, it merely skipped a beat or two. Brian tried not to read too much into it, but that was a near impossible task. Sarah seemed to be really enjoying herself. Her manner was almost flirtatious even. It was a dream come true and suddenly Brian was overwhelmed with a unique combination of intense excitement and tantalizing fear. Not knowing what to say, he forced one more tense smile and then turned his attention back to the beautiful landscape around him.
Soon enough Sarah and Brian found themselves following a crowd through the streets of Lansing’s historical district toward Burchard Park where the festival was taking place. Brian noticed that many of the people around him were carrying their own beer mugs and they were selling souvenir wine glasses at the entrance to the park. He stopped walking and glanced curiously at the large yellow banner that said; Seventh Annual Festival Of The Sun. “What exactly is the Festival Of The Sun?” he questioned when a man wearing a beer dispensing hat passed him.
Sarah giggled before responding. “Technically it’s a beer and wine tasting festival”
Sarah laughed again at the strange look Brian gave her. “But it’s also has a lot of gourmet foods as well.” She added in her own defense.
“I didn’t realize there was such a thing as a gourmet corndog.” Brian smirked.
“Oh there are definitely some superior corndogs out there.” Sarah said in a serious tone, “But I’m not just talking about hot dogs here. They have all kinds of good stuff.”
Brian studied Sarah for a moment with a smirk on his face; she was definitely one of a kind. Sarah grinned and then grabbed his hand. “You’re gonna love it.” She assured him as she enthusiastically dragged him into the park.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Hey! If you've read the previous chapter already then the first part of this one will look really familiar to you, sorry. I had a really long chapter and then a really short chapter so I found a better place to split them up. But the second half is new so make sure to read it :) Next Chapter should come hopefully over the weekend.
