To Do List (gretson)

Free rider

...

When Carson woke up the next morning, she realized she had no idea where she was, but she was dressed and covered in a duvet, so someone had taken care of her drunk ass. She felt stupid and careless. She could have died, she could've gotten herself involved in a car accident and killed someone, or gotten robbed of everything she owned, yet she felt her phone pressing her thigh inside her front pocket and her wallet and car keys in the back pocket, and no policeman was waking her up, so she was fine.

"How do you feel this morning?", Carson turned and watched Greta get closer, holding a coffee cup in one hand and a bottle of water in the other.

So Greta was the person who'd taken care of her.

"Is that for me?", Carson asked, feeling her throat dry as the desert, "I'm so thirsty".

Greta gave her the bottle and a pill. "For the headache you certainly have".

"Thank" Carson breathed in, "you", she finished after the bottle was empty. "Can I have the coffee too?".

"This one is mine", Greta kept her cup away from thirsty Carson, "breathe, wash your face, wake up for real first, then I'll give you coffee", she pointed to the bathroom with her head, "there's a toothbrush on the sink for you".

Carson got up and went into the bathroom, she came out less than ten minutes later feeling a lot more like herself. She wasn't horribly hungover, only thirsty and with that annoying headache, but apart from that, she was OK. Once out of the bathroom she could actually pay attention to Greta and under the morning light, she looked even more beautiful. Her hair was up in a ponytail and she wore high-waisted blue jeans and a white cropped top. She wasn't wearing lipstick, yet her lips were light-red... and they seemed so soft and inviting...

"You-you took care of me", Carson felt the words leave her lips, "you didn't have to and yet you did, and I could be in so much trouble if you didn't help me, thank you".

"It's ok, been there, done that, we all get drunk and helpless sometimes".

"Yeah, but I did it when I was alone in the middle of nowhere... stupid", she said the last word under her breath.

"Hey, we're young, we're supposed to do stupid things every now and then", Greta smiled, being supportive of her.

"Morning, stranger" Joey greeted Carson when they entered the motorhome.

"Carson, this is Joey, my bandmate and the best of the best friends a woman can have".

"I think I took your bed, I'm really sorry", Carson apologized.

"That's actually Greta's bed".

Carson looked at the sofa and wondered if Greta had slept beside her in that small space, the mere thought sent a wave of heat down her body.

"Bird", Joey continued, "we need to leave, we have to be in Des Moines before eight p.m.".

"Oh my God", Carson said, "I'm keeping you from leaving, I'm sorry, I'm SO sorry. Thank you again, Greta. It was really nice meeting you... meeting you both, really. I'll let you go now".

"You should come with us", Greta spoke up, her voice was loud and clear, but Carson didn't really process what she said right away.

"What?" Carson asked and by the look on Joey's face, they also hadn't understood the suggestion.

"You're going to New York, we're going to New York, we have a motorhome, we can make space for you here, you let your car at Jenny's where it's safe, and then you don't have to do this trip alone".

"Greta, we're playing tonight in Des Moines and tomorrow night in Perrysburg, maybe Carson has other plans, places she wants to stop at, things she wants to see".

Jo wasn't sure why they were saying that, maybe they were just not used to having strangers on their sacred road trips, or maybe it was because they knew Greta too well to know what she was doing. Greta was into that girl, and maybe she hadn't noticed, but Joey had seen the wedding band glistening on Carson's left hand.

"Well, of course, this is an invitation, so if you want to, you could come with us, Carson", Greta explained, but soon added, "I think you should though".

Carson looked at Joey trying to find out how they felt about that, but their face was blank. Carson was also having trouble wrapping her mind around the idea of letting go of her road trip by herself. Doing this trip alone was also part of the crazy experience she'd planned. But there was something in Greta that made her want to say yes so desperately... wasn't that also the point of this whole trip? Doing something just because she wanted to? Acting by impulse?

"If Joey is ok with it, then yes, I think I'll accept the ride. And it would be really nice to see you play for the next couple of nights".

Joey looked at Greta, her puppy eyes begging silently for them to tell Carson they were fine with her coming along. Joey had their mother, they had a wife who was waiting for them in Des Moines and would also tag along for the trip to New York. Greta had no one except Jo, and Joey was always trying to give her what she wanted to compensate her for all the things she didn't have.

"If you don't mind sleeping with Greta, it's fine. I'm picking my girl up in Des Moines and she's coming along, so my bed will be occupied".

Carson nodded and smiled, the swoop in her lower abdomen was there again, spreading heat all over her body.

"She snores,'' Joey added.

"JOEY!", Greta pouted.

"It's fine", Carson said, "it's normal".

"I-don't-snore, now-go-pick-up-your-things-or-I'll-leave-you-behind", she spoke in one breath, trying to sound annoyed, but cackling right after she finished speaking.

"Yes, ma'am", Carson answered and left the trailer.

"Bird", Greta looked at her friend, already knowing what they were going to say, "she's married, you know that, right?".

"I'm not doing anything with her", Greta shook her head and shrugged, "and you didn't hear her, she told me she had to get away from home".

"But that doesn't mean she's leaving her husband or that she's queer at all".

"Oh, for fuck's sake, she asked for mirrorball, she's a gaylor", Greta added.

"I gotta delete your Twitter account immediately", Jo chuckled, "but seriously, Grets, go slowly, please, I don't wanna see you get hurt".

"You know I do the hurting first if I realize things are going down that lane... I'm just into her, she's attractive, she's intriguing, and I just want to figure her out".

"Yeah, it was like that ten years ago with Dana".

"Well, I'm not that girl anymore and she's no Dana", Greta ended the matter.

"Who's Dana?" Carson asked, coming inside with her large backpack on her shoulder.

...