Dents

[+] 68 State

"I fink they would've wanted us to have et."

"2D! Oh my God! You stole it?!"

"I, uh, yeh. Yeh, I did."

"You... You sure are full of surprises, aren't you? Never change."

He laughed, flaunting his crooked teeth. I noticed a new gap in the top row that wasn't there before.

"Hey, you're missing another tooth!"

2D's pale face took on a deep red hue. He scratched at the back of his neck. Nonchalantly, he tried to brush off his embarrassment.

"Damn et, anotha' one?"

He licked along the new gap with his tongue, scoping out its absence. He was deep in thought, searching for something to say in the midst of the encroaching silence. 

"Saoirse, at breakfast, I wanted to tell yew... Et's been luvly havin' yew around."

"I was awful lucky washing up that day, I think."

"Wouldn't say 'at, really," he murmured, alluding to our narrowly escaped execution, "Bu' I'm so glad to have yew here wifth me."

I rested my head on his shoulder. The car pressed on. In minutes, dawn crept toward the skyline. We were the only ones that remained on the road, isolated in the early hours of morning. The two of us shared a beat of relief in the decadent minutes of daybreak.

My mind was cloudy. I felt a childish desperation to be closer to him. My tired, traumatized brain found great solace in knowing that he had kept me safe when I could not. I had been preoccupied with trying to save myself for so long that I never expected anyone to swoop in and do it for me. Yet, 2D had done just that, and had not expected anything in return.

I leaned from the passenger seat to plant a kiss on his cheek. Unexpectedly, he turned his head. I met with his lips.

The car jolted as 2D rapidly braked, pulling us off onto the side of the highway. The digital clock read 4:03 AM.

"2D? Hey, what's the matter?"

In a trance, he guided the car onto the gravel. His knuckles turned white from his iron grip on the steering wheel. He put the car in park, releasing a heavy sigh.

"I... S - See, et's, well..."

He pouted. The words drifted from him into the empty space encircling us. He held my right hand in both of his. My heart fluttered in my chest.

"I - I'm stuck on yew, Saoirse."

"W - What?"

2D took my face in his hands. He brought me closer. I sunk into the depth of his cavernous eyes. Our foreheads touched. I waited for him to speak. 

Instead, he kissed me. His touch was rife with passion, abundant with a longing so vast it shook me to the very core. His tongue traced lightly along the bottom of my lip. He tasted faintly of strawberries.

When he pulled away, I gasped. It felt as if someone had ripped away the air I needed to breathe. It was as if, in that brief moment of intimacy, I had forgotten how to do so myself.

"I neva want to leave yewr side," he whispered. The heat from his words tickled my nose.

"I neva want to spend anotha day wifthout yew."

2D stared at me, his black orbs filling the void inside of me with another, swallowing me in his dark embrace. Registering how forward he'd been, he looked away. Shaking his head, his nervous hands skittered back to his lanky frame. They roamed his figure with building anxiety.

"I - Uh, sorry," he mumbled.

I knew I had to say something. I found myself at a loss. I was enraptured in the moment, captivated by the singing of birds as daylight streamed through punctured clouds. The azure haired boy and his otherworldly eyes watched me intently.

"I don't want to, either, 'D. I - "

Without warning, a semi truck sped through the lane beside us and shook the car with considerable force. It snapped both 2D and I out of our daze.

He rested a hand on my knee and grinned knowingly. The engine turned on with little effort. He carefully merged back onto the highway.

"Where are we going?"

"Someplace betta," he analyzed my expression before adding, "The airport."

"The airport?"

His smile widened.

"Yeh."

"And where then?"

"I've got a place in mind."