From What I Remember (41 page)

“Hey, Kylie, nice Vespa,” Charlie says. Is he being nice? Or just attempting to make a horribly awkward situation incrementally less awkward? Who knows? I’ve never gotten Charlie.

“Uh, listen, we need a ride back to school. Will’s car got vandalized.”

“What do you mean?” Max asks.

“She means Will’s car no longer has tires. Or windows,” Will says as he and Juan run up, panting. “But they left all my CDs. That’s just weird, isn’t it?”

“That guy really wants his Vespa back,” Juan says to me. “He’s pretty pissed.”

“I told him I’d bring it back,” I say.

“Yeah, well, shockingly, he didn’t believe it,” Will says.

“You stole a Vespa?” Max asks.

“I borrowed it.”

“Cool,” Charlie says. Man, he is such an idiot. Why is Max friends with him? Then again, maybe I’m giving Max too much credit.

The Vespa owner marches up and snatches his scooter from me, whispering under his breath,
“Loca!”

I don’t think he means that in a good way.

“Gracias,”
I say, trying to make amends.
“Muchas gracias.”

He gives me the finger, jumps on his bike, and speeds off.

“’Kay, so can we come with you guys?” I ask again since no one has actually answered me. Are they really going to make me beg?

“Sure,” Max says. Charlie and Lily don’t say anything.

One yes is better than none.

Lily scowls at me. She looks miserable. And, believe me, I get it. It would be so easy to hate her at this very moment, but I can’t. We’ve both just had our hearts broken by the same boy, and now we are bonded together, like it or not.

“I don’t think there’s room. I mean, there are three of them,” Lily says.

“Oh come on, Lily. We’ll make room. It’s graduation.” It’s Charlie, coming to our rescue. Who’d have thought?

“Max, there is no way I am getting into that car with her.” Lily has suddenly shifted from downtrodden to crazy pissed. The hate is on again. And I’m feeling it too.

“Well, then I guess you’re staying in Ensenada.” Will cocks his head at Lily and smiles.

“Oh shut up, Will,” Lily snaps.

Oh. My. God. I do not want this to devolve into another shouting match. Charlie glances over at Max like it’s Max’s decision to make. I look at Max, daring him to say no, while Lily stares him down, daring him to say yes. It’s a Mexican standoff, literally.

“Of course there’s room,” Max says, steadfastly refusing to look at either me or Lily. Still, if we’re playing, and everything is a game after all, I’d say one point for me.

“Someone will have to sit in the rear seat, in the way back,” Charlie says.

“Not me,” Lily insists.

“Of course not. We wouldn’t dream of asking you, princess,” Will says.

“I’ll do it,” Juan says. “I don’t mind.”

The decision is made. All of us will cram into the goddamn car and travel to graduation together. What a frigging nightmare. Shoot me now.

Max is opening the back door for Juan when a look of fear flashes across his face. I know that look. What’s going on?

He leans in to me. “Kylie, look. Over there. Across the street.”

I follow his gaze. And there they are, the two dudes from yesterday, standing on the other side of the street, next to their U-Haul. There’s no mistaking them. Bald, muscled, and inked up. Practically twins, except the tall one is twice the size of the little one.

You have got to be kidding me. What are the chances?

I suddenly realize this is exactly where we left the U-Haul. I cannot believe our terrible luck. Still, how did they find it? And how did we end up right back where we started? It’s like
Groundhog Day
. We’re just going to keep running into these guys every single day for the rest of our lives. They’ll appear in La Jolla, San Diego, New York City, tracking us down for our one transgression. Okay, there’s no way that’s going to happen.

I’m totally being melodramatic. Still, our bad luck is pretty epic.

“Get in the car, get in the car,” Max says, literally herding everyone into the Jeep.

“How did they find the truck?” I ask Max.

“I don’t know. They must have a tracking device in there or something. Shit.”

“I am not sitting next to her,” Lily says, pointing at me.

“Lily, just get in the car,” Max says.

No one has any idea what is going on, and there’s really no time to catch them up on the situation. I would bet that if Lily knew the extent of things, she’d still complain about having to sit next to me. I have a sneaking suspicion she’s petty to the core, even in the face of grave danger.

I’ve turned away from the two guys and am climbing into the Jeep. I’m banking on the crazy idea that if I don’t look at them, they can’t see me. But when I glance over, they’re studying Max closely, trying to remember how they know him. And then there’s a moment of recognition on both their faces as they realize who he is.

harlie, give me the keys. I’m driving.” Kylie says evenly.

I look at Kylie and I can see her snap into the same fear-fueled state of focus she experienced in the U-Haul yesterday.

I know she’s completely freaked out, but instead of being paralyzed, she’s somehow calm and decisive. I will myself to be stronger this time around.

I snatch the keys from Charlie and toss them to Kylie. She hustles into the driver’s seat. I shove Charlie into the back, slam the door, and get in shotgun.

“What the fuck, dude?” Charlie says.

Kylie tears off down the street. Maybe they won’t follow us. They’ve got their stuff, they’ve got their truck. What would they want from us anyway? Revenge?

“The guys who stole the stuff, that was them across the street,” I tell Charlie.

He hears the urgency in my voice. The mood shifts.

“Shit, man,” Charlie says.

“I know. What are the chances?” I say.

“Improbably low,” Kylie says.

“Why does Kylie get to drive?” Lily asks.

“Because she drives better than any of us, that’s why. And she knows the town!” Man, that is so Lily to be sweating the small stuff when it’s the big stuff that’s gonna get us any minute.

Kylie turns right onto a small side street and winds her way into the heart of the town. I check the rearview mirror and I don’t see the U-Haul. I’m beginning to think we’re in the clear.

“I cannot believe you guys got us into this. How are we going to make it to graduation?” Lily says to no one in particular.

“Lily, if you’d like to get out, be my guest.” Kylie is still calm and focused, but in no mood for Lily’s shit.

“‘I’ve got a trig midterm tomorrow, and I’m being chased by Guido the killer pimp,’” Will says. “I love it.”

“What the hell’s he talking about?” Charlie says.

“It’s a line from
Risky Business
,” Kylie says.

Will is one bizarro dude. He seems totally amused by the situation. I don’t think he grasps that it’s not fun or funny at all. It’s scary and hugely stressful.

“Oh shit,” I yell. “Kylie, over there.”

The U-Haul is coming straight at us from another side street. Kylie swerves left and barrels down a narrow street, and then turns right again, back onto the main road. There’s an enormous truck in front of us, and I watch as Kylie makes the split decision to pass it, hoping to lose the U-Haul. She successfully makes her way around the truck, but the U-Haul is directly behind us.

Kylie drives fast down the street, but there’s not much she can do to lose the truck.

Juan is yelling something from the back.

“What?” I can’t hear him well, he’s too far back.

Juan climbs over the seat and squishes himself in between Lily and Will.

“Oh my God. What do you think you’re doing?” Lily squawks at him.

“I’m talking to myself back there. No one can hear me. I know the police chief. I can help you out of this. I just called the cops. Kylie, you need to stay on this road until it intersects with the toll road to Tijuana. The police will meet us there.”

Juan has suddenly become the hero. I had forgotten he was in the car. Earlier, I was wondering why the hell he even had to come. But now I’m just thankful he’s here.

“Are you sure?” Kylie yells out.

“Yes. I’m on the phone with them now. My dad and the police chief are best friends.”

Juan speaks into his phone in clipped Spanish, telling someone, presumably the police, what is going on.

The U-Haul speeds up and is driving alongside us, despite the fact that there are cars racing toward it from the opposite lane. Vehicles are honking and swerving to the left and right to get out of the way. It’s complete chaos. I don’t want to look at the guys, so I turn the other way. I’m trying to control my shit, but I scream when I see how close cars are coming to us. For now, Kylie is maneuvering with agility. She has the look of contained fear on her face that she had in the U-Haul. But this scene is beyond her. It’s out of control, and even perfect driving can’t save us. There are way too many variables.

Lily has her head buried in her hands, Charlie is staring straight ahead, his face drained of color, and Will isn’t enjoying himself anymore; he’s just sitting stone still, his hands clenched into fists. Other than Kylie, Juan is the only person in the car who’s helpful, as he continues talking into his phone. Sadly, I’m as useless as everyone else. For the second time in two days, I am engaged in a high-speed car chase, now fleeing from bad guys. And I am not doing a damn thing to help the situation. Although, to be fair, I don’t think there’s much I can do.

The U-Haul rams into us from the side, and we all slam into one another from the force of the impact. Kylie accelerates and punches ahead. The U-Haul is forced to pull away to avoid being hit by another car, and for a moment we’re ahead of them and we have the advantage. Kylie must have watched so many action scenes in her life that they are hardwired into her brain, because she is outperforming herself here. It’s mind-blowing.

“You are a total overachiever,” I say to her. If I can’t be helpful, the least I can do is be supportive.

Kylie doesn’t take her eyes off the road, but I see the sides of her lips lift into a smile. Man, I am totally into this chick. She is way cool. Whatever happened this morning between us hasn’t diminished anything for me. I’ve never felt this way about anyone. She may want nothing to do with me, but my feelings are undeniable.

“Kylie, stay to the right, the toll road is up ahead. When you get there, just stop,” Juan says.

“Just stop? Really?” Kylie asks.

The disbelief spreads through the car, and we all look at Juan with doubt. Just stop? Does this guy know what he’s doing? Can we stake our life on it?

“I don’t know, man,” Charlie says. “I think we should keep going.”

“I’m telling you, we need to stop. The police are right behind us; they’re going to take care of it. Trust me,” Juan says.

It sure doesn’t sound like a great idea. But it’s the only one we’ve got.

As we come upon the intersection, Juan yells, “PULL OVER!”

“Now?” Kylie says.

“Now!” Juan insists.

Kylie pulls to the curb. Seconds later, the U-Haul speeds up from behind and screeches next to us. We all panic and scream, as if on cue. The two guys fling their doors open and are on us like a shot. Kylie is about to pull away again when we hear the high pitch of a siren approaching. I look in the rearview mirror, and just like in the movies, I see a police car speed into view. The cavalry. The two dudes hear the siren as well and immediately retreat. They’re climbing back into the U-Haul when the police car skids up to us and two police officers jump out.