Without even realizing it, Kevin had gotten onto the I-10 and was driving, quickly, East. He wasn’t paying any attention to the road signs or to his speedometer, all he could concentrate on was getting as much distance between himself and LA. As he drove, the wind in his hair seemed to whisk away the tormenting feelings which had gripped him so tightly as he stood at the alter. The sun beating down on his pale face burned the anguish that he felt for her right out of his mind. Pangs of guilt would wash over him, the memory of the hurt in Jennifer’s eye as he bolted from the ceremony, the sight of his mom consoling her would tiptoe through his mind, but all he could do is turn the radio up louder. He wouldn’t allow himself to visit those feelings now. He wouldn’t allow himself to feel like he had done anything wrong. But he had and he knew it, but he just wasn’t ready to admit it yet. He did know however, that he would go back, someday, he just didn’t know when.
As he continued to drive along for what seemed like days, he suddenly became aware that he was in pain, not emotional pain, he was forbidding himself to feel that yet, but physical pain. The radio which was blaring didn’t sound right, everything sounded like screaming torture victims. He shut it off and drove in silence, the discomfort escalating. His head was pounding and his stomach was begging to be filled. He pulled off the interstate, the sign read San Bernadino. “Good a place as any,” he thought as he parked his car outside of a shabby truck-stop diner.
He staggered out of the bright sunlight into the refuge of the diner, only to see the place littered with local clientele. Everyone seemed to stop what they were doing in order to turn and stare at the disheveled, yet overly attractive stranger. Ignoring them all, he slinked to the back and took a seat in an empty corner booth. A pretty young girl, no older than 20 came to take his order. Her name tag read Tiffany; Kevin was drawn to it as it rested on her over-sized breasts. He ordered a large black coffee and a ham and cheese omelet. Tiffany smiled, flashing her pearly whites as she filled his coffee cup to the brim. Her ice blue eyes transfixed on Kevin’s. Kevin was busy noticing how tightly her extremely short uniform clung to her thigh and how she had one too many buttons undone on her shirt. And then they made eye contact, the kind that goes on a little too long.
“Ham & cheese omelet’s up!” a voice yelled from the kitchen, disrupting their silent stare. She turned nervously away as Kevin began to douse his coffee with sugar packets. Tiffany returned moments later with his meal ready to pick up where they had left off, but Kevin had already forgotten about her. He had more important things to think about than trying to see down some young girls dress, he was trying to figure out where he was going to spend the night.
Kevin had his face down, concentrating on his tasteless meal, when a man’s loud voice startled him from his solitude. He heard the man’s fist slam down on the counter as he demanded to see the mechanic. He couldn’t see the man from his booth, but he could see the young girl behind the counter as she tried to appease his demands. The man continued to yell and make demands until Kevin saw the girl pick up the phone to make a call.
“I’m sorry Sir, but there is nothing we can do about it now. Larry is off today, he’s away in fact, but tomorrow I’m sure.....” the girl tried to explain. “TOMORROW! Is too LATE!” he cried. The girl offered him a cup of coffee and told him that dinner would be on the house as she would try to find a way to rectify the situation. Kevin listening and watching closely, but trying to act as if he didn’t hear a thing, watched as the man took a seat at the counter, just across from his booth. The man at the counter remained quiet, too quiet Kevin thought for the rest of Kevin’s meal. When he was done, Kevin stood up and walked over to the counter and asked Tiffany to pour him another large coffee ‘to go’. He peered at the man from the corner of his eye, noticing that his head was hung and his nose was red. He hadn’t touched the sandwich that Tiffany had made for him.
“Car trouble?” Kevin asked as he counted out his money to pay the bill. “Yeah, the worst, my whole transmission blew...” the man at the counter answered without even looking up from his plate. “Geez, that’s too bad. That should set you back a few bucks, uh?!” Kevin replied. “It’s not that. I really need my car!!” he said finally looking up at Kevin. Kevin thanked Tiffany for his change, gave her a tip and sat down on the stool beside the stranger. “It’s just that I’ve gotta get to Vegas, TONIGHT!” he said to Kevin with an overwhelming sense of urgency. “I’m getting married tomorrow. My fiancee is already there waiting for me and now I don’t know how I’m gonna get there. With my car wrecked I don’t have money to fly and I’ve got way too much stuff with me to take a bus or a train. I’ve gotta get my car fixed! NOW!” he yelled, slamming his hand down on the counter again. Kevin looked at the man and immediately felt as if this was some sort of sign. Did he cross paths with this man in order to right his own wrong? “Listen man, I know you don’t know me and I don’t know you,....but I’m kinda heading that way anyway, so.....if you like I can give you a ride to Vegas.” Kevin said with a sexy smile that was wasted on the stranger. The man stared back at him, stunned by what he had just heard. “You mean you’re going to Vegas? How ironic is that? That we would meet like this? It’s fate that brought us together. That’s incredible! Why are you going?” he asked. “Well, I wasn’t, until now. I wasn’t sure where I was headed exactly until I met you.” Kevin answered. “We better get going if we’re going, the sun will be setting soon, and we better try to drive in the light for as long as we can.”
Kevin started the engine of his prized Mustang convertible as the stranger loaded all of his belongings into the trunk. He came and hopped in the passenger seat and buckled up his seat belt. Both of them felt a little weary of traveling with a complete stranger, but decided that it was better than any alternative, Kevin stuck listening to his own head pound and the stranger being left stranded in San Bernadino, missing his own wedding. “Do you like music? You can put on any station you like.” Kevin said as he held out his hand to the stranger. “By the way, I don’t think we introduced ourselves. I’m Kevin Richardson.” “Music is my life,” replied the stranger as he shook Kevin’s extended hand. “My name is Brian Littrell.”