16. Braydon
“Braydon, you know I love you like a brother, man. And I will always have your back. But why are you doing this?”
Brooks, the youngest Ambrose brother, has been quiet for the first couple hours of our drive to Nashville. He hasn’t asked questions. But I expected this.
“Because, Brooks, I can’t watch her leave. I can’t watch her walk away from something I thought was permanent.”
Brooks nods understandingly, and I turn back to my window. I hate that I left Adalynn without saying goodbye, but I knew she would try to convince me to stay. And I would have for her, but it would’ve killed me. I needed to leave. I mean maybe it was the cowardly thing to do, but at this point I don’t care.
“Braydon, I just need to know that you are going to be ok.”
Turning back to Brooks, I let out a sigh.
“Brooks, I am going to be fine. I am a big boy, and I can survive in the big city all by myself.”
Brooks chuckles and glances at me.
“Well, I know you are a big boy, but you better stay out of trouble.”
“Oh, you’re one to talk. Trouble follows you everywhere you go.”
“Then if you get into trouble, I am the man to come and get you out of it.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
A silence falls back into the cab of Brooks’ truck. I lay my back against the seat and close my eyes. Just a few more hours, and we will be in Nashville.
“Dude, wake up.” Brooks says, slapping me in the chest.
“What?” I roll toward the window and keep my eyes closed.
“I got to go pee.”
“Ok, so pull over.”
“Do you want to drive for the last two hours?” I feel him pull the truck into what I am assuming is a gas station.
“No, I”m good, Brooks.”
“Ok, I’ll be right back.”
The truck door opens and slams shut, shaking the truck from the force. I keep my eyes closed and will myself to go back to sleep. It doesn’t work, so I sit up and stretch out my neck. What am I going to do? I am impulsively moving to Nashville by myself, with no truck. I mean I barely have a place to stay. I am literally going to be sleeping on a stranger”s couch. Well, I mean, he is a friend of the Ambroses, so he isn’t like a serial killer or anything. This is the right choice, though. I am going to work on my music and not think about Madison. The Ambroses even got me a job on their friend”s ranch. The only thing I really need now is a truck, but that is a problem for another day. The truck door opens, interrupting my internal panic. Brooks appears in the door with an armful of snacks and an extra large fountain drink.
“Need a hand?”
“Yeah.”
I lean over the center console, and grab some of the snacks in Beau’s hands.
“Did you buy the whole store?”
“No, I left anything that had fruit in it.”
“That’s good. That at least means you have good snacks.”
I open a bag of Swedish fish, as Brooks is settling back into the driver”s seat.
“Hey, those are mine.”
“Dude, you bought the whole place, I think you will survive.” I pop another fish into my mouth to make my point.
“Yeah, but those are only for the driver.” He says, snatches the bag out of my hand.
“Well, the driver can get over it,” I respond, snatching the bag back from him.
“You seem a little cranky. Maybe you should go back to sleep.”
“I’m not cranky,” I say around a mouthful of Swedish fish.
Brooks rolls his eyes and pulls out of the gas station.
“How much longer till we get there?”
“A little over two hours.”
I nod, finishing off the bag of fish.
“So, when are we going to talk about the ring box in your pocket?”
“What are you talking about?” I look at him with fake shock.
“Dude, don’t play dumb my brother told me.”
“Remind me never to tell Beau a secret again.”
“Oh, come on, don’t blame him. So what did you do? Sell your truck to pay for it?”
Not answering, I look over at him.
“You did, didn’t you?” Brooks lets out a hearty laugh, which only serves to irritate me further.
“I am glad that you can find humor in my failures.”
“Oh Braydon, don’t be like that. It’s going to be ok, man. It’s going to work out.”
“How do you know that?” I ask looking back out my window.
“Because y’all are meant to be. Even a blind man can see that.”
Brooks claps my shoulder, as I steal the bag of Sour Patch Kids he was eating.
“Hey, that’s not cool, man. I thought we were friends. We just had that whole heart to heart.”
“Friends steal each other”s food.”
Brooks rolls his eyes and opens a bag of pretzels.
“So, what are you going to do with the ring now?” Brooks asks, popping another pretzel in his mouth.
“Why? You looking for a ring?”
“Ha. No, I am not. I don’t really do relationships.”
“I plan on keeping it for now.” I say in one breath.
“Do you still love her?”
“Brooks, I never stopped loving her. She is the one who wanted this. She is the one who wanted to walk away.”
Brooks flinches, and that’s when I realize I was yelling.
“Sorry,” I mumble.
“Look, I don’t know Madison all that well. But I do know you. And I know that you don’t just walk away easily.”
“Let me interrupt you right there. If you are getting ready to tell me to give up, then you should stop talking. I am not giving up on something and someone that I know is meant to be.”
“Woah, I wasn’t going to tell you to give up. I was going to tell you to fight. Fight like hell. Because if what y’all had wasn’t real, then I don’t want to even try to fall in love.”
I lean back in my seat, too stunned to speak. Brooks is always quiet. Him and Bryce both are, but Brooks can get loud about something he truly cares about. I roll my head towards the window and try to let his words sink in. I am not going to give up. I am never going to give up on Madison. We are meant to be. Brooks opens another snack, but I don”t even bother to see what it is or to try and steal it from him.
“I just feel like I failed,” I mumble to the window.
“You didn’t do anything wrong Braydon. She just needs to have her own life experiences. Her own adventures.”
“But why? Why can’t she do all those things with me?”
“I don’t know, but what I do know is that it is all going to work out. Until then, you can have your own life experiences and your own adventures.”
“I guess.”
“At least it will make for some good stories when y’all do eventually get back together.”
“Are we almost there?”
“We should be pulling into the driveway in less than thirty minutes.”
I watch as the unfamiliar scenery passes by my window. Tennessee has mountains, but they don’t even come close to Utah mountains. That thought makes me miss home already. But I need to do this, I remind myself.
“Trent is really excited to meet you. And to finally have a few roommates.”
“I am really excited to meet his couch. And take a nap.”
“You are going to need a long one because you start on the ranch in two days.”
“It’s going to be so weird not doing concrete with y’all.”
“Oh, trust me, working on the ranch will be a nice little slow down for you.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure, Brooks.”
“What do you know about being a ranch hand?”
“Absolutely nothing, but it’s something physical to keep my hands busy.”
“I guess that is true.”
Brooks pulls down a gravel driveway and parks in front of a small cabin. It looks rustic and worn down. But as long as I can get some sleep, it is perfect.
“Trent is probably still working, but we can go inside. And you can take a nap, cranky pants.”
“Sounds like a solid plan to me. And I’m not cranky.”
Brooks gives me a “be honest” look.
“Ok, maybe a little,” I say under my breath.
“I’ll help you with your bags.” Brooks turns off his truck and opens his door.
“Brooks.”
He stalls, his hand still resting on the door handle.
“Yes?”
“I am going to fight like hell to get my girl back.” It feels like I am almost trying to convince myself of this, but I know it is true.
“I know you are.” Brooks gives me a reassuring slap on the shoulder, and he hops out of his truck.
“I’m going to get her back,” I whisper to myself this time.