Page 76 of Fake As Puck
“Sure. You’re the DJ.”
“Dangerous words. I have very strong opinions about road trip music.”
“Such as?”
“No sad songs. No songs that make you think too hard. Nothing that doesn’t make you want to sing along.”
“That’s a very specific criteria.”
“The best road trips have soundtracks. This is going to be a good road trip, therefore it needs a good soundtrack.”
She connects her phone to the car’s Bluetooth, and suddenly the space fills with something upbeat and familiar. It’s the kind of song that immediately makes you want to roll the windows down and drive faster.
“Better?” she asks, settling back in her seat.
“Better.”
And it is better. The music fills the silence that’s been building between us, gives us something to focus on besides the fact that we’re about to spend the next two days playing couple for people who don’t know it’s all pretend.
People who knew me in college, when I was a completely different person. When I was younger and stupider and had noidea what I wanted from life besides hockey and whatever girl was paying attention to me that week.
“You’re nervous,” Liv observes, and I realize I’m gripping the wheel again.
“I’m not nervous.”
“You are. Your shoulders are up around your ears.”
“My shoulders are normal.”
“Your shoulders are definitely not normal. What’s going on?”
I try to relax, force my shoulders down, loosen my grip on the steering wheel.
“I haven’t seen most of these people in years,” I admit.
“So?”
“So they knew me when I was... different.”
“Different?” she questions.
“Younger. Dumber. Less... evolved.”
She laughs, and the sound makes something in my chest relax.
“West, like you just said, you were young. Of course you were different. Everyone’s different than they were in college.”
“Yeah, but these are people who knew me when I thought doing keg stands was a personality trait.”
“Did you actually do keg stands?” she asks.
“I may have done a few keg stands.”
“Oh my god, you did. You totally did keg stands.”
“Don’t sound so delighted about it.”
“I’m just trying to picture you doing a keg stand. Were you good at them?”
