"The man said two lefts and then a right."
"Two lefts. Damn! Are you sure?"
"Hey! You're the one that sent me in there."
James mumbles something under his breath as he turns the right-hand corner.
"What was that?" asks Ruthie.
"Nothing"
"Damn it, James! How did I even have time to get directions from that guy? You were blowing the horn so loud."Â
"Whatever!" James pushes the gas pedal down, kicking the car up a little faster. Ruthie just sits back and rolls her eyes. This was turning out to be one hell of a trip to the city.Â
"Listen," Ruthie says, trying to put some caring in her voice. "Screw this restaurant. Let's just hit the mall and food court it."
"No! It's obvious I don't take you to nice restaurants or buy you expensive enough things."
The rain slides off the windshield of the car as they slow down to check the storefronts. Ruthie rests her hand on her boyfriend's leg. She concentrates hard on looking out the glass of the passenger side, taking in every street name, every shop window, and the frantic running of people hurrying through the wash of spring.Â
"You're sweet, James," she says to the corner of 4th and Chestnut. "I know you're more of a hamburger and fries kind of guy. I knew that when I signed on."
The rain sounds like the ocean on the roof of the car, and James wonders if he'll ever hear it like this again, stopping when the car drives under a railway bridge and then falling even harder on the other side.Â
"It's just..."Â
She turns toward him and sees the face of a child lost in a store, looking desperately for his mother. "It's just what, hon?"
"It's just... I don't know if we'll ever find this restaurant, Ruthie."Â
"That's okay," Ruthie says, lifting her hand from Jim's leg and turning back to the window. "At least we’re together."
There were fewer people out on the sidewalks as they drove further away from downtown. Ruthie missed the buildings, the strong, broad silver structures that seemed to guard the entrance to a whole new world. In those buildings, you never had to do anything for yourself. Everything down to the white sheets was taken care of. All you had to do was look out and enjoy the view.
James slid his hand onto Ruthie's leg as they started to see signs of fast food and mall stores. There was something comforting about neon. It just made you feel like you were actually away from home, and the place you were visiting was both exotic and familiar.Â
As they pulled into the mall parking lot, the rain stopped, and the sun started to peek out from behind the clouds. James gave her a comforting smile as they walked toward the entrance talking about what store to hit first.
Ruthie stopped him for a moment and looked back at the sea of silver and glass behind. She felt the tug of his arm on hers and walked on into the neon of the mall.Â
This is an old one. First published back in 2003 in a literary magazine called The Vehicle. It was produced by and for students at the amazing Eastern Illinois University. I remember writing this story for a typical Creative Writing class. One that pushed for literary fiction over genre.
There is still something here that I love. That tension I saw in so many of the people around me growing up in a small town. Those who loved it and those who only wanted to escape. That tense shift when everything comes back to the familiar.