Levi sped past many trees that merged together in a steady stream of greens and browns. The road looked sinister like it was going to swallow us alive and I actually felt I'd die for the second time.
I grabbed on to the side of the truck and felt my nails dig into the leatherette interior of the door's handle. My stomach churned and I tasted bittersweet strawberries and coffee in my mouth.
The music blasted on and Levi was having so much fun I couldn't bring myself to stop him. But at the same time, I wanted him to stop too. My head swam in an ocean of rock song, blurry scenery, and I don't think they'd love the idea of a second puke from me.
"Life in the fast lane! YEAAAAAAAHHHH!!!" Levi roared and the others at the back whooped in delight. They actually enjoyed his driving style?
There was a curve in front of us and I braced myself for the inevitable. Levi swerved the metal car quickly and I felt my body swayed by the centrifugal force.
After we turned on one curve, another bend came along and this time my hand flew on Levi's face as I couldn't hold myself still with the way we whipped from side to side on this very long roadtrip.
"Levi! Slow down!" I tried to shout at him through the music's loud beats. "If you continue, I don't think I could hold myself from doing a second round of yesterday's event!"
The crazed smile on Levi's face abruptly stopped and realization dawned on him like an egg cracked on his head. Levi turned to look at my sorry state of dizzy and pale about-to-puke face and he slowly shifted the car's speed.
The others continued to laugh at the back and I could hear Bash's maniacal chuckles. Did he do this on purpose knowing Levi's driving style? Was this his comeback at me for scaring him shitless at the resto?
I gnashed my teeth in pure rage and my brows converged into a mad brunette bridge.
Oh, so he wants to play games now, huh? I will play with him. Thankfully now, I wouldn't feel conflicted emotions when I exact my revenge on William's reincarnation.
Bash and I will play in the fire just like how William played me. But first, I must survive this crazy drive.
"Lizzie are you okay with the speed now?" I heard Levi's concerned voice speak. He had pressed a few buttons and minimized the volume of the music so we could hear each other clearly.
I gulped in air and tried to speak but then I felt the familiar taste of bile coming up my throat.
This time around, I was conscious enough to actually find a way not to throw up inside the truck. I stuck my head out of the car window and there I emptied my stomach with last night and today's menu.
The burning foul stench wafted into my nose and I gagged at the horrible smell.
I heard the girls at the back had continued to laugh – probably at a joke Bash said. Perhaps they didn't realize I had puked again and just thought the stench had come off from somewhere along the road. Maybe a dead animal or rotten vegetables, or both.
I wiped my mouth off and adjusted myself on the front seat. The music now turned to a hip background noise and Levi glanced at me with worried green eyes.
"You okay?" he asked as he made a smooth left turn. From afar, I could start to see high-rise buildings that towered over other structures. There were bridges that crisscrossed up and down, highways as wide as four to six lanes converged and diverged in different areas.
"Yeah, I'm okay now. Sorry about that." I said to Levi. "And sorry for hitting you. It wasn't intentional, promise!"
"Oh, don't worry Lizzie, I don't get mad easily." He laughed. "I'm pretty sorry too. I lose myself when I get to drive powerful cars, there is just something with speeding forward and never looking back."
"You mentioned this is the first time Bash let someone drive his car other than himself." I noted.
Levi's eyes were on the road and I saw a sudden shift from the playful sweet, to a serious and almost concerned look. He let his one hand take the wheel and turned the music off.
"Look Lizzie, honestly, I don't know why he would do that." Levi confessed. "Bash is crazy over this car. Calls it his baby girl. He would never let anyone drive it unless it was a life-or-death situation. Heck, I don't even think he'd let anyone even with a knife to his throat."
Bash is an odd guy. Why would he feel so attach to this contraption that even in the face of death he wouldn't let it go?
"It was a weird offer I accepted knowing he did it with something in mind. I know him like the back of my hand, we are practically best friends." He gave me a thoughtful side glance. "Tell me Lizzie, why would he do that?"
I froze in my seat and felt the suspicion in Levi's probing green eyes. I don't feel that it would be wise to include this huge sweet guy (that anytime could crush me), in my list of problems and I just kept my mouth shut lest I say something that might incarcerate me.
There was a long pregnant pause that expanded into a few minutes that felt like an eternity. I shuffled in my seat and knew I wasn't so good at hiding the guilt in my face.
"Bash and I are like brothers." I heard Levi say in a low soft-spoken voice. So low I even had second thoughts if what I heard was just my imagination.
I fumbled with the hem of my over-sized sweater and waited for him to continue.
"He is the most happy-go-lucky and outgoing guy I know. An unintentionally dubbed lady-killer with his guitar and nice guy vibes. I don't see any reason he'd give away a chance to have the long ride with you, pretty Elizabeth Jennings." He continued.
I choked at his out of the blue compliment and wheezed so hard, I almost felt I'd die again. I wasn't expecting him to say that out of all of the guys here. I always thought he had no interest in women as he had disregarded Suzy's hints countless of times.
"What happened with the two of you, Lizzie?"