Live your
Life
Chapter
3: On the Way
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Notes: From Charlie’s point of view.
Adam hadn’t been the only one to accept Fred’s offer. The thought of not having to think about the future for a whole week, made them all want to leave at once. The only problem had been to get to Miami, from where the boat left. They were all going in separate cars, but of course there was some disagreements. There always were.
“Am I the only one who thinks it’s hot in here?” Connie complained. “Adam, don’t you have air-condition?”
“Sorry, it’s broken,” answered Adam from the driver’s seat.
“Your Dad paid 25 000 dollar for this car, and the air-condition doesn’t work?” Charlie said. “I think you got screwed.”
“It was fine when I got the car, but then someone broke it. I wonder who that was...”
“There’s no need for name-calling,” Connie muttered. “I was cold, and the stupid button wouldn’t work.”
Charlie looked out the window. “Maybe we should make a quick stop. Connie, maybe you want to change cars again?”
They’d been driving for several hours, and the whole time Connie had been complaining about something. Both Adam and Charlie had been pretty tired of her by the time they got to the Florida state-line.
“No, I like going in this car,” Connie explained. “It’s quieter then Fred’s car, and less demanding then Guy’s car.”
“Demanding? I’d like to know how a car can be demanding,” Adam smiled.
“Not the car, the driver,” Connie explained. “He keeps talking, and he wants me to answer.”
“Yes, conversations can be like that sometimes,” joked Charlie. “It’d be quieter in this car if you traded.”
Connie muttered something and put on her headphones. Charlie closed his eyes and began wondering if Connie had been right. Maybe they were in the calmest car of them all. He could just imagine how it was in other cars if that was the truth...
They’d actually been four in the car when they left Mississippi earlier, but after a quick pit stop they’d lost Jesse to Portman’s car. If it was because of Connie, they didn’t know. From the very beginning, Cecilia had been in their car too, but after a small argument with Adam, Charlie decided to put them in different cars.
They had still at least six more hours to go before they were in Miami, maybe more.
“I need candy,” Connie told them. “Please, Adam, pull over. I want some candy.”
“We can’t stop every time you have a craving for sweets. We’d still be in Louisiana in that case.”
Connie sighed and sank deeper into the seat. “Can’t I just sit up front for a while? I’m bored.”
“Stop complaining, Moreau. You should be glad that we let you sit in the car at all,” Charlie said. “I can let you choose what to listen to, if you want.”
“My CD with Pink,” Connie quickly said. “We have to listen to that.”
“Have I ever told you that you have a horrible taste in music?” Charlie whined. “Can’t you listen to something normal for once?”
Connie leaned forward and put her CD into the CD-player. “Don’t complain. My taste in both music and movies are just fine.”
“Yeah, so you say,” grinned Charlie. For as long as he could remember, the whole team had been teasing Connie for her terrible taste in movies and music.
A couple of hours later they all took a break from the road and stopped at a restaurant along the way. Connie hurried away to buy some candy, while Adam and Charlie tried to decide if they should leave her behind.
Guy walked up to them from his own car. “Where’s Connie?”
“She’s off to buy some candy. She’s been nagging about that since Alabama,” Adam said. “Please say that you want her in your car.”
“I would love to trade a few of my passengers away. You want ‘em?” Guy asked.
“Sorry, but the thought of both Nish and Sarah in the same car makes me wanna keep Connie.”
“You can have Averman if you want,” Guy continued.
“How many are there in your car anyway?” Charlie asked. “We’re only three, after we threw out Jesse and Cecilia.”
“We’re five, and we’re all getting on each other’s nerves. I’m kicking them all out soon,” Guy explained. “I’m just glad that Cecilia is nowhere near my car.”
“She’s with Fred, arguing,” Travis told them, while walking by. Charlie turned to face him.
“You’re in Fred’s car? I pity you,” Adam said.
Travis shrugged. “I tuned them out a couple of hours ago. They’re not so bad, actually. After they stopped the yelling, I could actually hear my own thoughts for a while.”
Charlie decided to go and find out how much longer they had to travel before they got to Miami. Luis would’ve been the first one to ask, but he was nowhere to be found. Instead he found Fred, and he had a map.
“How far is it from here to Miami?” Fred asked. “I can’t make this map out.”
Charlie grabbed the map and tried to locate where they were. “I think it’s just a few hours to go. I heard you’re driving Travis insane in your car.”
“No, not him exclusively. I have Russ and Ken in my car too.”
“Lucky them. You want to trade some of them? Guy’s tired of Nish and Sarah.”
Fred shrugged. “It doesn’t matter. But I won’t trade with you.”
“Why?”
“As a punishment for you putting Cecilia in my car. Thank you.”
Charlie rolled his eyes. “You offered to take her. It’s your own fault, so stop complaining.”
“I had to offer to take her, she’s my girlfriend. I’m one of the few people that can’t leave her on the side of the road. Although I wish I could. She’s been talking all the way.”
“I have a feeling that you haven’t shut up either,” Charlie pointed out. “Stop tormenting my players and make up with Cecilia.”
Cecilia tapped him on the shoulder. “Charlie?”
“Yeah, what’s your complaint about?”
“I have none. I just want to know when we’re in Miami.”
Charlie shrugged. “Ask Fred, he’s the map-keeper.”
Charlie went back to the car, while rubbing his temples. He’d been team-captain of the Ducks since they first got together. That was four years with all of the twenty-four players. Before that he’d spent four years with his old District 5 team. That was a total of eight years, struggling to keep the team on track.
It wasn’t too much too ask for a break right about now, was it?
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Author’s Note: I’m celebrating today, because this is the 100th chapter I’ve finished writing since I began writing fan fictions about the Ducks.
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