Working two jobs was tiresome and hectic, but it was shaping up to be worth it. Even after moving out of the mansion and starting to split rent with Rebecca, she still had some money left over for other things. Things like a vehicle that would get her from point a to point b and make her commute time so much shorter. That was how she justified it in her mind, anyway; it would make things much easier in the long run and would save her money… hopefully. She would see, anyway.

One thing that was for certain was that it would allow her to do things like she had planned that weekend. After the date was set to pick up her car, she’d suggested to Booker that they made the most of the newfound ability to leave the city whenever and take a weekend away. So, she’d booked two days off of work and booked them a night in a little B&B in upstate New York. It seemed like the perfect way to break in her new wheels.

They’d agreed on a time for her to pick him up, and then they would drive up there together. It was so rare that they actually got that long together just the two of them, and she was excited for it. Usually, their time together was rushed by their various schedules, or interrupted by the people that they lived with. She loved that Booker had taken in Celestina when she really didn’t have anywhere else to go, but it did make things more difficult when they wanted to be alone.

The weekend would be romantic and relaxing, if everything went correctly. They both clearly needed it, too. It was a busy time of year, and it was always good to take some time and just decompress for a while. This seemed like the best way to do that.

The agreed upon time had come, so Juliette had driven over. The little silver toyota beeped as she locked it in front of the Bookman’s apartment building. It felt good to be driving something of her own; she’d never actually owned a car before, and it was going to be a new experience.

She took the elevator to the Bookman apartment and knocked on the door. She knew that it would likely be open and that she could probably walk in, but at that apartment, it was always dangerous to just walk in. First hand experience had taught her just how dangerous, in fact. If there was one thing that Booker and Vanessa needed to work on, it was boundaries.

”Ready to go, Book?” Juliette asked cheerfully once the door started to open. She was dressed in jeans, a knit sweater, and a plaid scarf, free of bags since she’d left them in the car. Overall, she was more than ready to head out.

Things were going so well! Honestly this was the first time in a long time that Booker felt any kind of hope with his relationships. The last time had been with Chris, but even then, in hindsight, Booker could see those little cracks that were on the surface of their relationship. If he had been stronger, he probably would have recognized Chris for exactly what he was but he had managed to be fooled by the man for years. This wasn’t the first time, either, as Booker inherently wanted to believe in the best of people. It was a trait that, apparently, would bite him in the ass.

But this was different. Juliette was different. Nessa may have had her suspicions given how they met, but for the most part she had been pretty supportive. Booker was glad that they were finally getting on to good terms again. That whole business about being lied to for so many years, well, it was rather unnerving. Now that the air was clearing from that, everything else just seemed to be falling into place. He was glad too -- because he really, really, really liked Juliette.

Honestly, at this point, Booker was using a certain other word to describe his feelings for her but it was something that, for the most part, he had been keeping to himself. It wasn’t because he was unsure about how she felt, but simply more because he knew what it was like to say the L-word too soon. The last thing he wanted to do was scare such a great relationship off by moving too fast but he couldn’t move at a glacial speed either. Juliette was seemingly understanding though and the librarian was spurred on by that.

Now...they were going away together. That, admittedly, was a little scary. Sure they had spent nights at one another’s places and had gone out on plenty of dates, even hung out together all night for a movie marathon once, but this was entirely different territory. Booker couldn’t remember the last time he took a weekend getaway that didn’t have to do with friends, his fandoms, or something work-related. He was going out for a weekend with Juliette and it would just be the two of them, in a new space, just together.

Again, terrifying...but it was a fear he liked. It was anticipation, wonderment, and curiosity for how they would do together that drove him on. Additionally, given the romantic nature of their weekend, he wondered, briefly, if the opportunity to say big “L” was a possibility. He guessed he would know once they were there and living it.

Booker had rarely requested days off so he had the time to take. Now he was in his room, packing the last items he would need in his bag, listening as Nessa obnoxiously recorded sound bites for work from her room. Her voice overs tended to be a little...dramatic and right now she was trying out some skit that really just wasn’t tying together. Given that this was going to be her plan for the remainder of today and tomorrow, he was actually pretty happy to take the time.

Dressed in his jeans, comfortable sneakers, a simple black tee and his red-and-black Arachnid Dude hoodie, Booker checked to make sure he did have everything. So far it seemed like it, he had spare clothing for a few days, toiletries, his phone charger, as well as a book of poetry and a book for short stories that he had been reading for the last bit. With everything seemingly gathered, he just needed to grab the snacks that he had made last night and they would be set.

Knocking shook the door and Booker perked up. he smiled, gathering up his bag, but stopping to check his hair in the mirror. Once everything was set up, he stepped up, pounded on his sister’s door and informed her that he was leaving. She shouted some obscenities back about him ruining her recording session but also told him to be safe so he guessed it balanced out.

A shrug and he moved towards the door, opening to find the lovely face he had been hoping to see.

>>”Ready to go, Book?”

”Mmm, desperately,” he said as he leaned in and gave her a soft kiss. ”Just let me get some snacks I made for use to eat on the road.” He slipped the strap of his bag across his chest before he stepped away to the kitchen and retrieved the small picnic basket filled with snacks he had both bought and made from scratch. With it in hand, he returned to Juliette and beamed. ”All ready.”

Behind the door, there was some shouting and a few obscenities that could be heard from the other end. She had no doubt that they came from Nessa’s mouth, likely due to something being interrupted or a game not going her way. Juliette grinned quietly to herself from the other side of the door. She was glad that she and Nessa were getting along now, especially since they’d gotten off to such a rough start.

After a minute, Booker opened the door and leant down to give her a kiss. She happily obliged and stood on her toes to close the distance a little faster. Seeing him was still a novelty, and that was a fun part of their relationship. They were taking a big step going away together, but she was more excited than scared about doing so. Perhaps the anticipation was just outweighing the nerves.

>>”Just let me get some snacks I made for use to eat on the road. All ready.”

She waited in the hallway while Booker collected the last of his things, peeking her head around the corner to see exactly what he was grabbing. Whatever was in the basket was kept from view, but it smelled good. It was great having a boyfriend that could cook. ”Sounds amazing,” she grinned. In all the other preparations for that weekend, she hadn’t even considered bringing snacks. It sounded like the B&B would be all inclusive, so she figured that there would be no need. That was why it was good to have another person, though. They would balance each other out.

”I’m glad we were able to do this. It’ll be nice to get away,” she pointed out cheerfully. Nothing could bring her down in that moment.

Once they were both out of the apartment, Juliette led them through the rest of the building and out the way that they’d come. There were two things that she was excited about that weekend: the time away and her new car. Since she’d never owned one, it was a big thing for her to get to show off her new vehicle.

They reached the entrance, and walked out to where she had parked the new car. Well, more used than new, but it still applied. She bounded forward and stuck her arms out to display her new car as someone in an old commercial would. ”This is it! What do you think?”

She leaned against it proudly, crossing her arms over her chest with a grin. ”It still needs a name.”

Booker was only too happy to provide sustenance for the both of them as they drove up north. While it wouldn’t be that long of a trek, there was always the chance that they could pull off to the side of the road, have a nice picnic in the open air, etc. Booker was a hopeless romantic and believed that such an opportunity would present himself to the two lovers. All they had to do was keep their eyes open and he was sure some secluded shady glen or babbling brook would make itself known to them. In no way was the librarian allowing his overly fanciful mind fill his head with impossible thoughts.

Nope. Not at all.

With their lunch/snack/romantic getaway good ready to go, Booker returned to the door and present the basket for her to observe. Of course she couldn’t see the delectable food he had prepared, but instead could smell the delicious aromas as they mixed and danced together. The look on Juliette’s face alone proved that she would appreciate the meal. Excellent, that was all that the librarian could have wanted.

>>”Sounds amazing...I’m glad we were able to do this. It’ll be nice to get away,”

”It is! I’ve been looking forward to it all week,” he admitted.

it was true. Booker was excited to share this trip with Juliette. Not only because the two of them needed the time alone, but because it would actually make for a pretty good idea of how the two of them would do without any constraints on time or fear of someone else walking in on them, as has happened in the past. Therefore, this weekend should do wonders for them, allow them to stretch out and really experience one another as a couple. It was a grand experience that Booker just couldn’t wait for.

As the duo stepped out into the hallway, he closed the door behind him and made his way alongside her down towards the ground floor of the building. Together the both of them stepped out into the street where Booker spotted Juliette’s latest pride and joy. It was definitely a reason to be excited.

>> ”This is it! What do you think? It still needs a name.”

He chuckled as he approached the vehicle, giving it a look over. He knew how to drive, of course, but in New York it was just more cost effective to take public transportation or Uber to the closest spot that you could. It just made everything a whole lot easier. But, still, the young man knew how drive and, on occasion, had been known to drive the vehicles of his less-than-sober colleagues when leaving happy hour. He gave Juliette an impressed nod.

”That is a beautiful vehicle,” he admitted. He then pursed his lips in thought, trying to help her come up with a name. ”Oh! I got it. The perfect name. You can call it...Brian.” He nodded his head approvingly. It was such a perfect name, there was no way that she could contest it.

In terms of wanting to get away, the two of them were on the same page. It would be so nice to finally have some time for just the two of them without having to worry about running into a sister or a roommate or anyone and everyone else that they always managed to run into. It was so rare that they actually got through a date by themselves that it was starting to become a novelty. Hopefully, that weekend would give them exactly what they needed.

The car would hopefully give them a little bit of alone time, too. It was a few hours drive to where they were staying, and it would just be them driving that route. They usually took public transit whenever they went somewhere together, so this was definitely a new step. One that they would have on the regular now, but the first time was meant to be exciting.

There was no doubt that she was excited as she displayed her new wheels to the man. She was leaning in front of the vehicle, still trying to wrap her head around the idea that this was hers now. Sure, they lived in a busy city where there was a good public transit system, but she’d been finding that will all of her regular commuting to various parts of the city, she needed a faster way to get from point A to point B.

It needed a name, though. Something that she could use to refer to the silver vehicle other than just “my car”. She’d subtly suggested that Booker name it for her, since she’d been having a bit of a blank.

>>”Oh! I got it. The perfect name. You can call it...Brian.”

Juliette laughed. ”Brian. That’s perfect,” she grinned, putting her hand down on the metal as she christened it. She then pushed herself off of the car and walked over to Booker to take the basket from him, walking around and placing it in the back seat when she had gotten it from him.

As she walked to the driver’s seat and began to slip inside, she had a sudden thought. ”Wait, ‘Brian’ isn’t the mysterious ‘B’, is it? Booker Brian Bookman?” That was something that she chuckled at as she closed the door behind her and turned the car on.

Booker nodded as he eyed the silver-colored car that Juliette displayed before him. It really was a beautiful vehicle and it certainly did deserve a name. However Booker wasn’t quite sure what the car could be name. Thousands of transport names from his various fandoms came to mind but, truthfully, none of them sounded right, especially since this wasn’t his car. Juliette was a fan of some of his likes, but not to the level of naming her car after one of them. Therefore, just to make her laugh, he tossed out a name at random.

Okay, it wasn’t that random. ‘Brian’ just made him laugh because of the Perry Hatter series, where there was the old wizard headmaster who had a ton of amazingly long names attached to his but, in the middle of it all, was a simple “Brian”. However, it was suggested only as a joke and nothing more; again, it wasn’t his car.

>>”Brian. That’s perfect,”

He grinned. Juliette really was as silly as him, a reason as to why he liked her so much. Of course she would go for the most off-the-wall that he could think of for a car. Not “Princess” or “Tax Break” or anything like that, but rather something so mundane and human sounding. Really it only furthered his enjoyment of the woman with whom he would be going on vacation with.

She took the basket from him and he moved to place his bag in the trunk of the car before he came back around and pulled open the passenger side door. As he started to climb in, Juliette brought up the question that he knew had been plaguing her for some time now. He probably should have given her a hint, or at least a yes or no, but rather he continued to kept the most well-known secret about him a secret. He had every faith that eventually she would figure it out.

>>”Wait, ‘Brian’ isn’t the mysterious ‘B’, is it? Booker Brian Bookman?”

He shook his head, his lips twisted into a small, malevolent smile. ”You really think that alliteration works, honey?” He was teasing, of course, but he did confirm that that also wasn’t his name. ”No. B doesn’t stand for Brian.” Just before buckling his seatbelt, he leaned over and planted a kiss on her cheek. ”But there’s your consolation prize.” With that, he sat back and buckled his belt. He was so ready to go.

She’d made a quick guess, but just the pitying smile that he wore told her that she was off track. Juliette pouted and cocked her head at him, silently wishing that he would just give her one simple hint. That wasn’t too difficult, was it? If they were going to be telling each other everything, then she felt like she at least deserved to know his middle name, even if it was a well-kept secret. He did know just about everything about her by that point anyway. It was only fair.

Even though it bothered her not to know, Juliette didn’t put up a fuss about him not telling her. She would either guess it or get it out of him eventually, even if she had to pull it out of him. She had her ways.

Still slightly bitter, she twisted her nose when he kissed her cheek as consolation. ”Thanks, I feel so consoled,” she told him dryly as she switch gears distractedly. It wasn’t that big of a deal, but it did bother her a little that he wouldn’t even tell her what it was.

With everything and everyone in place, she pulled out into the busy street to get them moving. While keeping her eyes on the road, she reached over to the other side of the car and popped open the glove compartment. She grabbed a paper map on top of the stack of papers in there and handed it to Booker. ”Alright, you’re going to be my navigator, because I’ve never actually driven out this way,” explained Juliette. She’d only been in New York for about two years, and she very rarely actually left the city for anything. The farthest she’d actually been outside of the metropolis since moving there had been when she’d gone pumpkin picking nearly a year prior, and she hadn’t been the one driving. She didn’t really want to bring up memories of that experience either.

She did, however, know her way around enough to get out of the city. That part was covered completely, assuming that she wasn’t so rusty with her driving that she could actually get them there. ”The destination should be circled, and I think there’s a route that’s pretty simple to follow, but I’m not sure. Oh, and don’t judge too much if I’m not doing the best job driving. It’s been a while.”

That fact was punctuated by a very sharp stop at the coming up stoplight, where they stopped just behind another car. She took in a breath and rolled in her lips, keeping her eyes locked on the road. ”Sorry…”

>>”Thanks, I feel so consoled,”

Booker smirked. He knew that that wasn’t the answer that Juliette wanted to hear. However her knowing his middle name, well, it really wasn’t as amazing as all that. It started off as just a joke, a just a close kept secret for only a select few, but Booker liked to keep that circled extremely small. His middle name wasn’t all that exciting and, really, when people found out, they tended to look at him, as if to say, “that’s it?” Because, seriously, what did that expect? Something that would resonate through the ages like Benecroft? Beowulf? Honestly he wished it was one of those. He could always legally change his name but it was such a hassle for something that, really, didn’t matter.

Oh well, he would take his mind off of it. Juliette would push past it and, at some point, he would let her in on the grand secret. Of course she could end up leaving him at the revelation but that was just a risk he was going to have to take; especially if she wanted to know that badly.

Settling into his seat, the librarian buckled in his belt and tapped his hands onto his knees. He was more than excited to get going. However, as he sat back, he paused when Juliette turned to him, reached over, and opened up her glove compartment. She fished around a few seconds before pulling out a pamphlet of folded paper that had been folded many, many times. Set upon his lap, Booker picked up and opened it -- it was a map? Honestly he couldn’t remember the last time he had actually used something like this, especially since all smart phones came with GPS now.

But he would keep this fact to himself for the time being. Maybe Juliette was just a purest? Maybe she had a bad experience with GPS? There were so many possibilities that Booker didn’t want to risk offending her so he just kept his mouth shut, nodded, and opened up the map to the portion that she started to point at.

>> ”Alright, you’re going to be my navigator, because I’ve never actually driven out this way...The destination should be circled, and I think there’s a route that’s pretty simple to follow, but I’m not sure. Oh, and don’t judge too much if I’m not doing the best job driving. It’s been a while.”

Booker nodded as he looked at the circled portion and started to trace his finger back, leading to city in which they were fleeing. He chuckled at bit at Juliette’s admittance that it had been a while and he just waved his hand dismissively.

”Oh don’t worry about it, Jules,” he teased. ”I’m sure that as an X-Man my life is perfectly safe in your haaAANDS!”

He started as the car came to a sudden halt, nearly running through a red light. He blinked and turned to face the young woman who seemingly refused to look at him now. The silence was deafening before she seemed to awkwardly clear her throat, still keeping her eyes pointed straight ahead.

>>”Sorry…”

”Uh...huh…” Curling his lips under his teeth, Booker turned his attention back to the map at hand and silently muttered a soft prayer to whatever deity may be listening. Just in case...

People said that you could never really forget how to drive. Juliette believed that fact, since it had been easy for her to get back into the swing of navigating around a car. There was, however, the fact that you could very easily get rusty at something like that. The only times that she’d gotten to drive in the past number of years was when she’d gotten cars from the X-Men’s reserve or from friends. Even then, she hadn’t driven for more than a block or two. Certainly not the multiple hours that they were going to tackle that day.

After her first mistake driving, Juliette had every intention of doing a better job of maneuvering the vehicle. No more things like that where both of them would have to wonder if they would make it to the B&B in one piece.

She shot Booker a quick look as she heard him muttering under his breath, but didn’t say anything else. She did deserve it, after all. She narrowed her eyes and drove forward when the light changed, making sure that she was following all regulations and safety measures. There would be no accidents on her account. Hopefully.

---

”So put your hands in the holes of my sweater!” Juliette sang along with the stereo and moved her head to the music. They were about an hour into their drive, having made it a ways out of the city. Everything around them had been country roads for the last few miles, and it was a nice break from the usual city view that they got.

She had even gotten her driving down better. There had been a few close calls early on, but she’d settled into a system, and it was no longer an issue. She could even sip the Starbucks drink that they’d picked up with one of her hands and not have to worry about swerving off the road now. It was great.

The world outside of New York city always seemed to get prettier the longer you spent away from it. Having grown up in Atlanta for most of her childhood, Juliette had an appreciation for trees and nature, which was something that was easy to go without in a city full of skyscrapers. It was always good to take a break from that and recharge. Watching the trees that had turned orange, red, and a thousand other colours pass by as they drove down quiet roads was the perfect way to do that.

”Alright, where am I turning next?” she asked Booker, who had been leading them with the map that she’d given him. GPS wasn’t always as trustworthy as people thought, so Juliette preferred to use a paper map that they could actually see in front of them. Plus, it was distracting to hear an automated voice every mile, when she could just listen to Booker instead.

Okay so maybe things started out just a little shaky. Juliette was still getting used to being back behind the wheel again so there were some moments that were a little armrest grabbing. Thankfully these moments didn’t seem to last too long as the nurse eventually found her automotive rhythm again and Booker breathed a short sigh of relief. Really he had nothing to complain about because when was the last time that he was behind the wheel? It had been far too long as well so he doubted he could do much better.

With the rust shaken off, Booker found himself relaxing and rather enjoying the trip. As they left the city behind them, he did his job as navigator, informing her of which streets and highways to take until they could see picturesque scenery coming up. He smiled a bit, thankful for this opportunity for alone time with Juliette and in such pretty surroundings. This was certainly what they needed.

>>”So put your hands in the holes of my sweater!”

Added to the sweet soundtrack was Juliette’s voice. Singing along with the song that came over the radio, the librarian smirked a little as he eyed her. Really she did have a sweet voice, especially with the song she was belting. Turning back to his phone, Booker continued to flip through his internet roleplay forums, checking if his cardboard-manipulating librarian character owed any posts and finding nothing. Good. He had informed everyone that he would be out of touch for a bit.

They were all understanding. Except for Meo. She was a weirdo.

The battery glowed red, showing that he was down to 10% and he pursed his lips. Really he shouldn’t have charged his phone last night but he was so tired from packing that he didn’t want to get up again to unpack his charger and plug it in. He figured there would be enough power but side games, videos, and forum lurking had added up to be a drain. Oh well, he would plug in once they get to their Bed and Breakfast...not that he imagined he would need his phone much once they got there.

A tap of the power button and Booker returned it to his pocket where he then picked up the folded map from his lap. He turned and folded pages, grumbling at the oversized thing which he stalwartly fought against. When, finally, he had managed to fold it properly, he glanced over to Juliette who had eyed him. He gave her a victorious smile and gestured down to the defeated map.

>>”Alright, where am I turning next?”

”Really? No comment on my valiant victory over unruly cartography? Talk about rude.” He smirked. He then pulled up the map and began to inspect where they currently were. Though he wasn’t exactly sure of their location, as every road on this map looked the same, he took an educated guess as to where they needed to go next to get to that red circle. ”Umm...looks like up ahead. Take the left.”

Okay, so maybe the map was a little old school. By 2017, there was hardly a person left that didn't have GPS on their phone, and most people chose to rely on that. Juliette, however, had had several bad experiences with GPS, and she knew that it wasn't always reliable. She figured that if they could kick it back to when people could set their own course, then they might be able to figure things out on their own.

Unfortunately, she hadn't taken into account the fact that they were two young people who weren't exactly acquainted with maps. She'd given it to Booker, expecting that he would be able to figure it out, but maybe that was too much to ask of him.

"Sorry, babe," she said with a grin, patting his knee with her right hand. "Your heroism hasn't gone unnoticed or unappreciated. I'll be sure to reward your bravery once we get there," she finished with a wink and took her hand back to the steering wheel. She needed it to turn left, after all.

At the next stop sign, she turned onto the street that Booker had told her to. They'd been travelling on poor roads for the last part of their journey, but this road was absolutely horrible. There was no asphalt to be seen; instead there was only gravel and dirt underneath the tires. The sound that came from the car, which was by no means an off-roader, was horrible. Juliette grimaced as they drove along.

Unfortunately, things just seemed to get worse. It had rained the day before, so the dirt underneath them was soft, causing the car to start to sink. There was no exit in sight, either. It was a one-car lane, and either side of them was farmers' fields full of corn and more dirt. The further they drove, the worse their situation looked.

"Um, Book? Are you sure this was the right road?" she asked slowly, a little quiver in her voice. This did not look right.

Okay so maybe Booker didn’t slay a dragon or free a bunch of Hobbit slaves, but his battle had been pretty epic and legendary. At most that should have earned him a heroic cheer from his girlfriend. He was kidding of course but Booker was never one to deny himself the chance to be dramatic. Nessa could attest as to the melodrama that the librarian could act out, of course it was all done in good nature. He tried to reel himself in so he didn’t get too obnoxious. Then again, the only people who really said he was obnoxious were those that cheated on him so...how much validity was there to it?

Booker let the thought slide, instead focusing on the, for once, healthy and amazing relationship he was currently in with one Juliette Lawson. She really was a find, and one that Booker thoroughly enjoyed spending his time with. It was safe to say that this vacation together was going to be eye opening and, really, he hoped it would be in a good way.

>>"Your heroism hasn't gone unnoticed or unappreciated. I'll be sure to reward your bravery once we get there,"

He grinned a wide grin to his girlfriend. Like a puppy being rewarded with a pat on the head, Booker turned back to the map in hand. They needed to figure out the next leg of their journey, as there was a split in the road coming up. Admittedly Booker was a bit distracted but not enough to read a map, of course, so he immediately spouted off which direction that they needed to head towards next.

Juliette took the turn and Booker grinned, returning his gaze to the map before he folded it up and set it across his lap, making sure that the section with the red circle was clearly marked in front of him.

Turning his eyes away, Booker looked out the window and smirked a bit as he watched the world pass him by. Really it was a beautiful countryside, reminding him of some of his favorite romantic authors. However, that admiration, after a bit, would turn to concern when Booker noted just how much he was jittering and shaking in the car. On top of just the annoyance of it, it almost felt as if the entire vehicle would rattle apart. The sounds of tiny pebbles and rocks buffeted the car’s undercarriage, the signs of struggle showing, including the slipperiness of mud beneath the tires.

Okay, this scenic route was seemingly turning just a little too scenic. Huh…

A glance to Juliette and he could see the concern clearly upon her face. After a few seconds more of rattling, she finally raised her voice above the cacophony so he could hear.

>>"Um, Book? Are you sure this was the right road?"

”Um...pretty sure?” he said a bit sheepishly. Unfolding the map again, Booker muttered to himself as he struggled to get back to the right section and zero in on the road that they had just taken. It took effort with how much the car was struggling, but finally he found the right fork. ”Ughhhh, yeah! This is supposed to be….oh.” He gulped. ”Uh-oh…”

Running his finger down the printed road, Booker found where he had made a mistake. This was a dirt path, a road used primarily for farmers and their heavy equipment. Directly above it was the fork with the left turn that would have led them further on their journey for the bed and breakfast. The fork that he initially looked at was, unfortunately, the wrong one.

”Um...I...I think you’re right. This isn’t the right road.” He grimaced. ”Sorry…”

Well. They were in an interesting situation. That was one way to put it, anyway.

Juliette’s hands tightened around the steering wheel as she let the car sit a moment, knowing full-well that they weren’t going to get anywhere by continuing to drive forward. They were good and truly stuck on that very thin road. That would be fine if they really did have to go down it to get to the B&B, but Juliette had a strong feeling that wasn’t the case.

>>”Ughhhh, yeah! This is supposed to be….oh. Uh-oh…”

The brunette closed her eyes and took in a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. It was the first hour and a half with her new car and they were already lost in farm country and stuck in the mud. How on earth had they managed that? The paper map was supposed to prevent issues like that!

”Booker, please don’t tell me…” she closed her eyes and gripped the wheel tighter, bracing herself for the bad news. So much for their perfect weekend.

>>”Um...I...I think you’re right. This isn’t the right road. Sorry…”

A long sigh escaped her lips as she leaned forward very slowly and rested her head on the steering wheel for a moment. She needed a moment to just… take it all in for a moment. Booker had been reading the map upside down, which meant that they were nowhere close to where they needed to be, and instead they were on some back road with the car wheels stuck in the mud. If they stayed there for too much longer, they risked the possibility of sinking further into the mud.

Really, she had no reason to be angry. The whole trip was her idea, she had supplied the map, picked the location, and driven. Booker was just reading the map like he was supposed to. He hadn’t intended to lead them astray. Still, Juliette needed someone to blame and take the stress out on that wasn’t herself, so, naturally, that wonderful role fell to Booker. She narrowed her eyes and sat back up straight, her lips pursed as she said nothing. She didn’t say anything aloud, but the air between them suddenly became a lot colder.

Juliette put the car in reverse, trying to make the wheels spin enough to get them out of the current divot. After a moment, they had gotten far enough to try going further, and they made it over that spot. Only, a second of driving later, the car reached a standstill with the road as the tires lost traction and began to spin wildly.

”Dammit!” Juliette cussed as she frantically attempted to regain control. The whole situation was just a mess now.

Okay so Booker goofed. Now that he really looked at the map, he could see that he was holding it upside down. Normally he had a better understand of such things like this, but it was clear that he was distracted by his beautiful girlfriend and the weekend they were looking forward to having together. However, his eagerness had seemingly cost him his attention as he led the pair of them down the clearly wrong road. And, to make matters worse, the car was stuck.

Not being one to deny his mistakes, he glanced to Juliette as he started to explain what happened. It was a mistake, of course, but he was always one to own up to those. He read the map wrong and the look on Juliette’s face was...rather telling. Within moments, the gleam of sweetness in her eyes had vanished as disappointment settled in.

>>”Booker, please don’t tell me…”

He told her. She did not take it well.

With a sigh, a groan, and placing her forehead upon the steering wheel, Booker winced a little sadly, watching as she just slumped there for a moment. He could feel the air suddenly change in the car. It no longer had that carefree air that filled him with hope as to a long, and blissful weekend. Rather Booker could practically see the plain of crack eggshells stretched out in front of him. He needed to tread carefully but, until he knew the parameters, he kept his mouth shut and just quietly turned back to the map, turning it rightside up and folding it to the right spot.

After a moment, Juliette straightened up, put the car in reverse, and pushed the gas pedal down. Booker winced at the sound of the wheels spinning but, finally, they seemed to be making some traction. As they force themselves out of the groove of mud, they continued to roll and roll until there was another sharp stop and the wheels seemingly started to flail in open air. That...was not a good sound.

”Umm…” he started to say. However, he stopped when Juliette shouted.

>>”Dammit!”

Booker raised his eyebrows, watching her for a moment before he turned and looked down to the map, then out the windows. Huh, this was unfortunately a situation that he was not familiar with. Juliette was upset, her new car was stuck in the mud, and the aura in the vehicle was suddenly so much frostier. Booker took a moment to assess before he quietly unbuckled his seatbelt, set the map aside, and opened the car door. He needed to remain a paragon of calm or he’ll stick his foot in it deeper.

”Um...I...I’ll go see what the problem is.” He said. Opening the car door, he stepped out, his shoes sinking into the mud on the road. God, this was such a wrong road. He climbed out of the car, grunting as his foot sank in. He pulled it out with a sucking sound and tried to maneuver down the way to check the back tires -- both were in the air. Again, not good. Calling back to the open door, he tried to spin it humorously in order to try and ease the tension. ”So...good news, you still have both tires. Bad news...ugh, they both back ones had aspirations of one day becoming birds.”

Humor heals all wounds, right?

The tires spun madly as the car swerved and ultimately ended up stuck in the muddy road. Shouting and professing her anger had done nothing to help the situation, even though she knew full well that it wouldn’t. If she was thinking logically, then she wouldn’t have reacted even close to the way that she had. Unfortunately, logic had all but left her mind. She was just frustrated and unsure of what to do, so all she could do was be angry.

The car, unfortunately was not about to go anywhere. No matter how much she spun the tires and tried to force it backward or forward, it was staying put. Juliette did her best to contain her anger that time around and not yell, but her face was displaying what her voice was not. She put the car in park and look over at Booker as he set his map down and stepped outside.

For a second, she stayed inside the car and let out her breath as she leaned her head back into headrest. How had things gone so bad so fast?

>>”So...good news, you still have both tires. Bad news...ugh, they both back ones had aspirations of one day becoming birds.”

Juliette looked up at him with her brow furrowed. ”Do you really think that’s helping, Booker?” she snapped. Humour wasn’t getting them anywhere and it certainly wasn’t solving the problem. The problem, that, in her mind, he was adding to. How had he read the map so wrong?

She clicked off her seatbelt and opened her door out into the muddy road. Thankfully, she’d made the smart footwear choice of Blundstones that morning, so stepping into the mud wasn’t a huge deal, but as she watched her feet sink with a sickly slopping noise, she could only cringe a little more. The whole situation sucked. They were never going to have their perfect weekend now.

The brunette slopped her way over to the back of the car to look at the damage. Just as Booker had so nicely put it, both of the back tires were in the air. They were going nowhere. That was just swell. Her lips pursed and her eyes narrowed as she looked at the car with utter disdain. She didn’t bother to look at Booker as she put her hands on the bumper and began to push with all her might.

Despite her "formidable" strength, the car didn’t move an inch. It was well and truly stuck. The only thing that actually moved was Juliette, whose feet slid backwards in the slick mud. There just wasn’t enough traction for her to do anything. With an angry huff, she turned backward and tried a different approach of trying to push the car from behind. Again, no use.