Read Destiny (Waiting for Forever) for Free Online Page A

I rested my head on her sweatshirt and closed my eyes. It was soft and it smelled sweet, like some kind of fruit, raspberries, maybe. Sighing, I could feel myself already starting to succumb to the tide of exhaustion.
    “Brian?” Sarah asked quietly, and I opened my eyes but didn’t move.
    “Yeah?”
    Resting her head on the seat, she looked at me a little shyly. “Can we keep in touch? I mean, after I get off the bus in El Paso,” she asked.
    “I’d like that,” I told her with a yawn, and within minutes, I was asleep.
     
     
    I HEARD my name through the fog of sleep but couldn’t quite place the voice. It sounded a little like Carolyn, but softer, maybe younger. The next thing I noticed was a rumbling and vibrating underneath me. Opening my eyes, it took a few seconds for Sarah’s face to come into focus. I sat up quickly, looking around. I was still on the bus to San Diego. For a minute, it felt like maybe the whole thing had been a dream, until I looked out into the late-afternoon landscape and saw… absolutely nothing. Outside the bus window, there was nothing but dust, dry earth, heat haze, and scattered brush.
    “Where are we?” I managed to croak out. My tongue felt like it was permanently stuck to the roof of my mouth, and I might have actually killed for a soda.
    “We’re about fifteen minutes from El Paso,” she said quietly, and I noticed that her hands were shaking.
    I handed her the sweatshirt and tried to reassure her, but in truth, I knew her parents were not going to be happy with her. They would be happy to see her, to see that she was okay, but then, she was in a lot of trouble. We packed our stuff into our bags, making sure everything was secure. I had to transfer to yet another bus in El Paso after a nearly two-hour layover. At least I would have time to get something to eat. I was starving, and lunch had been hours ago.
    Sarah saw her parents as soon as the bus rolled into the station, pointing them out to me apprehensively. Like her daughter, Sarah’s mother had straight blonde hair and a slight build. She clutched her husband’s hand. The man was tall and thin, his brown hair receding from his pale forehead. Both were casually well dressed. Their expressions were tired but anxious, and as the bus finally came to a stop, Sarah’s mother took a reflexive step forward.
    However, her daughter made no move to get out of her seat, letting others pass as she cradled her bag in her arms.
    “You know they love you, right?” I asked gently, and she nodded. A small sigh escaped her, and she looked back over her shoulder to see the bus mostly empty. “Come on.” I pushed her a bit so she would stand up and move into the aisle. She stood back, obviously wanting me to take the lead. I walked down the aisle, holding my backpack by the straps. When I reached the bottom of the stairs, I turned back around and took her bag to let her climb down as well. I took a quick step back as Sarah’s parents nearly ran me over as they threw themselves at her. I held onto Sarah’s bag, smiling at their reunion, as she broke down into tears.
    “I’m so sorry, Mom,” Sarah said over and over as her mother held her and her father held them both. Seeing their obvious love for each other made me miss Richard and Carolyn terribly.
    “Brian?” Her voice brought me out of my thoughts, and I handed her the bag. “Brian, these are my parents.” I held out my hand to shake each of theirs and told them how nice it was to meet them, but they only had eyes for Sarah, who was pulling something out of her bag. Sarah asked for my phone and entered her phone number and e-mail address into my contacts. Then she practically threw her phone at me, asking me to do the same.
    “Thank you so much for everything, but especially for listening and for turning my phone back on,” she told me and then engulfed me in a hug. “You were right, I should go home.” She lowered her voice so her parents wouldn’t hear and