534. Chapter 534

The sun’s barely risen and Maggie’s already outside in her pickup.

She tosses pebbles at Alex’s window, because ringing the doorbell would wake everyone in the house, and aren’t the whole pebbles-at-bedroom-window thing supposed to be more romantic than texting?

“You’re early,” Alex’s head suddenly appears out of her suddenly opened window.

“And you’re beautiful,” Maggie flirts, because god, she is.

A denim jacket that Maggie had gotten her for Chanukah last year, her hair newly shortened and newly curly, redder than it’s been in the past couple of years.

The past couple of years since they met at a protest and became inseparable girlfriends.

Inseparable girlfriends about to go on their first road trip together.

Alex blushes and Maggie gulps.

They’re going to get to sleep together all night. Wake up in each other’s arms.

No roommates or parents to bust in on them.

Just the open road and the mixtapes Maggie’s carefully prepared for their journey.

Their journey that Alex had carefully, meticulously planned, that Maggie had indulgently let her.

“You say bye to your mom and Kara?” she recovers her words to ask, and Alex nods.

“Last night before they went to bed. They know we’re leaving early.”

“Well come on then, Danvers. Don’t wanna miss the sunrise.”

Alex beams and giggles and nearly hits her head on the window as she backs up to shut it, to grab her duffel bag and to check her breath one more time and to run down the stairs.

When she steps through the front door, Maggie’s leaning on her back of her truck, thumbs hooked into the belt loops of her cut-off denim jeans, snapback backwards and eyes bright, looking for all the world like Alex is the most beautiful woman she’s ever seen.

Because she is.

She rushes forward to offer to take Alex’s bag, but Alex gives her a kiss instead, slinging her own bag up and over into the back of Maggie’s pickup.

“You ready, babe?” she grins, and she licks her lips because god, it might be early as all hell, but Maggie tastes so damn good.

“To go up and down the coast with the most gorgeous girl of all time and space? Uh, yeah, Danvers, definitely.”

Alex beams but tries to keep her lips steady. “The most gorgeous girl of all time and space, huh? Really? I didn’t know we were bringing a third person. Where is she?”

Maggie chuckles and pulls Alex closer to her, gently, gently, by the hips.

Alex swoons.

“I’m talking about you, Danvers. Going on a road trip with you.”

“Mmm, funny. Because I was gonna say the same thing about you. The whole most gorgeous woman thing. Because that’s you, Maggie.”

“Is it?”

“Mmmmhmmmm,” Alex hums into Maggie’s lips, and Maggie swoons this time.

Alex giggles as she swipes the snapback off Maggie’s head and puts it onto her own.

“You driving first, or am I?”

“Wanna flip for it?”

Alex wins, and she clambers victoriously into the driver’s seat as Maggie fiddles with the first mixtape.

Alex blushes and smiles as Tracy Chapman’s perfect voice starts crackling through the old stereo, and she drives with one hand as she wraps her other arm around Maggie’s shoulder, heading off for their first interstate adventure.

Together.