Sebastian and Maya's Roadtrip #1

As I work on the next piece of content, I thought it'd be nice to get a peek into Seb and Maya's roadtrip throughout the story, since that's something we won't be able to see <3 

Beef jerky or chocolate?

Neither. Get something that’s actually filling and healthy for you.

Seb sighs, stuffing his phone back in his pocket as he keeps one hand on the gas pump, wiggling it to make sure he gets every drop. Gas is already expensive. Gas for a roadtrip is even worse.

He twists himself to get a better look inside the mart, his eyes tracking Maya’s bouncy golden hair as she walks through the aisles. She has her phone in one hand and an armful of snacks and junk food in another. He shakes his head in disapproval. Neither healthy or filling. 

He's going to have to do the shopping from here on out. 

The pump beeps, and he unlatches the car from the pump, mumbling about the prices before walking back inside the mart to meet Maya. When he enters, she’s busy rifling through the selection of drinks to notice him.

She’s struggling with juggling her things to open the fridge door, and he comes up behind her to pluck chips from her arm. She spins her arm, ready to give the culprit a mouthful, before slackening when she sees it’s him. “Oh. You." 

"Hey?" He frowns. "Why are you saying it like that?"

She shakes her head. "Here." She dumps the things in his arms and he gapes. “What do you want to drink?”

He doesn't answer right away, staring at the food she's chosen. His stomach churns at the greasy, oily and salty array. “Water. And can you throw in a fruit or something? God."

"Hush." She grins. "You're here to help, not comment." 

Clicking her tongue, she opens the fridge and grabs a water and a Coke before they walk back and pay for their things. As he’s fishing out a few singles while the cashier bags their food, the TV blares with the familiar BOTB jingle that follows all of their commercials. Maya nudges him, and he looks up to see the host from the live audition yesterday.

"Ready to see who has what it takes?"

Clips from the other seasons flicker across the screen, highlighting the most dramatic and tense moments. People arguing, performing, crying. Even with the emphasis on music, it doesn’t feel like a very music-centered show. Reality TV has always felt shallow, the reality stars vain and self-centered. This...seems to be on another level. He supposes one shouldn't expect much when it comes to rockstars.

He can’t help but think of MC, especially since their stint at the diner. He can’t help but wonder how they’ll turn out on this show.

“My daughter loves that show,” the cashier muses, and Sebastian blinks, turning his attention back to her. “Misfit Alley is her favorite band.”

“Misfit Alley is everyone’s favorite band,” Maya snorts and Sebastian toys with a rack of keychains absently. This is a conversation he definitely has nothing of meaning to contribute to. "That’s why we’re here. We’re doing a roadtrip to follow them.”

“Oh?” She makes a face at him, and he knows his responding smile is both polite and awkward. He's gotten varying reactions from friends and family about their little trip, which he understands. Following a show on tour like groupies isn't exactly what he imagined he'd be doing, but it's been the only thing Maya's talked about. “Where you headed now?”

“New York,” Sebastian and Maya say at the same time.

The cashier makes a face Sebastian can’t read before she slides the bag of junk his way. “Good luck,” is all she says and he grabs the bag, following Maya out.

When they get back on the road, Maya makes a show of putting on a song by [BAND], smiling at Sebastian as she does. He shoots her a briefly exasperated look as she turns the music up, bobbing her head with the beat.

“You need to start learning the songs now, daddio,” she says, just as the first lines are sung by the very enigmatic [MC]. “Especially since it seems [MC] likes you.”

“What?” He whips his head at her, and then realizes he’s driving and faces ahead. “Why-why do you say that?”

Maya cackles, clapping her hands as she sings along to the chorus. “You’re so obvious.”

Sebastian makes a face, and shakes his head, trying his best not to think too deeply on Maya’s comment. The songs are…catchy, he has to admit, and [MC]’s voice through his car is pleasant, even with his dingy speakers. There’s something magnetic about it, and he understands why Maya likes them so much. The performance back at the live auditions showed him everything he needs to know.

“What song is this?” he asks as a guitar solo fills the spot [MC]’s singing left behind.

“It’s my favorite,” Maya says in response. “It’s super underrated!”

Sebastian watches her as she imitates playing on invisible drums, her eyes on the long, unending road that stretches as far as the eye can see. His lip twitches, his amusement growing with her rising energy. “You really like them.” It’s not a question, but Maya takes it as one.

“I really want them to win,” she says, voice firm. “And I want to hangout with [MC] again. Weren’t they so fun? I told you I liked them for a reason.”

Sebastian’s face twists, and he shakes his head. “Ah. I don’t think you should hope too much for that. Surely, [MC] will be busy. And I think it’s better if we don’t distract them during this competition.”

Maya chews on her inner-cheek in thought, brows knitted in disappointment. “Yeah,” she sighs. Then she turns to Sebastian and smiles. “This is my favorite part.” She puts the volume up, and Sebastian cringes when it blares through the speakers. Maya sings along, her voice high-pitched and terrible.

Seb laughs. Maya is many things, he's glad a great roadtrip partner is one of them. 

Hours later, when night has fallen, they stop the car at a rest stop to stretch their legs. Sebastian’s been driving nonstop for hours, and he can feel his exhaustion creeping up on him. He walks over to Maya, who stands leaning against the hood of the car with her face in her phone. He places a heavy palm on her head, patting it. “You need to learn to drive,” is all he says.

She snorts. “I hate driving. It makes me nervous.”

Sebastian snorts, thinking of the times he’s had her behind the wheel. All he sees are flashes of yelling, hard breaks, and near-crashes that has most likely given him gray hairs. With that thought in his head, his smile falls. “Have you head from…?”

Maya’s face droops, and he instantly regrets asking. He can’t help it; asking about the one person they tiptoe around. He’d be lying if he doesn’t think about it all the time. About Maya. She’s gotten to that stage where she doesn’t have to tell him everything. She has her own relationships, her own secrets. He has no idea about that other part of her life. And sometimes he likes to think he prefers it that way, but there are moments where it eats him up inside. And he can’t help but ask.

“No,” she answers. He’s not sure whether to be relieved or annoyed by that fact. “Not that I care.”

'You do care,' he thinks. He sees it on her face. Anyone would care, wouldn’t they?

Maya huffs, and shoves her phone in her pocket. “We should keep going. How long until New York?”

“Few hours.” Sebastian follows her back into the car, the atmosphere tense. There’s a shadow on Maya’s face that wasn’t there before, and he hates that he’s the one who brought it there. While Maya likes to push the problems down and pretend they don’t exist, Sebastian does the opposite. Communication is how they lasted this long together with a relationship as strong as theirs. Maya is his daughter, yes, but she’s also his best friend. And it may seem pathetic to literally everyone in his life, but he fears that without him, she would've collapsed under the weight of her unstable childhood. He feels responsible. No--he is responsible. He's her dad. He needs to make sure she’s okay.

As for him, well, that’s not important. He’ll be fine as long Maya is fine.

“Next stop,” Seb says, starting the engine with a resigned sigh, “New York.”