I watched the houses pass by as we walked farther and farther away from my home. I wondered where Rhys was leading me. We hadn't spoken since we left my house, I just continued to meekly follow him out of the large neighborhood and into the town. As we walked, the streets and sidewalks lit up by the streetlamps all seemed like some sort of surreal dream. It wasn't the reality I'd known to sneak out of the house and trust some boy to lead me somewhere I didn't know about. But that's the fun thing about trusting people, you are capable of willingly allowing them to bend your reality. 

   We had reached far enough in our walk to reach main street, a street on downtown that bustled with energy during the day and quieted down peacefully during the night. It took my by surprise that Rhys would lead me to main street this late at night. The only people that walked main street this late at night were teenagers trying to mess around or have some fun with their friends or couples on a late night date. Since Rhys and I didn't seem to be either lately, I felt puzzled by our presence on the small town famous street. There were shops on both sides of us down the road. Most were closed, but a few late night restaurants and  bars were open. Around this time of the year, there were always festive decoration in and around all of the stores and Christmas lights hanging from the rooftops, framing the long street like a runway. There were two giant trees that no one ever noticed by the historic court house and every year they become decked out with lights, garland and ornaments, becoming the prized land mark of downtown. Rhys was the one to break the silence, drawing me out of my puzzling daze.

   "You hungry?" It took a moment for me to process the question, as if he had asked me in some foreign language. I was still dazed by the fact that I wasn't dreaming. He raised an eyebrow at me, awaiting my answer. 

   "I...I could eat, I guess?" I replied. He smiled and walked us right into this Irish pub that was known for serving good burgers, Shepard's pie and the best beer in town. Not that we were old enough to drink, but something told me Rhys was going to try. 

   "Welcome to O'Mulligans's Irish pub and eatery. Follow me and I'll get you guys seated." The hostess's smile was polite and sincere, making me feel welcome in such a wild, nightly environment. She sat us down at a table away from the bar, up against the window. I could see main street, glowing brighter than I'd ever seen it. I'd never been to main  street at night and the whole sight was a bit enchanting. Rhys sat across from me, already flipping through the menu, figuring out what he wanted. I skimmed through my menu, not all that hungry. I settled on 6 piece boneless wings. The waitress approached our table. She had short red hair cut into a slightly long bob. It was curled with a curling wand and she had winged eyeliner with smokey eye shadow. She looked to be about 17 or 18, about the same age as Rhys. He was 17 while I was 16 and he wasn't afraid to rub it in my face, especially since he was always interested in girls that were older than him. 

   "Hey guys, my name is Faith and I'll be your waitress tonight. Can I start you guys off with anything to drink?" Rhys was still looking so I decided to speak first.

   "I'll just have a water please." She jotted down the order without even looking at me. She turned her attention to Rhys and smiled. Something told me she wasn't talking to me when she greeted us.

   "And for you, sir?" He smirked, mischief in his eyes. 

   "Murphy's Irish Stout." I looked at Rhys, wide eyed. Faith giggled. 

   "You're funny. You're obviously not old enough, dear." 

   "Neither are you would be my guess, as young as you look, dear. But you can't tell me that you haven't sneaked a bottle before out of curiosity." She giggled. 

   "Fair enough. I'll see what I can do, hun." Her pet names for him were making me nauseous. She winked at him and walked away with glee to her step. I gave him a look and he seemed puzzled by it.

   "What?" He smiled innocently.

   "You know that you could get arrested if someone catches you drinking and is logical enough to realize that you're not even close to 21?" He shrugged his shoulders.

   "I could also get her fired." I couldn't care less if she got fired, honestly.

   "But that's beside the point. I don't care enough for anyone to notice. I don't live on edge like you do all the time. Because I don't panic or think of boring consequences like that, people can believe that a 17 year old like me is 21. Stop worrying so much, Caroline." I blushed, embarrassed with my worry.  Faith came back with our beverages. I took a sip of my water and rolled my eyes as Rhys winked and thanked Faith. He raised his glass to make a toast. I rolled my eyes again playfully and lifted up my glass of water.

   "To my last night in this boring small town." I frowned. 

   "About that...why are your parents sending you to this boarding school anyways, if you don't mind my asking?" He sighed after taking a long sip of his beer. 

   "Damn, this Irish stuff is really good." He took another sip and I looked at him expectantly, waiting for an answer. He frowned when he saw that I wasn't giving in to his temptation to lecture him about drinking alcohol.

   "Look, my parents never really liked having me around the house anyways. Ever since my dad got remarried and they had my little brother, I haven't exactly been the golden child in that household. Not that I was purposefully bad when my little brother was born, but I wanted to stop being such a little bitch about everything. I wanted to grow up and misbehave a little, you know? Live the life, I guess you could say I wanted to be the 'Rebel Without A Cause'." 

   "So they're sending you away for being a little impetuous? I don't understand, you've never done anything that  bad." He chuckled, causing me to raise my eyebrow in curiosity. 

   "That's not entirely true, but it doesn't matter because the worst of what I've done, they don't know about." I opened my mouth to ask, but he cut me off.

   "You won't know about them either. They stay between me, myself and I." I sipped my water in defeat. Faith approached us again and we ordered. 

   "So what 'fun' do you have planned for tonight, Rhys?" He smiled.

   "If I'm honest, no clue. Wherever the night takes us. Sometimes fun is best enjoyed when it is unplanned. That way you're not stressed to make sure it happens." I left the conversation at that when our food came. I didn't eat all of mine and wanted to take leftovers, but then I realized that if I took leftovers, I would not only have to carry them around the whole night, but it would also mean that my parents would find out that I sneaked out of the house. Rhys had no need for leftovers, he had ate his whole burger and all of his fries. He smirked at me and I couldn't help but feel my cheeks heat up. He always used to shoot me that smirk when he had something devious planned, something he knew I probably wouldn't agree with. 

   "You ready to go see where the night takes us?" My answers to his questions had been nothing but crazy all night, as if someone else was in my mind, controlling my words and actions. 

   "Lead the way."