-----------------------2014----------------------------

They would be good, Elena had promised her parents. They wouldn't do anything bad, Asher had promised his. They would be in bed at a reasonable hour, they had promised the lady they stayed with.

A simple weekend in Soda Springs shouldn't have been more than two days of Asher and Elena spending time together undisturbed. They had it all planned out perfectly.

Myriam, a kind, old lady, offered a room of her house for guests to stay in. She even promised to make breakfast for said guests. Asher and Elena agreed quickly, because it was much cheaper than a hotel. And Myriam turned out to be a very sweet woman who loved her grandchildren more than the three cats in her house.

The first day started off great. They walked around Soda Springs, talking about whatever came to mind. They ate lunch at a small restaurant, then hired bikes to discover the environment outside of the village. It was an amazing day.

They had heard of a party that would take place later that evening. Although it was not something Elena liked doing, Asher was quite keen on partying. So she agreed when Asher - luckily - promised they wouldn't stay out late.

Little did they know that the drinks served at the party contained more alcohol than they were used to. After only one hour – or maybe two? – Elena's vision was blurry and she couldn't speak correctly anymore. Objects seemed to move, even though she was sure they were standing still.

So pretty quickly, she had convinced Asher to take them home – to Myriam, of course. A cab picked them up after what felt like hours waiting in the cold, and dropped them off at the house of Myriam. They harshly whispered to each other that they should stay quiet, but their words were louder than their stomping on the stairs.

They quickly fell asleep, both unable to put on their pajamas before their heads touched their pillows.

In the morning, Elena woke up to an empty room. The space next to her in the bed was cold. She didn't think much of it and dozed off again, hoping the headache would be over soon.

When she woke up a second time that day, she got out of bed. She felt fresher and her headache was almost gone, but she wasn't fully awake. It was already 11am, yet when she went downstairs, the breakfast table was set. She felt a little guilty that Myriam had set it all up for them and they hadn't come down sooner.

But looking at the table, she frowned. There were still two sets of plates and knives. Not one of them was touched.

As her heart started beating a little faster, she walked into the living room. Myriam was sitting on the couch, casually knitting what looked to be a beige jumper.

"Good morning," Elena said, her voice hoarse.

Myriam looked up and a smile appeared on her face. "Good morning, dear. Did you sleep well?"

Elena's hand involuntary caressed her aching head while she answered, "Yes." A lie Myriam obviously saw through.

The kind lady smiled warmly, then motioned her head to the kitchen. "You can have breakfast if you want. I left it all up for you."

Elena nodded, but didn't turn to the kitchen.

"Do you know where Asher is?" she asked instead.

Myriam nodded. "The boy went out again, very early this morning. I remember, because he didn't leave very quietly."

Despite Elena casually saying, "I'm sorry if we woke you up when we arrived last night," she felt panic grip her heart. Asher went out? But he didn't leave a note, or send her a text. Where had he gone? And why hadn't he returned yet?

"That's alright," Myriam said, unaware of how the panic was rising inside Elena. "I'm used to a lot more noise when people arrive. I don't mind it. I hope you had a great time."

"Yes," Elena responded absently. Where on earth was Asher?

-----------------------------------------------------------

Elena silently ate her breakfast. When she was finished, she checked her phone. No messages.

After helping Myriam clear the table, she excused herself and ran outside. But when she called Asher, he didn't answer. So she sent him a text and hoped he would respond. Her heartbeat quickened because of her worry. Where is Asher?

Going back inside, she asked Myriam about her grandchildren. It wasn't much distraction, but it was better than sitting in silence, waiting for Asher.

Nervously biting her lip, she checked her phone again before starting a game of cards with Myriam, and by the third game, the old lady was aware of Elena's anxiety. So Elena called Asher again, but he still didn't pick up. She sent him another text, and another one after two more games of cards. She fidgeted with her fingers, watching the screen and waiting for it to light up, but nothing happened.

Elena suggested she drive around Soda Springs, but Myriam told her not to. They didn't know where Asher was, so where would they start searching? Maybe he wasn't even in Soda Springs anymore since his truck was gone. He could be anywhere.

So since she had nothing else to do, Elena asked Myriam to teach her crochet. She didn't know how long she had been moving the crochet needle when suddenly – finally – her phone rang.

She startled, then quickly threw away the threads and picked up the phone.

"Asher?" she asked, her voice breaking from the panic she felt.

"Elena," he responded with a hoarse voice. There was a short silence, after which he sighed. "I need you to bail me out."

She froze. Bail him out? What did he mean? "Bail you out of prison?" she wondered, her voice rising as she couldn't believe her own question.

There was another silence, longer this time. Elena feared for a moment that the call had ended, but then she heard Asher say, "Yes. I'm at the police station."

-----------------------------------------------------------

Within ten minutes of ending the call, Elena arrived at the police station. It was obvious with just one look at her that she wasn't happy. Her eyes refused to meet Asher's while she silently handed the money to the cop in charge. She pursed her lips tightly when she and Asher walked out of the police station.

Once they walked outside, Asher tried getting Elena's attention, but she ignored him. She was in a bad mood and didn't want to talk to him. He had brought the problem on himself. Elena was just glad he hadn't involved her in his crime.

"Elena," he repeated sternly. His hand suddenly grabbed her arm and turned her around.

"What?" she snapped.

Surprised by her rage, he quickly let go of her and took a step back. His eyes moved down like a little boy did when his mother caught him taking candy.

"I'm sorry," Asher said with a shrug.

Elena scoffed. "Do you even know what you are apologizing for?"

He shrugged again, then dared to look up at her. "For breaking the law?"

"You shouldn't apologize to me for that. That's your own problem."

"Then why are you mad?"

"Because you left!" she shouted, wildly motioning with her arms. "And you didn't say anything. You didn't even respond to my calls or texts!"

It seemed to dawn on him that she had been very worried about him. Rightfully so, apparently, because he ended up at the police station.

But he didn't see the disappointment, because Elena couldn't show it at that moment. She was too angry at him for leaving her worried. She might have said committing a crime was his own problem, but she was angry for that too. Why on earth would he do something illegal?

"I'm sorry," he said again. "I was drunk. I didn't-"

"You were drunk? Is that supposed to make me feel better?"

"I-" He sighed, squeezing the bridge of his nose with his fingers. His head must hurt, Elena thought. Hers had too that morning, but she hadn't continued drinking during the day. He must be ready to explode in pain.

Yet here he was, listening to his girlfriend yell at him. But the realization wouldn't make Elena go easier on him. So she tilted her head and waited for him to say more.

"I was coming back," he admitted quietly. "One of the guys at the party had texted me, asking if I wanted to hang with them some more. I was too drunk to say no, so I went. And I got even more drunk. And then when I was driving back, the cops stopped me."

"Drunk driving?" Elena mocked rudely. "I thought you were smarter than that, Asher. You couldn't have called me?"

"I didn't want to bother you."

She scoffed again, then turned her head away from him. She stared in the distance, too angry to say anything. The bright sunlight was torturing him, and she knew it. That was exactly why she stayed there until her patience ran out.

"We're going home," she said. It wasn't a question, or an offer. It was an order, and Asher had better follow it.

"Home?" he dared to question.

She looked at him and nodded. "Yes. Home."

Without waiting for his answer, she walked to his truck and sat behind the wheel. An hour later, she had dropped him and his car off at his house. With her suitcase in her hand, she walked home, not bothering to kiss him goodbye.