Chapter Seven

"No, my feet won't touch the ground," Amanda and I sang as the song came to an end.

We smiled and laughed at each other. I turned the radio up as I started to dance to the beat of the next song in my seat. Amanda was doing the same, Dharma watching us from the backseat. Her head tilted from one side to the next as she watched us make fools of ourselves. We didn't really care what other people thought, though; we were having too much fun to care.

"You tell me that you need me, then you go and cut me down. But wait," we sang. "You tell me that you're sorry, didn't think I'd turn around."

Amanda leaned back in her seat, putting her feet on the dashboard. She closed her eyes as she sang. I would have done the same if I wasn't driving. We weren't even ten minutes away from my house, glad that the hour drive had flown by again.

"I'd take another chance; take a fall, take a shot for you," I sang. "I need you like a heart needs a beat, but it's nothin' new."

Amanda looked back at Dharma who had leaned forward to sniff us. She smiled and grabbed Dharma's muzzle, giving her a kiss on the nose. I laughed when Dharma pulled away, sneezing before licking her nose, her tail wagging.

"Are we almost there," Amanda asked, looking at the clock. "How much longer?"

"We'll be there soon," I promised. "Not even ten minutes."

"Isn't your mom going to be home?"

"Nope. She's going to someone's house today," I answered. "I think Paula's."

Amanda nodded and smiled. It seemed like that girl was smiling every few seconds. I know I'd be the same way if I was in her position, but I wasn't. I wished I was, but it was my own fault. I could have bought the tickets to Tokio Hotel, but I chose to get Amanda's Jonas tickets instead. I guess it's what friends do for one another when they really care. I looked in the rear-view mirror at Dharma before looking at the road in front of me again.

"Alright," I said with a sigh, pulling onto a side street. "Here we are."

Amanda straightened up and looked around. She had only been to my house once before on my birthday, but she had only stayed for about ten minutes before our ride brought her back to her house since it was late. It had been dark that time, so she hadn't really been able to see much. Amanda turned to face me.

"No offense, but this place looks a little creepy," she commented. "You don't live in this neighborhood, do you?"

"This is the 'ghetto' of Westerly," I replied. "Where all the drug dealers sell their products, where people get mugged and stabbed, and where all the pedophiles live. I used to live in this corner house here, but we moved onto this next street not even six months later."

I turned onto the street I had just pointed to. It was a nicer than the previous street, but not by much. Amanda was still staring at me.

"You're joking, right?" she asked. "That doesn't really happen here, does it?"

"Yeah, it does," I answered. "My upstairs neighbor's nephew and friend just got stabbed the other week on that street. Some people asked them if they had any weed on them they could buy, probably wondering if they were drug dealers or something, but they didn't so the people stabbed them and dragged them down the street by the car. That last bit was an accident though. At least, I think it was..."

Amanda's eyes widened as she stared at me.

"And yet your mom has you walk the dog at night?"

"Yup," I answered with a nod. "I walk her in the other direction, though. It's a lot nicer down this other side. I'll drive down it to get to work instead of going back down that street."

Amanda simply nodded, not saying anything. I pulled off to the side in front of a small white house. Turning the car off, I got unbuckled and looked around. My mom's car wasn't in the driveway, and my sisters boyfriends car was gone as well. He was probably at work or somewhere with my sister.

"I'll be right back," I said as I got out of the car.

Amanda nodded and looked around. There were a lot of houses that had 'for rent' and 'for sale' signs in front of them. She rolled her eyes, wondering who in their right mind would buy or even want to live in a place near that 'ghetto' as I had called it. Dharma barked and climbed into the front, making Amanda turn her head to see what had caught Dharma's attention. She smiled when she saw me walking back to the car. I was trying to look like everything was the same as always, despite the large bulge that I had hidden in my hoodie. Amanda couldn't help but laugh.

"Nothing obvious about that, love," she laughed, pointing at the moving bundle.

"Oh, shut up," I replied as I got back in the car.

"Was he inside or outside?"

"He was outside, sitting on the roof to the basement," I answered. "Made getting him easier for me."

I started the car, opening my hoodie so that Amanda could see my little bundle of joy. She smiled down at him as he looked up.

"Amanda, this is Tux," I said with a smile. "Tux, this is Amanda."

"Pleased to make your acquaintance," Amanda laughed as Tux looked up at her.

Dharma leaned forward to see what I had, but she backed away when Tux hissed at her. We laughed as Amanda pushed Dharma into the backseat again.

"At least we know Dharma won't try to eat him," Amanda laughed.

"I'm not quit sure when it comes to Tux," I replied. "He isn't too interested in making new friends. Not when it comes to other animals, anyway."

"So he'll be keeping his distance," Amanda shrugged. "No big deal."

I nodded and pet Tux for a minute.

"Does he need a carrier or anything?" Amanda asked.

"Nope," I answered with a smile. "He's a good kitty-cat."

Tux purred and got himself settled in my lap. Once he was settled, I started driving, making my way down the street. I turned down the radio so that it wouldn't bother Tux.

"Now I just need to cash my paycheck and then it's off to Boston," I said with a smile. "We should be at the hotel in less than four hours, if traffic isn't too bad."

Amanda smiled and nodded, looking around as we headed for my work. Tux was already sleeping in my lap while Dharma rested her head on the side of Amanda's seat, letting the fresh breeze hit her face. I smiled as I lightly ran my fingers through Tux's fur, his chest vibrating as he purred.

Reviews

[Manda]

AHHH I KNEW IT!
Dharma's good, because of me she likes all animals. Twinky was the first cat she ever met, she wanted to play with her... Lol. You should of seen her trying to play with the rabbits over the weekend when I took them out for a bit. Nava was hopping around the back yard and Dharma tried playing with her in the worst way, Nava is good and just ignored her. Domino was took fat and lazy to catch Dharma's attention... Lol. It was funny watching Thor walk up to the bunnies and sniff them then just ignore them... yet he is WICKED dog aggressive. Lol.

End of story... sorry. Lol.

I loved the chapter... I know I say that a lot but I LOVE this story! :)