Back of My Jeep

[kindaemissary]

work-in-progress

priavte roleplay by Bunny + kindaemissary

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S U M M E R N E V E R L O O K E D S O G O O D

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Two soon-to-be college seniors decide to take a country-wide road trip to make their last summer vacation something to remember. From the campus of NYU to Baton Rouge, Death Valley, and the South Dakota Badlands, these two young men learn new things about each other and about themselves.


Two and a half months of traveling around the continental US allow time for both of them to grow as individuals and as a pair. Once the summer is over, their last year of school will begin and they'll have to go back to the real world. After the journey is over, they'll have to figure out if they're going to take on the world together or try to make it on their own.


Two young lives about to be intertwined by bad renditions of radio favorites, camping in the depths of nature, and climbing up to the highest peak they can.

• Map
• Locations

• 
• 
  
  
  NYU, New York City, New York
  
  
  Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
  
  
  Washington D.C.
  
  
  Richmond, Virginia
  
  
  Charlotte, North Carolina
  
  
  Savannah, Georgia
  
  
  Jacksonville, Florida
  
  
  Pensacola, Florida
  
  
  New Orleans, Louisiana
  
  
  Dallas, Texas
  
  
  Albuquerque, New Mexico
  
  
  Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona
  
  
  Las Vegas, Nevada
  
  
  Death Valley National Park, California
  
  
  San Francisco, California
  
  
  Portland, Oregon
  
  
  Seattle, Washington
  
  
  Helena, Montana
  
  
  Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
  
  
  Black Hills National Forest, South Dakota
  
  
  Minneapolis, Minnesota
  
  
  Ontonagon, Michigan
  
  
  Milwaukee, Wisconsin
  
  
  Chicago, Illinois
  
  
  St. Louis, Missouri
  
  
  Nashville, Tennessee
  
  
  Columbus, Ohio
  
  
  Cleveland, Ohio
  
  
  Rochester, New York
  
  
  New Haven, Connecticut
  
  
  NYU, New York City, New York
  
  
  

​

 

[kindaemissary]

Setting his last box inside, Corban shut the trunk on his navy 2012 Jeep Wrangler. Packing his entire life away and getting it to fit in a storage unit was more difficult than he realized coming into this school year. For both freshman and sophomore year, he had the accessibility of nice broken-in mini van. It was a family car passed down by his stepmom when they decided to upgrade, but it could only hold on for so long. Lydia, his Jetta, was two summers of savings compiled into a heap of moving metal. The car was great. Great gas mileage, great safety ratings, great bluetooth in the front. It was just so small compared to his mini van, and now, instead of bringing everything home with him for the summer, he had keep most of his things in an on-campus storage unit.


It wasn't so bad. It took a couple trips back and forth to carry all of his shit from his dorm to the unit, but he managed. And the security teams at NYU were great so he knew that all of his things would be in good care.


When he got back to his dorm, he sighed and crashed down onto his bed. Next year, he wouldn't have a roommate and he'd have a giant room on the end of the hall with all of these freedoms he couldn't even begin to imagine yet. This past year, he was a TA for a general communications course with a professor he didn't like, but the responsibility of being an RA for his entire floor was empowering. It took a lot of campaigning and interviewing to get there, but he made it.


Corban didn't have any plans for the summer yet. He was still trying to set up a job back home but hadn't heard anything back. It was irritating, but with all the influx of students coming back and needing employment made it hard to find anything. He didn't stop trying, though.


If he didn't end up finding a job, he could always go back to being a camp counselor at NYU for their junior high camp. He did that two summers ago and it garnered a lot of cash and made it easier for him to get the position of RA. And he'd still make money writing for the school's online newsletter throughout the summer, so he had backup plans. He just wanted to find something more permanent. Something that would help him post-college.


"Hey, Corban?"


The young man rose up from his laying position and propped his shoulders behind him to see the voice in front of him. "Hey, Micah."


Micah was a freshman on his floor this year and a nerd in the best way possible. He was in two academic honor societies and built the robot that beat the assholes from MIT earlier that semester. Sure, he was a tad awkward, but there was a lot more to be said about him than his social anxiety.


"Wow, your room looks empty," Micah started, and Corban watched him glance around the room. "Anyway, yeah. I just wanted to say bye, I guess? My sister's here to pick me up so I'm heading home for the summer."


Corban leaped up from the bed and grinned. "Can you believe your first year of college is over? It's so crazy." He reached out patted Micah's back. "What are you gonna do this summer?"


They talked for a couple more minutes - Micah was heading back to Mesa, AZ to work at a science camp - before they shared a brotherly hug and Corban watched Micah head out with his last suitcase and a laptop bag slung across his chest.


Next year this was going to be much harder. He didn't to leave the world he had built for himself these last three years, but knew realistically that it was destined to come to a close. As long as he stayed in contact with his friends and made sure to keep connected, he'd be fine. Four years had happened so fast. His finals were over and he only had two semesters left. Two. It was hard to believe it was almost done and gone.


He crashed back down on his mattress. His sheets were already packed away into the back of his jeep along with basically everything else. The only things he still had in his dorm was his backpack and a sweatshirt on the top of his desk chair. He had a couple more hours before he could leave campus - still had a paycheck to pick up from student employment that he couldn't get until 4 PM. So far, he had spent most of his day helping the current RA check out students from their dorm rooms and giving them the ay-okay to head home.


Corban sighed, rolled over, and pulled his phone out from his pocket. It was still only 1:12. He had a lot of time to kill.

 

[Bunny]

Louis took a deep breath, looking at the trio of large boxes before him, wondering how he was going to transfer them to his car. He hadn't prepared for this situation, because he woke up that morning on the premise that he was going on a road trip with one of his friends, but unfortunately, she had a last minute emergency that she had to take care of. Louis rolled his eyes, she probably just chickened out. He was all about exploring new lands and learning new things, which fueled his will to go on the road trip, and he wasn't giving up yet. But first, he had to secure that his stuff was safe.


"Okay..." He squatted down, grabbing one of the boxes at the bottom. He groaned, using all of his strength to try and lift the box, but it wasn't working. After all, physical strength wasn't his best quality... or even a decent quality, he sucked at it. Louis put his arms on his hips and huffed. His roommate started to stir, and Louis shifted his eyes over to the bed he was in.


"Good morning Louis." He said sleepily through the covers.


"It's twelve-thirty, James." Louis replied. He didn't like his roommate. James was always sneaking around. There were rumors going around that he sold drugs or was involved in human trafficking or something equally as horrible. He usually only saw his roommate when he woke up, as James was always out late at night. Louis was also pretty sure he was failing too.


"Close enough." James shrugged as he prepared to go to the bathroom and get freshened.


"Actually, could you help me carry these boxes to the storage units?" Louis pleaded. James looked at him, contemplating what to do.


"Okay." He agreed. Louis looked satisfied, grabbing one side of the box. James grabbed the other side, and he counted down from three. At one, they both lifted the box and waddled their way to the storage unit. They repeated this process three times for the other boxes. Louis thanked James and they hugged, parting ways. Louis returned to his floor, thinking of who could be a good candidate for going on a road trip, when Micah passed him in the hallway. They waved to each other awkwardly. Louis barely knew him, however he did know his name. He stopped to think about Micah's roommate, Corban. That wouldn't be such a bad idea. 'I mean... He's cute.' Louis thought. He arrived at the open door and peered inside seeing Corban on his phone.


"Hey! Corban." Louis stayed outside. He didn't want to intrude into his room without permission. "I know this is weird coming from someone who barely knows you, but would you be interested in a road trip around the country?" Louis asked.

 

[kindaemissary]

At the sound of his own name being called from just beyond the threshold, Corban rolled over into a sitting position and pushed his phone towards the head of the bed. He was used to being asked questions about moving and end of the year checklists, but being invited on a roadtrip across the continental US wasn't what he was expecting when he heard Louis's voice past his door.


"A road trip?" he asked, and he pulled his legs into a crossed position on the squeaky, plastic-based mattress. Corban had thought about buying a memory foam mattress for his dorm life, but figured four years of use wasn't worth it. The money he would have spent was pushed towards his new car and getting a new laptop before junior year started. Corban knew that he still wasn't sure what he wanted to do over the summer with the limited amount of options he had, - summer camp counselor being the only real one at this point in time - but maybe a road trip wouldn't be such a weird idea after all. "What do you mean? Like all summer long?"


Corban didn't know Louis that well. In fact, they had only talked in larger groups when they each had friends with them. He had heard some random things over time about everyone on his floor, but he didn't keep track of them all. Back in each of their freshman years, they had a general international studies class together. It was beside the point that Corban didn't remember much from it.


He reached forward and wrapped his palms around his elbows, watching Louis expectantly. He didn't know why he was a viable option for the journey, but he couldn't pass up a chance like this. If he spent the whole summer traveling, he could add an entire section to his blog and have lots to write about for the school's e-newsletter. It was a hole-in-one kind of greatness that was being laid out before him, and if Louis was actually serious, he was already on board.


"I mean," he started, "don't get me wrong - these seems like a great idea. But do you have anything actually planned out? Or is this more like a wing-it scenario?"


If this all worked out well, he might even be able to make a bigger deal out of the situation than it already was. College student travels continental US in an effort to find himself before graduation. It would get a lot of internet attention if he kept it interesting and went a lot of places. He wasn't sure what Louis had planned, but it had better be good. Hell, Corban could make a vlog out of this and watch it blow up all over youtube. He already had a good amount of subscribers from his series last summer when he worked with ABC, so making another one would only make his name stand out more. It would look great on grad school applications and definitely nice on his resume when he started looking for a station to take him on. A road trip might have been just what he needed.

 

[Bunny]

Louis watched Corban as he questioned the road trip. It was expected, as Louis just sprung this on him right as the vacation was supposed to start. Everyone already had plans, and to be honest, Louis was expecting a flat out no. However, since Corban started asking questions, he assumed the boy didn't have any significant plans for the summer, bringing a smile to his face.


"Yes, all summer long." While Louis doubted that they would get through all of the locations he planned for, he would try. It would be a full round trip, visiting the country's main points of interest, from the Grand Canyon to even Ontonagon, Michigan. "I've planned everything out." Louis started, as he pulled out a map from his pocket. It was folded into a square, so it took a while for Louis to unfold it. He walked next to Corban's bed and handed him the map of America. Red marker seemed to outline the path that they would be taking.


"If you're wondering where exactly these places are, the names of them are on the back." Louis included. "Also, I have money for most of gas and food, I've been saving up for a while." Louis excluded the part about his friend that was supposed to have the share of lodging and extra stuff like souvenirs. He didn't want Corban to feel like he was second in line, or a back-up plan, even though it was pretty obvious that he was. Louis was anticipating the road trip for a while, and he didn't want to squander his summer right before his senior year sitting around and finding a job. Plus, it would make for a great story to share with his friends, or on his blog, and maybe even help with him finding a good career in the international business.


"I know we barely know each other, but think of it this way." Louis cleared his throat. "We could learn about each other more, you know? Connect with strangers... That you trust, somewhat." Louis thought about how his monologue was going, and it was going south. "Well, yeah. Just ponder it."

 

[kindaemissary]

"You really did plan this out," Corban laughed, and he slung his legs down so they dangled from the bed. As he stared down at the map, he traced his forefinger along the red line. He flipped the paper over and read the names to himself. Death Valley, Seattle, Chicago. The trip would definitely take them all over the country. Corban had been to a couple of the places before like D.C. and Philly, but most of the stops on the trip would be new experiences for him, and they'd definitely good for his blog.


He looked up from the map as Louis talked awkwardly above him. "Hey, no, it's great. I think I'll run it by my mom and see what she thinks, but I like it. It would be super awesome to go on a road trip. I haven't found a job yet, either, so that helps make it an easier decision, and I have money coming in from the NYU e-newsletter, so it's definitely an opportunity I can jump on." He smiled up towards the other man and then looked back at the map.


It sounded like he was trying to convince himself more than Louis. There was a lot of thought to put into this. If he said yes too quickly and didn't think anything out, many things could go wrong. He could promise something that he couldn't keep word on, could lose all the money that he saved up paying for things that he didn't really need. But if he waited and took a day or so to figure out if he was in for the win, Louis could have asked someone else that gave him the go. It was a tricky dichotomy to deal with, but he knew what he wanted and what would work out best for him.


"I'm still gonna talk to my mom, but consider me a yes. I'm totally down." He needed to work on his people skills, and spending the summer with someone he only knew snippets of information about was going to help him prepare for being an RA immensely. It was kind of the perfect experience, considering he'd have crazy amounts of freshmen to deal with next year. "As long as we make sure we stop places that have wi-fi and we can trade off driving, I'm game. I might have to unpack some of my clothes from storage and get another duffle bag or something, but yeah, man, I'm in. We're going on a road trip."

 

[Bunny]

Corban laughed, noting that Louis had planned it out fully, seemingly surprised. Corban focused on the map then, as Louis picked his backpack back up and slung it around his back.


"That's great!" Louis responded as Corban talked about how he hadn't found a job yet and was having money coming in. Louis hadn't found a job yet either, leaving it an awkward situation for him if Corban had declined the request. "Well of course we'd have to stop at places with Wi-Fi." Louis noted. Who could like or function without Wi-Fi? Wi-Fi would be a tricky thing, as he wouldn't be able to check his social medias without it, and won't be able to call or text anyone at places without reception, which is mostly when they're going to be on the road. Louis kind of squealed inside, but nodded with a warm smile on the outside. He was happy when Corban specifically said those words. 'We're going on a road trip.' Louis took out a small piece of paper and started writing on it. After about thirty seconds, he turned to Corban and gave it to him.


"That is my contact information. My number, and e-mail, if you need to contact me about something before we leave." He said. Louis took off his backpack and stuffed in his map, after folding it somewhat. Louis smiled as he thought about all the adventures that he would be going on. While not with his closest friend, it was with someone he liked. He began to walk towards the door when something crossed his mind and he turned around right outside the dorm room


"Also... so um, could we maybe take your car? Mine is pretty small..." Louis said awkwardly. It was kind of hard for him to ask Corban of such a big favor, especially when he was already being so cooperative at the sudden request from someone he barely knew, but a Dodge Stratus didn't have much room for the both of them to move around in, or store their extra junk in. "That is, if you have a car bigger than a Dodge Stratus." Louis added.

 

[kindaemissary]

Corban couldn't help but outright chuckle and place a forgiving hand over his restless mouth. "Sorry," he said, and he shook his head as he came down from whatever high he had achieved. "We can take my car; not a problem. It's a Jeep Wrangler, so it definitely has more space than yours." The question made it clear that he wasn't the original game plan, but that wasn't a bog deal. He was still the one that was going. "As long as I'm not the only one putting gas in the tank there won't be an issue."


He folded the piece of paper in his hands and shoved it into his back pocket, leaning on the opposite side of his body. "And thanks for this, I'll text you later, then?" He stood up from the bed and leaned against the desk resting at the foot. Their dorms looked the cheap and cramped hotel rooms with all of the furniture back in its original place.


"When did you want to leave, exactly?" he asked. "I'm going to have to go back to my storage unit and pick out a bunch more clothes before we do anything. I mean, most of my clothes are packed away, but I'm probably gonna need a sweater or two."


On top of that, he'd also probably unpack blankets and towels. He figured they'd be staying in hotels the entire trip, but there was always the off chance that they'd have to make camp somewhere unexpected or dry off from a thunderstorm. Living in a car for almost three months could be weird in a lot of ways, but it had always been something that Corban wanted to do. He never brought it up to anyone, though, so people might think that this late decision was a rash choice on how to spend his summer. Sure, he might not know Louis that well, but that didn't mean anything. They had the entire summer to figure their friendship out. There might come a time where Corban would regret the trip, but he'd never know if he didn't start it.


"It won't take me that long to pull some shit out and pack it away in a duffle, so if you want to leave soon that's fine." Corban drummed his fingers against the wooden corkboard. "I also have to hang around here until four to get my last paycheck and some paperwork from Residence Life. I'm not sure if I have to fill it out before I head out for the summer, but if I do it'll be fast. Just a quick social security number or something, maybe fill out another background check report. They never really told us." He reached to the back of his neck and scratched awkwardly, face scrunched a bit as he thought. "But yeah, none of that will take that long."

 

[Bunny]

Louis nodded. "Yeah, I have money for gas." He said.


"I was thinking of leaving ASAP. Once we get everything settled and prepared, we should go." Louis didn't see any point in waiting to go if they had everything planned out and ready. "Don't feel like you're in too much of a rush, but yeah, once you're done with everything we can leave. All I have to do is get all of my things in order." He said. They were going to be using Corban's Jeep, so he didn't have to worry about the car business, although driving could be awkward depending on what type of car it was.


"Okay, so we can leave soon. I'll text you if anything comes up." Louis waved goodbye to Corban as he retreated back to his own dorm that was now empty. It seemed that James had moved out quickly. Louis lied down on his creaky bed. He had put away all of his decorations and room appliances in the boxes, leaving his personal items like clothing and electronics in a few bags. The bags would have to go into Corban's Jeep, but wouldn't take up too much space. Louis started to rethink his decision in Corban going on a road trip with him. 'I mean, sure, he's cute, but then I'd have to spend a whole summer with him and knowing we can't be together. Wow, I need to start thinking before acting.'


Louis took out his phone. He scrolled through his contacts and called his mom. She didn't pick up and it went to voicemail.


"Hey, so, I'm going on the road trip soon, meaning I won't be able to call as often... Call back when you can, love you." Louis was kind of close to his mom. He liked her better than his father. This summer would be the first summer where he didn't spend most of his time at his mom's house. Louis did plan to pass it on the trip though. They would spend about a day there before leaving. He thought about calling his friend that he was planning to go with the road trip on, but decided against it, instead opting to play Clash of Clans on the shaky Wi-Fi from the university.

 

[kindaemissary]

"I'll let you know as soon as I get my paycheck," Corban grinned. He moved back and sat down on his bed, phone in his hand. He quickly keyed in all of Louis' information to his phone and folded the piece of paper into his pocket for safe keeping. There was no reason to keep it at the moment, but having it on hand would help if his phone died and they were separated.


Before he did anything else, he needed to talk to his mother and give her a heads up for the summer and go back to his storage unit and repack all of his clothes. He barely had anything left in his room, but his car had some stuff they wouldn't need for the road trip. It would be better to drop that off now than worry about not having enough space later.


Corban opened his phone back up and began typing.






To: Mom




Hey, call me when you get the chance. Don't wanna interrupt you at work.




To: Louis




Hey! This is Corban, so now you have my number too. I'm gonna head to my unit and reorganize some things so as soon as I get my paperwork done we can get out of here.


The walk to his car was short since the parking lot was right outside his residence halls, but the unit was on the other side of campus. It didn't take long for him to repack his clothes into two bags instead of one, and he had the lingering hope that there'd be a washing machine at one of their stops. Packing light was a key in making sure he didn't bring too much random stuff. He had clothes and personal hygiene items, two towels, a blanket, both of his pillows, and his regular backpack (full of everything from mechanical pencils to his laptop charger).


It was 2:47 when his mom called.


"Cor, I'm sorry it took me so long to get back to you. I know you were probably waiting."


"Nah, Mom, it's cool. I just - Well, I - I wanted to let you know I'm coming home this summer. Before you jump on me for anything, a friend asked me to go on a roadtrip. I still have the online paper to have some cash flow, so don't worry about me not having a job. This is my last real summer, and I wanna be able to actually do something with it, y'know?"


After a bit more poking and prodding from his mother, Corban was able to laugh and smile through an "I love you" and hang up the phone. It was nice knowing that she was on his side, and since he was planning on spending his time with at her place, he figured he'd tell his dad later. Plus, her and his step-dad still had four other kids to worry about for summer vacation. And Adrienne could now, so ditching the family didn't feel too bad when he put it in perspective.


He relaxed back on his bed, phone in hand, and watched the clock numbers flip slowly on his home screen. He had a little bit longer before he had to head to residence life to do his last minute handing-over-the-reigns signature. Next year he would have so much responsibility, so the lack of work he'd have to do this summer was a gift.


Twenty minutes later, he got up and headed down towards the center of campus.






To: Louis




After I finish my meeting with ResLife, I should be good to go. Meet up on the floor in fifteen?