Chapter 16

Sixteen

Will

Will drove the first half of the trip the next day. He was sad to leave Chicago so soon, but he and Jacob wanted to stick to their schedule, so they set off on their way to Omaha, Nebraska.

For the first time on the trip, it had become overcast, almost misty as they made their way through Illinois into Iowa. Will welcomed it, a respite from the blinding sunshine that had been glaring into his eyes the past couple days while he drove. The land opened up as the miles wore on, the urban and suburban landscapes of the Chicago area giving way to open grass and farmland.

Jacob slept in the passenger seat for most of the morning. Will let him sleep, only waking him when he stopped halfway through the drive to get fuel and food. He pulled off on an exit in Iowa City and drove into the first gas station he found. He stopped the car, turned off the engine, and Jacob still wasn't awake.

He placed his hand gently on Jacob's shoulder, shaking.

"Hey. Jacob. We're halfway to Omaha," Will said, softly.

Jacob let out a big sigh in his sleep, and to Will's surprise, Jacob grabbed hold of Will's arm and cuddled it next to his face, in the crook in between his neck and shoulder, and began to snore again seconds later.

Will smiled to himself, secretly allowing himself to melt inside witnessing Jacob do something so sweet in his sleep. He allowed himself to enjoy Jacob's small cuddle for about a minute, then tried to wake him again. He shook a little harder on Jacob's shoulder.

"Jacob. Hey! We're in Iowa City. You hungry?"

"Whaaaaa--?" Jacob said, suddenly opening his eyes. "Mmmm…" he said, blinking, and looking out the window. He looked down and realized he was still grabbing hold of Will's hand, and let go quickly.

"Where are we?"

"Iowa City. You've been out for a good three hours," Will said, smiling.

" Shit , man. Wow. I knew I lost some sleep last night, but that's a long nap even for me," Jacob said. He yawned, rubbing his face.

"I'm gonna fuel up, then wanna go grab a sandwich or something?" Will asked.

"Yeah! Sounds great," Jacob replied.

Will stepped out to put gas in the car, realizing it was a nice, foggy day outside. It was cool for June, but not cold by any means, comfortable in a hoodie.

He put fuel into the car, then got back in the driver's seat.

"Okay. Found a good sandwich shop like half a mile away," Jacob said, looking at the app on his phone.

"Sweet. Lead me there," Will answered.

They made the short drive to the shop, got out of the car and headed inside. They ordered their subs and sat down.

"So, how are you feeling after last night?" Will asked.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Jacob looked at him like a deer in the headlights.

"Your back. Does it hurt after taking that fall on the grass?"

"Ohhhhh. That," Jacob answered. He moved his back a little, stretching it out to feel for any pain. "It's pretty okay. Maybe a tiny sore spot, but I think we got off pretty easy. That could have turned out bad," Jacob said, chuckling and shaking his head.

"I know, I know. Sometimes I get an idea in my head and I can't help myself, even if I know it's not gonna end well," Will said, then took a bite of his sandwich.

"I do feel a lot better after taking that nap in the car, though. Thanks for letting me sleep," Jacob said.

"Yeah, of course! Did you sleep okay last night?" Will asked.

"Eh, not really. Kind of tossed and turned. But I'm good now," Jacob responded.

They ate the rest of their meal and left feeling full and satisfied. Will hopped into the passenger seat for the second half of the drive. They were still about four hours away from Omaha, and Will plugged in his phone for some music, settling in.

After lazily staring out the window for a while, Will brought out his sketchbook from his backpack and began to sketch the road ahead of them for a handful of minutes. After a while, he got tired of drawing the same landscape. He turned his body to the left a little, shifting in his seat. He looked over at Jacob and watched him drive, his muscular arms reaching out to the wheel. He turned his sketchbook to a blank page, and began to draw Jacob in broad strokes, looking up to Jacob for a split second, then back down to the page, over and over.

After a minute Jacob briefly turned his head and looked over at Will.

"I knew it. You're trying to draw me?" Jacob asked, grinning, stealing glances at Will.

"Guilty as charged. But keep your eyes on the road! That's not safe, and it's messing up my drawing, anyway," Will smiled.

"Sorry about that. I'll go back to posing for you," Jacob said, throwing his neck back slightly, pursing his lips, and lifting one hand in a mock pose. Will laughed, shaking his head.

"Come on. You're handsome enough on your own, you don't need to pose," Will said. He bit his bottom lip after saying it, realizing he had probably said too much, yet again. Oh well , he thought, if Jacob isn't used to my lack of a filter by now, that's his own problem . He continued to sketch him until he had reached a place in the drawing he was happy with.

"Finished?" Jacob asked.

"I guess so. For now at least. Kinda hard to draw in the car after a while," Will replied, stuffing his sketchbook back into his backpack.

"Can I see?" Jacob asked.

"Sure! I'll show you later, you know, when you're not operating a moving vehicle," Will said.

Will looked out at the scenery. He realized that it was beginning to be kind of beautiful – As they drove through Western Iowa, they passed through some rolling green hills, a welcome variety after miles and miles of flat land.

Will dozed off, staring out the passenger side window, hypnotized by the landscape.

He woke up later, not knowing what time it was. It had gotten slightly darker outside, so he thought must have been the afternoon, though it was hard to tell from the overcast sky.

He rolled slightly in his seat, stretching as much as he could.

"Wh' time is it?" he mumbled.

"Just about 4. We're almost to Omaha," Jacob said. "You finally woke up."

Will rubbed his neck. "Is that civilization up ahead? We made it."

"Yup. GPS says we're only 20 minutes from the hotel," Jacob added.

"Hallelujah," Will said, yawning.

They made it to the hotel in 40 minutes, thanks to some road construction along the way. Will opened the window of the car as they pulled up to the hotel, letting the fresh air blow over him.

They checked in and went upstairs to their room for the night. Will looked around, setting down his stuff, and went to use the restroom. He was quick, and after washing his hands, opened the door to go back into the room.

"This room is actually pretty nice," he said, opening the door.

"Oops," he heard Jacob say, and as he looked into the room he saw the outline of Jacob's round, perky ass disappear into his jeans as he pulled them on. Jacob turned around, blushing a little.

"Sorry – you were fast in there! Just changing out of my road clothes," Jacob said, rooting around in his bag for a shirt.

"That's fine, take as long as you need," Will said, looking into his own bag. He stole a glance upward at Jacob, who was still shirtless. God damn does he look good , Will thought, trying not to think about it too much, saving himself from becoming hard under his jeans.

"So I figure we can just take it easy tonight," Jacob said, finally pulling a shirt over his head, covering his chiseled abs. "Head out, grab some food, maybe a couple drinks?"

"That sounds perfect to me," Will replied.

About ten minutes later, they headed back out into the misty night.