“Bob? Has anyone seen Bob?” Ashley called out to her fellow co-workers, “He’s in the back.” Jenny said to her. Ashley was working as a sales associate at the Chico’s store, and she wanted to tell Bob, her manager, something important.

“Come in.” Bob was a bald older man, with thin wire-framed glasses, “Ashley? What’s the matter?” He was behind the computer screen typing random numbers on the keyboard.

“I don’t think I’m gonna come into work anymore.”

“But, you’re one of my best employees Ash, is something bothering you?” Bob said in concern.

“I just, I can’t live in LA anymore, its driving me crazy, I need to get out of here Bob, and I want to go back home.”

Bob knew that she wasn’t born and raised in LA, she was from New Jersey, and it was a major culture shock from the East Coast to the West, the reason why she came here in the first place was to go off to a small business college, but that didn’t work out so well, so she managed to find a job at Chico’s and was able to find a small apartment.

“I miss being, I don’t know, I’m just missing something, I need to get away from it all.”

“Like a road trip you mean?” Bob asked puzzled.

“Yeah, that’s what I need, I’m sorry Bob, you have been so helpful to me and all of us here at Chico’s, I won’t ever forget you.” Ashley said, giving him a firm handshake.

“Well if you do go back, let me just give you your last paycheck, and you have a bonus in there too.” Bob told her.

“Thanks.”

Bob went into her folder and pulled out an envelope, “Here you go, oh and take this folder as well.”

She thanked him again and told him that she would keep in touch with him and the fellow co-workers, and stepped out of the office.

“Bye guys, I’m going back.” She called out to them.

“Going back where?” Jenny said, she was popping gum behind the counter.

“Ash, you’re leaving?” Tim told her, he was price scanning some clothes that were on the counter.

“Bob would explain everything okay?” Ashley told them.

And with that she headed out of the store.

She started to walk to her little car, which was parked on a parking meter, it wasn’t new of course, it was about twenty years old, but this little car was the same car that brought her to LA in the first place, she would never part with it, it got her through so many rough storms, fiddling with her keys she opened the door, turned the car on, the engine sputtered at first, and quickly returned to normal idle speed.

“Looks like it’s time for an oil change little guy before we head back East.” She patted on the dashboard.

She smiled to herself, checked for on- coming cars, didn’t see any, so she got out of the parking and drove off.

JC was on his way home when he realized that he was hungry, so he stopped for a hamburger and fries, and was eating outside of the restaurant, there were cars driving up and down the busy street; after he finished eating, he carried his can of soda back to the car and placed it in the cup holder. Turning the car on, he was gonna head home, and backed out of the driveway and headed onto the busy street, as he was driving, and letting other cars pass, he stopped when he let a young woman in a little car pass, his breath caught in his throat.

“Was that-? He looked back at the little car, it was turning left, “No it couldn’t be, I imagined her, I mean think I did.”

Without thinking, as soon as the light turned green, he screeched his tires and made a complete U-Turn, car horns and people were shouting angrily.

“Hey! Watch where you going buddy!” And angry man called out.

“Sorry sir.” He shouted back.

JC didn’t know what he was doing, but for some reason, he had to follow this girl in this little car, he just had a strong feeling that it was her, it had to be Ashley, and if it was, he wasn’t gonna let her go so easily.