I
Insidious Joe
Guest
Catching Marley's antics in the rear view mirror with a glance of the eyes elicited a grin from Matt as he continued to fumble with the radio until he settled upon some Alternative station, leaving the volume low enough to still be heard while ensuring everyone was able to hold a conversation. The background noise was just an added bonus for the boxer, as it tended to steady his nerves while driving.
"We're heading over to New York first; There's so many landmarks just in the city alone that we can't miss it, Naureen wouldn't allow it." He'd jab, before the mood seemed to turn sour once Derrick had made his presence known to everyone else. Alyss whined at him, and he looked like a kicked dog as he answered. "I... might have mentioned the trip to him during a workout?"
Matt knew no one would buy that, so he immediately came clean shortly afterwards, and to defend him from Naureen. "Okay, I invited him. I know he gets on everybody's nerves, but excluding someone just because they're annoying is stupid. Besides, if he gets out of hand, I'll talk to him. We're not a clique or some sort of cult. Deal?" He laid the proposition out on the table for the others. That was his downfall- He tended to try and find the good in others even when there isn't any to be had, at least any that was immediately obvious.
While he let everybody decide among themselves the fate of Derrick, he honked back a few times and stuck his arm out of the window with a slight wave before he focused on driving again. NYC wasn't very far away, give or take a four hour drive without any pit stops.
He took his sweet time navigating out of town before getting on the highway, making sure to pay attention to the signs so he could find the interstate merge that he'd need to get onto so they could start their trip for real. Matt was a defensive driver- he rarely went over the speed limit, despite his daredevil attitude, mostly in part that he was now responsible for other people's lives while in control of the vehicle.
Occasionally he'd take the time to glance up into the rear view mirror now and again, to catch a glimpse at the others, or look over at Odette since she'd taken up the front passenger seat.
"We're heading over to New York first; There's so many landmarks just in the city alone that we can't miss it, Naureen wouldn't allow it." He'd jab, before the mood seemed to turn sour once Derrick had made his presence known to everyone else. Alyss whined at him, and he looked like a kicked dog as he answered. "I... might have mentioned the trip to him during a workout?"
Matt knew no one would buy that, so he immediately came clean shortly afterwards, and to defend him from Naureen. "Okay, I invited him. I know he gets on everybody's nerves, but excluding someone just because they're annoying is stupid. Besides, if he gets out of hand, I'll talk to him. We're not a clique or some sort of cult. Deal?" He laid the proposition out on the table for the others. That was his downfall- He tended to try and find the good in others even when there isn't any to be had, at least any that was immediately obvious.
While he let everybody decide among themselves the fate of Derrick, he honked back a few times and stuck his arm out of the window with a slight wave before he focused on driving again. NYC wasn't very far away, give or take a four hour drive without any pit stops.
He took his sweet time navigating out of town before getting on the highway, making sure to pay attention to the signs so he could find the interstate merge that he'd need to get onto so they could start their trip for real. Matt was a defensive driver- he rarely went over the speed limit, despite his daredevil attitude, mostly in part that he was now responsible for other people's lives while in control of the vehicle.
Occasionally he'd take the time to glance up into the rear view mirror now and again, to catch a glimpse at the others, or look over at Odette since she'd taken up the front passenger seat.