Totem by E.M. Lathrop Page A

hand as he asks the question. The touch of our skin sends a surge through my body. My mind begins to wonder what it would be like if Ty ever kisses me. My imagining his lips touching mine sets my heart racing. As if he knows, he gives my hand a squeeze sending me back into the reality and the question he asked.
                  “Yes, I am,” I reply with a smile. “Do we want to stay on campus?”
                  “You have a few hours. We can go somewhere off campus.”
                  We walk outside. Michelle shoots me one more sly smile as she waves good bye walking in the direction of the dorms.
                  “I am all sweaty,” I comment.
                  “So am I,” he replies. “I don’t mind if you don’t.”
                  A corky half smile pops across his face and all I can do is smile back. I brush the fly away strings of hair from my face as I look away from him. I scan the parking lot wondering what a person like Ty drives. For some reason, I was expecting a sleek sports car. Instead, he walks up to an old bronco with an open back. It is not what I expected, but is actually perfect for Ty.
                  “This is your car?” I ask
                  “One of them,” replies Ty nonchalantly.
                  “You have two cars?” I ask surprised.
                  “Yea, I have a few cars.”
                  A few cars?! He said it so matter of fact that it catches me off guard. Who has more than one car?! I have one but rarely drive it. Here Ty is rolling around with multiple cars like it is no big thing. As I hop into the high, green bronco with large tires, I wonder what kind of mystery man Ty could be. Sure I could tell he was a few years older than me but how could anyone in their early twenties afford multiple cars without the help of their parents?
                  I decide to brush off this thought and just enjoy the time I spend with him. In a way, I am happy I am in an old bronco and not some beautiful sports car. I am so sweaty from playing volleyball and didn’t want to ruin the interior. The engine of the bronco revs to life.
                  “Do you mind if I have the windows down? I like to feel the breeze when I drive.”
                  “No, not at all,” I reply with a goofy smile.
                  Ty grins back as he rolls his window down. It has been a long time since I have been in a car without an electronic window. I grab the knob and begin the circular motion. It went down a few inches before stopping and I can no longer turn it. I give it one hard jerk but it did not budge.
                  “That one always gets stuck. I keep meaning to fix it, but I can’t find the piece I need to repair it. It’s one of the down falls of having an older vehicle.”
                  With that, he leans over me to help. His arm brushes my thigh as he winds down the window. His touch sends a whole different type of sensation rolling through my body. As if he knew the affect his touch had on me, he carefully moves away so as not to touch me after rolling the window down.
                  “So where are we going for lunch?”
                  “I have an idea of a place,” replies Ty.
                  “As long as it accepts people in sweaty shorts and you get me back in time to take a shower before class, I am ok with that.”
                  Ty cocks his head to the side and looks at me bemused. I feel my face flush at my attempt at sarcastic humor.
                  “I think I can find a place like that.”
                  He puts the Bronco in gear and zooms out of the parking lot. From this high up, every movement seems more extreme. The wind whips around my face sending the strands of my hair not tied in a