I drank up the last bit of milk tea and the last few boba pearls out of the cup from my favorite boba store. Stomach full and very happy, I smiled and placed the cup back into the cup holder of the old minivan as we drove home down the wet highway in the night. Food coma from the dinner with my relatives from that evening began to set in, coupled with the soft rain sounds on the roof of the car and the late night songs emitting from the radio. I laid on the seat’s headrest and closed my eyes to the tranquil sounds of the night.

I felt the onset of the car’s journey up a hill, the familiar hill near my house that told me the ride home was soon to end. The soft sounds of rain could still be heard as the car rolled into the driveway. I remained in my resting position, eyes still closed but ears listening to everything that was going on. Still feeling relaxed and cozied up, I felt the urge to remain exactly where I was without moving an inch. 

About thirty seconds later, I could hear someone walk into the backseat. It was my dad. “He’s asleep,” I heard him whisper to my mom. I almost wanted to laugh but stayed quiet as my dad lifted me into his arms and carried me outside. As he walked me towards the house I felt the light sprinkling of fresh raindrops on my skin. We were soon within the warmth and comfort of the house; I felt my dad begin to carry me up the stairs. Though my eyes were still closed, I could picture in my head exactly what was going on as my dad navigated through the familiar space. As he reached the landing he walked down the hallway and eventually arrived at my room. I heard the creak of my bedroom door open and he stepped in. He carefully set me down in my bed and pulled the blankets over me. As I heard his footsteps walk away from the bed I briefly opened my eyes to catch his silhouette disappearing behind the door as it slowly closed. I smiled. Never in my life had I felt so happy. I closed my eyes once more and drifted off to the sounds of the rain still going strong outside. 

Many years later I was sitting in bed, browsing through comments on a YouTube video of driving in the rain at night just as I was about to go to sleep. The top comment said: “Any of y’all remember when we faked being asleep in the backseat so our parents would carry us in?” The comment had been liked by over twenty thousand people. I read the comment over and over again and smiled, the exact way I had those many years earlier. I guess I wasn’t the only one.