Danger Days

5

"So, did you guys find the key?" Frank asked.

Ray held up a single car key, then tossed it to Mikey. Ray climbed into the plane, helping Opal out from her hiding place. "Are-Are they all gone now?" she asked, her voice quivering.

"Yeah, you're safe," Ray said. He helped her crawl off the wing of the plane, and Gerard led them all to the car. Mikey unlocked the door, then popped the locks of the other doors. Only two opened, and he shrugged. Frank stretched, soaking up his last few minutes not crammed into a backseat. He noticed Opal getting Ray's attention, tugging his sleeve so he would lean closer to her. Ray grinned at her and glanced at Frank before responding to her.

She nodded and scurried over. "Hey, Frank?"

"Yeah? What's up, Opal?" he said.

"Would it be okay if I sat beside the window in the car instead of the middle?" she asked. "J-Just because I know it's going to be a long trip and I wanted to sleep some on the way."

"Oh, yeah, sure," Frank said. He grinned at her. "No problem. I'll sit in the middle."

She smiled back at him. "Thank you!" she said. She returned to Ray.

"See?" said Ray. "I told you."

Frank squeezed into the middle seat of the car. It wasn't so bad; Opal's body was still small enough that there was a reasonable amount of space for him. He closed his eyes, and eventually managed to drift off to sleep at the sound of Mikey and Ray's voices muffled by the road noise resonating through the cabin.

Frank jumped awake at the sudden movement of his head. "Sorry," Gerard said as he adjusted. Frank sat up, realizing that his head had been resting on Gerard's shoulder. His cheeks went red, and he attempted to hide this with his hair.

"No, I-I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't-"

"Frank, relax. I wasn't trying to wake you up."

Frank swallowed and nodded. "How, um, how long was I asleep?" he asked.

Gerard hummed. "I dunno," he said. "Two hours, maybe?"

"Wow."

Gerard chuckled. "Hey, Ray. How much longer are we here for?" he asked.

"We're getting close," said Ray. "About another half hour, I'd say."

As Mikey drove nearer to their destination, his yawns growing closer together, Ray and Opal had seemed to actually become more energized. Ray directed Mikey off of the road, to a small house that appeared abandoned. He instructed Mikey to pull the car around the back of the house. Mikey threw the car in park and sat for a moment before turning off the engine. "Sorry," he mumbled, "Not used to that."

Frank stepped out of the car and stretched again. He groaned as he felt his shoulders and knees pop. He looked up at the house, twisting at his waist. The wood had been painted dark brown, and the shutters on all the windows had been nailed closed.

"Ray, are you sure people live here?" Mikey asked as he got out.

Gerard slammed his door. "Maybe this is where he's taking us to have us all killed," he said.

Ray just chuckled. "Thanks for trusting me, Gerard," he said. "It means the world, really." He walked up to the door of the cabin and knocked loudly. A few moments of silence passed, but Frank soon heard the sound of locks opening on the other side of the door.

A tall, broad man with long black hair opened the door. He had a scraggly beard, and his eyebrows naturally sunk over his eyes, giving him an inherently discontented expression. He looked Ray up and down before smiling and opening his arms.