My Emily

Chapter 2: Gas station

Feet shuffled in the snow. Layers and layers of white endlessly covered the surfaces. The sign of no human life not seen, no footsteps of other's were in the miles of snow; no imprints of the past, only Jenna's.
The blue moonlight shimmered down on her, the only thing keeping herself away from pitch black darkness. Jenna breathed heavily as she continued making her way to the nearest sign of civilization, like a simple store or gas station. It had  possibly been a few hours afterall, she'd atleast think think that something was nearby.

She had escaped. Jenna had escaped from the hands of her captor. Unknowingly, she did not know she was one of the very few; maybe even the first to escape successfully. Besides, there was a very good reason to leave. The horrors are now left behind her, stepping towards the future. Unwilling to go back,

but who would?

She breathed out, expelling her breath causing a smog-like gas to come out. The blanket which was one of the very few futile things that she could grab wrapped around her frigid body. Jenna shook violently,  her heeled feet shifting through the snow, the icy feeling shooting up her spine.
The sight of the frozen trees with no leaves did not calm Jenna down, only worsened. It was the reminder that everything around her has died out, a taunt of a likelihood that may happen to her if help doesn't come sooner or later. Jenna felt alone in the world, the expectation of life past the house which she was held captive in was a false reality. Jenna did not know how far away she was from people like her, the people she had once interacted with before being taken away and never being heard ever again.
Her vision blurred as her knees buckled downwards out of the lack of food and warmth. She lifted herself back up as cold tears drifted down her red cheek, the absence of warmth from them. Jenna's eyes readjusted to a sudden shift to light. What was once the moon which lit her path now was something else, something alot brighter. She limped closer for a better view, Jenna's heart jumped.
A small partially broken down building structure stood out in between the dead crooked trees. Presumably a gas station, blue and yellow faint lines drove through the upper half of the gas station. Jenna shifted towards the building, feet shaking in anticipation.
The light slowly ingulfing her as she stepped underneath the cover which hung above her, the atmospheric buzzing of the faint blinking lights buzzed in her ear. Jenna darted her eyes around the station void of people and vehicles. It was silent. Only the sound of the breezing icy wind blew through the tree branches, and the calls of the crows. She paused.
Crows mean danger. That's what Jenna was always taugh when she was alot younger and naive. Crows meant bad luck, kind of like sitting underneath a ladder. They are a omen of the dead, and are intelligent and officiant creatures. The pitch black charcoal feathers and constant urge to feast on the corpes of unfortunate victims shouldn't mean good luck. Only death to those who are chosen as the unlucky few.
She stared blankly at the dark sky, her icy eyes staring deep into the woods as she took a few steps back towards the door. The blanket unevenly wrapped around her frigid body blew in the wind. Her hand meeting with the cold door handle. Jenna's breath stopped, her hand gripping onto the metal handle, and slowly walked inside.
The sudden warmth caught Jenna off guard, light music played in the background. Her hands wrapped around her arms, moving them up and down to produce some type of warmth. Jenna's feet moved forward onto the partially wet tile floor. Her eyes darted for the cashier, or atleast somebody.
The aisles held a large quantity of snacks and drinks, her eyes wandered at the assortments as she made her way towards the cashier.
The ambiguous man's eyes met with her's, his posture becoming straight; as if he wanted to seem presentable towards Jenna. A "welcoming" smile spreading across his face as if he was about to give her a greeting.
He had dirty blond hair and could've been in his mid to late teens. Acne covered his face, and had a scrawny body structure from what Jenna could see from over the counter. The cashier had a cheap button down shirt, and a tacky name tag. 'Jason H.', she raised a eyebrow before opening her lips again; nothing came out as Jenna was cut off.
"Hi, What would you like me to do for you on this night?" His voice cracked after he said hi, Jenna held her breath. The tension between her and the stranger named 'Jason' rose higher. The silence of the old and unkempt store caught her off guard until she slammed her hands onto the table with desperation.
"Help me. I..I'm a missing person, Jenna Valentines. Jenna Cruz Valentines, is my name familiar to you..?" Jenna cried out, leaning her lower abdomen against the counter. Jason took a step back behind the register in shock, his expression looking like he was taken aback by her sudden response. She paused. The thought of how "rude" she was to the person that may give her the possibility of escape made her feel bad, her heart sank.
"I-I'm sorry, But do you have a phone? I need to call the police...please? It's a emergency " Jason stood statically, than he nodded in shaking silence. He then scratched the back of his head with a slight tinge of worry and concern.
"Well.. I can call them for you if you'd like. Where.. did you come from?" Jason waited for a response.
"It's a personal thing. " She faced the floor, only seeing her own tattered feet and the dirty tile floor.
"Ok, I understand. I will be in the back and notify the cops, just let out a holler if you need anything." He turned away from her a lightly waved back, stepping into a room with a singular "staff only" sign. The door left a partail shift in noise, and stopped.
Jenna stood back, now aware of being alone again.
Her eyes burned and her neck ached. As if barb wires tightly surrounded her throat. Jenna unevenly took steps forwarding to the nearest restroom, her vision blurring again like the time she had escaped into the snowy forest which lead her to this very gas station. Her hand rested onto a stand, hand sliding against all of the packed foods on neat displays. Weakly steps went forward towards the women's restroom.
Jenna slumped against the door of the bathroom, her hand intertwining on the doorknob. She winced as she turned the knot and slid inside in defeat. The door locking behind her.