F**k It, It's The End of The World [Lorien Legacies]

Nine

Nine

Six offers to drive the rest of the way to our hotel. As much as I enjoy being behind the wheel on a long boring trip, it might be nice to get some shuteye in the passengers seat after pigging out on the car snacks. Six got us a good haul, and I almost guarantee she got more than what she could afford with the cash I handed her. Invisibility must be a nice legacy.

John finally snapped out of his nap, hungry and a little bit cranky that we didn't wake him up at our pit stop, but that got settled with a pack of Jerky and a Monster from the four pack that Six bought. Clearly we were thinking the same thing, and she even thought better than me by getting a pack. I downed one by the time we were back on the freeway.

I can't tell if Six has never really learned to drive or if she just has no regard for the rules of the road. I have never in my life see someone speed as much as her. Don't get me wrong, I fucking love going fast, but the last thing I want is to get pulled over, the copper recognizing John, then we're playing cops and robbers with the FBI and the Mogs. I do find some solace in the radar detector though - it's only gone off once this whole trip when we passed the precinct in Chicago on our way out.

"So Johnny boy, you think Five is a chick or a dude?" I ask, breaking the silence that had settled in the car.

"Why does it matter?"

"It's something to talk about, man, unless you can think of anything better?"

"Feel like he's a guy," John replies, though he seems pretty uninvested in the topic. For the love of Lorien, we either need to get him on some uppers or get to Sarah a lot faster than we're already moving.

"Hope she's a chick," I reply. "Maybe like the edgy cool type with a nose ring and listens to Guns N' Roses."

"If Five's a girl then I hope to god for her sake she's gay," Six interjects flatly. She cuts a smirk towards me that I'm sure John can't see. I take it she's still fucking pissed at him, but clearly refuses to let him dampen her mood even more.

John tries to hide a smile in the backseat, fails, and I can see Six pretend not to notice. Lorien, these two are awful with their feelings. Not that I'm better, I'm a fucking mess. But at least I don't have to express them ever, unless I'm turning them into pure rage.

"We should talk about how we're getting Sarah," John decides. Six rolls her eyes with an impressive subtlety as she telekinetically opens a bag of sour patch kids. I throw a hunk of jerky back at John.

"Boo, let us enjoy the car ride man."

•••

Six

We pull up at the motel at about nine thirty. It's relieving to see it even though it looks pretty shitty. I could feel my eyes get heavy towards the end of the drive, and both boys were out cold at that point so I had nothing to keep myself awake aside from counting how many plates from out of state there were on the highway. Twenty seven total, three of which were from Canada.

I throw the car in 'park' and crack the window down to let BK scope the area, including the reception office. In that time, I wake up John and Nine, John getting up quite easily and Nine groggy as hell. I guess I know who will be keeping watch tonight. BK returns and informs Nine that we're looking pretty clear, no threat in sight. John insists on checking in - which Nine began to protest until John whipped out a new legacy we didn't know he had - shape shifting.

It's pretty weak, I'm guessing he learned it from Eight, but he managed to change his facial features and hairstyle just enough yo render him in recognizable in the bad lightning of the motel. Neither Nine or I protested. Both of us want sleep, and John seems alert enough.

"Hey, I'm sorry about bringing up the Sam stuff," Nine apologizes pretty quickly.

"It's all good, it's stupid history," I shrug, blowing it off just as fast, and sheepishly as he asked. While Nine may think it weird, it's been kind of nice to talk about it to someone that isn't just Marina. Of course I love her, but she has a different mind when it comes to that stuff. She's not the kind of warrior that I am, I respect it, but we're not the same. Putting your trust in others just fucks you over. Especially human others. I wish John would fucking learn so he can stop putting us in danger over a stupid romance. I glance at Nine, who's messing around with some toggle on the dash of the Jeep. Human girl got my cêpan killed. Fuck. Wonder if that's why he acts like such a conceited jerk all the time.

The sound of the car door slamming shut snaps me out of my daze, and John flashes us the room key from in the back seat. He scoops up he and Nine's duffles and my backpack and we take it as cue to exit the car and make our way to our room. Nine assured us there's no breaking into this car ever - everything is twice locked, doors barricade from the inside and the windows are bulletproof, so we don't worry about the guns, Nine's chest, and everything else in the backseat. The only way anyones getting in is if the Mogs bomb the thing. To be honest, I don't like the possibility but we're so under the radar right now I feel kind of okay about it.

The motel room is tiny. The two double beds take up majority of the room, save for a tiny round table with two chairs, a crappy love seat in the corner, a microwave on a counter with about a foot of counter space beside it, and the bathroom is about the size of a closet.

"Marina could not have picked a worse hotel, huh," Nine comments. "Fuck, I don't care. Johnny you're up on watch duty."

I quickly slip into the bathroom to change and brush my teeth. They feel caked with sugar and my tongue burns from the sour candy.

By the time I'm out of the bathroom, John's set up at the table with a laptop, browsing the web for something related to the Mogs or us, and Nine's sprawled out in one of the beds, presumably already asleep.

"Anything pop up that looks weird?" I ask, cocking my head towards the computer. John shakes his head. "No, thankfully."

"The less heat we get the better," I sigh, putting my hair up in a braid. "If things look bad when we get to Connecticut we leave. I don't want a repeat of Paradise."

"I know," John admits. "I'm sorry about all of this, Six, I really am. But I truly believe things will go right this time. I know you and Sarah don't exactly get along-"

"Hold on," I interrupt, stopping him mid sentence. I sit at the edge of the unoccupied bed. "This isn't about my relationship with Sarah, it's about yours. I've seen us get fucked over too many times to have the faith you do in her, I just wish you'd prioritize the garde over her, like the rest of us do."

He doesn't respond, which usually means he knows he's wrong. It's the closest I have ever gotten to him admitting he's wrong. Usually he apologizes and then reasons his right-ness.

"I trust her as much as I trust the garde. I trust this is the right decision."

"If you have that much faith in the girl, then maybe it's enough to go back and get her, but this is the last time I stand with you on these kinds of decisions if shit hits the fan."

"I know," he sighs. "We'll get Sam back too, you know. I know it's important to you."

"Yeah," I reply standing up to make my way to the side of the bed to crawl in. "Night John," I say as I pull the cardboard-like covers over myself. I can feel myself falling asleep before my head even hits the pillow.

"Goodnight Six, sleep well."