The Devil with Charm

Part 3

    "Where is this girl? I ask myself as u peek into the small take out restaurant at the gas station. It is unkept, with chairs stacked on the tables and the floor covered in dust. I wrinkle my nose in disgust when my hand passes through a cobweb as I tiptoe into the shack. I look around but find no trace of Emma. Brushing my hand on my pants, I step out. The take away stand was also empty which meant that Emma had either strolled off into the green meadows to graze with cattle or she was at the adjacent 7/11. As I turn to walk towards it, I spot Daniel waving wildly at me from the doorway. I rush up to him, tension written all over my face. "What's wrong? " I ask worriedly. I was quite a pessimist when it came to missing best friends at random highway gas stations.
    "Take a look at what your best friend is up to,'' he says pointing towards the cash counter as he reaches into his back pocket. I follow his hand and see Emma animatedly chatting with the cashier boy. He seems to be in be in his early twenties with blond hair peeking out from underneath his 7/11 cap. He was leaning down on the cash counter with his eyes fixed on Emma. My mouth fell. Here I was, running around shacks of cobwebs hunting for her, and she was flirting with random cashier boys! I march up to her and say to the cashier, "Excuse me...Peter," reading his name tag, "but I really need to take her along. I promise I'll bring her around the next time I stop by. " He chuckles and holds up his hands, saying "By all means. " To Emma I say, "Shall we, Emma?"pulling her arm. Before she tries to disagree I say a loud "Goodbye Peter!" and that shuts her up for good.
    When Daniel sees her annoyed expression he asks, "What's got you so upset? Didn't Nan let you converse with him? " She shakes her head like a baby and pouts at me. Daniel chuckles and I roll my eyes. "Did you even bother buying lunch?" I ask her. Her eyes light up at the mention of food. "Lunch!" she says and rushes towards the food stall. "Don't get Nan her lunch. That is her punishment  for prying you off your admirer!" Daniel shouts backs. Emma gives him a thumbs up and continues towards the food counter. I give him a 'lame' look and walk towards the car.
    "Don't call me Nan. I don't like it when people use nicknames to address me, " I say as we walk towards the car together. The guy at the food stall was over forty so I didn't have to keep an eye on Emma this time. Emma calls you Nan," says Daniel without looking up from his phone as he fidgeted with it. I grab his phone and shove it into my back pocket. "Two things. First-Do NOT fidget with a device when you are talking to me and two-Only people special to me use nicknames for me. And you aren't one of them, " I reply simply. Only Dad and Emma had the right to call me Nan. They were the only people who mattered to me at this stage of life. They were the only ones who stayed with me during the dark ages of my life. "Two things," he says, mimicking the way I held up 2 fingers with great exaggeration. "First if you wanted me to crawl up your ass, you could've just asked for it and two- I take that as challenge, sweetheart," he winks at me. "A challenge that you will lose, miserably, " I reply confidently and stride towards the car.
     "Wanna see a damsel in distress? " Daniel asks, catching up with me. "No thanks, In don't watch porn, " I say nonchalantly. "Its better than that, " he says. I look up and catch him giving me a sly smirk. I stop short. This doesn't feel good. "Daniel, what are you talking about?" I ask cautiously. Without warning, he slides his hand into my back pocket to retrieve his phone. This sudden gesture thrusts me against his smooth chest and I can faintly smell his chocolate cologne. When he finally manages to retrieve it, I look away, not wanting Daniel to see my flushed face. I am not used to sudden touches so when they come, they leave my cheeks the colour of rosy tomatoes.
    "There, this poor thing is so distressed by the sight she just witnessed, " says Daniel as a video plays on his phone. He turns the phone screen towards. He is just a few inches taller than me so he doesn't have to lower it much. I squint my eyes in the bright sunshine to focus on the screen. It seems to be a video diary. There are racks stacked with goods all around. At a distance I can faintly make out a girls side profile. Her face is not clear but her body language says that she is clearly annoyed. When the camera zooms in and focuses on the girl's face, my eyes widen in utter shock.
   On seeing my shocked expression, Daniel snaps his phone ma way and sprints towards the car. "You took a video of me acting like Mama Bear!" I shriek as I take off after him. He crosses the car and stands on the other side, squinting. "Daniel Finn, you will delete that video this very moment! I bellow-cum-huff, trying to regain my breathe. "Catch me if you can, " he waves his phone at my face, taunting me. I am about to give him a piece of my mind when I hear Emma say, "Can you two not play catch right now? I wanna eat. "  I turn around to see Emma holding 3 food packets. The scent of crispy French fries and juicy hamburgers made my mouth water. I was in a temper but yum food is the cure to any negative emotions which in my case was anger. But I will take revenge.
    "So why was Nancy chasing you 10 minutes ago? " Emma asks Daniel as she turns on the ignition. "I captured your little encounter at the gas station on my device, " replies Daniel as he looks back at me and smirks. I scowl at him and gaze out of the window. It is a little past 4 o'clock, which means we'll be driving for only a few more hours before we stop at a motel.
    "You took a video!" Emma exclaims but unlike me, she sounds amused. "That means you've captured Peter as well! Thank God, now I'll remember his face. Nan dragged me out in such a huff I couldn't even say goodbye. " Daniel guffawed and I just stared at the drivers seat in disbelief. "I was starving and you were on the other hand was chattering with your Prince Charming!" I shot back. "He isn't my Prince Charming, but he was definitely cute, " she says and flashes me her famous smile from the rear view mirror. I just shake my head in surrender and pull out my earphones. If I am gonna have survive this, I'd fancy a bit of One Direction and sleep. I plug in my earphones, shut my eyes and try not to think of how smooth Daniel's chest felt under my palm.