The Man in the Backseat (#FreeYourShorts #horrorthriller)

Unus

     You slide slowly into the driver's seat of the sleek silver car your stepfather surprised you with. It all feels like such a dream, so you brush your hand ever so lightly against the steering wheel's soft leather cover.

      Nope. It's all very real.

      Your bright smile reaches the tops of your cheeks as you flash your stepfather two thumbs up. You want to get out and hug him again, but that would require getting out of the car, and you definitely don't want to do that.

      Not until you die, at least.

      "Wanna take it for a test drive?" your stepfather asks jokingly, dangling the keys in front of you like catnip. He knows full well that you want to test out your brand-new vehicle.

      "Of course!" you exclaim, reaching out the window and snatching the keys from his hand. The cold metal against your fingertips sends a shiver of pleasure from your spine down to your toes, and you feel like you've been born again.

      Driving this car must have been your purpose in life.

      You insert the key into the ignition and squeal as the engine purrs to life. This is it. This is the moment you've been waiting for since you got your license. You can taste the freedom on your tongue, hear its deafening roar in your ears, see its glorious beauty with your eyes. As soon as you back out of that driveway, it's all yours. 

       And no one will take it from you.

       "Be careful, okay hon?" your mother calls out to you as you start to back out of the long driveway. "Try not to go too far!" Even from this distance you can make out the glimmer of the maternal fear of children growing up in her eyes. She's biting her lip, and she only ever does that when she's nervous. She drags a hand through her dirty blonde locks and shifts her weight from foot to foot. Why should she be nervous? You're the one driving.

       Your stepfather, on the other hand, is exactly the opposite. He wears the goofiest grin on his face and his eyes radiate pride. He slings an arm across your mother's shoulders and squeezes comfortingly. "You can do it!" he calls, returning your thumbs up.

       You smile at the both of them and mouth, "Don't worry," before turning and driving out.

________________

      The tires move effortlessly against the rock-spotted dirt of the back roads. You decide to come here because it's one of your favorite places, plus it's very quiet. Back when your parents were still together, the three of you would go on long, peaceful car rides on the back roads, and eventually you would reach the lake only a few of the town's residents knew about.

      Your own little paradise, you called it.

      You plan on driving to that very lake, but instead decide on just staying on the back roads. That way you can stay in your car for just a little while longer. The road winds like a brown snake through the densely forested woods. It's easy to get lost back here. The roads branch off into even narrower ones every hundred yards or so, and the deeper you venture in, the darker it gets. 

       Late afternoon sunlight filters in through the breaks in the thick tree leaves as you continue down the road. You take a right at the fourth fork, turning the steering wheel as if you've been doing it your whole life. Your hands seem to mold to the wheel like it was made just for you. Maybe having a stepfather isn't all that bad.

        A shrill beeping breaks the tranquil silence, causing you to jump slightly in your seat. You're not usually this jumpy, so what's the problem now? Maybe the silence and the fact that you're driving alone in the dark, empty woods. 

        Where anything can happen.

        And no one would know.

        You banish the thought from your mind and scold yourself for being paranoid. Checking the dashboard, you're almost blinded by the angry blinking of a little red 'E'. Empty? Empty?! How is this even possible?! You're absolutely positive you had a full tank of gas before leaving the driveway!

        Alright. Okay. Calm down. This isn't the end of the world. It will all be okay.

        But then the car starts to groan and slow down.

        "No, no, no!" you cry out in anguish as the car stops completely. You bang your fist against the steering wheel and let loose a guttural roar. Now what? You pull your phone out of the glove compartment and turn it on.

        No service.

        Well of course not, you're in the middle of the damn woods!

        You silently curse the cruel, cruel world you live in and ponder what to do. You come across two possible solutions after a moment of arduous meditation. You can either a) leave the forest where hopefully you can get reception and then call a tow truck or b) leave the forest and walk to the gas station back in town to get at least four gallons of gas and then walk back to your car. Both choices have considerable downsides. You don't want people to think you're crazy if you wave your phone around, desperately searching for a signal, and then there's the chance that you won't get a signal at all. You could wind up out here for hours.                                                                                                                                     And then there's walking back to the gas station. You're at least five miles from town, and you're not exactly the most fit person. You can't even walk a mile, much less five miles. It would be suicide. But then you could just flag down a taxi as soon as you get out of the woods. But walking in the dark woods is a little nerve-wracking. There are wild animals back here.

          And possibly people. Dangerous people who might want to kill you. Isn't there always that fear?

         After several more minutes of intense contemplation in the chilling silence of the vehicle, you decide on option two and step out of the car. Immediately you shiver from the brisk temperature. It's cold, colder than it should be. The weatherman called for warm, spring-like temperatures all throughout the day. Guess he was wrong.                                                                                                                                      The forest is dark, but there's enough orange light trickling in from above for you to see the road. The way back shouldn't be that hard to find. Bidding your feet good luck, you set off and pray that everything will be okay.

         Little do you know that it won't.