Scars And Stories

Chapter 11

Ryan woke up in the morning with the sunlight hitting his face from the space between the curtains covering the single window in the room. He squinted his eyes at the sudden change of light and rolled over in the bed so he was facing away from the bright source of light. He stayed in bed for a few more minutes, reluctant to leave its comforts, but finally decided to leave the motel and get back on the road for the few hours he had left until New York City.

He slowly got up and changed the dirty t-shirt and underwear he had worn for days with clean ones he kept in his bag. He made his way to the window as he buttoned his jeans and slid the curtain open with one hand.

His eyes widened when he saw the empty parking place where he left his car the night before. He snatched his hoodie off the bed and ran to the door, picking up his backpack and room key along the way. He swung the door open and stopped in his tracks in front of the parking lot. His jaw dropped. He couldn't believe his eyes. His car was gone; it was as if it disappeared during the night.

The sound of a door opening behind him drew Ryan's attention. He turned around and took a look at the man closing his motel room.

Brendon had waited for Ryan to leave his room to finally come out of his. He turned the key in the lock, closing the door and turned around to face Ryan. He acted confused as he saw the nervous and angry expression on Ryan's face.

"What's going on, dude?" Brendon spoke up as he stepped closer to the blue eyed man.

"M-My car is gone," He replied, his voice trailing off at the end.

"Somebody must've stolen it," Brendon retorted.

"Yeah, but who would do that?" Ryan faced the man standing next to him. "It's just a shitty car, and look." He pointed at the red Chevrolet Impala. "Your car's still there."

"Red's probably not their thing," He rationalized, patting Ryan's shoulder, "But I'm sorry." He started to walk toward the office. "You need a ride?" He asked, not looking back.

Ryan followed him, "Uh, yeah. That would be nice."

"Where are you going?" He immediately replied.

"New York City."

Brendon smirked and stopped in front of the office's door, Ryan standing behind him. "Perfect, that's where I'm going," He quickly looked at Ryan, flashing him a fake smile and stepped inside.

They left the lounge after giving their keys back and got into the red car.

"You didn't tell me your name," The dark brown haired man said as he started the car.

"It's Ryan." He nodded his head. Brendon smiled when he heard his answer, causing Ryan to narrow his eyes in confusion. "What about you?"

"Brendon," The other replied.

The car ride was pretty silent, aside from the small talks the two men had to alleviate the awkward tension the silence brought. Both of them lied about their lives and what they were going to do in New York City.

Brendon kept looking at the back seat, be it looking through the rear view mirror or looking over his shoulder. Ryan noticed these little moves and looked at the back seat as well. A briefcase was placed on the seat.

Brendon's palms were getting sweatier with each minute he spent with Ryan. It wasn't because he was scared of him, but because he was scared to fail his mission. He saw Ryan's confused looks from the corner of his eyes every time he would look back at the briefcase.

He waited the right moment to make his move. He needed to be close to New York City, and they were just one hour away from it.

As he reached an empty parking lot at the perfect distance from the city, he quickly glanced at Ryan and then the back seat. "Can you grab that for me?" He entered the lot and pulled into a spot, parking the car.

"This?" Ryan spoke up, the briefcase in his hands, and turned to Brendon.

"Yeah." He smirked and placed his hands on each sides of it. "This." And with that, he swung it in his face with all his strength, immediately knocking the blue eyed man out.