The pain club

Part 11...Split

Just then a large truck pulled up beside us. A tall man with dirty clothes leaned about the window. "You kids need a ride to the big city?"

"The big apple please"

Annie, Joe and Carla took the three seats in the back while Reece and i took the front seat. I stepped up into the truck but Reece pulled me down. "No no...i'll take the middle seat."

Reece popped himself down into the seat separating me and the tsrange man. I slammed the ast door shut and the man began driving.

The man had an odour problem and the ac did not work. Within five minutes sweat began to drip from all our foreheads. "So...i'm chuck...and you are?"

We said our names. We said them very clearly and without any weird accents.

"Well, it's very nice to meet you..." He stared at me instead of the road "...Paisley...Ryan...Cara...John and...Annie!" Annie was the only one who smiled.

"I think chuck might have a problem." Reece whispered quietly to me as Annie and Chuck talked on."So sort of like you then?" I looked at him.

Reece looked at me in surprise and a grin appeared on his face. His very well sculpted face. "Alright sad girl, it's on."

"Awwww you two..." Chuck intervened and we both looked at him. "Between those two lovebirds in the back and this golden couple in the front...Cara, you must feel very 5th wheeled..." He laughed at his own joke.

"Oh yes...very much so" Carla rolled her eyes, looking out the window. She was sitting right behind Chuck and i could only pray for her.

"So...what happened to your car?"

"The engine blew...pressure with no gas got the best of it." Joe was like a different person when he started on cars. Chuck's eyes took a second glance at the scar on his neck.

"Oh man, looks like someone forgot to fill up the gas tank, huh?"

"That was it Chuck. Precisely it." Joe kicked the back of Reese's sit. Reece head turned slightly and Joe held his hands up in fear.

"So new york new york, why you kids headed here?"

"W-"

"We're running away from the state because we broke out of a mental institution and stole a car. So now everyone's looking for us. We're basically fugitives. I was kidnapped by these people and so if the cops asked...i had nothing to do with it..."

All our eyes went to Chuck. This was it. I felt Reece might straggle Hoe with his bare hands in a few seconds or less. Annie was even quiet.

But Chuck just burst out laughing. He had a very weird laugh. But that was excepted. Chuck was a weird dude. "You guys...man oh man...you're so funny..."

We all began laughing apart from Joe. "A mental institution....stolen car....FUGITIVES..." He laughed so more as Carla gave Joe the dirtiest look.

It only took an hour to get into the heart of the city. We marvelled and awed at all the things normal teenagers would marvel and awe at. Chuck also felt the need to explain the history of every building we went buy.

"Here's good." Carla said after she couldn't take anymore of it. Chuck slowly stopped talking and pulled into the side of a unknown building.

"Well, this is it guys." Chuck got out of his truck. Oh god. "I feel like...we made a life long friendship here. You guys....awwww..." He brought us all into a hug as we uncomfortably gathered together.

"Cara i'm gonna miss all the sly comments..."He pointed at Carla. Next was me and Reece. "Paisely...Ryan...you guys...." He spread his hands out to Annie and Joe. "John...what a guy, what a guy...ANNIE..." Annie gave him a giant hug.