The Time Capsule

Chapter 3

We drove for about two hours straight before we pulled over to a rest stop. A lot of us were really feeling anxious. The only times we have gone out of the city were for vacations with our families. There's also the slight fact that we are probably being chased. They said they would be watching me which is really concerning. Throughout the whole time, I kept getting wave after wave of anxiety, concern and guilt. I was putting my friends in danger. This is my problem yet they're leaving their lives behind. I should have just taken off right after I woke up. I exited the van, hoping I would get back in it. As much as I wanted to go solo, I couldn't now. They made their choices, and I can't judge especially since I knew I'd do the same if one of them was in my situation.

"Alright guys! I say we stay for a half hour at the most. I'm going to go gas up the van and meet y'all in there," Clare said.

"Be careful," I said.

"Hey, I've been driving for two hours, and only now you think of to tell me to be careful. Nice, Sam," she said before driving around the building. It was almost three o'clock. Soon, our parents would start to realize we weren't coming home. I pushed aside that thought. We walked into the building. Gant, James, Albana, and Emily made a beeline for the bathrooms. John, Luke, and Krystal took off to go get food for dinner and snacks. It hadn't been too long since lunch, but we probably wouldn't stop again for a while, so it was a good call. I guess we should set up some kind of system of who pays for meal. I noticed a coffee shop and started over to it with Maren and Miranda trailing me. We ordered plenty for everyone. My plan was to keep on driving, and since we only had two licensed people, they would need to switch. I guess we already had broken enough laws today that it wouldn't matter who drives, but no matter what, there would be at least two people not getting too much sleep tonight. I probably won't sleep anyway, so I'll offer to take a turn.

"Hey Sam," Maren said as she nudged me.

"What?" I asked.

"You kind of have to pay for the coffee still," she said. I noticed the many containers of coffee in the container and the impatient looking barista. I fumbled my wallet as I got it out of my pocket.

"Sorry about that," I said as I handed over the money. I grabbed four of the holders meaning I held sixteen coffees.

"Do you want help?" Miranda asked. Maren and she were holding one holder each.

"I'm fine," I said. I walked to the nearest open table. I guess we could sit for a second. Hope that won't be the mistake to bring our downfall. I looked for the others. The ones who went to the bathroom were now over with those getting the food. They helped carry many bags over to where we were. Clare just walked in as the others got to our table.

"Coffee. Very good call, guys," John said.

"Yeah. Are we not stopping to sleep?" Gant asked.

"We'll take turns driving. First, I don't want to stop for too long. I'm already getting nervous from the time we've spent here. Second, we have to watch our funds. What did you buy anyway?" I asked.

"We got burgers and fries that I figured we would save for dinner. Then we have tons of chips and candy and other snacks," Krystal said.

"We will need to make those snacks last," Albana said.

"She's right. We need to watch our funds," Clare said as she slid into a chair.

"We're not going to do it now, but at some point soon, I do want to count up our money," I said.

"That's a good idea. That way we can budget our stuff," Emily said. We all went silent for a few minutes to enjoy the warmth the coffee provided. Then I thought of another issue.