runaway love ♡ n.h.

[3] All Tucked Inn

Author's Note:

Sorry it's been literally forever since I've posted.

I come on to see almost 250 reads? What?!

Thank you guys so, so much for the feedback!

This chapter is dedicated to @EllenEdwardStyles

because she came up with the name of our motel.

Hope you enjoy,

and now that it's summer I will be able to post more frequently!

Be sure to do all the good stuff!

Love you all! xoxo

~~~~~

The bus halted to a stop, sending sleeping Ellie almost tumbling off the seat. I caught her in my grasp just in time, also jerked by the unexpected halt. We had been riding for what seemed like ages, but through the tinted window I would see the flickering neon lights.

It looked like a scene from an old 90s film. The trashy, run down, motel with the flickering sign...the rain that came though earlier... Heck, maybe my life was a 90s movie, I didn't know. I squinted harder at the blue sign, the water droplets distorting the lettering. All Tuced Inn I assumed it was, All Tucked Inn, because the letter K on the sign was off. What a corny name. Ellie would laugh at that.

But I realized, she was whimpering, rubbing her bruised arm from Alec. I hated that man. For hurting such a harmless creature... I fumed inside, but kept my cool when she spoke. "Mommy, my arm hurts. Where are we? I'm tired." She said in a weary voice, yawning heavily in my arms. I didn't answer, but tucked her into my arm. Standing, I swung our bags over my shoulder.

I passed the kind man driving the bus, and said my dearest thanks. He just told me to pass on the favor. I wasn't sure how to do that, but I said I would. Puddles were on the ground, and it was drizzling a bit as I swiftly walked to the lobby door.

It creaked open in an annoying, high pitched fashion, with the small tinkle of bells. I repositioned Ellie, as she hung limp over my arm. She had one of her thumbs in her mouth, and was already back asleep.

I glanced around, seeing no one in the empty lobby. A television showed a fuzzy channel, and the toy machine's lights in the corner flickered oddly. I swallowed hard, working up enough nerve to walk up to the counter.

That's when a lady practically made me jump out of my skin. She must have walked out from the back or something, because she wasn't there five seconds ago. "May I help you dear?" Her voice was so pinched, and crackly...it made my ears hurt a little. I stepped up to the counter. She had a mop of blonde curls on her head, cat eye glasses perched on the tip of her nose. She had these black bags under her eyes like she never slept. We probably woke her up... That made me feel a but bad, but that didn't matter. I paused for a moment, then spoke.

"Um... What rooms do you have open?" I asked, because I've never booked a motel room before. I was clueless. Ellie moved around, and I held her tight. The woman pulled her glasses down farther, and shot me a look as to say, "You're kidding me...right?

I forced a nervous laugh, rubbing the back of my neck. Damn... Attitude. "I guess a cheap room." I simply said, digging in my pocket for the bills. "And I don't know how many nights I'll be here." I added, glancing at the floor. I sounded so hopeless. Like a little lost teen in the big bad world, with an abused child, running away from a maniac. Most say that would be a very complicated metaphor...but that my friends, is a short summary of my life.

She looked at ,e cautiously, giving Ellie a weird gaze. I tried to ignore the thoughts of what she was processing in her head. All the harsh comment I got from school, my parents, friends, family, society... She sighed, "So just pay for the week then. If you leave early you get your money back. If not, pay another week until you go." She said, leaning against the counter. She looked half asleep, and I didn't blame her. It was two o'clock in the morning.

I nodded vigorously, setting down the correct amount of cash, which left me with twenty-three dollars. I sighed, stuffing them away as I grabbed my key from her. She pointed the direction of my room, and sent me off like that. I thought she was a little rude, but what did I care.

It was a challenge, trying to keep Ellie dry under the patchy walkway, which was raided with holes and missing pieces. I got pretty wet, but like a good mother I kept my child dry. Brownie points for the pink-haired teen parent. Yay.

The door to our room was a hassle to open, probably because it needed more oil in the hinges. I entered the room, and it was exactly what I thought. One queen sized bed; a small TV on a dresser; sink that dripped; frozen fridge and microwave; leaky shower head; and a wobbly toilet. It was the scene where you imagined that show Infested to take place at. I sighed, gently waking up Ellie.

"Hey Jelly Belly...You need to get up for a bit, okay? You can go back to sleep if you'd like in a bit." I said to her, and she groaned a little in my ear, stretching her arms out.

"Morning Mommy." She said with a smile, clearly awake now.

I laughed softy, tucking a strand of her blonde hair back. "Morning love." I kissed her forehead, and tossed her down on the bed. She laughed, rolling around. For some reason, that girl loved that. Just to be tossed onto sofa's, bed's...anything soft. I found it humorous because it didn't hurt her, just made her happy. And the looks I got from adults...priceless.

I dug around in the room, and found the remote in the bathroom cabinet for some odd reason. I flicked on the TV, and cartoons came on. I made sure the volume was proper, and let Ellie watch it. I sorted away our clothes, put the food I'm the 'kitchen' -which was nothing more than a square foot of cracked tile-, and laid out all of our remanding money. Yep. Honestly, I was lost. I couldn't survive off of this. This was insane.

Then Ellie said something I didn't expect. "Mommy. Why are we here?" I turned around to see tears in those big blue eyes, looking right at me. Then I wanted to cry. I walked over to her, turning off the TV as I took her in my arms. I wiped away the tears on her cheeks, gazing down to her.

"Baby...you know how Daddy was a meanie to Mommy and you? Well, Mommy said goodbye to Daddy. He's not your Daddy anymore." I said, running my fingers through her blonde hair. Her hair was so blonde...I didn't know where she got it from. Me nor Alec ever had such blonde hair, and none of our families did either. But I knew those eyes. Those eyes were mine. People always said our eyes were exactly the same, like paper copies. I'm glad I couldn't resemble any of Alec's features on Ellie. She didn't deserve any of that on her.

I wasn't sure what her reaction would be, but I didn't think about what she said. "So I'll never see Chubbs again?" I froze. Chubbs the Bear. Sitting on her bed right now. I frowned lightly to myself, sighing.

"We'll get you a new one, okay? I promise. But sadly, you won't see him again. But that's good, right? You're a big girl!" I smiled, and she smiled too. I could see the tinge of sadness and remorse in her eyes, but that faded quickly. I kissed her forehead, and tickled her sides lightly. She laughed, which made me light up inside. We were finally free.

"Hey, why don't we go back down to the lobby and hang out. I don't think either of us can sleep tonight." I said with a smile, taking her hand. She held my hand as we walked across the parking lot.

"You're the best Mommy ever, Mommy." She said, smiling at me. I smiled back down to her, but looked back up.

I didn't notice that Land Rover when we got here...

~~~~~

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