WORD COUNT | 1.5k+
You sat in silence with a smirk on your lips. Turning towards him you could see his jaw tight and his eyes locked on the road in front of him. "I told-" You start but get cut off when he turns to glare at you. You kept quiet, knowing he was beyond pissed at that moment. But then again, so were you.
Grayson would get the random urge to go on adventures, and tonight was his first urge in a while. A matter of fact, he was so excited, he didn't bother to check for gas. You even mentioned to him about the little problem an hour ago when the gas light came on. But he was sure that his precious Bronco would make it until the next gas station came.
Now it was pitch black out, stuck on the longest stretch of road you'd ever seen. You hadn't seen a house or car since you started down the road a while ago. The brush growing alongside the gravel path and the trees tangled up together side by side signaled that there hadn't been maintenance done in years. Which only made the situation scarier.
"Is your phone dead?" He asks looking towards you. You checked and noticed you had a full battery but no signal, so it was useless as well. He sighed and leaned his head back against the seat. "I guess we wait for a car." He says, getting comfortable in his seat. What cars? You were positive that no one beside you two idiots had been down the road in forever.
"Absolutely not. You wanted an adventure, Dolan! Well, here you have it!" You say, opening the door and getting out.
"Where the hell are you going?" He asks, amazed by how calm you were during this situation. You ignored him and started walking through the darkness using your phone flashlight to lead the way. "Y/N! Seriously, where are you going?" He asks, grabbing your arm to stop you. You spun around on your heels, narrowing your eyes at him.
"I'm going to go find help, Grayson." You spit, angry at how stubborn he'd been about getting gas. He pointed at his car and went to open his mouth to say something, "And I'm not going to sit and wait in a cold vehicle for a car that may or may not come. Now you're welcome to join me if you want, but I'm going to find help." You say pulling your jacket tighter around your body. He ran his fingers through his hair knowing there was no point in arguing with you.
"Okay. Just wait for me..." He begs, running back to his car and grabbing a jacket and his hiking backpack he'd brought with him. You stood shivering and waiting for him to finally join you again. "Okay, let's go!" He says grabbing your cold hand in his own.
Every once in a while you would turn around to see how far you'd gotten from his Chevy until it was completely out of sight. The wind wasn't kind either, beating both of you down with it's cold, harsh breezes. The trees would shuffle, signaling something was lurking inside of them. It only made you grip onto Grayson tighter. He seemed fine though, his facial expressions showed no signs of worry or distress.
"Grayson, how much longer do you think we'll be walking?" You ask, looking up at him. He shrugged and kicked at some rocks under his boots.
"I don't know, maybe an hour? Do you need a break?" He asks, slowing down until he eventually stopped. You didn't want to stop until you found a house or something, but your feet were killing you. He took your silence as a yes and sat down on the grass, pulling you into his lap. He wrapped his arms tightly around your frame and rubbed your frozen hands between his bigger ones trying to warm them up. His breath hit your neck as he did so, sending chills up and down your arms.
You started walking again after a 15-minute break of trying to bring your body temperatures back up. Your feet still ached, but the sooner you found another human being, the better. "Do you see that?" Grayson asks, nodding ahead with a smile planted on his face. You squinted and saw what looked like a fluorescent sign up ahead. You smiled along with him and picked up the pace. Finally!
Once the store came into view you saw that it was a small gas station, that was open all day. There was a truck parked to the side, so you were both relieved that there was someone inside. Walking in a man with a dark jacket and scruffy gray facial hair looked up at the two of you from behind the counter. "It's awful late for two kids like yourselves to be out at this time, don't you think?" He asks with a deep, gruff voice. You held on tighter to Grayson's hand if it was even possible as he pulled you to the counter.
Grayson explained your predicament to the cashier who just eyed the two of you suspiciously. The killers in horror movies were always the scary old men. "Well, if you two are willing to wait an hour, I can take you back to your car to fill up when my shift is over." He suggests. You didn't like the idea but Grayson agreed, knowing it was probably the only option you had at the moment.
You sat at a tiny table in the back corner where the man by the name of Eddie could see you. You tapped your foot against the tile floor nervously, awaiting your death. Grayson once again looked as calm as ever, just looking around the store as if he came here all the time. You knew he had to be a little bit jittery about the environment but he did a great job at hiding it. He held one of your hands, gently running his thumb over the back of it. Having him there relaxed your nerves enough to where you weren't scared you'd have an anxiety attack.
The hour passed by painfully slow, not a person coming through the door until a short woman with bright red hair and a sweet smile came in. "Hey, Eddie! I'm ready to take over!" She spouts cheerfully, joining him behind the register. He leaned over and whispered something in her ear, making your skin crawl. You were about to do, you were positive this time. This woman was the ring leader of the whole operation.
He pulled away from her ear making her head turn in your direction with a perfect white smile. "Hey, kids! I'm Donna. I hear you're having car troubles?" She asks from across the room. You nodded, too shy and spooked to say actual words.
"Yeah, I was being stubborn and wouldn't stop for gas like she told me." He admits, making you smile when he squeezed your hand reassuringly that everything would be alright. Eddie had wandered off to another room, probably collecting the weapons they were going to use to torture and kill you with.
"Sounds like something my husband would do." She laughs, taking her white coat off to reveal a similar green shirt as to the one the creepy male worker was wearing earlier beneath his heavy brown, well worn out coat. "Eddie went to the restroom, but he'll be out in a minute to take you two back to your vehicle. I hope he didn't scare you too much, he can have that effect on people. Believe me." She smiles, her words slipping out like honey. Too bad you were sure she was a vicious murderer, or so you were assuming.
Grayson bought a few gallons of gas and loaded them into the back of Eddie's truck. It was one cab so you'd all be sitting side by side. Grayson could tell you were still freaking out, so he sat in the middle. The car ride was more terrifying than the store. The truck made a continuous clanking sound, the radio was low and fuzzed out several times, not to mention to the smell of cigarette smoke and hotdogs that filled the air. No words were spoken until his car came into view under the dim headlights. Eddie pulled to a stop and parked the car. You got out first and scurried to the familiar blue Bronco. Eddie helped Grayson fill up his tank and put the remaining fuel in the back.
You got in the seat and buckled up, waiting for Gray to start the car. You watched cautiously as Eddie approached him with his back turned, his hand deep in his pocket, fiddling with something. Your heart began to race as he came too close to your boyfriend. He slowly pulled the item from his pocket and tapped Grayson on the shoulder. He spun around and right before you knew he was about to be brutally killed Eddie gave him a kind smile and said something you couldn't hear, placing the item in Graysons hand. He got back in his truck and drove away.
Grayson got back in the vehicle with a smug smile and turned towards you, pecking you on the lips. "Eddie told me to give this to you. He felt bad about scaring you and said you reminded him of his daughter who was a big fan of these when she was little." He says, placing a little pink stress ball in your hands. You blushed, feeling stupid for the thoughts that had been running through your mind all night. He was just a kind man with a scary look. You accepted the gift and ushered him to start the engine.
The sound of the rumbling that erupted was music to your ears, and the heat coming from the vents was the best feeling at that moment. "Where to?" You ask, still ready to explore.
He laughed, turning the car around and shook his head, "That's enough adventuring for one day. Let's just get home." He says, lacing your fingers together and speeding away. You were so lucky to have him.
