EIGHT LETTERS || Liam Dunbar [2]

THREE

"Are you guys having trouble with your phones?" Scott asked curiously.

Katherine stopped what she'd previously been doing — slapping her phone against the palm of her hand, then her knee, thigh, the seat, Liam's leg, and then the top of his head in an attempt to get it to work — and made a face at him in the rear view mirror. "Not at all," she grumbled, pursing her lips. "I just like smacking myself with my phone. Of course I'm having troubles with my phone, genius."

Scott rolled his eyes and reached back to wave his hand in her face, causing her to smack it.

The jeeps engine spluttered, and Stiles flailed his arms in a somewhat spastic manor. "Oh, what the hell?" The headlights flickered on an off for a moment before the jeep stopped moving completely.

Katherine looked up at stared out the window, an uneasy feeling filling her stomach. They were surrounded by a large grove of trees, the moonlight blocked out by the branches. There were shadows looming around them, and Katherine subconsciously moved closer to Liam.

"You out of gas?" Liam asked, glancing up at them. He looked over at Katherine for a moment, and looped an arm around her shoulders.

"No, it's electrical," Stiles grumbled. "Probably the alternator again," he sighed, rubbing his temples tiredly.

Scott and Stiles climbed out of the jeep and lifted the hood to figure out what the problem was.

"Did you bring headphones?" Katherine mumbled, looking over at Liam and glancing at his sweater pocket.

"Yeah." He pulled them out and offered her an earbud. "My music or yours?"

Katherine pursed her lips as she thought, then shook her head. "Yours," she yawned, leaning back in her seat. "My phone's about to die. Freaking Candy Crush killed it."

Liam nodded with a small smile and plugged his headphones into his phone, then scrolled through his music. Once he'd eventually picked a song — Paint it Black by The Rolling Stones — he shifted closer so the headphones weren't pulling too much. Katherine fought off a blush when she felt his arm press against hers.

Thunder rumbled quietly in the distance, catching Katherine's attention. There was a faint crackling on the road behind her, and she pulled her headphone out to hear properly.

"Did you hear that," Liam frowned. He pulled the earbud out of his ear and craned his neck to look out the back window. Katherine did the same, her brows furrowing. Then they turned around to look out the windshield again "Guys..." Liam called nervously.

Katherine turned around again, just in time to see a bolt of lightning strike the ground just behind the jeep. "Stiles hurry up!" Katherine shrieked, bringing her knees up to her chest. The earbud fell out of her ear, as she jumped, shuffling into Liam's side.

"Give us a second, please!" Stiles yelled back, oblivious to what was happening behind them.

"Stay in the car, okay?" Scott added in his usual gentle tone.

Liam hugged Katherine awkwardly as another lightning bolt struck the ground just past the front of the car. Scott and Stiles jumped, staring at the sparks that were left behind.

"I don't like this," Katherine whispered nervously, covering her ears as she set her chin down on her knees and curled further into Liam's side.

Liam patted her shoulder before shuffling into the front seat and twisting the key. The engine turned over, and Katherine watched as Scott and Stiles stared at them, looking extremely startled. Then Liam stuck his upper half out the window.

"Can we go now?" Liam breathed. Katherine slowly uncurled herself, looking around uneasily. She slowly moved her hands from her ears as Scott and Stiles climbed back into the car and they drove away.