Gaze (✔)

Chapter Twenty-Two: All the Better to Eat You With

Sorry for the wait, I've recently started Supernatural...it's quite distracting.

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Clara parked the car on the side of the street, figuring that nobody was really around to mind. The little town was eerily silent as she rolled in, disturbed only by the hum of the engine and the quiet blues music from the single station she could receive on the radio that didn’t sing out the Lord’s praises.

A little sign, weathered by time and the light snow that had already covered every surface in sight, proclaimed the town – which was not much more than a gas station and diner – as Stafford, population just over two thousand.

She climbed out of the car with little grace, recoiling her hands into the sleeves of Wyatt’s jacket as the cold bit at her, reminding her of the stupidity in not bringing her own winter attire. After closing the door behind her and hesitantly locking it – although she doubted it was in any real trouble there – she walked towards the distant SUPERMARKET sign, lit up and flickering with neon as it poked out of a red brick building. She stuck her freezing hands into her pockets, feeling the crumpled bills she’d stuffed in, and noted that some gloves would probably be a good investment.

There weren’t many people wandering the road as she walked down it, blinking against the small snowflakes that had begun to fall all around her. She couldn’t blame them – it was six o’clock in the morning and the middle of December. The few people she did pass, she gave a small smile, but there wasn’t much in return besides surprise. She figured they didn’t get many visitors.

The warmth of the supermarket was a welcome relief, and Clara contemplated standing by the heated doorway for a few minutes longer before entering, but decided she didn’t want to creep out the people of Stafford, Canada before she could even buy some toothpaste. So reluctantly, she continued into the small store, smiling at the bored-looking cashier before hastening into one of the few aisles.

Human stuff, he’d said – human stuff? God, what a relief that would be. After waking up to a quiet forest with only the occasional company of a hostile-eyed wolf, Clara was all too excited for some human company. Wyatt, on the other hand, had settled in quickly, glancing at the other wolves as if it were normal to have them wandering around and accepting Jebediah’s – who was still naked – offer to go for a run. From the uncomfortable glance he’d shot her, she figured that it wasn’t really a human thing, and had offered to get some supplies.

Taking her time to enjoy the break from the harsh cold, Clara collected some junk food, toothpaste and toilet paper, hoping that they weren’t going to be around long enough to need anything more. Wyatt had said a week, but he seemed a little too comfortable with the pack to be content with that.

The girl at the cashier was now fixed on Clara as she approached the counter, eyeing her up with unconcealed suspicion. She couldn’t have been older than fifteen, which was only supported by the cell phone glued to her hand. Who was even around to text? She had to wonder.

She dumped the stuff she had picked up onto the counter, grabbing a hanging pair of gloves that were strategically placed where the customer could see them and the snowy wasteland outside. “Hi.” She said with a little smile, trying to ease the hostility that was creeping onto the young girl’s face.

“We don’t get too many visitors around here.” She said bluntly, reaching forward to grab and item at random before scanning it as if she’d done the task a million times. Clara swiped a paper bag from the other end of the counter, beginning to place the items inside. She remembered a job she’d once had, working in a supermarket when she was about this girl’s age. She’d been fired after two weeks.