A Lonely Road

I'm Your Worst Nightmare Dressed Like a Daydream

A/N: Hello guys! Here is your exclusive sneak peak into book two in the Disillusionment series: Deserted Highways.

Deserted Highways

Chapter One

His mom kept telling him it was a low profile. He had to stay under the radar. It did strike him as laughable, anyone who wanted to already knew his name. And yet, he was still here finishing high school, like it even still mattered, and living in his mom's house. The bell rang, and he jumped. He looked around him, the school had closed one side of the building, trying to repair the damage, and the rest of the students had been cramped in on the other side. He still flinched every time a door banged open, remembering the last time he'd been in this building.

He shuffled out of his class, head down, and wandered along the sidewalk. He was heading towards the bunker, it somehow felt less claustrophobic than his own house, with his mom constantly asking him how he was doing. He knew she was trying to help, but her questions only made him want to retreat further into his own mind and he didn't want to snap at her.

He made it to the bunker, on the outside, another large house in the middle of suburbia, the same beat up gold Explorer sitting outside. He punched in the code that would let him in the front door, and he stepped in quietly, closing it behind him and looking around at the walls-still bare.

He started down the stairs, there was a training room of sorts down there, and he went everyday to learn, Michael was teaching him to fight, Ben was teaching him to shoot, Lilith let him play with knives. Sarah watched a lot. She didn't speak very much anymore, her brown hair was often tied back messily, and she looked worn down. None of them had been back to school, and he didn't really think they would be.

"Jace," Michael called. "How was school, kiddo?"

"Shut up, asshole," he yelled back, and it brought a smile to his face, in spite of himself.

"Ready for some training today?" Michael asked.

"Yeah, what fresh new torture have you got for me today?" Jace said, and Michael's smile gave him an uneasy feeling.

"Just some sparring, that's all. Work on your roundhouse kick. Maybe today you could actually land a hit on me, validate all my hard work," Michael said, and his voice was taunting. Jace rolled his eyes.

He stepped onto the mat in the center of the room, and he stretched, and that was a mistake because Michael took advantage of his distraction and aimed a punch to Jace's face. Jace caught his wrist and twisted and Michael groaned. Jace let him go and shoved him back harshly, and then struck out with his left fist. Michael just batted him away and they kept dancing around each other. Jace leaped again, throwing punch after punch until he heard Michael panting with the exertion of blocking him, and then he swung his leg up around, high, and the grunt told him he'd connected solidly with Michael's ribs.

Jace grinned in satisfaction. "Gotcha," he said as Michael stumbled back.

"Yeah, yeah, one in a hundred, don't look so proud of yourself," Michael tossed back.

"I'm gonna call it quits, tired and all that," Jace said. "I'm gonna take a shower, I'll see you around."

Michael raised an eyebrow. "Jace," he started but Jace had already walked away, he didn't want to hear another placation. He was sweaty, sore. Tired. He didn't sleep much now, and it was starting to take its toll. He wandered back up the stairs and to the bathroom and he stood under the shower's spray, letting the hot water sluice over his skin as the minutes trailed by. He scrubbed his hands over his face, and for awhile, he just stood there, heart aching.