Gasoline | Final Destination |

| e i g h t |

A final piece of duct tape is applied to the corner of the table, dulling any sharp edges. All the shades are pulled as the room sits in dark shadows broken by occasional bright bursts of light.

Alex finds his way to a chair in the center of the room, away from everything except a nearby table holding a fire extinguisher and a first aid kit, both at arm's reach just in case, Thana is known to use anything and everything to her disposal.

Unshaven, a week and a half's growth, and unkept, Alex looks horrible. An anxious zombie, especially in the dim glow of the lantern. Dark circles, from lack of sleep. Thin, from lack of food. Pale, from lack of sunlight.

He'd done what the Angel had told him not to do, he let Thana get inside of his head. The teenager had tried more than once to call for the dark-haired man, but he was nowhere to be seen.

So much for helping him with Thana.

Alex places workman's gloves on his hands before picking up a can of chicken pâté. With some degree of difficulty, he works the gloves beneath the tab and pulls. Careful not to cut himself, he reaches out and drops the lid into a small trash can.

The teen removes the gloves, and with a plastic spoon, he begins to eat. Counting his bites, he begins to chew methodically, chewing and chewing and chewing with concentration until after steadying himself prepares to swallow then he carefully does.

He pauses for a second.. he's alright. He takes the spoon scoops some more, and the process begins again, he didn't know the statistics of people dying from choking on food, but he did know he didn't want to become one of them.

Thunder rumbles outside as a breeze blows beneath the door, carrying some Autumn leaves, the breeze across the floor to Alex's pant legs, which slightly flutter, causing the blonde to stiffen as he instantly became paranoid.

Alex stays sitting in his safe chair, obsessively cautious as his eyes move towards the door, anticipating the consequential events. Following the path of the breeze, Alex turns around just the brown shopping bag tips over.

Amongst the trash spread on the floor, a can rolls out and across the floor. Alex tenses he doesn't look to where the can came from but where it is going. The tin can rolls across the floor and gently hits the end of a fishing pole, propped in the corner.

The pole teeters and falls over, the fishing hook drops hooking a closet door. The door begins to swing open as Alex quickly jumps out of his chair, hustling towards the door in terror.

Alex slams the door shut before it can open. Behind the door, a crash rings out as something falls inside the small closet. The boy cracks a cocky half-smile, he has caught Thana's plan before her attempt has any adverse effects.

The blond teen removes the hook from the door and places the pole on the floor. He cautiously opens the door, revealing a tackle box has spilled thick, rusted old fishing hooks upon the floor.

Alex bends down and examines them "Rusted. Tetanus. Nice touch," he calls out, knowing the redhead was watching him, "I overlooked it. You tried to capitalize. But I caught you, you fuck. I can beat you. Not forever, but I got this cabin rigged to beat you NOW!"

"Maybe I just like seeing you scared" A silky voice exclaims as he turns to see the beautiful demon sitting in his safe chair like they were old friends. "Maybe I love the way you look when you're absolutely terrified," the redhead purred with a smirk.

Alex gritted his teeth as he felt the familiar fear run through him as he stared at the girl, he hated that he felt this way, but he knew what he was up against, as much as she jokingly teased him she was still Death.

"Did you know the tetanus fatality ratio in the United States was 91% in 1947 but is now only 18%. I guess people just don't die like they used to," Thana pouted as she revealed statistics to him before smirking and standing up to look around at his handy work.

The boy just stood frozen as the redhead moved about the cabin before she turned to him with the discarded food tin "really Alex? Death by chicken pâté? Is that how you thought I would let you go?".

"Let me go?" Alex questioned as a wink was thrown his way before her gaze moved along to something else, he watched in a daze as she gently ran her fingers over the objects in the room he'd safety proofed.

If he didn't know what she was, he'd admit to thinking she was some type of dark fallen angel.

"I have to admit though I do find a weird satisfaction seeing all of this," Thana explained to him as she motioned to his duct tapped and cushioned surroundings. "It'll just make seeing your face when you realize worth it."

Alex frowned at the demon's words, vague words, what didn't he know that she did?

"You know Alex I thought you had it all figured out, I really did, and then I came here only to find out you don't know as much as you think you do" Thana's grin was wide and knowing "now I'll admit you figured out more than most people."

Sitting down in his chair once again, Thana crossed one leg over the other as Alex shifts warily as he eyes everything in the room that could kill him "why are you toying with me? Is it because I beat you?".

Thana tilted her head to the side as Alex continued his rant, "I caught you. I know I can beat you. I've got this cabin rigged to keep me safe" The redhead gazed around the cabin at all his safety measures before pulling a mocking face and nodded with him.

"So I heard" Thana sucks her teeth as she lets out a sigh "I have to say I'm hurt at your foul language, I'm just doing the duties that were given to me, and everyone treats me like I'm the bad guy?".

Alex feels a pang of guilt when the girl frowns sadly until he remembers who she was, she had gotten in his head again, the telltale smirk that was starting on her lips made him realize she knew exactly how she made him feel.

Clapping her hands on her thighs, Thana stood and walked towards the teenager, so they were face to face. "I'm going to let you play your little game Alex, but just know I can have you whenever I want."

The closeness of their mouths confused Alex, the seductive way she spoke, the hand on his face until Thana let out a mocking laugh "I can't wait until you figure it out, and when you do there's nothing you can do to stop it."

"You can't beat me, Alex, I'm inevitable, but I can't say I won't miss your blue eyes fill with fear" the words were spoken against his lips as her eyes turned white. "There it is," Thana whispered as her eyes turned back to normal.

"Please just stop," Alex whispered back, yet he made no attempt to move from the redheads grasp, if either of them moved just an inch closer, they'd be kissing, but neither of them did, this was just another mind game.

Thana grinned as she stepped away from the teen, knowing that she had gotten to him, but he still felt like he was frozen to the spot. "I'll see you very soon, Alex, but I've got some business to attend to."

The girl lifted her hand and clicked her fingers together, and suddenly she was gone, Alex finally let out the breath he'd been holding, but he was unsure how he felt, Thana was like a whirlwind and she definitely left devastation in her path.

It did make him wonder though, what other business could Death be attending to when he was next on her list?