Some Wings Must Bleed

Chapter 47 - Gas Station

Kurapika and I had been riding in silence for a bit, my mind wandering all over the conversation we had earlier. My hunter wasn't just a hunter, and part of me feared he was much more dangerous than I had thought. I knew he would never hurt me, but there was something almost scary about the thought that he had so many secrets.

I mean, I'm pretty much an open book, but Kurapika? How powerful is he really?

A mob boss... a zodiac... and what was it? The Phantom Troupe? Good lord...

I sighed and lazily traced my fingers along the newly fogged window, shoving my hands into my pillow once they got too cold. A few more minutes passed and Kurapika began to slow down, a ticking sound coming from the car. "What's happened?" I asked, sitting up more and looking out of the windshield.

"We are turning into a gas station."

"... What is- why are we turning into a 'gas station'"

"The car runs on gas."

"Yes, of course. I'm not stupid."

"Well, we don't have unlimited gas, so we need to get some more. That's why we stop at gas stations."

"Ohh, I see!" I exclaimed, leaning forward and studying the odd building. "There are people in there, are those the workers?" I asked.

"Some of them probably are, but there's a store inside, so people are shopping too."

My eyes widened as we got closer. "I'm wearing the same type of clothes as all of those people, aren't I? So cool..." I mumbled to myself, fiddling with my top.

I felt Kurapika's eyes on me and looked to him, feeling my cheeks heat up when I saw him smiling at me. The car kicked back to a stop and I jerked back. "What was that?"

Kurapika unlocked the car. "It happens when I take my foot of the breaks. Don't you have to use the bathroom?"

"Um, yes?"

"There's a restroom in the store, you can do that while I get gas."

I perked up a bit and moved my pillow, watching Kurapika open his door before attempting to open mine. I hopped out of the car and looked down to my feet, a bit surprised at how odd my soles felt after sitting for so long. I smiled at the sensation and strutted into the store, my eyes widening as soon as I entered the building.

The smell was something completely unfamiliar, smelling like plastic wrap and kind of like popcorn, but I mostly recognized the scent of jelly candy. I bit my bottom lip and looked around, taking in the rows of metal shelves and fridges that lined the walls.

So weird... are people really used to all of this? Look at all the soda!

I moved to the wall and gawked at the fridges that covered the wall of the store. There had to be hundreds of drinks, all of them having different colors and containers. "Can I help ya find anythin?"

I turned around to see a rather rugged man with a beard and a name tag. "Oh! Could you tell me where the bathroom is?" I asked, refocused on my original goal of going into the store.

"Yeup. The bathroom 'l be right over there by 'em records."

I smiled at the man, admiring the odd way that he talked before thanking him and making my way to the bathroom.

. . .

I left the bathroom and fiddled with my sweater, heading towards the door, but more focused on centering the shirt. I felt Kurapika near me, but didn't bother to stop walking.

He'll catch me.

That's when I was met with a soft collision into his chest and hands gently placed onto my shoulders. "Would you like to get something to drink?" He asked, his hands removing themselves from me as his focus redirected towards the wall of fridges I had admired earlier.

I perked up and looked at the wall again. "Can I?" I asked, looking up to my hunter with giddy eyes.

He met my gaze and chuckled. "Yes, of course you can."

I smiled and grabbed his hand, skipping over to the wall. "What do I do? How do I know which one to get when there are so many options?" I questioned, reluctantly releasing my hunter's hand and walking along the wall.

"Over time you'll probably try a lot of different things, and notice that you like certain things better than others."

I made a hum of understanding as I read the containers, stopping over a soft orange colored drink that had the label 'SWEET TEA'. "Peach?" I said quietly to myself, opening the fridge and taking the drink out of it.

Kurapika walked over to me. "Is this the one you want?" He asked, examining the container.

"Yup! It's giving me good vibes." I chirped.

Kurapika took the cold drink from me and I followed him to the counter where he placed it. "This everythin' today?" The man asked, taking the beverage and scanning it with some kind of gun thingy.

I observed the man carefully as he typed something into his computer. His name tag said 'JOEL' and he had a slight gap in his teeth, one that I found very charming. Kurapika gave Joel a card and Joel swiped it on his computer, typing a few more things before nodding and looking to us. "Y'all have a good day now." He said, lifting his hand in a half-attempt to wave before placing it back down on the counter.

"Goodbye, Joel!" I fare-welled, waving as Kurapika held the door open for me.

We got back into the car and I smiled, reaching into the back seat to find one of my bags. "What are you doing?" Kurapika asked, watching me as I leaned into the backseat and dug around the luggage.

"I'm looking for my blue bag, have you seen it?" I asked, my eyes brightening when I found it.

I pulled it into the front seat with me and opened it, grabbing out my sketchbook. Kurapika started the car and began to pull out of the gas station as I flipped to a new page, taking my pencil and beginning to draw the gas station. After I had finished with that, I flipped to a new page and began to draw Joel, every striking detail about him standing out beautifully. "I bet he's a dog person. Specifically big dogs, maybe rescues. He's a simple man with upfront emotions, and he's rugged yet pleasant to speak to. I like him." I remarked, admiring my drawing and looking to the road.

"You know all of that about him from talking to him once?" Kurapika asked, his tone seeming rather suprised.

"Well, they're just inferences, I'm not magic."

Kurapika stayed quiet, but looked down to my drawing and smiled. A bit of hair fell back into his face and his smile dissipated as he pushed it away. "Here," I said, reaching into my bag and grabbing a hair tie. "Just tie your hair up."

He chuckled. "My hair is too short to fit into that."

"Just put half of it up and leave half down, that'll work."

He stared blankly at the hair tie and I huffed, reaching over the seat and pushing his hair back. "What are you doing?" He asked, half-trying to swat my hands away.

"Shh! You're driving, focus on the road." I hissed, tying his hair up and plopping myself triumphantly into my seat. "There, isn't that better?" I asked, admiring my work.

Half of my smile left as I studied the hairstyle, noticing that more of his jawline was now exposed.

Hot. Very hot. Oh no.

Author's note: I just need them to be together. That's all.