Sure I could maybe afford a few weeks at a hotel but then what? Was I staying in Nebraska? Hell no. There was nothing for me here, nothing. But then again, what was there for me in New York? Did I even like it there? Was this even –
A cold gust of wind chilled my spine and I shivered, rubbing my hands all down my arms to create a warm friction but that did absolutely nothing.
I jogged back to my car and placed my keys in the ignition, checking how much gas I had left. But of course, continuing on my lucky streak, I had none. I probably could’ve made it another thirty seconds before my car shut down entirely.
And yup! My tire was flat and I had no spare. Even if I did, I had no idea how to change it.This is truly my karma. I find out my boyfriend has been cheating on me for months and now I’m stranded in the middle of butt-fuck Nebraska, in the dead of night, with no cellphone and a flat. God… You really do hate me don’t you?
My eyes zeroed in on the distant farmhouse once more. The feathered sounds of cicadas and frog croaks floated through the air, accompanied by crickets and my own heavy breathing.
The house seemed bigger than most abandoned, petrifying homes they depicted in scary movies. It was almost… welcoming? Homey?Maybe I really am losing it.
Before my mind could warn me against any potential danger, my feet carried me in the direction of the farmhouse as I marched through a field of mud and hay, my white boots submerging in brown swamp.
So what if I die? What life am I living right now? A failure, a nuisance to the people who were supposed to love me through the bad and the ugly. I got nothing to lose.
I walked for minutes. Time dragged on slow, but my heartbeat was frantic. I couldn’t stop thinking about how I, a twenty-three year old girl, messed up so badly I ended up in a different state hundreds of miles away from everything I worked towards.
All my life I sought out a purpose. I thought I was born for a reason, and I would die being memorable. What a hefty expectation to have. Because sometimes, you make choices your heart thinks is right and your mind doesn’t. But as the romanticized saying goes, “follow your heart.”What a load of bullshit. All my heart did was cast me out of my family, my city, my future,everything.
And slowly, my exhaustion turned the atmosphere into a blur. My movements. My breathing. All the thoughts in my brain swiveling together like weeds. The sound of crunching hay. The blinding flashlight that grew closer and closer to me. Oh shit –
“Who the fuck are you?” A voice sounded at the cock of a shotgun. “What in the hell?”
My heart stilled, my hands immediately flying up into the air as I surrendered. “I – I’m just – My car! The tire’s flat and I don’t have a spare and I just – I need help? Help! Donotshoot holy shit, please.”
I was totally joking about the dying thing. I didn’t want to die. But nope, nope I am going to die right now. At the hands of a crazy farmer who has a bloody shotgun. A SHOTGUN.
A low laugh invaded the open air as the dark silhouette of the shotgun lowered and the flashlight dimmed a radical amount.
“Payton!” A husky voice called, causing me to flinch at the weight in his tone.
A moment of silence passed before a sweet voice called back through the light of the farmhouse window. “Yah, Dex?”
Southern twang. Charming.
The flashlight shone in my eyes once more, brighter than before. I raised my hand to block the beam, squinting through my fingers.
“Get out here!” The voice, who I assumed belonged to this Dex character, responded.
“I ain’t cleanin’ no cow shit, Dex! That’s your job to do!” She hollered.
I still hadn’t gotten a clear view of anyone’s appearance and I wasn’t sure I wanted to. Dex, whoever this man was, was one move away from killing me and the other individual standing behind him remained mute. Though, through the dimness of the night, I could make out a twinkle of his eyes observing.
Crap.“I’m not –”How the hell do I even say this?“I’m not dangerous or anything. You can search me, I have no weapons, I –”
“You’re trespassin’ on private property, miss. I don’t give a rat’s ass what kind of excuse you done been conjuring up, as long as you’re off my field in thirty seconds.”
This is a nightmare.“Sir I don’t want to be here anymore than you want me here but I have a flat tire and I have no gas and I’m not from here and –”
“Oh, goodness!” A middle-aged woman with short blonde hair and a curvy build jogged down the white porch stairs, alerting the motion sensor lights. She wore a friendly expression, dressed in a white apron that covered a blue dress and beige sneakers.
I took a step back as she approached and she froze in her step, scanning me up and down with a tentative expression. My eyes quickly switched to the burly man in front of me as this woman clutched his forearm.My murderer.
He had to be over 6’5 with brown hair and a rugged beard to match. His red plaid shirt was undone a few buttons, revealing a beer belly and a hairy chest.A true sight for sore eyes.
But the guy standing behind him… he looked nothing like Dex, at least not from what I could see. He was a tad shorter, but only by a few inches with blonde hair and a coat of scruff. Even though half of his face was being shielded by Dex’s shadow, I could still make out the sparkle of his crystal blue eyes boring into me.
“She’s freezin’ Hunter, give her your coat.” The woman spoke, nudging at the man behind her.
