#valorant series

[taylrartz]

The Ballad of Never after mini-comic for ur feeds💓

[twigbranch45]

It's a couple of lads with truama!!

They're both handling it very well. I'm sure

[gretavanmoon]

Valor - Troubadour

Pairing: Daniel x OC

Word Count: 13k

Warnings: Cursin', Smokin', Drinkin'. Angst: Mention of Struggle and Poverty, Mentions of Violence, Mentions of Weapons, Mentions of Murder and Death, Allusions to Shady Activities, Mention of Police, Concealing a Fugitive. Smut: Flirting, Kissing, Unprotected Sex.

Hey everyone! Thanks for being here! Was really missing the Valor world (what's new) and decided to satiate my needs with a little Danny spin-off. This story picks up just a few months after Chapter 14 ends and before the Epilogue, when Danny has decided to busk around the Midwest in search of fulfilling his musical heart and hitting the open road on his motorcycle. This Danny side-quest story will only be a few parts, but hope you enjoy the ride!

Big thanks to my bestie & cowriter @gretavangroupie for all the edits and wonderful idea inputs <333

Read Valor Ch. 14 here

Read the Epilogue here

TOPEKA, KANSAS

DANNY

“Cheapest bottled you got, please. From the back of the cooler,” I yell over the crowd as I pull off my hat, raking the back of my sleeve across my forehead to clear away the dripping sweat threatening to fall into my eyes. I’m tired and my voice is a barely-there rasp, but these past few weeks have had me flying on auto-pilot, running on fumes and the new high of performing on stage with a live band, just like I’ve always dreamed of doing. The bar we’re in tonight is crowded and full of loud-mouthed drunks, but honestly, I feel frighteningly right at home. 

Glass beer signs line the walls and the pool tables are barely lit and in desperate need of some new bulbs. The faded green felt is tattered and torn, and the cues have seen better days. I can tell that every cent this place makes is not going to the upkeep of the building, that's for damn sure. The walls are dripping with nicotine and and the floors are sticky with spilled beer and god knows what else. Truly, feels just like Canaries, a place I thought I’d never see the likes of again.

The bartender furrows her brow at me as she turns toward the cooler, obviously thrown off by my odd request. As she slowly leans down, I can’t help but let my eyes rake over her backside, hardly covered by the ripped and cutoff Levi shorts hugging her hips and thighs. She pulls her hair to the side as she bends lower at the waist, reaching as far back as she can to get to the furthest beer. She’s bent completely in half, and I have to calm myself with a full breath of air to keep my thoughts from getting the best of me. It’s been a while, sue me.

I snicker to myself as I pop a few peanuts from the bar bowl into my mouth, satisfied that she fell right into my trap. 

Oldest trick in the book. 

Finally she pops up, returning shortly after with a frosty brown bottle in her hand. She unscrews the lid, tossing it against the wall at the end of the bar before it falls into the waiting trash can below it. 

“Just realized why you asked for one from the back of the cooler. You think I’m some kinda sleaze, or somethin’?” she asks, leaning her elbows down on the bar with just enough force to squeeze her tits together. Her hand is still damp from handling the icy bottle, and I watch as she gently rakes her fingertips across her collarbone. Hm… I am no stranger to her type.

I lift the bottle to my waiting lips and take a long pull, never breaking eye contact with her. Finally I swallow, leaning onto my own elbows to meet her challenging gaze. 

“Beer’s coldest back there. You think I want somethin’ warm after sweatin’ like a hog up there on stage all night?” I ask. “It’s goddamned hot in here.”

She scoffs and her eyes roll, standing back up straight as her expression tells me she is already over my shit. Still she looks at me, crossing her arms tightly across her chest, the faded words on her shirt barely legible anymore. “Just cause you play a little guitar don’t mean you can get whatever the hell ya want here,” she bites, her eyes now seething and sexy. 

I growl a little beneath my breath, flashing her a glance of my teeth. “Well it fuckin’ worked, didn’t it? I gave you a show, only fair you give me a little one, too…” I reply audaciously. 

“Fuck off, prick. ‘Fore I bar you,” she says, fighting back a smile. 

I stand and smile too, pulling a few bucks from my back pocket to lay on the sticky bar top. 

Her lips purse, ���Band’s got a tab, you ain’t gotta pay now,” she explains, effectively ignoring the other patrons who are now nearly begging for the attention that she won’t stop giving to me. 

I bite my bottom lip as I squint my eyes at her. “I don’t like owin’ people. I’ll pay as I drink,” I insist as I take another swig off the top of my beer. “Unless of course, my money’s no good here?”

I watch her snap back in surprise as the music from the house band begins to swell from the stage behind me. Her tongue pokes through her lips as she blows the bright pink gum in her mouth into a bubble, eyeing me as it inflates and pops, and she pulls it back between her teeth. 

She slams her palm onto the money and swipes it from the bar top, spinning quickly as she heads to the cash register. 

“Danny, my man! Kickin’ ass and takin’ names!” Suddenly I feel the harsh palm of my new band mate Shawn grip across my neck, shaking me from side to side. He’s drunk already, but that’s to be expected of a front man who would rather chug a fifth of warm Jack Daniel’s before a show than warm his vocals up during sound check. “Hell of a fuckin’ set. Who the hell taught you how to pick a guitar, huh? The devil himself?”

I smirk a little, unable and unwilling to tell Shawn that yes, the devil was definitely with me for all the years I sat quietly in my room with my guitar, drowning out all the noise around me with whatever sound I could get to come from the damned thing. My foster parents, Ace… the revving of Valor’s engine all the nights that Jake suffered trying to fix her. 

“Just practice, I guess,” I yell back in his ear as he stumbles into me. “Practice and patience.” I’d never tell him the skill was born of necessity. He didn’t need to know that much. 

“Well, m’glad we found you on the side of the road when we did. You got more talent in your baby toe than Rog had in his entire fuckin’ body, man,” Shawn slurs, his own cocktail splashing onto my shirt as he speaks. “I mean that.”

I give him a curt smile and nod as he disappears back into the crowd, an elongated arm and pointed finger trained on me as he falls away. 

I couldn’t be more thankful for him and the other guys; they’d stumbled across me busking outside a little string of bars outside of Memphis right after we burned Ace’s down and I’d decided to hit the road on Ruby. I needed some space, I needed some freedom. And I needed the open fuckin’ road so badly I could hardly stand it. So that’s just what I did.

It was strange at first, being away from Jake and away from Joslyn after they were all I’d known for the majority of my life, but I knew deep down that if I didn’t go, if I didn’t leave, I’d get stuck right back where I’d started from in that goddamned town, running from the law and all the demons I’d decided to collect on the way. 

I knew Jake needed Y/N, and they needed to start a life together in privacy. I didn’t fuckin’ like it, bouncing from cheap motel to cheap motel, but after some time, I got over myself and my needs and began to rely on the road, and the sound of my tires spinning across it. I grew to love the feeling of a guitar in my hand more than the feeling of a socket wrench. And I began to like the sound of a loud, cheering audience more than the sound of a tuned-up Mustang engine. I reckon part of that is due to Y/N’s encouragement, getting me over my own fear of performing.

But that ain’t to say that I didn’t miss mechanicin’ a little. 

This band was full of miscreants just like myself, who had gathered together after realizing their talents and how much better they’d be if they meshed together. Their old guitarist, Rog was good, but he just didn’t have it in him, from what I understand. I didn’t want to settle down with a band, and honestly I’m still tossing around if it’s a good idea or not, but the money is alright. And sleeping in a shitty van beats sleeping under a tarp on a sidewalk or roach infested motel. Not that I am above that now.  

“Cowboy, your change?” I hear the bartender’s voice interrupt my thoughts, pulling me back into the headspace of the crowd and the chaos. 

“Nah, s’yours,” I reply to her, giving her a wink as she fights off another sweet smile, chomping on her gum again as she makes a point to give me a full up-down. 

Cowboy. I don’t like that. 

I’m far from a fuckin’ cowboy. Don’t think I’ve ever even mounted a horse in my life. I guess if I’m gonna continue to wear this cowboy hat, I’d better get used to the nickname. 

And if she’s gonna keep lookin’ at me like that all night, I’ll let her call me whatever the hell she wants. 

—

I drape the hat from a hook hanging on the motel room wall, making good on my new knowledge to never lay it down. I’d fallen asleep on a park bench one night a month or so ago with my guitar case open in front of me, and I’d woken up to the dirty old hat laying right in the center of it. Underneath it was the rip off the edge of a piece of receipt paper, some chicken scratch handwriting across the bottom of it: “Looks like you need this more than I do”, was all it read. 

I didn’t bother cleaning it, or trying in earnest to return it to its rightful owner, because they were right. A hat in the heat of the Kansas sun was like a godsend. It’s a pale beige straw with a camel brown leather strip, and I have to admit, it fits me like a glove. I made a mental note that day to take it with me wherever I go, and to always be thankful to the nameless stranger who had left it for me. Though it’s not my style, I still wear it with pride.

“Hat looks good on you, Cowboy. Sure you don’t wanna leave it on?” She smiles from her place on the bed. 

Yeah, I’d brought the bartender home with me, obviously, after we’d shared plenty of back-and-forth banter with one another between the few sets our band played tonight. She’d managed to get me pretty drunk after the last set, sliding me a double shot of whiskey on the house after I insisted on tipping her for every beer I’d ordered. 

I’d splurged on a king-sized bed tonight, forgoing joining the rest of the guys exploring the little Kansas town we’d found ourselves in. And I’m glad I did. The bartender, Sherry, I’d learned, is sprawled out in a red lace getup, making herself comfortable on the scratchy brown felt blankets and over starched sheets. She’s definitely fuckin’ sexy, and she’s easy to talk to, and I knew I’d made the right decision for the night when she didn’t actually get mad at me for my advances on her at the bar. She seems like just my kinda lover. 

I rip my t-shirt over my head and toss it onto the floor behind me before clicking off the lamp on the nightstand beside us. My mind is still swirling from the adrenaline of the crowd and the feeling of the music we make, and from the intoxication I’d put onto myself. Fuckin’ whiskey.

At the last second I change my mind, grabbing the hat from the hook before I crawl toward her on the bed, hand over knee as I place it directly on top of her head. 

“Yeah, I’m sure, think it would look better on you, anyhow,” I say, pressing it down a little to make it fit snugly on her. She giggles, reaching up to tilt the brim of it back to get a better look at me in the dim light reflecting from the cracked bathroom door. 

“You tryin’ to tell me somethin’, Cowboy?” she says, pushing me by the shoulders to lie back into the pillows. “Tryin’ to tell me what you want, tonight?”

She thrusts one of her legs over my waist, straddling me fully as she lets one hand drift across my ink-covered torso while the other readjusts the hat on her head. Fuck, she really is fine as hell. Has a different look to her than most of the women back in Joslyn. A little grittier, a little more confident in herself. My hands immediately grip her thick thighs as I lick my lips, glad she picked up on my insinuation. 

“I’ll take whatever you wanna give me, baby…” I say as my hips buck up into her, her bright red nails digging with a little force into my chest. My eyes blur from my drunkenness, but I can feel my heart racing with anticipation for whatever the night is about to bring me. The TV behind her is blasting late night MTV videos, Peter Gabriel, Dire Straits, ZZ Top… the light casting the silhouette of her perfect figure right in front of my face. Her tits are sitting perfectly in the lace, and I find myself slipping quickly into the feral mindlessness of foreplay. I reach my hand up to free her breast from the confines, gripping her left cup to rip it down. 

I feel my mouth salivating as her perfect nipple perks up, and I feel no shame in taking it all in my hand. “You’re fuckin’ gorgeous baby…” I praise her, my filter nearly completely gone. I squeeze at it a few times before sitting up to take her in my mouth, bringing my tongue harshly across her nipple. Her head dips back at the contact as she sits down a little harder on me, grinding her hips a little and looking for friction. 

“Fuck, Cowboy, we’re really gonna get into this?” she asks, her hips already circling on my hardening dick. 

I hum onto her, making her hiss between her teeth. “Mmmhm, unless you want me to take you back home…”

“No no, no…” she urges, shaking her head side to side as it falls back, and I free her other breast, taking it into my mouth as well. “I’m good here.” 

Her nails dig into me a little bit more, showing me that if we want this night to keep going how it is, I need to get myself together. She huffs a loud breath as she sits back, unbuckling my leather belt as her hands start to hastily shake. Her head tilts down and she looks at me again under the brim of the cowboy hat, her bottom lip sucking in and out of her mouth. 

“You need a hand?” I ask, offering my help with the belt and button. She nods a little, and we work together to pull my pants and underwear all the way off. My dick springs free as she drops my pants to the floor and I can hardly decipher the string of words and obscenities that fall from her gorgeous red lips. She leans down, and without any warning at all, takes me all the way into her mouth. 

My head falls back in surprise as my hips act on their own, pressing themselves to get me deeper into her throat. “Oh, shit, Sherry baby…” My hands find hers, and I give them a tight squeeze to let her know that I’m okay with going forward. Not that I really had any say so, anyway. Her tongue glides across the length of my cock, already begging for more as she pays special attention to the tip. Her red lipstick makes for a sinful visual, even in the partial darkness. 

The air in the room is already starting to heat, heavy with the smell of lust mixed with cigarettes and bad decisions. I thought maybe I’d change when I left Joslyn, and I did, in many ways. But goddamnit if I didn’t keep the same fuckin’ love for my vices. Cheap beer, rolled smokes, and women. All shapes and sizes, all makes and models, fuck. I’ll never fuckin’ grow up, and I’m not sorry for it. And now I’ve added a whole new love to my roster- playing the ever-loving fuck out of a guitar. 

“You wanna look at me, or not?” Sherry breaks my train of thoughts after she pops her lips off the tip of my dick. 

I take a deep breath, watching as her hand takes the place of her mouth, slowly and languidly gliding her grip up and down the length of it. “Whatcha mean, baby?”

She crawls up on me, placing one hand on either side of my head. She leans down, placing the tiniest peck on my lips. “Reverse, or…” 

“Oh…” I breathe, my body begging for more of her touch, anything at all, anywhere. “Can I pick both?”

She laughs a true laugh, displaying a dimple in her cheek, crawling back down the bed and stepping off the end of it. Her thumbs hook in the side straps of her thong, and she slowly sways her hips from side to side, pulling it slowly down her legs. She shimmies free of it before turning around, bending at the waist as she gives me quite the show yet again, just like I’d tricked her into doing at the bar. 

“Fuck… bring yourself over here…” I beg of her again, holding my two middle fingers up to beckon her. My entire body is writhing with want, and I can feel myself already teetering on the edge of pleading. She does as I ask, her bottom half completely uncovered now as she crawls up on me once again, before turning herself around backwards. Yes, baby. 

She glances at me over her shoulder before taking me in her hand again, working me up to where she wants me. She uses the utmost care in making sure I’m there again. She’s still flawless in the blue light of the TV as “Every Breath You Take” by the Police pops on behind her.

“Ugh, god I hate this song,” she complains quietly, and I barely hear her over the sound of my own heartbeat in my ears. I’m too blissed out with the visual of her ass grinding against me to even register what she’d said. 

“It’s so…whiney…” she complains again, her hand still working me. Her hand feels buttery soft against my cock, and I have to stop my stomach muscles from tightening in on themselves. God, I could already fuckin’ bust. “M’sorry Cowboy, I gotta turn this shit off. I can’t concentrate.” 

“Damn, whatcha got against Sting?” I chuckle, a little miffed that she’s hopping off me to reach for the television knob. She twists it once, and I huff an aggravated breath as the news pops on. 

It’s fuzzy and the picture is blurred, but I guess it appeases her more than the music did. She takes her position again as she grips my dick in her hand, leaning down just a little bit to take me in her mouth again. My hands knead at her ass as we pick right back up where we started from. My teeth are biting hard into my bottom lip, stifling the noise I want to let fly. “Goddamnit, Sher-“

Now, Sherry isn’t the first woman I’ve fallen victim to since leaving Joslyn, and she most definitely won’t be the last. Sometimes I think back on my time with Y/N, and how things had progressed so quickly with her before I got my head on straight and realized that I was moving in a direction my moral compass didn’t need to point. And when I realized my brother was madly in love with her. 

Things had felt good with her during that time, and honestly, I thank her for it. Though we only spent a fraction of time together, she gave me a taste of what it felt like to truly care for someone in that regard, and she let me know that maybe my heart is big enough to love someone other than just Jake and Bubba. Watching her and Jake together taught me more than they ever even knew, showed me that with the right counterpart, even lungs full of cigarette smoke and hearts full of resentment can turn on a dime, and reciprocate a love they’d never even known before. 

Love?

Nah, I never felt love for her. At least I don’t think I did. I did feel serious enough to want to change my life for her, that much was true. But thankfully I caught myself before I started to tumble. She helped me learn that I am capable of doing it, I can be that man for the right woman, if and when the time comes. 

But that time isn’t now, and that woman isn’t Sherry. 

“Fuck me, baby… god yes…” I groan into the thick air as Sherry finally sits all the way down on me, taking me fully inside her with one swift motion. I huff a fast breath through my gritted teeth, sitting up a little to get a better view of her. I grip her hips as she starts to rise up and down, getting a rhythm together as she starts to bounce. 

Her hands move from in front of her on the bed, and one reaches back and grips her left ass  cheek while the other holds on tight to my hat on her head. She feels like fucking heaven, silky sweet and velvety as she switches between backward thrusts. “How’s that, Cowboy? Feel good, baby?” she asks, her voice breathy as I watch her ass bounce against my thighs. She twists her head around to look at me with an eyebrow perked as she awaits my answer.

“Yeah… fuckin’ tight, baby, s’ perfect…” I could say more, but she switches herself up and hops to balance on just her feet, giving herself more space to ride me. She balances perfectly without the help of her hands, and somehow, the sight of her fucking just the tip makes me want to let it all go right there. Her wetness is dripping down on me, and it takes everything in me not to grab her hips and pull her all the way down again. But the show is just too damn good. I’m impressed, I really am, and I wonder if she does this with every victim at the bar that she flirts her way home with.

Ah, who gives a fuck. I’m her choice for the night just as she is mine. 

This view has me throbbing inside her, and for a second I don’t know what to do with my hands. She starts slowly swirling her hips, her hands balanced on her knees as she works me to near perfection. “You’re gorgeous baby, keep it right there…” I groan, my entire body starting to burn with need. I bring my open palm across her ass, eliciting a high pitched squeal from her, followed by a devious laugh. Somehow, I knew she would like that and the visual of my red handprint on her skin pushes me even further.  

I grab her hips and pull her down onto me, and I swear she feels even better than she did before. She falls back down to her knees into the position she was in before, still gyrating back onto me. I move my legs and sit up on my own knees, pressing a hand to her back as she leans down to all fours. I press deeper into her now, nearing myself closer and closer to the edge with this new angle. I feel rabid now, wanting to have all of her that I can in what I know will be this short span of time. 

“Ssss, fuck…” she grits, her voice a near whine now as I begin pounding into her ruthlessly. Her walls are fluttering around me violently, and I realize now that I never even told her my name. 

“Yes… yes…” She arches her back as she bucks her ass onto me, spreading her knees apart on the bed below and pressing her face into the mattress. “Harder, Cowboy, please…”

The hat is still hanging on for dear life as the room around me loses its shape, and all I can think about is the vicious sound of our bodies smacking together. I’m sure the neighbors are enjoying the sound of the headboard rattling against the wall, but I truly couldn’t care less. I’m trying to be careful not to leave bruises on her hip bones, but given the way the night has gone, I’m sure she wouldn’t mind, anyway. 

Without warning, I feel her hand reach between her own legs, gripping my balls firmly in her hand, and giving them a few tight squeezes. The sensation has me mindblown and my knees weaken, like she knows exactly where my weakest spot is without me even telling her. 

“Fuck, you’re a dirty little thing, aren’t you?” I ask, my hips moving at an ungodly pace as she continues to squeeze. I’m not sure if she wants me to cum faster, or if she really just wants to give me a show. For this to be the first night the two of us have met, she’s really uncaring of any of her manners. 

“Mmhm…” her breath is heavy, pitiful and wanting as I continue my relentlessness. “Just want you to feel…good, baby…” she whines through the thick blankets on the bed. Her hands are gripped tightly into them now, as she holds herself in this position. 

I take a fistful of her hair in my hand tightly at the root, and pull her up to me. My sweat-covered chest is pressed against her back, and I grab one of her tits with my free hand. I stay buried deep inside her, and I can feel both our pulses raging through us as we catch our breath. “Sexy, Sherry…” I breathe into her ear. Her hips start looking for friction, and she begins grinding them back onto my cock again, slow and ragged as I know she’s getting near the finish line. 

She falls onto her hands again and I feel us both begin to reach that point, and the muscles in our bodies start to shake and tremble. My eyes blur over as I wait to hear the sweet noises fall from her lips, but instead I’m met with another sound. 

“Cowboy…” she says, her voice stern. But I barely hear her as I concentrate on my own pleasure. “Cowboy!” she repeats even louder, but I continue to drown her out, not letting up on pounding into her. 

“DANIEL?” she yells, quickly pulling herself away from me and hopping across the hotel room.

“What, what? What’s wrong Sherry?” I ask, suddenly surprised and confused. She rips a sheet from the bed and covers herself with it, and I notice that her eyes are blown out with fear. She cowers in the corner as her eyes dart back and forth, searching for her clothes. I’m completely confused, and a little blindsided as my body tries to figure out what it should be doing.

“You– I, it’s you!” She points to the TV as the picture flashes across the screen. All I see is the face of a news anchorman, reading something off the papers in his hands. 

I stand from the bed and walk closer to it, watching as he continues to read. “Sher, it’s just the news, what do you–”

“Get away from me!” she cries, stepping back harshly into the wall. “Don’t touch me!” She suddenly seems as if she is a trapped animal, searching for her escape.

I instinctively walk toward her. “Sherry, what in the world?! I’m sorry if I–”

“Stop! Don’t come any closer! You fucking liar!” Her eyes are wide and terrified as she looks at the television again, and I’m nearly frozen in place as I try to piece together the past few seconds. I look from her to the TV again, and the picture is staticy and fuzzy. I back away from her and adjust the antenna, watching as the picture clears a bit. I turn up the volume and listen to the anchorman speak. I feel my legs hit the back of the bed and I sit down harshly, waiting to see what in the fuck Sherry saw for myself. 

“Authorities are asking for the public’s assistance in locating these men, as they are believed to be armed and likely dangerous. It is positively believed that they are directly responsible for the death of a man in Joslyn, Missouri, by means of murder by arson. Both men fled the town shortly after the incident, and are believed to be living separately, or traveling on the run.” My hand shoots to my mouth as I watch in complete terror as a sketch of mine and Jake’s faces cover the TV screen. “Authorities are just now building a solid case, and need your help in finding these men. If you have any information regarding their whereabouts, please call the telephone number at the bottom of your screen.”

I feel the blood drain from my body as I take the first breath I have in nearly a minute, and I feel myself going into a state of shock. 

What… the fuck…

I feel Sherry’s body rush toward me as she drops the sheet that was covering her to pick up the clothing she had strewn across the dingy carpeted floor. “I gotta get out of here…” she rushes, her hands shaking. 

“Sherry, listen to me. I can explain-”

“Explain? Explain what?! That you’re a murderer?!” she screams, and I watch as fearful tears begin to well in her eyes. She hastily pulls her shirt over her head and I listen to her breathing pick up as she tries to calm herself. 

“I’m not a murderer, Sherry! Listen to me! I swear you have no reason to be afraid of me…I–I just let me talk, please…” I beg her, my voice rising with the temperature of my skin. 

“Stop. Shut up. I’m getting away from you, and I’m callin’ the police,” she says through a completely shaken voice as she steps back into her shorts. I can tell she is in complete self-protection mode. 

What in the fuck is going on? How did this happen?

My heart rate starts to rise as everything hits me… the sketch of my face on the screen, Jake’s face… armed and dangerous, wanted for murder by arson… My head is spinning with confusion, with worry, with the sudden want to run, myself. I think about Jake, and about Y/N, and how I haven’t spoken to them in a few days. Do they know? Where is Bubba, are he and Geraldine okay?

It’s then that I realize I can’t let Sherry go, I can’t let her call. 

“Sherry, stop. Can you just listen to me for a second?” I ask again, grabbing her by the shoulders with as little force as possible. She tries to pry herself away, so I switch gears, knowing that if she isn’t going to listen, I have to use another tactic. “You do not need to get into this, this goes a lot deeper than it looks on the surface, Sherry. Please. I’m not a monster. I swear to god, I’m not.”

“You expect me to fuckin’ believe you? You never even told me your fuckin’ name! Daniel, is that even it?” she cries, the tears flowing down her face. 

“Yes! Yes, that is my real name. That much is true. And the other man, that’s my brother. His name is Jacob. Jake,” I explain, trying to throw sincerity into my already panicked voice. I adjust her shirt that she had pulled back over her head, straightening the fabric to cover her more. “We are from Joslyn, Missouri. And… And-”

“And you fucking killed a man!” she yells, ripping herself from my hold. “You’re insane! Are you a serial killer? Because if you are, I swear to god that you won’t leave this goddamned town in one fuckin’ piece, do you understand me?” she threatens, catching her breath. “I’ve got friends, Cowboy, friends in low fuckin’ places who would walk to the ends of the earth for me. I wouldn’t test my fuckin’ luck. All it would take is one call, and you’d be a dead man, yourself.”

I watch as she swallows, suddenly feeling a bit brave as the sexual mindset completely leaves us both. 

“I don’t doubt it, Sherry. I don’t doubt that one bit.” I swallow down my panic and sit back down, trying to diffuse the situation as best as I can. In a split second, I bargain whether or not I should tell her the whole story, the whole truth, but I know that would leave her with more questions that I fear she simply won’t care to have answered, as scared as she is. I want to be honest with her, I really do. But I also want to seem as clueless as I can so as not to make things worse. “I’m not a serial killer. I swear to god. I may look rough around the edges, and barely have a penny to my name, but I’m no killer, Sher. Swear on my life.”

She’s clutching her purse in her arms, hugging into herself with her worried facial expression tight as she takes my words into consideration. She’s listening to me…

“Back at home, my brother Jake and I were into some deep shit, some shit we didn’t want to have anything to do with, but we had no choice. Had been years upon years of never ending cycles of threats and manipulation. We had nothing, we were nothing. We weren’t saints, but we were good, honest, working men. Just tryin’ our best to survive, ya know? We uh… we were being threatened, our lives were being threatened… our home. The people we loved…” I rub a hand across my face as all the memories of just a few months ago come rushing back to my mind. Bubba, Josh… and Sam…

“It was going to end badly. It was going to be deadly in ways that we couldn’t even fathom. Along with innocent people who loved us getting caught up in it, too. These men were monsters, liars and cheats. Gave a damn for no one but themselves. So we got some help. We got some help from our own friends in low places, Sher, and they helped us to make moves to end it, get us out of the situation. And it uh… It just so happened that the man who was threatening us, the man who wanted us dead, got caught in the crossfire. He came to kill us, but ended up killing himself, instead.” I know it’s not the entire truth, and there are details that I could go on about for days, but for now, this explanation will have to do. I have to make sure she sees my side of the story. If not, it’s handcuffs. 

I feel bile rising in my throat from even disclosing this much. She shouldn’t even know that much of the story. I could have lied, I should have lied… but for some reason something deep inside me stops me from it. I’ve never been a liar in my life and I won't start now.

Sherry’s body is shaking with adrenaline, or maybe even fear, but she’s calm. “Why you tellin’ me this, Cowboy?” she whispers, pulling out a box of cigarettes from her purse. She plucks one out and lights the end, taking a long drag. Her hand shakes as her thumb and ring finger balance on her cheek, the smoke billowing around her face. 

I swallow. “Because, it’s the truth. Last thing I’m gonna do is lie to you. Don’t have any reason to.”

She takes another long puff, and I find myself envying the nicotine. “Why ain’t you lyin’ to me? You don’t even know me…”

I shake my head, pulling the sheet back over my exposed lower half. “I’ve never been one to lie. Never really got me anywhere but in trouble, anyway. I ain’t got a perfect past, Sherry, that’s the honest truth. But I’m not running from my demons, I’m running from a past that I don’t want followin’ me.”

She brings her lips into her mouth, taking another few puffs of her cigarette. I say a prayer that she’s considering my plea. It feels like hours that I stare at her just standing there, her eyes floating around the room before her cigarette is nothing but a filter. She moves to the nightstand, putting out the butt in the ashtray by the phone. She turns her back to me and blows the last puff of smoke into the air before her hand scratches the back of her head. 

“I ain’t gonna call the cops,” she admits quietly. 

I stand quickly and go to her, stopping myself from taking her in a full embrace. “Fuck, thank you thank you, Sherry. Really, I– Thank you.”

“You’ve got one hour. Get your shit, and get the fuck out of here,” she warns, crossing her arms again. “If I see you here still, it’s straight to the police. And don’t ever come back to this town, do you understand?”

“Yeah, yeah I get it. I won’t,” I promise as I begin working to collect my few things from the floor. She stands and watches me as I pack, and I know that she’s fighting the urge to go back on her word as her eyes move from me, to the phone, to the door, and back again. This is taking a lot from her. 

I finally have my few items shoved into my bag, and I realize that reality is once again hitting me right across the fucking face. I sit on the edge of the bed and pat the blankets, inviting Sherry to come and sit by me. She does, slowly, and with the utmost caution. 

“Why you helpin’ me?” I ask quietly. 

“Cause,” she chokes, pulling her tongue to the side of her cheek. “Feel like you’d’a done the same for me. I’ve been where you are, Cowboy. Maybe not for arson, maybe not for murder, but I’ve been there.”

I nod in understanding, extremely thankful understanding.

“And I don’t feel like you’re tellin’ me the whole story. Sounds like you and your brother have some skeletons in your closet. And I ain’t no judge, and I ain’t God. Who am I to decide what your reasonin’ was?”

I take a deep breath, suddenly overwhelmed with gratitude for her words. I take her hand in mine, bringing it to my lips to kiss over and over. “I need you to understand that it was life or death for us. Was us or him. The cards we were dealt just happened to fall that way. We did nothin’ in cold blood, Sherry. Please believe me.”

She finally looks me in the eyes for the first time in a while. “I believe you, Daniel. I don’t fuckin’ know why, but I do. God, I’m insane for doin’ this…”

“You might be, Sher, but that’s why you and I were drawn to each other, I think,” I try to lighten the mood, and she gives me a half smile.

“Still don’t like you,” she groans, giving me a lethal side eye.

I stand and wipe my hands across my thighs. “You must like me some…” I lean down to her, letting my nose graze across hers. To my surprise, she doesn’t pull away. I hear her breath hitch as I watch her reason with herself on deciding to let me, or slap me. 

When she doesn’t pull away, I lick my bottom lip, gently brushing it across hers as her eyes flutter closed. My heart rate rises again as my body reacts, suddenly pulled right back into where we had just left off minutes ago. I must be fuckin’ sick in the head. 

“Fuckin’ vagabond,” she whispers, her breath hot across my lips. “Criminal…”

I laugh against her. “I ain’t none of them things, baby. Troubadour, maybe…”

I let my lips crash onto hers again, pissed at myself for being this way. Why am I this way? I need to run…I need to call Jake.

But she kisses me back, her hand immediately flying to the back of my head to pull me in closer. God, she’s just as fucked up as I am.

It’s heated and messy again as I push her back onto the bed, her nails already digging into my back as we writhe together. She moans into my mouth as I press my groin into her, making sure I’m in just the right spot. We lie like this for a few minutes, both of us knowing we’re soaking up the last bits of each other that we’re going to get.

“I ain’t lettin’ you fuck me again, Cowboy. This is just a goodbye kiss…” she breathes, her teeth nipping at my stubbled jawline. 

“You sure?” I ask as my eyes roll back. “I never got to hear you come for me…”

She laughs a guttural cry, shaking her head as she scoffs at me. “And you won’t. Not right now, at least.”

I grind between her legs again. “Thought you told me to never come back to this town?” I ask cheekily.

I pull away, looking her in the eye as she takes a quick breath to speak. “People saw me leave with you. Same people who are watchin’ the news, right now. They will recognize you. They’ll be breathin’ down my neck with interrogation on your whereabouts before the sun rises. I was a drifter once, too. Looks like I’ll just have to go back to my old ways…”

“Run with me, Sherry,” I ask before my mind can even process the thought. 

“Nah, that’s not part of the deal.” She pats my chest with her hands, signaling me to get off of her. So I stand, understanding that our time together has come to a close, and I need to make a fuckin’ break for it. “Shame, though. You’re some of the best dick that’s come through this town in a while.”

I can’t help but laugh at her as she stands from the bed along with me. “Thanks, I think.”

“Get the hell out of here, Cowboy. Go. Don’t talk to nobody, and keep your head down. Head East and don’t fuckin’ look back, ok? There’s a fueling station about twenty-five miles outside of town on Route 40. Red pumps. Stop there, they don’t think twice about drifters. Call your brother from there. Let him know you’re comin’.”

“How’re you so good at this?” I ask her, slinging my bag over my shoulder. 

She sucks her teeth as she fixes her hair and residual lipstick in the motel mirror. “Told you I was a drifter once, too. Some things are just in your blood, ya know?” She turns to me, craning her neck up as we prepare to say an actual goodbye. 

“Can I give you somethin’ to remember me by?” I ask, holding my cowboy hat out to offer to her. 

She shakes her head, taking it from my hand and placing it back on top of my curls. “No, you’re gonna need it. It’s gotten you this far…” She adjusts it on my head, brushing a few stray hairs away from my face, in an act of pure softness. “Actually, wait,” she says, brushing past me to open her purse sitting on the table. A few seconds later, she emerges with a brand new Polaroid camera in her hands. “How about a photo to remember you by?” 

I second guess it, not really wanting a perfect stranger to have her own photograph of me, but Sherry has shown me more mercy than I deserve tonight, and a photo is the least I could do. 

“Sure, why not,” I agree, adjusting the hat on my head once again. 

“Here, put these on,” she suggests, handing me my aviator sunglasses that were by her bag on the table. I oblige, feeling a little out of place, but going along with it all anyway. She pulls the camera up to her eye and positions her finger over the button, making sure I’m in the frame. “Smile for me, baby…”

I know my cheeks blush at her words, but she snaps the photo before I have the chance to make myself look ready for it. 

“Hope I didn’t break your lens,” I joke.

“Nah, it’ll be perfect. Thanks.” Her smile sends butterflies through my stomach for the third time tonight, and if things were different, I might have asked Sherry to come on the road with me for real. But I know that the issues I’m running from are bigger than anything she needs to be involved with, right now. Maybe I’ll see her again some other time, in some other smoky bar.

I grab her chin between my fingers, laying a sweet kiss to her lips. “I’ll see you around, Sherry. Thank you. Be safe out there.”

She gives me a sweet wink as she sniffs a quick tear away. “Back at ya, Cowboy.”

—

“Come on… please pick up… pick up…” I whisper into the payphone as I try to will Jake to answer on the other end. The last we spoke was about six days ago, and he and Y/N had been traveling around scoping out places to live. They’d settled in a little apartment just outside of Memphis, where I had originally planned on busking around to make some cash. I liked it there, but the winds of change kept me rolling down the road to a new nowhere.

I’d ridden into this tiny slice of highway with only my guitar on my back and my bag hooked to Ruby, and I silently thank her for carrying me this far on my journey. The guys in the band had let me put her in the cramped equipment trailer that they had luckily left unlocked when I left the motel. Careless sons of bitches, I could have easily stolen anything I wanted.

I hated leaving them without any word, but they’ll most likely see the news, and be glad that I decided to run away, anyway.

“Hello?” a gravelly voice answers.

“Jake, hey, did I wake you?” I yell anxiously into the payphone at the gas station Sherry had told me about. She had been right, the attendant never even looked at my face as I threw my gas money onto the counter.

“Yeah, it’s fuckin 4AM, what’s wrong?” he replies, his voice thick and full of sleep. “Are you OK?”

Fuck. Of course he hasn’t seen the news. 

“Ah, no not really… are you uh. Are you with Y/N?” I ask, running my fingers through my hair as I peek around the corner to make sure Ruby is still sitting where I parked her. 

I can hear him rustling on the other end of the line, finally getting his bearings. “Yeah, she’s right here, why? What’s goin’ on?”

I clear my throat nervously, “Turn on the news. Local, maybe.”

I hear him rustling around again as he pulls himself out of bed, taking a deep, shaky breath as he wakes Y/N. “Danny, I don’t like that you’re not fuckin’ tellin’ me what’s going on.”

“Just go,” I urge him, my head on a swivel. 

There’s a pause before I hear him move around and switch the television on. “You’re lucky, we just got this fuckin’ TV yesterday… Hardly know how to work the damn thing yet.” he complains.

“Just–” I bite my tongue, waiting for him to see what he will inevitably see flash across the screen very soon. There’s a pause again and I hear the faint sound of Y/N’s voice beside him.

“Oh my fuckin’ god,” he says blankly. “Oh… oh, fuck. What–”

“Just listen to it,” I say quietly, letting him listen to the whole news story. 

“That’s our fucking faces, Daniel.”

“I know. I know it is,” I begin to pace as far as the short payphone cord will let me. “What the fuck are we gonna do?”

I hear Y/N’s worried voice again. “Jake, what… they can’t do this…”

“It’s gonna be okay, baby” he reassures her, but I can hear the doubt in his voice. “Danny, where are you?”

I clear my throat again, getting my head back on straight. “Uh, just outside of Topeka. ‘Bout 25 miles. I’m headed your way.”

“Do you know my new address?” he asks, overtop of more rustling and heavy breathing.

“Yeah,” I reply, “got it memorized.”

“Well forget it. We’re going somewhere else. We can’t be here,” he says angrily. 

“Jake, but, you just–”

“Y/N, do you remember Oz’s address? Lucienda’s?” I hear him ask her, and I immediately agree that going to them might be our best shot, even though Oz is most likely still serving his time for the last circus we got ourselves into.

“Yeah, I think so…” I hear her reply. “But Jake, we can’t just leave…”

I hear subtle aggravation in his tone, but he manages to keep it at bay. “I paid ahead three months’ rent, Y/N. We’re just… gonna leave for a while.”

“Jake what the fuck are we gonna do? Turn ourselves in?” I press. 

“I–I don’t know yet. No, we just play dumb for now. We need to get to Lucienda. Talk to her. She’ll be able to protect us for a while, she’ll know what to do,” he says. 

“I’ve got my fuckin’ bike, Jake. I won’t be able to make it anywhere fast, especially not to fuckin’ Miami,” I say, suddenly a little panicked again. I pull my tin of smokes from my pocket and light the end of one. The rush of nicotine instantly fills my lungs and calms me. Well, enough for now. 

“I know you can’t,” he says, taking a breath. “We need to go back to Joslyn first.”

“Joslyn?” I practically yell into the phone. Quickly looking around. “Are you fuckin’ crazy?! That’s the last place we need to go, Jake!”

But in the back of my mind, I know he’s right. We don’t have to show our faces, just a quick in and out to hide my bike and grab the last bit of cash we ended up hiding back in Ace’s safety deposit box for emergencies. And, we have to make sure Bubba is safe. With this new surge of information, god knows whether or not Teddy’s guys have gone after him yet, looking for some type of vengeance.

“You know I’m right…” he says quietly. “How long has it been since you’ve talked to Bubba?”

I swallow, taking another drag. “Week and a half. Maybe two.” I hadn’t been traveling with the band very long, but I know that I had told Bubba of the good news of them hiring me on, so it was around the same time. The last we talked, he claimed he was safe and sound. 

“Same here,” Jake says, taking a long pause as he thinks. “Get to Joslyn, stay quiet. We’ll meet at the old house by the creek. Nobody even knows that place is there anymore. It’s our best bet.”

“Okay,” I agree, nodding my head. “You gonna call Bub? Or do you want me to?”

“I’ll call the diner. Tell Geraldine everything. She’ll tell the truth, Bubba will sugarcoat if there’s anyone fuckin’ with him.”

“True,” I agree, exhaling again. “We can’t get on a fuckin’ plane, Jake. Someone will recognize us. It’ll take us days to travel to Miami and we need to get there fast.” My mind suddenly starts to spin with all the different plans of action. None of them seem like the right one. Traveling to Miami seems like too much land to cover, but staying in Joslyn doesn’t feel right, either. 

“Then what the fuck do you suggest we do?!” he exclaims. “We ain’t got a fuckin’ home, anymore, Daniel.” I can tell he whispers that last bit into the phone. 

“I’ll meet you at the creek. We’ll make a plan from there.” I stomp my cigarette out onto the cracked pavement, my skin beginning to sweat with nerves as I glance around again. 

“Okay,” he says again through a huff of grievance.

“Bub’s okay, right Jake? He’s alright?” my voice feels hollow as the words fall. 

I can hear Jake exhale on the other end, the same rush of worry flowing through him as it runs through me. “Yeah, he’s alright. And if he’s not… If they’ve touched him again…” He’s quiet for a second, and I can almost hear his teeth gritting together. I know that the exact same thought is running through both of our minds. I haven’t seen Jake mad in a really long time, but I know it wouldn’t take much for him to snap back into his old ways, especially when it comes to Bubba.

“I’ll see you at the creek,” I say with conviction, and I hang up the phone, wholly not ready for this journey. 

—

Well, here I am. Joslyn. Dirty and run down as ever, quiet but loud at the same time. A once bustling town rich with life and aspiring men looking to provide for their families now a mess of cracked sidewalks and sunken rooftops. Failed and closed storefronts, abandoned homes… the list goes on. This place is never gonna fuckin’ change. 

It’s been a long two days’ travel coming back here, and I halfway regret not renting a vehicle to be a little more inconspicuous coming back into town. But, an unknown car rolling through Main Street might set people off all the same. 

My stomach churns with old nerves coming back to the surface again, old habits and muscle memory making me feel like my head is already on a swivel again. It’s nearing 8PM as I roll into town, so I’m careful not to hit the throttle on my bike any more than just a light idle. The last thing I need is someone hearing me and suspecting I may be back.

As the late evening sun begins to disappear from the sky, I pass by Wanda’s motel, still just as shitty and run-down as it was. Teddy’s dry cleaning building, now looking either half-alive or closed completely since he’s not around to make it look like an actual fake business now. The bank, the countless churches… and the grocery store. 

The grocery store. 

I grit my teeth as I realize that Jake, Y/N and I will need supplies and food if we’re going to be hiding out in the old cabin for a few days. I hope to god his ass thought to bring blankets and pillows, and hopefully some food. I wonder if they’ve beat me here. I have no way of knowing, besides going all the way there first to check, but then if I don’t stop, I risk spending a whole night without food or water. Or whiskey.

I quietly pull my bike into the back parking lot of the store, parking it alongside the building behind the ice cooler. My hands are already shaking, I have to admit, and as I pull the kickstand down, my eyes dash quickly to my sides to ensure no one has followed me. Just a few stray bodies here and there coming in to grab a TV dinner before retreating back to the trailer park to finish off a six-pack. The coast is seemingly clear. 

I pull a cigarette from my tin and stretch my legs, hyping myself up to go into this grocery store where nearly everyone knows my face. Or, knew my face. After a minute or two, my boot extinguishes the butt of my smoke and I take a deep breath, the finally-cooling Autumn air filling my lungs and bringing me back down to earth a bit. I grab the cowboy hat from my pack and place it diligently on my head, tucking my hair up underneath it to conceal another one of my identifying factors. I pull out my wallet to make sure I still have enough cash for some food, at least, and I step in through the glass doors. 

It looks and smells exactly the same, musty cardboard mixed with the faint scent of a floor cleaner, with the fluorescent lights overhead barely providing enough light to brighten the poorly stocked aisles. I don’t know why I expected it to be any different, we’ve only been gone a few months, though it feels like an eternity. 

I put my head down and make a mad dash down the first aisle, luckily remembering the place like the back of my hand. I grab a loaf of bread, a jar of peanut butter, and a box of saltines, tossing them into a shopping basket I’d found abandoned in the aisle. “What else, what else…” I whisper to myself, ignoring the eyes of each and every person I walk by. My heart is thrumming in my chest as I pace up and down the aisles, throwing a few more cheap yet necessary items into the basket. 

When I’ve finally gotten it full, I race to the checkout line, but not before stopping and grabbing a half-pint of Early Times, a box of matches, and a bag of cut tobacco. I place my basket onto the checkout counter, keeping my head down still as I realize the clerk is someone who knows me well. Knows me very well. 

“You 18, kid? Can’t sell you this if not…” he says, his voice still just as crackled and raspy as the day I met him. He stands the whiskey bottle up on its base as I swallow my nerves down, one by one. He cranes his neck to look at me from underneath the bill of my hat. 

“Kid, hey, you got any ID on ya?” he asks again, his wrinkled hands the only thing I can focus on. Fuck. He sees my ID, he recognizes me. Recognizes me as the murderer on the loose, in the very town he ran from. My heart is pounding, how had I not thought of this? He’s never ID’d me before, but then again, he knew me. He snaps his fingers when he realizes I’m not meeting his eyes or answering him. 

I peek up gently, thankful that I’d decided to leave my sunglasses on at the last minute. “Ah, ya know, left it at home, I think. Had a long day. I don’t need the bottle,” I say, trying like hell to conceal my voice, yet keep my local accent. I push it to the side as I pull my wallet out and prepare to pay for the rest. 

“Shit,” he says under his breath. He scans the whiskey and slides it into a paper bag, slipping it in beside the rest of my items before hitting the total button on his register. “Ain’t no thing. Can tell ya hands is dirty, can’t deny a workin’ man his vices,” he grits quietly. “That’ll be $19.70,” he says a little louder now, and I feel a relief lift from my shoulders, all the sound coming back into my ears now that my heart rate isn’t flying. 

I can finally hear the muffled music coming over the speakers in the ceiling, along with the beeps of the checkout lines beside me. I pull a twenty from my wallet and graciously place it in the man’s hand. It’s funny, all the years I’ve been coming to this place, and I never learned this man’s name. He doesn’t even wear a nametag.

“Appreciate that, old timer. Saved me a night of sittin’ with my troubles,” I reply, avoiding his eyes again as he hands me my change. 

“Don’t we all need that,” he grumbles as he hands me my bags. “Ya know, I don’t recognize you. You from ‘round here?”

Goddamnit, goddamnit. Think.

“Uh, yeah. From up on Bolter Street. Been gone awhile, moved back to take care of my folks,” I say, clearing my throat. I used to live on Bolter Street, many many moons ago. That part isn’t a lie.

“Hmph,” he grunts, pulling a toothpick between his lips as he squints at me. “Not a lot of folk live on Bolter much anymore. Street kinda died with the town.” I can tell his tone is interrogatory, and I feel the sweat beginning to pool on my forehead. Get it together, Daniel. 

“S’why they called on me.” I nod and give him a curt smile as I begin to back away. “Have a good evenin’, sir.”

I grab the bags and tip the brim of my hat, making my way back out of the store and into the fresh air. “Fuck,” I breathe as I reach my bike. That was fuckin’ close. If it was that hard to get groceries, how in the hell are we going to do literally anything else?

I cram the bags into my side packs, uncaring if I smash the bread or not. I’m anxious, and desperately in need of a damned drink. I wish like hell I could go to Canaries’ for a beer, but who knows what state that hellhole is even in, anymore. Or if the clientele is even the same. Shit, that place used to be a haven for people like us, until it wasn’t. Until Teddy and his crew turned it into a place where you had to look over your shoulder every other second, or else you risked a cue stick across your back if you said a sly word. 

I need to make my escape, and I need to make it fast. 

I kick the stand on my bike and pull the key from my pocket, sticking it into the ignition and turning it over a few times before she starts. I plan to take as many back streets as I can to avoid going straight through town again, but that’s not as easy as it looks. Passing by the diner is going to be necessary. 

A minute or so later, I’m cruising by Louie’s Diner, the parking lot only holding two or three vehicles as opposed to the normal ten or twenty. Strange, I think to myself, and I slow down and peer in the windows a little more closely. There behind the counter is Geraldine, looking worse for wear than I had seen her in a very long time. Maybe ever, actually. My heart falls as I realize she looks nothing like herself. Her hair isn’t fixed, and her nails aren’t painted their normal bright, red color. 

I quickly glance to the end of the bar where Bubba normally sits, finding the chair to be empty. Again, my stomach falls at the realization that he isn’t there, waiting with Geraldine to finish up her dinner shift like he normally is.

Shaking my head, I concentrate my attention back onto the road in front of me as the abandoned houses begin to turn back into the forest, and the two-lane turns back into one. I snap my headlight on as I rack my brain, trying to think of where Bubba could be, if he is okay, and why Geraldine looks so down. My stomach churns with nerves at the possibilities, but I hold out hope that maybe he had just gone home for the night, and Geraldine is just tired. 

I cruise down the winding road toward the creek, trying like hell to breathe in the fresh air to calm me. I pray I don’t pass any police cars, or anyone who would recognize my bike. But as the asphalt turns to more of a rocky concrete beneath my tires, I begin to feel a little relief. Man, I could really use a fuckin’ smoke. 

I cross over the bridge and turn onto the dirt road, the same one that Jake, Ace, Bubba and I had used so many times to get to our special spot on the creek. Darkness has fallen now, and I find myself feeling a little nostalgic at the scenery. For the first time in months, I see things that I could recognize even in complete darkness, I take curves that I could turn blindfolded, and I begin to smell the scent of the murky water and mossy trees that line the creek. No matter how much I hated it, no matter how badly I wanted to run away, this will always be home. Joslyn will always be a place that lives in my heart, no matter how dusted and horrible the time I spent here was. 

I make another right turn, watching for any other vehicles to be parked and out for one last late-night fishing pole cast before the weather starts to break. When I find our spots to be empty, I gain yet another feeling of relief. The gravel turns into thick bedrock, and I use caution as I navigate Ruby down, all the way to the bridge by the swimming hole. 

I park the bike at the foot of the hillside and stand, remembering that I have a spare flashlight in my pack, equipped with brand new batteries. I dig it out and turn it on, slowly panning around to take in my surroundings again. It still looks just the same as it always did, the large leaf-covered trees leaning over the water to provide almost a storybook-like scene. But this town is anything but a storybook. The frogs and crickets know that their time is almost up, and their songs have begun to slow and their tones have become deep. Again, my nostalgia almost knocks me over. 

I push my bike over to a cluster of trees, lodging it between a few trunks out of sight of the road. I bite the flashlight between my teeth and begin pulling my bags and necessities from my side packs. My guitar suddenly feels like a burden, when for months all it was was an object of comfort. Now, it feels like something that might weigh me down the further along I go on this journey. Either way, I throw the makeshift rope case strap over my shoulder and begin lugging my things across the old bridge, straight toward the cabin. 

As I trudge through the thick mud, thankful for my high boots, the beam of my flashlight catches something reflective down the creek a bit, and I nearly drop all the bags in my hands. “Shit,” I gasp, gripping my hands onto everything more tightly. I glance over, realizing that my light had bounced off a tail light. I walk a little closer and shine the light more directly, seeing that the tail light belongs to Jake’s truck.

“Son of a bitch,” I mumble with relief, suddenly realizing that I’m not alone in the least. My best friends are just on the other side of this treeline. Not just my best friends, but my family. 

I put a little pep in my step, letting the thick pine branches pull at my sleeves as I traipse along the muddy creek bed, straight up the incline and onto the trail to the cabin. I feel excited to see them, but also in the back of my mind I know that our meeting isn’t going to be a joyous one. It’s going to be one of deciding on our next move of survival. 

After a few minutes’ hike, I’m finally to the clearing at the cabin, and what I see in front of me isn’t what I expected in the least. Instead of the old, dilapidated building I had spent many a summer in, the cabin is now more of a house, with a new roof, a repaired front porch, and even a brand new front door. What in the hell?

I see a faint light on inside, and I stop for a second, hesitating on whether or not to proceed. Is someone living here now? No, no one knows about this place except for us. And maybe a few trusted others who have caught word of it over the years. 

If it weren’t for me seeing Jake’s truck, I may have considered turning around, but just as I approach the rickety stairs of the cabin, the front door flies open, and a silhouette that isn’t Jake is standing in the doorway. 

“Daniel, my boy! You made it!”

“Bub?!” I drop my bags and the flashlight in my mouth, rushing up the stairs to greet the old man. He wraps his arms around me as I take him around his shoulders, the both of us pounding our open palms against each other’s backs. “What are you doing here? We were going to surprise you!” I say as we finally break apart. 

“Surprise? You boys ain’t as slick as you think you are…” he chuckles a raspy laugh as he replaces his cap on his head. “Practically raised ya, and ya can’t even tell an old man you’re comin’ home?”

“Ah, Bub, we were going to, but–”

“Hey you just gonna leave me hangin’ over here?!” I hear Jake’s familiar gravelly timbre fill the air as he plummets into me, almost knocking me back as his arms embrace me. The embrace of a brother. “Heyyy, brother…” I laugh, not sure of the last time Jake and I actually hugged. It’s funny, we spent so much time together for so many years, I was positive that when I left him and went my own way, I wouldn’t think twice about it. And I didn’t really, until I’d find myself needing to ask him a question only he would know the answer to, or I’d hear an old Neil Young song in a bar. It was at those times that I realized he’s the other half of me, and he always will be. We do alright being apart, but the world feels more at ease when we’re together.

We pull apart, and I catch sight of Y/N leaned in the doorway, her arms crossed across her chest as she eyes us with a sweet, familiar smile. “Well looky here, the two outlaws, themselves,” she grins, and I immediately pull her into the same embrace that I’d pulled Bubba into. She feels a little different now, not sure why, or how, just different. Her hair is longer and she’s got a suntan from the Tennessee rays. My mind hardly ever reminisces on the time we shared together, and I’m thankful for the fact that we have been able to stay good friends after our whirlwind romance. She’s as much a part of me as Jake is, now. Just in a different way. 

I feel her fingernails scratching at my back as we hug, and her voice is muffled as she tries to speak with her mouth pressed against my chest. “You two really couldn’t even manage to stay out of trouble for six months, could you?” she playfully complains. “The hell am I gonna do with ya…”

“Not even funny, Y/N,” I say, pushing at her shoulder as Jake and Bubba make their way inside the cabin with my bags in hand. We follow them in, and Bubba pulls the door closed behind me. He pulls a deadbolt, and a slide-lock, and a chain lock across the brand new door, and kicks a wooden wedge up underneath it. 

“Damn, what is this, Alcatraz?” I ask, too surprised to take a look around the place. 

“Might as well be,” Bubba says, rushing over to the windows to pull the heavy blue curtains in front of them. 

“What the hell is going on?” I ask, finally taking notice of the state of the cabin. The interior has been completely re-done, though not all brand new, it looks better than it used to. The floor is no longer caved in, and the roof has been repaired. There’s a table and chairs, and a large couch in the living area, along with two recliners. There are dishes on the shelves, and a wood stove has been installed in the corner of the kitchen. “What happened to this place?”

“Come, sit, Daniel,” Bubba beckons me, and I make my way over to the chair he has pulled out for me. Jake and Y/N follow suit, and he takes his seat last. The air in the room is heavy, and I realize that the only light is coming from three oil-burning lanterns placed around the old tables and countertops of the house. The warm flickering glow accentuates Bubba’s wrinkles, reminding me yet again that he isn’t getting any younger and that the world has continued turning. 

“I was just tellin’ these two, Danny, I took the liberty of movin’ up here ‘bout, oh, five, six weeks ago. Been trying my best to fix the place up, make it feel like home. I know you two wouldn’t care, and I know your Pops wouldn’t have cared eith–”

“Wait wait wait,” I cut him off. “Moved? What do you mean you moved?”

“I mean, I moved. All my things are here, in the back bedroom,” he responds matter-of-factly.

“What about your trailer? Your place?” I ask, my hands flattening across the dusty wooden tabletop.

Bubba licks his wrinkled lips, bringing his hand up to rub across his shaven chin. “Sold it, son. Property and all. I just… wanted away from it. Wasn’t doin’ me no good.”

“But you said right before we left that you were happy, when we asked you to come with us, you said you were fine–”

“Hell, ‘course I did, Daniel. You wouldn’ta left and gone out on your own if I’d’a told you my plans.” He pauses, clasping his hands together. “Plus, Geraldine and I separated, knew this would be a better place for me, anyway. Give me somethin’ to keep my hands busy.”

All three sets of our eyes grow ten times in size. “Bub, what?” Jake nearly yells. “You separated? Why?”

Bubba waves us off, almost like it is no big deal. “Aw, shit, boys. You know damn good and well why. After y'all left, shit fell apart even worse than it was already fallin’. After Teddy died, and his posse didn’t have a head honcho no more, they started goin’ out on their own, causin’ more trouble than they had before. Stealin’, botherin’ folk… Teddy was a piece of shit but he kept those vagrants in line, I will say.” He rubs his hand over his chin again as he adjusts his legs under the table. “Anyway, I… I didn’t feel safe… havin’ these ties with you boys, and, and the shop burnin’ down and the history we already had with Teddy. I just didn’t want Geraldine caught up in it, ya know? Didn’t want her worryin’, or worse yet bein’ a new target for them boys. She don’t deserve that. Don’t deserve it at all. Thought it best I just leave her to herself.”

“Bubba, that’s ridiculous!” Jake says, and we nod in agreement. “I–I mean, I know where you’re comin’ from, but. You two are in love, made for each other.”

“Yeah,” Y/N adds, “wouldn’t you feel safer being with her? I mean, keeping a closer eye out for her is easier when you live in town, right?” 

Now I know why Geraldine looked so down. She had just gotten dumped. 

I pull the half-pint of whiskey I had shoved in my pocket, cracking the lid and tilting it back for a few refreshing seconds. I pass it off to Jake, and he happily rips it from my hand and does the same.

Bubba grits his jaw and shakes his head and hands at us. “It was for the best, just trust me. But that’s enough about me. We need to figure out what in the hell to do about this new problem of yours.”

“What happened in town?” I ask. “After we left? Did they come after you?”

“I said enough about me, Daniel. You hard of hearin’?”

“He asked you an honest question, Bubba,” Jake says calmly. “Did they touch you again?”

Y/N’s eyes are trained downward as she doesn’t dare bring them away from staring at the table. She knows good and well that if Bubba says yes, that the two of us are going to come unglued. 

“They didn’t touch me. Tried to, few times but.” Bubba shakes his head furiously from side to side. “They don’t know I’m out here. Geraldine still brings me supplies. I try my best and make myself scarce.”

“What do you mean they tried to?” Jake demands.

“Can’t ya leave it alone, Jacob?”

“Tell me, Bubba!” he raises his voice. “What did they do?” I can see the flame of the candle light flickering in Jake’s eyes, and unfortunately, I know that look all too well. It’s the same one that’s probably in my eyes, right now. 

It’s pindrop silent in the room as we anxiously await an answer from Bubba. He’s breathing hard from his flared nostrils, and wringing his wrinkled hands together. He pulls his red handkerchief from his back pocket and pats it along his brow, and I know that if he doesn’t say something soon, I’m gonna jump out of my skin. Hard to tell what Jake would do.

Finally, Bubba looks up from his hands, swallowing hard as his voice is barely audible. “If I tell you boys, you promise not to leave this cabin?”

Taglist: @wetkleenex-gvf @eyelinerjake @farfromthehomelands @sacredstarcatcher @britney-gvf @stardustjake @jakesmustache @starshine-wagner @mweasley19 @emsfallingsky @joopsenthusiast @ageofbajabule @ladywhimsymoon @vanfleeter @myleftsock @joshskittytickler @ageoflou @freefallthoughts @ohgodthefeeling-gvf @literal-dead-leaf @welllauragvf @writingcold @bizzielisteningtogreta @neptune2324 @itsafullmoon @violet-hayes @gvfmarge @demonrat444 @mybussyinchrist @cl0ver-j4de @earthgrlsreasy @what-i-read-home-of-reblogs-mama @mama-likes72 @laurngvf @racheljuneeee @farfromthehomelands @cat3rpillarbaby @cassiesgreta @jarmonicasweat @violet-hayes @ghostly--photography @josh-iamyour-mama @raviolilegs @gvfmarge @milkgemini @jaketlove @watchingover-hypegirl @ageoflou @cl0ver-j4de @takenbythemadness @lightmyloverry

@flightofseams @torniturntomyarrow @allmylovejtk @m0uthfl13s @klarxtr @styles-canvas @fleet-of-fiction @gretavanbear @builtbybrokenbells @jakekiszkapunchmeintheface @starrymoonslut @lightmy-love @edgingthedarkness @gvfmarge @dannys-dream @demonrat444 @jjwasneverhere @fleetingofthegretas @highway-tuna @gretas-sweat @darianh07 @age0fwagner @stardustjake @Catharu77 @milkgemini @watchingover-hypegirl @lightmy-love @erlha @twinszka @peaceloveunitygvf @gretavangroupie

[kaiserouo]

hello i've never played valorant, ooc warning

[funnyrobot]

ok. the skins are canon i guess.

[gretavangroupie]

VALOR MASTERPOST

Pairing: Jake x Reader, Daniel x Reader, Jake x OC, Daniel x OC

Word Count: 283k+

WARNINGS FOR THIS SERIES: 18+ MINORS DNI - Alcohol, Gambling, Smoking, Marijuana, Cursing, Dramatic Themes, Nightmares. Smut Including: Kissing, Touching, Making Out, Light Degradation, Dirty Talk, Praise Kink, Biting, Fingering, Name Calling, Edging, Unprotected Sex, Digital Penetration, Pet Names, Spanking. Angst Including: Mentions of Drug Abuse, Alcohol Abuse, Struggle and Poverty, Suicidal Thoughts, Allusions to Suicide, Mentions of Violence, Emotional Manipulation, Cheating, Abandonment, Jealousy, Mentions of Violence, Mentions of Weapons, Mentions of Death, Fire & Property Loss, Physical Fighting, Blood.

This story is a collaboration with my lovely pal @gretavanmoon.

Valor Playlist: Apple Music | Spotify

Valor Trailer

Chapter List:

Prologue

One

Two

Three

Four

Five Part One | Five Part Two

Six

Seven

Eight

Nine Part One | Nine Part Two

Ten

Eleven

Twelve

Thirteen

Fourteen

Epilogue

[untamedwind01]

I think it’s so cute how Chaos/Castor calls Evangeline “princess”, when he’s the actual prince of a royal family. He’s the only one who actually viewed her as a princess when she was rejected by so many. And you would think the actual prince would have that kind of attitude towards her but nopeee, it’s the opposite

[maru-iru]

Watcher Origins Concept Story

A watcher!grian fancomic by me :>

More info under the cut

A collection of headcannons and fanfic ideas compiled in one big comic basically. Focuses on the watcher lore and includes scenes even from as old as YHS to the current season of the life series. Watcher Origins is an AU based off of, you guessed it, Watcher!Grian.

Will include YHS, KOV, Evo, Hermitcraft, hints of Impossible Minecraft and the Life Series. Many concepts here are inspired by both fannon and cannon concepts (listener Martyn, vex Scar, the curses etc.)

Where will it be posted?

Tumblr and Tiktok mainly :>

When will it be released?

For now it's TBA since it's still in the process of writing.

Extra info:

Shipping will be hinted but not heavily focused on. The only ones here would obviously be Joel and Lizzie.

This AU of course is about the characters and not the content creators themselves.

That's it I think

Thank you ^^

[solargeist]

"So technically Grian can meet any version of himself through Xelqua !"

Xelqua becomes the YHS Grian and Grian has war flashbacks (idk I've never watched the series)

YHS isn't canon to EvoAU ! So Grian wouldn't know anything abt that.

Fun fact, even tho I don't include it, its where I got the parent/abandonment issues from.

Xelqua has definitely seen this version (i haven't seen YHS since i was 16, i don't remember it well ^____^ )

[mezzy-1]

Training With Valorant (Valorant X Reader// Part 2)

Name: Y/N 

Class: Radiant

Callsign - Nomad

You and Valorant had a bit of a rocky start, but once you joined up with them they quickly became a second family to you.  The ability you had, control of radiant energy and even transforming yourself into it, came in handy for the protocol.  The only issue was you needed some training to better fit with the team.  

(If you like it, follow for Part 3!)

(This from Infamous Second Son)

Harbor

Sun rays crept in to the cafeteria as you and some of the other agents sat around eating breakfast, chatting, and prepping for the day

Harbor came in and sat across from you, squeezing in next to Gekko.  Giving Gekko a quick greeting, he turned to you

“Y/N, you and I are going on a mission in a couple of days.  We should meet up and go over some strategies when we have some time.”

“Sure, I have some time in the afternoon.”

“Perfect, I’ll see you in the shooting range for some drills.”

When you entered the commons, Harbor was already waiting to take you to the training range.  He and you walked into the portal to the Range, and found yourselves in the plaza

You looked down at the dizzying height, but felt a strong hand grab your shoulder

“Don’t look down Y/N, besides, your training is over here.”

Harbor led you to a building that had been modified into a shooting range.  He tossed you a pair of earbuds and handed you a rifle

“I’m going to start up the bots Y/N.  Aim for their heads and do your best!” he smiled

A few moments later a training dummy appeared, and you got to work

Your initial shots were alright, landing on its head before it was replaced by more copies of itself

Matching the speed at which they appeared, you targeted them with as much precision as you could

Then you missed

And started to miss more and more

Once the training had finished, you weren’t satisfied with your score.  Harbor returned to you pacing angrily

“I take it you feel like you could’ve done better?”

“Yes, I was doing so well at the start but I started missing.”

“That’s normal Y/N, you probably got overwhelmed and couldn’t concentrate.  It happens to the best of us.”

“I’ve never seen it happen to you though.”

“Well I do have years of experience, but I can give you some tips.  Have something you can concentrate on to stay focused.”

“Like what?  We’re going to be in the middle of a gunfight.”

“Personally, I start to focus on my breathing.  It makes it easier to ground myself, let’s run through it together.”

Harbor sat you down and began to run through breathing exercises with you.  When you closed your eyes and inhaled, it helped a lot of the doubt go away

“Let’s see what you can do now Nomad.”  Harbor handed you a Vandal with a fresh magazine loaded in

The second time was a lot better, even with Harbor watching.  He would offer praise when you kept up with the bots appearing or took a moment to breathe

“Excellent work Y/N!  I think you’re even better than Gekko, but don’t let him know I said that.”  Harbor pointed at your score

“The breathing helped, I’m glad you shared it with me.  But do you really think I’m going to be ready for missions?”

“There’s not a doubt in my mind that you’re ready, Y/N.”

Viper

“Nomad, you and I are going to do some training together.”  Viper caught you off guard during your morning routine

“So does that mean we’re going to the gym then?” you asked innocently

“No, we’re going to Venice,” she passed you a defuser, “you’re going to learn how to behave on a mission.”

You met with Viper ahead of time at the portal.  You had learned she responded well to people being punctual 

She put the notebook she was writing in back in the pocket of her lab coat and activated the portal

You stepped through and found Viper had set up a training scenario where you would have to defuse a Spike

“So all I have to do is put this up to the Spike and push the button right?”

“Yes, but it won’t be that easy Y/N.”

“Well I’m just going up against bots right?  You’re here to watch.”

Viper smiled and removed her lab coat, revealing she had been wearing her suit underneath

“You have a minute before I plant it, after that you have about 45 seconds to defuse it.  I won’t go easy on you either, so don’t hold back.”

She disappeared into the ruins of the building as you gathered the guns she left for you.  A single Frenzy and a Marshal.

The sound of a digital alert gave you a startle as the training began

You paced along the wall with the Frenzy drawn, noticing that the Spike’s beeping was growing closer

A shotgun blasted the wall in front of you, sending you back along the hallway.  A bot was just around the corner to enter the main room

You sparked radiant power through your hand and rounded the corner.  You sent a barrage of energy through its core

Before you could react, a green wall of mist cut your vision of the rest of the space.  Viper had bisected the room, and bots began to close in

Two, armed with Bulldogs, approached you while letting bullets loose at you.  Thinking quickly, you dove for cover

“You only have 30 seconds now Y/N,” Viper’s voice echoed, “What are you going to do?”

It was too much, you were going to lose and it was eating you up inside

“Don’t let me down Y/N.”  Viper taunted

You weren’t going to disappoint her, and readied another charge of energy

This time you aimed it downward, and sent a wave pulsing through the ground.  It erupted at the feet of the bots, and suspended them in the air

You pulled your Marshall and put them down

Viper sat behind the wall, watching the Spike with a shotgun ready.  Her Toxin Orb was ready and cloaking her presence

A foot stepped inside the cloud and Viper readied a shot

You knew she had to be watching the Spike but knew she would stay away from the open because you had your rifle

Then the obvious hit you

You unleashed a blast of energy towards the Spike and blew Viper into the wall she was skulking by

You jumped up to the Spike and began defusing it.  Viper shakily got up to her feet and reached for the shotgun

She aimed directly at you, and seeing as you had a single second left to defuse the Spike you accepted your fate

The Spike deactivated

“You were willing to die to defuse it Y/N, I admire that.”  Viper emptied the shells and grabbed the Spike

“I think that you’re ready to work with me, but don’t take risks like that.  I don’t want to explain to Brimstone that the newest agent got themselves killed.”

“I wouldn’t worry about that, if you’re backing me up then I don’t think I’ll have to take those kinds of risks.”

Deadlock

“Y/N, we are going to do some training together to see if you can handle using your abilities with the rest of us.”  

Deadlock approached you after the morning meeting before the agents shuffled off to their respective posts

“I thought I was supposed to train with Astra?” you asked

“Brimstone thought it would be better if we worked together.  Something about wanting Radiants and non-Radiants to train together.”

It was true, Brimstone had been pushing for the Radiant agents to rely less on raw power and for the humans to better counter Radiant abilities

Deadlock had been averse to some of the Radiant agents, not unfriendly but always on edge when more powerful agents were active

The exception was you, but you were never sure if she was being kind or if she was keeping an eye on you to learn weaknesses

You lost yourself in thought as you adjusted your gear and dressed for training.  The protocol had given you free reign to pick tactical wear but let you maintain your style

“Are you ready?” a voice asked from behind.  You nodded to Deadlock before being led by her

“Deadlock, where are we going?  The gym is back there.” you pointed as she took you to the portal 

You both found yourselves in the ruins of Venice.  Deadlock gave you a second to acquaint yourself 

“We’re so high up…” you muttered to yourself.  Wind whipped around you and cold from the altitude gave you a slight chill

“I prefer it to the headquarters, now we should begin.”  Deadlock adjusted her coat and pointed at a ruined cathedral

“This will be simple Y/N, just defuse the spike before it goes off.”  Deadlock passed you a defuser, “but remember you’re coming to me.  I won’t make it easy.”

You loaded a Sheriff and Judge, then made your way through the buildings towards the church

You could almost hear the beeping of the Spike before a bullet flew past you.  Bots had been placed in the surrounding building

It was a straight road to the cathedral, but the buildings had nests of bots hiding and firing from windows

As you backed into cover inside a ruined shop you caught a look at something small against the north wall.  A sonic sensor

Deadlock was counting on you backing away, and probably had the bots ready to come in the second the sensor was tripped.  It gave a you an idea

Radiant power coursed through you, and you let out a blast to trigger the sensor.  It blew up, and you moved to the second floor

Bots swarmed into the shop, a crew of three holding rifles.  Their programming told them to target movement but they had no visible targets

In an instant, you punched the second floor downward, flattening the bots under the ceiling

You stood on the concrete chunk and looked down at the crushed remains as they sparked.  Only one bot had escaped but a single shell put it out of commision

“Not bad Y/N, but to PREDICTABLE!” Deadlock yelled as her Annihilation wire bounced from the cathedral to your cover

In an instant fibers cocooned whatever they could, constricting around any purchase.  Once complete they spooled back towards Deadlock

“I thought you would have done better Y/-” Deadlock realized she had made a crucial error

You had switched places with the bot you hit with the Judge.  Deadlock barely had enough time to react before a geyser of radiant power suspended her in the air

Taking you opportunity, you defused the Spike while she was stuck floating on the particles drifting around her

Once you had finished, you dropped her down gently and helped her regain her balance

“That was clever Y/N, I had expected you to fall for the Sensor but you turned it around for your benefit.”

“So do you think I can come with you on a mission then?”

“You can hold your own.  I look forward to working as a team Y/N.”

Skye

“You’re getting along well ain’t ya?” Skye greeted you as you finished up training with the barbell curls Brimstone recommended for you

“It’s been an adjustment, but I like being here more than being on the run.” you answered

“Good to hear,” she picked the barbell and set it back without a second thought, “just so you know we have a training today.  Just you and me!”

“Does that mean you guys are giving the test to see if I can cut it in the field?”

“Yeah, but you’ll ace it.  Don’t expect me to go easy Y/N, or should I call you Nomad?”

Both of you met up but rather than going to Ascent or the Range, Skye took you outdoors to the island’s jungle

“I have here a Spike,” she pointed to a device she carried on her back with both thumbs, “you are gonna defuse it with this.” she passed you the defuser gun

“Well it doesn’t sound too difficult.” upon you saying this Skye smiled mischievously 

“Don’t be so sure Y/N, I want to make sure you can handle yourself.  Plus my tiger’s been itchin’ for something to play with.”

The beast appeared next to Skye with a wagging tail

You both put distance between each other and started the drill.  You readied a Stinger and Classic, then made your way through the jungle 

A heavy slam reverberated through the foliage, alerting you to the Spike being activated.  You moved faster and came across a small stream

Bullets streaked by from the bushes.  You frantically hid behind a boulder near the stream  

Growls from the jungle and swift footsteps broke your concentration.  The tasmanian tiger was on your trail

It was too much, the beast tracking you down would catch you in a moment and the bots would close in

No, you steadied yourself and took a breath.  Skye said you would pass, and you weren’t going to let her down

You knew she was counting on you to stay in cover, which made you think about the boulder.  Radiant energy gathered around you and suffused with your palm

A simple push, backed with the force of TNT, launched the boulder forward into the underbrush taking out bots and serving as moving cover

The tiger from Trailblazer was still active, and dashed towards you.  It lunged across the stream

You pulled the trigger on the Stinger, bullets ripping the constructed animal apart.  The open line of sight made it impossible for the beast to catch you off guard

Screeches cut through the air and you quickly covered your eyes.  Hawks flew through the air and burst with light

You rushed through the trees towards the Spike while trying to keep from being flashed

Skye jumped out from near the Spike and took aim.  You were ready, and shot back before she had the chance

She got knocked back, and you quickly acted to defuse the Spike.  As soon as it went silent, you took a breath

“Nice work Y/N!  I thought for sure I had you with the hawks but you surprised me!”  Skye dusted herself off 

“You said I would pass, I didn’t feel like proving you wrong.”

“Of course!  Now we have a bit of a trek back but we can take a detour and hike a bit in celebration.”

“Sounds like a good idea!”

Cypher

You had finished up your morning chores when you got a message from your phone

Cypher was requesting that you meet him in his surveillance room, which was odd considering he rarely let people venture in

As soon as you reached the door, it opened up and the masked man invited you in warmly

“Ah Y/N, I have such great news for you!” he excitedly sat back in his chair and offered you a seat

“Why did I have to come here?  You usually meet me or send me a file.”

“This is special, for our ears only too.  Brimstone wants to test you in a couple of weeks to see if you’re ready, but I want to try sooner.”

“So we’re going behind Brim’s back and testing me now?”

“If you think you can beat me and defuse a Spike without backup.” Cypher narrowed his eyes and lounged back

“When can we start?”

About an hour later you were strapping the final piece of body armor on before putting the clothes you wore over it

Cypher had picked Ascent, or at least a floating island near it for training.  There was a long path to a fountain, nearby there was a few market stalls

“Don’t let me down Y/N.  I know you can do this but I am going to make sure you’re ready for deployment.”  Cypher stepped back into the grounds and disappeared

You pulled a Phantom from its sling and started walking towards the sound of a Spike being planted

Stopping quickly, you spotted a trip wire and knelt down to see where it was anchored.  You saw it was stuck to a crate at an angle, and destroyed the gadget 

A dart struck your shoulder, and you swung around to try and spot Cypher’s camera.  Bots began closing in from behind and you ran towards the fountain

A Cyber Cage blocked your path, surrounding you in static and holographic smoke

If you exited the cage Cypher could attack, he had stuck you with a dart and knew you were hiding.  The bots would attack if you didn’t leave and had an easy line of sight

It was almost too much handle, but you knew Cypher had faith in you and that carried you through

He knew where you were, and so did the bots.  You came up with a plan in record time and pulled the dart from your shoulder 

You took a moment, and suffused your body with radiant power.  Your body turned to pure energy and you phased through the ground

The bots fired at empty air, and Cypher was momentarily puzzled.  He didn’t leave his cover and instead checked his camera

Behind, the fountain contorted and groaned.  Cypher looked up and watched as the water inside the fountain stopped and came flowing out as steam

Your body was almost pure energy, boiling the water in the fountain wasn’t hard at all.  You picked off the bots in the fog one by one

Cypher grinned beneath his mask and called out to you, trying to draw you out

You ignored him and went straight for the Spike, but you had forgotten about the alert noise it made when being defused

You worked quickly and as soon as you were defusing came face to face with Cypher’s Ghost aimed at your forehead

The man steadied his hand and then put it down

“You passed, even if you would’ve died after defusing it.” he motioned to the now inactive Spike

“I know, but at least you’ll be watching over me next time.” you picked up the Spike and set it on your back

“Y/N, I always keep an eye on you.”

Reyna

“Y/N, we’re going to put your skills to the test.  I won’t hold anything back and you shouldn’t either.” Reyna had surprised you in the commons 

“Is this the exam for going into missions?” you asked cautiously

“Si, I suppose so.  Brimstone asked me personally to make sure you were ready.”

“I’m more than ready.”

“Such confidence Y/N.  I’m going to enjoy making you swallow your words and your pride.” 

Reyna was especially ruthless when she could get away with it, and Brimstone had just given her a pass

You and her met at the portal to the Range in the evening.  The sunset over the floating islets was stunning, but Reyna quickly demanded your attention

“It’s simple.  I have the Spike, you have the defuser.  If you fail you die and if you succeed,” she paused to laugh, “you won’t last long enough to beat me.”

Reyna had settled on using the ruins of an old plaza as her proving ground.  It was surrounded by columns and had a belltower at the far end

Your provided gear was the same as Reyna’s: a Vandal and a Classic

Taking a moment to chamber a round in the Classic, you psyched yourself up and started to approach the plaza

Glancing from the entrance to the plaza, you could see a few crates covered in tarp and the spike beneath the belltower

You began to move in when you realized it would be a horrible idea to attack head on.  Reyna was counting on a fight to win, so you’d have to be smarter

Making your way around the side of the plaza, you climbed up the buildings to get a clear line of sight

Sure enough, there were bots hidden on the second floor of the buildings and in the belltower

You couldn’t spot Reyna, but knowing she’d be near the Spike kept you confident she wouldn’t be an issue

Aiming carefully, you shot the belltower bot in the head from your vantage point on the roof across from it

The other bots opened fire as you slid down the roof and took cover behind the pillars.  You overloaded radiant power into your hand and blasted back a wave of energy

Bots flew through the air and crashed onto the ground where quick shots put them past their warranty

“Que impresiva Y/N, but you’ll find that I won’t be as easy to kill.”  Reyna’s voice came from behind you

You ducked out of the way as bullets impacted the column.  You ran across the plaza to the nearest crate and looked back

A searing purple eye dominated your sight.  You realized Reyna had to be moving closer if she was covering the front with her Leer

Pain shot through your leg.  Reyna had managed to wound your ankle with a well placed shot

It all made sense to you suddenly: she wanted to hunt you for as long as she could and wait out the Spike timer

This gave you an idea, and you fired in Reyna’s direction blindly to suppress her advance

Reyna hid behind a column, her violet eyes barely giving her position away.  She caught sight of a trail of blood leading to the belltower

“Me pone desilusionado Y/N.” she remarked as she stepped into the tower.  She noticed the trail leading to the side and fired as she rounded the corner

Instead of catching you off guard, the trail had led her directly into a trap.  You had bled long enough to make trail but cauterized the wound with energy from your finger tip

“Sorry to disappoint, Reyna.” you said smugly before giving her a quick shot to her body armor

You finished up defusing the Spike walked back confidently to Reyna with the defuser and Spike in tow

“What did you say earlier about me and eating my words?  I can’t seem to remember.” you playfully helped Reyna up

“As much as I want to say I went easy on you, I admit you did well.” Reyna adjusted her armor

“Good enough to pass?”

“Por cierto, yes.”

“Better than you?”

“Callate Y/N, don’t make me leave you all by yourself on our mission.”

Neon

“Hey Y/N!” Neon waved at you from across the commons before racing over to you 

“So Brimstone put me on a mission with you and told me that I was supposed to help train you!” her foot tapped against the ground in nervous excitement

“What are we going to be doing together?” you asked

“You have to defuse a Spike without any help from the other agents.”

“Wait, then why are going to be there?”

“Because I’m going to be the one guarding the Spike.  It’s going to be fun, but seriously do your best.  I want you to come along on the next mission!” 

Neon sprinted off to get ready and you took inventory of the challenge before you.  You met with her about an hour later with your gear 

You had picked your favorite loadout, a Vandal and a Sheriff.  Neon had with her a Frenzy and a Bulldog

Both of you walked through the portal to the Range.  As you exited into the floating islands, you looked out at the open sky

“Come on Y/N, we’ll have plenty of time to relax when we’re done.”  Neon took you to a street dotted in rubble that crossed a now drained canal

A few gondolas were stranded up by the dock and the street had a few alleyways that intersected around it

Neon did some stretches before sending off some bots to go ready up.  She walked up to you with 

“Kaya mo yan Y/N!” Neon embraced you before dashing away 

The Spike countdown started up, and you started your assault on the bomb site

Instantly, bots hidden near the alleys and near the riverbed started shooting, and you dove towards the nearest wall

As you rested, you heard the electrified steps of Neon approaching.  You knew she would be aggressive but you hadn’t counted on how quickly she’d attack

She slid by and sprayed bullets from the automatic pistol she carried but you countered with your own barrage

Recovering as quickly as she attacked, Neon sped down an alley and broke line of sight

You took a breath and glanced over your shoulder, a few bots were approaching your position

Repositioning further towards the gondolas, you shot through the bots.  Rushing steps and thundered down the alleys

Neon leapt from the alley and fired in your direction before running into the next alley.  She sped around the backstreets and fired on you

It was overwhelming, and you alternated between suppressing fire at the bots before trying to dodge Neon’s attacks

Suddenly it was clear, she had picked the alleys because she could use hit and run tactics freely and keep you from taking ground

That gave you an idea

Neon came running towards you and got ready to pull the trigger on her Frenzy.  She had just lunged out of the alley when she stopped suddenly

The bots were completely smashed and across the dock she could see the Spike.  If the you hadn’t made it there, you had to be crossing the dried canal

She dashed into the riverbed and landed on the deep mud covering it.  She looked around before unsticking her shoes

“Huh, where the hell is Y/N?” Neon wondered before you crawled from your hiding place

Taking aim at her from under a gondola, you made eye contact and she got ready to sprint

The muddy terrain didn’t let her run though, and she had fallen for your plan.  You tagged her in the shoulder and climbed up towards the Spike

By the time Neon finished getting to the Spike, you were sitting comfortably with it on a stranded gondola

“You wanted me to get stuck in the mud, didn’t you Y/N.” Neon strode up to you and sat across 

“Yeah, I know you’d chase me down there so I waited for you.  Sorry you had to get your running shoes dirty though.”

“It’s okay, it’s a small price to pay for you passing the test!” 

“I think we’ll make a good team, Neon.”  

“Magkakasama tayo.” Neon nearly crushed you with an excited hug.  Your hair stood on end the whole time

Iso

“It’s training day Y/N, gonna show us if you’re ready to do missions?”  Iso asked while you were cleaning your gun

You finished adjusting the iron sights and checked the stability.  You loaded a magazine in and loaded the chamber

“Iso, I’ve been ready to go all morning!” you smirked and took your gun with you

“You’re confident Y/N, but don’t let it go to your head.  You need to be cool headed, you’re going to have to fight me to pass.”  Iso readied his Sheriff 

“Nobody told me I’d have to duel you, I thought it was just bots.” 

“There’s also this,” he handed you a defuser, “you’re going to need to defuse a Spike without anyone’s help.”

It was a lot to do all at once, but you stomached your fear and joined Iso as he walked through the portal to the Range

As you walked out of the shimmering barrier, you saw that Iso had converted part of the shooting range 

Instead of the usual building being for bots and target practice, he had added in walls and cover

Wooden planks, sandbags, and steel plating had been arranged to make an elaborate testing ground for your final exam

“You and I will fight here.  Your mission is to defuse the Spike by any means necessary, so don’t hold back.”

“Understood.”

Iso began walking to his starting point and let you move to yours

“Good luck Y/N.  Remember to stay focused.”  Iso spoke as he put his headphones in

The weapon you brought with you was a Guardian and a Sheriff.  You were going to have to aim carefully, just like Iso taught you

Lights in the Range switched on inside the building and beeping started from the other end

You made your way into the narrow corridors and jumped from cover to cover.  Bots began to slink into the maze with you

One would tried to ambush you from behind while another jumped in front of you.  Rolling to the side you tagged the first one with a Guardian shot

The second bot fell to your ability, and was thrown into the air with a whirl of energy.  You shot it midair before moving on

A veil of purple hexagons passed through the wall closest to you, coating you in a violet glow 

Shots punched through the wooden planks and you hid behind the steel portions of it.  A bot stepped from the shadows during the onslaught and fired

A bullet grazed your cheek, but you shot back with greater accuracy.  Its head exploded and you cleaned the blood from your face

You began to sneak forward, but your foot slid onto a lattice of glowing hexagons

Iso’s voice echoed throughout his pocket dimension

“It’s you or me Y/N, show me what you can do.” 

The partitions were up, but you knew you had only a second before they dropped and you would have to fight

You could feel the sweat pooling around your hands, breathing begin to tighten, and heat flush your face

“Be cool headed.” you whispered, sticking to Iso’s advice 

You dropped the Guardian and pulled your Sheriff.  While waiting, you took a breath and got ready

The walls dropped and you and Iso fired simultaneously.  For a single second, it felt like the bullets would collide

Your shot landed precisely in Iso’s sternum, and he released his hold on you.  His shot had been too far off and only hit your leg

Limping over to the Spike, you unholstered a defuser and got to work.  The Spike clicked and began to fold into itself

“That was a good shot Y/N.”  Iso strode up behind you and leaned on a wall

“I had one of the best teachers.”

“Oh?”

“Your advice about being focused is why I was able to aim so well.  I couldn’t have beaten you without your own advice.”

“I guess I’ll have to stop giving you pointers.”

“Don’t worry, you’ll have plenty of things to correct me on when we start doing missions together.”

“I wouldn’t underestimate you, Y/N.  I certainly won’t do it again.”  Iso helped keep you steady  as you made your way back to the headquarters

[twigbranch45]

random shit,

[gretavanmoon]

Valor - Troubadour II

Word Count: 9.2k

Warnings: Cursin', Smokin', Drinkin'. Angst: Mention of Struggle and Poverty, Mentions of Violence, Mentions of Weapons, Mentions of Murder and Death, General Sadness and Hopelessness, Allusions to Shady Activities, Mention of Police & Detectives, Concealing a Fugitive. Mention of sex. Mention of Fire, Loss, and Burned Buildings. Mention of Drugs.

Hey everyone! Thanks for being here! Was really missing the Valor world (what's new) and decided to satiate my needs with a little Danny spin-off. This story picks up just a few months after Chapter 14 ends and before the Epilogue, when Danny has decided to busk around the Midwest in search of fulfilling his musical heart and hitting the open road on his motorcycle. This Danny side-quest story will only be a few parts, but hope you enjoy the ride!

Big thanks to my bestie & cowriter @gretavangroupie for da edits <333

“If I tell you boys, you promise not to leave this cabin?” 

Bubba’s eyes are pleading and sincere, and full of a gritted remorse that I’ve only seen in him a handful of times.

“I don’t make promises I don’t intend on keepin’, Bub,” Jake growls, his top lip snarled into some emotion other than disgust. 

“And that’s just the reason, Jacob. God damnit! Now, I told you I’d tell you the truth, but if it means you boys goin’ back out there and gettin’ into more trouble than you’re already in, I ain’t sayin’ another damned word!” Bubba slaps his handkerchief down onto the table, making Y/N jump a little bit. She’s probably never seen him worked up like this. His voice is shaken and loud, and Jake and I know it’s just because he’s worried for us. Worried for all of us. 

“Bubba, listen…” I intervene, feeling the tension in the room growing to new heights. 

“No, Daniel, you listen,” Bubba stands from his chair, placing his hands firmly down onto the table. “Ace kept more secrets from you two than I care to even talk about. I know that much is true. But guess what, he kept the majority of them from me, too! Me! His best friend…” Bubba pounds his fist to his own chest as his chin begins to shake with his words, his eyes welling up in the flicker of the candlelight. “The night he died and I saw the hurt in both of you boys’ eyes I promised myself I’d always tell you the truth, even when it hurts. And right now, it really fuckin’ hurts…”

The entire room is silent besides the sound of Bubba’s voice, and for the occasional sound of the wind whipping across the tin of the new roof. I watch as Y/N’s hand reaches out to grip Bubba’s, squeezing and holding it tightly as she knows she has no dog in this fight, except to try her best and be a mediator. 

Jake sighs, his head falling into his hands as his leg begins to bounce under the table. Sometimes Jake and I both do a really shitty job at remembering that Ace left us with more than just a ghost of his memory. He left us without a father, but he left Bubba without a brother. 

It was never lost on me that Ace was to Bubba, what Jake is to me. I wouldn’t know what to do without him, either.

“I know it hurts, Bubba. I know you miss him, we all miss him,” Jake says softly.

“He’d know exactly what the hell to do, right now. He might not’a made the best decision, but he would have had a plan for you boys before you even got here. Woulda been expectin’ ya. Woulda protected you from all this,” Bubba sniffles through a few breaths as he stares at the wall, picking up his handkerchief again with his free hand as Y/N still holds the other. It wasn’t often that Bubba spoke of his best friend like this, but when it came to situations where Ace’s sons were in danger, or faced with some great unknown, Bubba always felt the need to have to protect us. Step into the role that Ace never got to carry out. Must have made some big promise to him the day we put him to rest. I hate it, but it's the role he’s fallen into. But honestly, he has done one hell of a job.

“Bubba, we did this to ourselves,” I say. “You should feel no responsibility for this.” 

“No responsibility?!” he squeals. “I’m the one that set the goddamned fire, Daniel!” Bubba’s eyes are blown out and dark black, and the bright crimson of his face makes his emotions more evident than I’d like to admit. Whatever the fuck Teddy’s guys did to him after we left, we aren’t going to like one bit. 

“We put you up to it. It was all our idea, right Danny?” Jake leans forward and slaps the back of his hand across my chest, giving me a stern look. 

“Right,” I nod. “None of it involved you. If we’re going to go down for this, your name ain’t gonna be no where near it, Bub.”

Bubba harshly shakes his head from side to side. “No. That was not part of our agreement.”

“We didn’t have an agreement, Bubba!” Jake raises his voice. “We didn’t sign some contract with fine print and dotted lines! We had to make a decision, and we had to make it fast. And I think it worked out just fine…”

“Yeah, just fine. Now there’s investigators out there searchin’ for you two. God knows when the FBI will get involved!” Bubba replies, his voice still shaken. “And all we got out of it was Teddy endin’ up in the grave. Fuck, maybe this was all a mistake…”

At the time of the fire, we had entrusted the fact that there would be no evidence to tie everything back to us, especially to Bubba. We’d relied on the idea that if Ace’s burned down, no one would care. No one would even notice. Hell, hardly anybody in this town gave a fuck about me and Jake anyway, unless they needed their oil changed or a new set of tires. 

Teddy’s body being found in the building with his own gas cans would have absolutely nothing to do with us. We’d planned on abandoning the place for weeks…

…At least that was gonna be our story.

“Nothing leaves this table, you hear me?” Bubba finally says with conviction as he takes his seat again, turning his solemn features into serious ones as he speaks. He takes a second to look each of us in the face, one by one, as we all nod in agreement of going along with the old man’s wishes. 

He gives Y/N’s hand one final squeeze as he releases it, folding his own hands together in front of him as he takes a shaky breath. 

“They robbed me. Robbed me blind. Came back from the diner one night to find all my belongin’s out in the yard, all my cabinets empty. Everythin’ was destroyed… The tornado had done a number of it’s own, but by god, they had done worse. Beer cans smashed all over the place, windows broken… I went insane, lookin’ for ‘em that night. Drove all around town searchin’ em down. Even stopped a few places I thought they might be holed up… nothin’. Jesus, I was blind with rage. Even more rage than I had when I learned what Teddy had truly done to Ace that night. Why, I don’t know. Think it was because I finally realized that this was what it had all come down to. This. My home. Why? Why…”

Jake and I exchange another quick glance of understanding, knowing that we owe Bubba this time to get his emotions out. Poor guy is probably terrified that we could go to prison for something that, technically, had happened at his hands. God, everything is so fucked up. 

“Even if they got no clue that I stayed behind that day to make sure Teddy was inside when the place went up, they know that gettin’ to you two through me was just as satisfying. They don’t care. Never have, never will. After you boys left, the town went to even more hell that it had been when Teddy was alive. Them guys had no more direction. No more boss tellin’ em what to do. They stayed drunk and high for weeks, terrorizin’ the town. People really missed you two.”

“They missed us?” I ask. 

“Yeah, when we left, they had nobody else to pick on except the general public,” Jake replies sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

“No, no. That’s not what I mean,” Bubba says. “You might not have realized it, but you boys meant a lot to this community. Think folks felt safe with you in town, felt like they could call on you had they needed anything. Then, when Teddy’s boys scattered out, they did need you. And you weren’t here.”

Jake and I exchange looks again. That doesn’t make any sense… Felt safe with us? People hardly even talked to us, let alone made us feel important. Maybe only when they would stop in the shop or want in on a poker game.

“But that’s neither here nor there,” Bubba continues. “Anyway, I moved out here cause I had nowhere else to go. Couldn’t go back home, was no home to go to. I did end up sellin’ the place, though. For next to nothin’. Broke things off with Geraldine. They’d started comin’ into the diner and harrassin’ her a bit. Nothin’ serious, just enough to worry me and the cooks. Thought if I got myself away from her, they’d leave her alone. Think I was right.”

“So far,” Jake says accusingly. “If there’s one thing I know about them, it’s that they don’t stop, Bub. They ain’t got lives outside of makin’ everybody else’s a living hell.” 

“You don’t gotta tell me, boy. I’ve been watchin’ them do this since you was takin’ your first steps across the shop. You and your brother, both…” Bubba goes silent again, his eyes drifting to a far off memory as he recenters himself. “Where are your brothers, anyhow? They safe?”

“I’d like to think so,” Jake replies, clearing his throat as he scoots his chair forward. “Actually haven’t spoken to either of them in a few days. That’s… That’s why we came here, to the cabin. Knew we could hide out here and make a plan in secret while still keeping an eye on things from afar. The law is gonna be lookin’ for us at every turn, and it’s only gonna get worse.”

Bubba nods, biting his lip in as if in deep thought. 

“We just didn’t expect to find you here, Bub,” I add, shoving him in the shoulder. I manage a little smile from him, the first one I’ve seen since stepping in this place. 

“Threw a wrench in your plans, didn’t I?” Bubba adds, his features softening a bit. 

“Nah, Bubba,” Y/N leans in. “You made everything better.”

—---

As much as Jake and I were chomping at the bit to sneak out after Bubba had fallen asleep to go and spy on Teddy’s guys, we reluctantly stay put in the cabin, letting sleeping dogs lie for tonight. We both have found ourselves kicked back in the twin recliners after Bubba and Y/N had retreated off to bed, but just like always, our minds are racing. 

“What are we now, fuckin’ fugitives?” I ask him through a quiet whisper. My skin is crawling with restlessness, and not just a want, but a need to get out of here and make the trek back into town. I feel paranoid, like we’re being watched with no protection, no clue as to what their knowledge is, and worst of all, no plan to protect ourselves at all. 

“Guess fuckin’ so,” Jake replies, passing the whiskey bottle back to me. I take a small nip, getting the feeling that I may need to stay level-headed tonight. His gaze is trained on the old unlit woodstove across the room, and I can tell his wheels are turning a mile a minute. I haven’t seen him in a couple months, but he looks different. He looks more mature than he ever has. He looks like Ace. 

“We need to call Sam. And we need to get ahold of Lucienda.” I push the recliner down with my legs and sit back up, shaking my hair out as I run my hands over my face. “I can’t just sit here, Jake. I’m about to crawl out of my fuckin’ skin.”

Jake’s eyes break from the stove and move to Bubba’s bedroom door before landing back on me. “We need to respect his wishes, Daniel. Do you know how pissed off he’d be if he found out we’d left to do his dealings?”

“They ain’t his dealings, Jake! They’re ours! What the fuck, have you gotten soft or some shit? Teddy’s guys could be out scoutin’ around this place as we speak. Plannin’ something, watchin’ Geraldine…” I’m kinda dumbfounded by Jake’s sudden… fear? of going out and taking care of things on our own. No, fear isn’t the word. He is probably scared of leaving Bubba here with Y/N, alone. 

Yeah, he’s matured. 

Finally he leans in to me, his neck craned and his eyes dark as he grits his jaw. “You know just as well as anybody that it’s fuckin’ killin’ me not being out there and seeing what the fuck we’re up against, Daniel. I can’t leave her here… we can’t just disappear.”

I can tell by the look on his face that he really wants to go, he knows we need to bust out of here, but he’s also not wrong. 

Suddenly Jake stands up and begins feeling on the undersides of the tables and the cabinets, opening drawers and makeshift closets and on top of shelves. I watch as he quietly ransacks the place, and it only takes me a few seconds to realize what he’s doing. I can’t help but grin to myself as I twist the lid off the whiskey again, letting the warmth of it coat my bones with another drink. 

“Ah, there she is,” he says as he pulls a faux drawer open to reveal a mounted shotgun. “Knew he had to have one in here somewhere.” 

“Probably has a few,” I reply, twisting the lid back on. I stand slowly as he inspects it and checks to see if it’s loaded. When we find it to be locked and loaded, we have a brief moment of understanding. Just as if we haven’t left each other at all, we have a wordless conversation with our eyes. 

“I’ll take it to him,” I say, gripping the barrel. 

“Don’t wake him,” he reminds me. “Just prop it by the door.” 

I nod. “You gonna leave her unarmed?”

“No, she has my spare pistol,” he whispers, slipping away toward where she lay asleep in their room. 

I move away and gently open Bubba’s door, propping the gun just on the inside of it where he will see it, had he need to use it. 

I’m back out in the kitchen quickly, my blood beginning to pump as my body prepares itself to make our quick exit. I grab my jacket as I glance behind me for Jake, but all I see of him is his silhouette in the shadows, leaned down over the bed as he quietly tells Y/N what we’re about to do. I watch his hand brush through her hair, and his face gently press down onto hers. His motions are soft and sweet, so different from the way I’m used to him being. 

He’s fallen so hard for her, he’s damn near turned into a new man. 

I hear their light whispers as she moves under the thin blanket, and finally Jake stands again, making his way back out the bedroom door. “Let’s go,” he whispers, ripping his own jacket from the back of the recliner. We begin to make our way to the front door, our steps light and careful as we tread across the old wooden floors of the cabin. Jake opens the creaky door and steps outside ahead of me, and the rush of cool air hits me in the face, familiar and encouraging. 

“Danny,” a sweet voice stops me in my tracks, and I turn around to see Y/N perched in their bedroom doorway, her arms folded across her chest. Her hair’s a mess, her t-shirt is pulled down over her shoulder, and for the quickest second, my nervous system reminds me just how tantalizing she really is. I perk my eyebrows to her. “Take care of him,” she orders, the corners of her lips turning up into a smile. 

“Only thing I know how to do, Miss Thing,” I assure her, watching as her cheeks turn a dark pink, the pet name I used to have for her probably gone from her mind, altogether. I shoot her a wink before pulling my cowboy hat from a hook on the wall, placing it on my head, and closing the door behind us. 

—---

The Autumn air is thin as the coolness of the wind reacquaints itself with me, and I take a deep breath of it, letting the familiar smell of my homeland course through me. Fuckin’ Joslyn… if she were a woman I’d call her a few choice names, and rightly so. Everyone here would, even the honest ones who still fill the church pews every Sunday morning. 

Jake and I walk the trail back toward the creek, silent and stealthy as we could probably walk these paths with our eyes closed. I follow closely behind him, watching our six as he keeps his head swiveling through the thick pines. I hear the trickle of the creek and smell the familiar scent of the moss, and I know we’re close to the truck. 

We don’t have a plan, we don’t have a goal. 

It’s dangerous, and we know that. We have a lot more to live for, these days. But something deep within us, something still ingrained in us reminds us that at our very cores, we’re still nothin’ but a couple of sorry misfits, craving risk and all the things associated with it. The thrill of the threat, the glory of the fight. We can thank Oz for making that craving even worse. 

But just like Jake has matured, so have I, in ways. I’m still the sorry son of a bitch I always was, but I’m also a bit more trustworthy in myself. Growing in ways I never got to before. 

“Should we go on foot?” Jake whispers when we finally cross the footbridge and make it to the old Ford. 

“Nah. Take us an hour to get back into town. I say we drive in and park at the old machine shop. No one will see the truck back there. Then we can walk the rest of the way in,” I suggest, earning an understanding nod from Jake. 

We get into the truck and gently close the doors, and I pull my weapon from the back of my jeans, checking that the safety is still on. Jake starts the engine and slowly backs out of his hidden spot, and we begin making our way back toward town. 

He forcefully hits the dial to turn the radio off, and he cuts his headlights to dim them a bit. I feel the rage rising up in me again, my gut growing a hot flame when I start thinking about what they did to Bubba and Geraldine after we left. What they did to all the people in town. Sorry motherfuckers. 

“You think Joey is leading the pack, now?” Jake asks from out of nowhere as he cranks his window down a bit, and lights a cigarette. My mind flashes back to all the harassment Joey put us through… following us when we’d leave for fights, he and his guys jumping Jake in a parking lot and breaking his ribs…

I shrug. “I dunno. Maybe, the way Bubba spoke sounded like they’re just runnin’ around like a free for all. No guidance.” 

Jake shakes his head as the smoke travels out the window. “Like a bunch of wild animals.”

I hate to think of it like that, and I hate to think that the community we left behind has been so manipulated by them. If what Bubba said was true, maybe the townsfolk did feel a little better with us around; even if we were Teddy’s punching bags, at least the heat was off the innocent other people. 

But not everyone was innocent. 

Lies and deceit and cover-ups run deeper than you’d think around here, and I’d be willing to wager that a bunch of those cops who helped cover up Ace’s murder are still alive and well, givin’ their advice to the so-called ‘law’ that runs the town, now. Conspirators and liars, all of ‘em. 

“What’s the plan?” I ask him as I watch the orange embers of his smoke fall to the floor of the truck. 

His lips move into a thin line, and I can tell he’s still on the fence about leaving them behind, at all. But he knows we’ve got to do this, and under the cover of darkness is our best bet. He tosses his cigarette out the window and spits behind it, resituating himself in his seat. 

“Don’t got one.”

—----

We allow the truck to crawl into the back parking lot of the old machine shop that has been closed and out-of-use since we were probably teenagers. It used to be the spot to go to take a girl out in private, but it has long since just fallen victim to the elements, the lot now a mess of cracks and overgrown grass. 

Jake puts it in neutral and we both step out, walking the truck silently over the cracks of the lot over to the corner, under the cover of a few trees. We close the doors as quietly as we can, grabbing our weapons and flashlights and whatever else we think we may need to make this recon mission a successful one. He stuffs his keys into his pocket, and we carefully begin our trek into town. 

It’s quiet, much quieter than I expected given what Bubba had described as the current state of Joslyn, but maybe that’s because everyone is staying indoors, reluctant and scared to go about their normal nightlife activities. We walk side by side, trying our best to stay behind buildings and away from streetlights. There is hardly any foot traffic, let alone any vehicles passing by. 

First we come up on Canaries’, still open and functioning but with hardly any cars in the lot. Not as many as usual, at least. I feel my heart begin to thrum in my chest as I hear the muffled sound of the jukebox and the distant sound of people chattering inside. The nostalgic sound is comforting for just a second, before it’s pulled away from me by Jake’s whisper. 

“Joey’s truck, right there,” he points to an old beat-up Chevrolet, parked cockeyed right in front of the doors. “Probably in there sheistin’ people out of their paychecks.”

“Sorry mother fucker,” I say, wanting nothing more than to bust through the doors and find the nearest cue stick. God, I hate that guy.

“Let’s go,” Jake suggests, and we continue our walk through the thick brush toward the center of town. We stay under the cover of trees, meandering through back alleys and hidden driveways, hoping to god we don’t see any law pass by. Or worse, anyone else who might have us on their radar. 

Louie’s Diner is nearly empty, save for the few flies who occupy barely any other seat other than the ones at the bar, quietly sipping their coffee as they talk about the same old things. 

“Geraldine’s still here,” I blurt as soon as I see her through the windows, still downtrodden and acting as though she’s moving in slow motion. 

“Shit,” Jake says, “I hate seeing her here alone this late. Damnit, Bubba.”

“We should go talk to her, right?” I ask, kneeling down behind a dumpster in the lot. “Let her know we’re here?” 

I watch Jake’s wheels turn again as he runs his inked fingers over his mustache. “What do you think? Is it a bad idea?”

I look through the glass again, watching as she puts on a fake smile for the man seated at the bar as she pours what’s likely his fifth cup of coffee tonight. “Looks like she could use a little reassurance at the moment, don’tcha think?”

“We gotta keep it quiet, Daniel. No one can see us,” Jake says. “You got a dime?”

“A dime?” I ask, confused. I dig in my pocket, feeling a few spare coins sitting at the bottom. “Why?”

Jake motions to the pay phone on the corner. “Gonna give her a ring. Need her to come out to us.”

I pinch the coin between my fingers and place it in his palm. “What are you gonna say?”

“Tell her there’s someone trying to break into a car in the parking lot of Louie’s, and that I’ve already called the law,” he says, the tiniest smirk on his lips. 

“God, Jake, what are you tryin’ to do? Give her a heart attack?” I chuckle. 

“Nah, she’ll be fine. Tough ol’ broad,” he replies, craning his neck to check that no traffic is on the way down the street. “Watch my back.”

I do, and after a ten-second phone call, he is hopping back toward me, his head switching back and forth to make sure we’re still alone. The two of us hurry over to Geraldine’s car and crouch behind it, waiting for her to come out guns a-blazing. 

“Get the hell away from here! The law’s on the way! I got a gun, and I ain’t afraid to use it!” We hear her yelling before she even makes it all the way through the door of Louie’s. We can’t help but laugh to ourselves a little, knowing that within seconds, she will have forgotten about the prank call altogether. 

She rounds the corner and we slide out from behind her car, startling her a little as we step into the dim streetlight. She stops in her tracks, a loud gasp escaping her lips. 

“Jacob?” she squeals. “Daniel?! Is that–”

“Yeah, it’s us, Geraldine,” Jake whispers, opening his arms to her. She rushes us both, taking us in her tight embrace as she lays quick pecks to our cheeks. 

“My boys, my boys! I gotta be dreamin’!” she says, her excitement evident. “Oh, I can’t believe it, I’ve missed you both so!”

After a few seconds of pure happiness, she pulls the towel that she had across her shoulder and slaps it across both of our chests, leaving a stinging sensation on our skin.

“What the hell are you two doin’ here?! You need to be at the police station!” she says gruffly.

“Shhh, shh,” I say, placing my finger over my lips. “We can’t go there, Geraldine! We’re kinda… in hiding.”

“Yeah, we came back here to hide out in the cabin and make a plan, but when we got there, we found Bubba had already taken up shop,” Jake explains quietly. Her face goes stark at the mention of his name, and she swallows down the emotion. 

She crosses her arms over her chest, stepping us further back into the shadows. “He–he ok? He faring well out there?”

“He’s fine,” I answer. “Just missing you somethin’ terrible.”

“Like hell,” she says, pulling her pack of cigarettes from her pocket. “Man dumped me like a sack of potatoes, he not tell you?” She quickly lights one up and closes her eyes as the smoke hits her system. 

“Yeah, he told us,” Jake whispers solemnly. 

“Many years together, many happy years, gone. Just like that.” She snaps her fingers on the word, and we watch as her eyes become teary. “All because of some stupid little threats from some stupid little men. Bub knows I can handle myself. Bub knows that… I–”

“It’s alright, Geraldine. We’re… we’re gonna talk to him about that. He’s just worried, you know? He has good reason,” Jake says. 

“I guess so,” she agrees. “Just… I miss the ol’ man. Shouldn’t be like this, boys. This shouldn’t be how things end up for us. Begged him to come live with me. He decided it’d be safer to just cut ties with me, altogether. Makes no damn sense…”

Jake and I exchange sullen glances, knowing well and good where Bubba was coming from in his decision, but still hating how the outcome has fallen. There is no good answer, for any of it. 

“Anyways,” she says. “You boys gotta turn yourselves in, you know that? Just do what they say, maybe they won’t take it to trial. Pay them with all that money ya’ll had buried up… whatever it takes,” she says. 

“We might get there at some point, but not right now. We’re gonna stay hidden, play dumb for just a little bit longer,” I explain. “‘Specially since learnin’ what Teddy’s guys are puttin’ you all through…”

“Screw Teddy and his boys!” she almost yells. “You boys listen to me, and you listen good,” Geraldine says as she stomps out her cigarette on the cracked pavement. Her finger is outstretched and in our faces, and I have to admit, I’m a little scared of her. “You two ain’t ever had a Momma to tell you what’s right and wrong, and I know Bubba did his best with you, and you did fine all by yourselves. So don’t take no offense to my advice. But life is short, so much damn shorter than you’d think. This ain’t no little charge, boys. This is serious. Murder by arson. You need to go to the law and turn yourselves in. Tell them the whole story. The truth. Start to finish. Don’t you be worryin’ about the part Bub played in it all, he’s a grown man. Can take care of himself.” She lowers her finger and glances around. 

“Thank you, Geraldine… for the advice, really,” Jake says, clearing his throat. “It all will come about in good time. I promise, you have nothin’ to worry about.”

Geraldine scoffs. “You two are all I’ve worried about since the day you left. Night and day.” I can hear the frog in her throat as she tries not to cry, probably so mad at us and happy to see us, all at the same time.

“Are you okay? Do you want us to stay so you can close up?” I ask, laying a comforting hand on her arm.

She shakes her head, her eyes peeling to the ground. “No, thank you honeys. I’ll be just fine. Got Dale in there with me, tonight. Retired Army. I’m in good hands,” she smiles.

The three of us stand for a second, feeling the heaviness of all that is happening falling down around us. The sky is bright and clear, and for the first time in a long time, I notice the stars. 

“You two get out of here, stay safe,” she says, ushering us along as she sniffles back a few tears. 

We begin to make our way back down the sidewalk, feeling probably as badly as she does. 

“Hey boys?” she says, and we turn back to her. “Tell him I said hello, and that I love him, and that I’ll be there in two days with his things,” she murmurs. “Tell him not to worry ‘bout me.”

We both nod in understanding, offering her small waves of goodbye. “He loves you too, we’re sure of it.”

—---

I know Jake didn’t plan it. I know he didn’t mean to. He probably had just started to get in his head, reminiscing on old times, simpler times when we were kids and had to walk everywhere we went. 

Before we had bikes, before we had motorcycles. Before we had trucks. Walking was the only way we could get around. And after some time, we’d worn a pathway in the grass alongside the road, meandering around the back of Wanda’s Motel, behind the post office and a few more dilapidated buildings, cutting through a field and along the edge of a fenceline. Until it made it to the curve going uphill, straight to Ace’s shop. To our home.

I don’t question him, I don’t try to stop him, I just follow him… 

He’s got Ace’s black leather jacket on, still worn and dirty and covered in cigarette burn holes, and I guarantee he hasn’t gone a day without wearing that thing since the weather changed. Guess it makes him feel close to him. 

Maybe it’s what drives Jake to walk up this godforsaken hill. Maybe he wants to see it for himself, maybe he wants to see if there’s anything left behind in the ash and rubble. Maybe he wants to say goodbye to Ace one more time, the right way, now that he’s found some peace in his life. 

I don’t ask, I just follow.

Jumping across grass-covered ditch lines, over big rocks and along broken pieces of concrete… I follow him.

We finally crest the top and the road levels out, and I can see it in the distance. The streetlight out front is no longer there, and the fence that bordered our property is almost nonexistent. All we can see is a big pile of wood and metal, piled almost as high as the building was, but not nearly as big. 

I feel a rush of nerves flow through me. This is going to be harder than I thought. 

We keep walking toward it, and I contemplate saying something to Jake, but when I open my mouth to speak, nothing comes out. Nothing even comes to mind. What is there to say? 

We cross the road onto the grass, still trying our best to stay hidden in the moonlight. He shoves his hands in the pockets of his jacket as we get closer to the property line, and I can tell that he’s taking some deep, centering breaths. 

Finally we reach the entrance to the lot, taped off and blocked with yellow caution tape. Fuck, this is not something I ever thought I’d see. 

We lift the tape and go under it, slowly and quietly making our way over to where the shop once stood. My heart rate flies as a strange feeling comes over me, that the place that was once our home is now charred and burnt and reduced to nothing–the way we once lived now feeling like a million years ago. 

It’s just…flat. All the junk cars in the lot are moved and in disarray, the outbuildings not connected to the shop are pushed over and still covered in black soot from the fire. The rubble still remains; pieces of tools and car parts and building materials are all piled and covered in ash. 

We kick around the mess, suddenly uncaring of if anyone sees us, or not. The breeze blows up little tufts of ash, and the scent is stranger than anything I’d ever experienced before. Like home, but incinerated. 

Jake’s still silent, I wouldn’t expect him to talk. We take off separate ways, looking around in the rubble for anything that might stand out, that might look familiar. I do catch sight of what looks like a few of my tools, and maybe even the remains of my toolbox. It’s melted and barely even recognizable. The feeling is so surreal, and so infuriating. How everything ended up, how Teddy was literally going to lock us in here, and make this building into our graves. 

I can’t lie, I get a little emotional at the flood of thoughts running through me. I’d had nightmares since that day of being locked in there and hearing the screams of Jake and Y/N, but completely unable to scream, myself. 

I wonder what was going through Teddy’s mind as it was all happening. Did he even know what was going on? Did he hate himself for it? Did he have any regrets?

“Probably not,” I whisper to myself, kicking through a little bit more charred wreckage. I glance over to Jake to see him doing the same thing, and I find myself wanting to console him. Wanting to go to him and try to make this better, when in all reality, this was just as much my home as it was his. I need consoling too. But still, it doesn’t feel right. 

“See anything you recognize?” I hear his voice from a few yards away, deep and sorrowful and aggravated. 

“Kinda, I don’t know,” I reply. 

“The burn pile is still there, look. From after the tornado,” he says, motioning with a tilt of his chin. I look over and see it, the large remains of the burn pile that we had all worked together to form to do away with all that was destroyed in the storm. The two of us walk toward it, and I remember that night like it was yesterday. The night we all worked together to clean up, then gathered as a family. When Jake played his harmonica for the first time in what felt like years. 

We take a few minutes and walk back to where the shop was, kicking around a little bit more. 

“Fuck, Jake. Look at this,” I say, crouching down to wipe the dust off what used to be the sign that hung at the entrance of the lot. 

‘Ace’s’ is all that is still legible, the rest of the letters and wording all broken from melting away in the flames. 

“Think we should keep this,” I say. 

Jake joins me at my side, the toe of his black boot kicking at the metal framing of the old sign. “You think Ace ever thought things would end up this way? All he ever worked for, torched in a fuckin’ blaze of glory?”

I stand back up, hissing through my teeth. “No. I don’t think he did. But, if he was still alive for all this shit, I think he would have done the same thing. Think he would have caught Teddy up in his own game, just like we did. Let him be the victim of his own fuckin’ stupidity,” I reply honestly. 

It’s quiet for a minute as we just stand there, taking it all in. Everything suddenly seems even more unfair than it did before. This place was shit, but at least it had heart. 

“I miss my toolbox. And my lift. How our showerhead had just the right amount of pressure ‘cause Ace took the water saver out,” Jake says very slowly, as if he’s remembering all the little things about the shop that hadn’t visited his mind since we left. “I miss my desk chair, and the sound the fluorescents made when you first turned them on. I miss the smell of the kerosene heater in the winter… I even miss all the damn grease that was permanently embedded in my hands.”

I laugh a little and nod, reminiscing on the old times, myself. It feels like a millennia ago, when in all reality, we hadn’t been gone long, at all. 

“But you know what I miss the most?” he asks, running his hand over his mouth. 

“What’s that?” I say. 

“How you used to turn that goddamned radio up so loud, it ended up being my alarm clock,” he grins, stuffing his hands in his pockets. 

I can’t help but laugh. “And you were never tall enough to reach the volume button.”

“Shut the fuck up,” he chuckles, slapping me across the stomach. 

“Hey,” I laugh, “it worked, didn’t it? Got your sorry ass out of bed when all you did was stay wrapped up with Y/N til fuckin’ noon.”

“No, not noon, don’t make shit up, Daniel,” he jests. “I never slept in past nine.”

I give him a sarcastic, disbelieving glance. 

“Ok, maybe noon a time or two. But can you fuckin’ blame me?” he replies. 

I quickly shake my head. “No, no I can’t. If anybody understands how hard it is to deny her, it’s me. Believe me.” 

He exhales a short breath. “Woman’s got me in a tailspin…”

I divert my attention to him. “What do you mean? Everything okay?”

He pulls a cigarette from the pack in his front pocket and lights one up. I notice he still carries Ace’s zippo. 

“Yeah, think so. We’re alright. Just…shit’s gotten a little confusing, lately. Little…hectic, I guess.”

I feel my brow furrow as I try to understand his less than descriptive explanation. “Hectic?”

“Yeah…” he lets the smoke flow from his lips as he tilts his head back to look at the sky. 

“You…you wanna talk about it?” I offer. 

He shakes his head. “Not really. She’s everything I’ve ever fuckin’ wanted, ya know? And I didn’t even know I wanted it, til she came around. Guess we just didn’t…guess I just have just started realizin’ lately that maybe I’m not ever gonna be the man she deserves, the one she needs.” 

“Goddamnit, Jake,” I say. “Didn’t you two have this conversation like, a hundred times already?”

“And didn’t you realize that we’re currently wanted for fuckin’ murder, Daniel?” he bites, his jaw locked in place as his eyes bore through me. Sometimes, just sometimes, Jake scares the ever living hell out of me. 

Like it never left him, his temper is still there underneath it all. 

“Jake,” I relay, “she loves you, man…she, she’s stuck around this long, I don’t think she’s gonna change her mind, now. I can see how she acts around you, I’ve seen it since day one.”

“Yeah.” He takes another drag of his smoke, letting it billow through his clenched teeth. He shakes his head a few times, like he’s trying to free his mind of the demons apparently haunting him. 

I know for a fact I’m not gonna break him free of it, I can tell by his body language that he’s still trying to work it out, himself. 

But I know him. I know him better than he knows himself. And if I had a twenty in my pocket, I’d bet it all on the fact that Jake is feeling conflicted on whether or not he needs to do the exact same thing Bubba just did to Geraldine. 

“Don’t do it, Jake. Don’t make the same mistakes your parents made… that Bubba just made—“

“Is it a mistake, Daniel? Hm? Feels more like protection for her, actually. I get why Bubba did what he did. I understand it completely. Because I’ve come this fuckin’ close to doin’ it, myself.” His voice is hitched as he leans in toward me, reminding me more of Ace as the minutes tick on. Gruff and dejected, like the world and everything in it is working against him. 

He walks away for a second, rolling his cigarette out between his fingers so the tobacco falls into the wreckage. “Last thing I want is for her to get caught up in this shit. Have her name attached to somethin’ she had no part of, all because I drug my fuckin’ feet fixin’ her Scout. She could have been gone by the time all that went down. Because I was lazy. Because I was selfish…”

“Jake, don’t blame yourself, fuck! I’m not innocent in all this, either! I could have been fixin’ her car, too…”

He rolls his eyes as he steps away again. “You don’t get it, Daniel.”

“Oh, I don’t get it?” I charge him, craning my neck as I approach him. “Just because I’m not serious with someone and havin’ to deal with this doesn’t mean I don’t get it, Jake. I can imagine how it feels…”

“Oh really? How?” he presses. 

“Because I wanted that with her! Okay? What you two have… I wanted it. It was short lived, and probably just my fuckin’ imagination, but…god,” I grit, my emotions coming through a little as a harsh breeze comes through and dust flies around us. “I thought about it. With her. A life. Settling down, white picket fence, all of it.” I shake my head as he just stands there, listening to me. 

“I’ve never had a woman make my mind think in that capacity,” I go on, more quietly now. “Fuck, you know me. My sex life is a revolving door. But that short amount of time I spent with her flipped my mindset on it’s fuckin’ head, okay? Made me realize that maybe I am capable of… love… with someone. The real thing. Sacrifice, all that.” I spit onto the ground, and kick some dirt over top of it. “Feelin’ left me as soon as it found me, though. Just disappeared one day, ‘specially when I realized that it was you she belonged with.”

I watch as he holds my gaze for a second before dropping it, swallowing down whatever it was he wanted to say. “So don’t tell me that I don’t get it. I may not understand it as completely as you do, as Bubba does, but I understand where your mind is, Jake. And we’re a fuckin’ team, we’re fuckin’ family. And Y/N is part of that family, now.”

He turns away, pulling his hand through his hair as he collects his thoughts. For a second, I knew that he was feeling jealousy for whatever feelings I used to have for Y/N, but I hope that he knows that I’d never ever do something like that. To either of them.

I watch as Jake twists on his feet, bending his knees to sit on the ground. I wait a second before walking over to him, taking my spot on the cold dirt beside him. We’re just on the outskirt of the shop, right where our kitchen table used to sit. The moon is almost full, and I swear I’ve never seen the sky so clear. I pull the bottle of whiskey from my jacket pocket, nipping a little off the top before handing it off to him. He swallows it down, never breaking eye contact with the moon.

“You ever miss the fights? The matches?” he asks.

“Fuck yeah, I do. Miss ‘em bad. Miss the adrenaline the most, I think,” I reply, swirling another sip around in my mouth to stave off the cold coming across the air. 

“Me too,” he says dryly. “One of the best fuckin’ feelings I’ve ever had. Ya know thinkin’ back, I don’t think I ever had any fear to step into a ring. Anxiety? Yeah, but. I don’t think I was ever scared.”

I nod in agreement.

“‘M scared now, Daniel. Real fuckin’ scared,” he mutters. 

I feel my blood boil in a way that I haven’t felt in a really long time. It’s not rage, and it’s not spitefulness, but the heat that finds my face alerts me that maybe I’m scared, too. 

“What if we don’t make it out of this? What if they throw us in prison? It would have been all for nothin’...” he says. “All the bullshit we tried to fight off… all the good things that have ended up happening to us…” 

“This is only the beginning of the road, Jake. We’ve got a lot more ahead of us. Who knows, things could go the complete opposite way we think they’re going to,” I say, trying to convince myself. It’s just natural for he and I to think that things are always going to go the opposite of our way. It’s all we’ve ever known. “Plus, we’ve got a lot more now than we used to have…”

He shoots me a sarcastic scoff, motioning around to the charred remains of our home around us. “Seriously?”

“Yeah, idiot,” I say, picking up a handful of dirt and tossing it at his chest. “We have our brothers. And Y/N… and Bub… We’ve got family now. And if you ask me, that’s the best thing we’ve ever fought for.”

“What are you, a fuckin’ poet, now?” he laughs, finally smiling. 

“Nah,” I breathe. “That ain’t poetry. It’s the truth. Since when have we ever had people relyin’ on us?”

“We haven’t…” he says. “We gotta call Josh and Sam.”

“Yeah,” I reply. “And soon. Do you and Josh not have any weird twin telepathy or whatever?”

We both stand from our places on the dirt, wiping the dust from our pants as we prepare to make the trek back to the truck. 

“Uh, maybe? I don’t know. If we do, he probably fuckin’ spazzing out worse than he normally is,” he laughs. “Oh shit, look at this…”

I look to where his finger is pointed in the dirt, trying like hell to get my eyes to adjust. He picks up a few burnt pieces of wood and tosses them aside, revealing a small piece of what looks like white paper. He picks it up and dusts it off, pressing it to the soft fabric of his t-shirt before taking a second look at it.

“Oh my god, I’ve never seen this…” He holds it out to me, and I finally focus in, realizing it’s a photograph of Ace and Stella. Stella is sitting on Ace’s lap, kissing his cheek with force, right here at the kitchen table. 

“How in the hell did this survive?” I ask astonished, carefully taking it from Jake, and noticing that there are hardly any burn marks on it, at all. 

He shakes his head slowly as we turn it toward the moonlight. “Beats the hell out of me…”

“You’ve really never seen this?” I ask.

“No, never. It must have been hidden somewhere… in his desk or something upstairs…" We both look up above us as if the building is still intact, realizing that Ace’s desk used to sit right above the kitchen, only a floor up. “They look so happy…”

“They were happy, man. Maybe not all the time, but…” I reassure him, knowing that this must be another heavy feeling for him, on top of everything else. “I think this is him tellin’ you not to be scared.”

“Maybe so…” Jake barely mutters before gently placing the photo in his pocket. “Let’s get the fuck out of here, huh?”

Just as we get our bearings and begin to make our way back to the road, we’re both met with the visual of a dark silhouette of someone in the distance, walking right toward us. All I can make out is a long coat, and the lit end of the cherry of a smoke. 

“Who the fuck is that,” I ask with a forced whisper, sturdying myself as I grip Jake’s arm. 

“Don’t know. Just… Just act cool,” he replies, his hand immediately going to the weapon stuck in the back of his jeans. 

The figure continues coming toward us, its feet moving fast and kicking up dirt. 

I can hear my heartbeat in my ears as the familiar feeling of adrenaline seeps into my veins. Jake and I share a brief moment of preparation to fight, and my mind begins to spin with possibilities of what we may be up against. As it gets closer, I can make out the figure of a man, shorter in stature and wrapped up in a trench coat. He wears a fedora style hat on his head, and there is a cigar between the fingers of his right hand. Reminds me a lot of Oz, save for his height and quicker-paced walk.

“Evenin’, fellas. About time you two got here,” he says as he approaches us, tossing his cigar to the ground. 

“Back the fuck away, we’re armed,” Jake warns. 

The man stops short, holding his hands up. “I’d assume you are, being wanted for murder, and all.” The smoke is still gliding from his lips as he comes into full view, now, revealing his face. He removes his hat and holds it to his chest. “I can assure you though, you won’t want to be using that gun, son.”

“Who are you?” I ask. 

The man exhales through his nose, extending his right hand. “Name’s Raymond Antone, Detective Raymond Antone, if you please.”

When neither of us return the handshake, the man awkwardly pulls his hand back and replaces the hat on his head. “Understandable,” he clears his throat. “I’m the agent assigned to your case, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you,” he says. 

Jake and I look at each other, dumbfounded and confused. “A pleasure?” I reiterate.

“Yes,” he says, matter of factly. “I knew it would only be a matter of time before you two drifted back into town. Everyone said you’d probably run, but. I had an inkling that you wouldn’t. Glad to say I was right.”

We’re struck silent, stumped on what to do, much less what to say. 

“Why aren’t you… why aren’t you arresting us?” Jake asks, still standing very close to me. 

“Because,” the man replies, “those press releases and facial sketches were just a ploy to get you two back here. And it worked.”

“Wait wait wait,” I say, stepping to the side. “So we aren’t wanted for murder? There are no charges?”

“Oh no son, there are charges. I just needed something solid to get you two back here. And fast.”

“You’ve got to be fuckin’ kidding me,” Jake says, turning his back. 

“Sorry, kids. The force ain’t made of money, couldn’t afford a manhunt for the two of you. Had to get creative with my tactics,” he says, almost as if he’s amused by it all.

“Can you do that? Can you lie to the public?” I ask. “Lie to people about what they’re being charged with?”

“Don’t worry about that, son. Legalities are the least of your worries, right now,” he says.

“No, they’re actually at the top of our list. We have a lawyer,” Jake lies. 

“And I’d like to meet him,” the man says, fiddling around in his pockets. He pulls out  business cards and hands one to each of us. He turns on his heels, and begins to walk back from the way he came.

Jake and I exchange confused looks again. “Wait, so… you’re just letting us go? You’re not gonna take us?” I ask. “What the fuck is going on here?”

Suddenly the man is charging back toward us until his face is within inches of ours. “You boys don’t understand even the half of what you uncovered, here. The fiery death of our friend Theodore in your beloved mechanic’s shop was just the tip of the iceberg, kids. Whether you like it or not, you opened up a can of worms larger than you can even fathom.”

The man looks us up and down, and turns to leave again. 

“Wait you– You’re trusting us to not leave Joslyn?” Jake asks.

“I am,” the man says. “Plus I’ve got LEO’s from all over the county making sure you don’t. You’re not under arrest, boys. But I need you here. Need you badly.”

“What for?” we ask.

Raymond stops again, lighting yet another cigar. “Character witnesses.”

He gives us a large, toothy smile before he’s on his way again, back toward whatever vehicle he had parked in the distance. Jake and I stand in utter disbelief, absolutely lost and confused on what just happened. 

“Character witnesses? For who?” I ask. 

“I don’t know,” Jake says. “But look at the card. Senior Agent Raymond Antone, State of Missouri. Drug Task Force.”

“Drugs?” I repeat. “Wha– Jake, what the hell did we do?”

He swallows, looking quickly from me to the card again. 

“It looks like we killed a kingpin.”

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[kaiserouo]

i think i have a thing for kay/o

[gretavangroupie]

Valor - (Chapter 1)

Pairing: Jake x Reader, Daniel x Reader

Word Count: 17.1k

Warnings: Cursin', Smokin', Drinkin', Allusions to Drug Use. Angst: Struggle and Poverty, Emotional Manipulation, Cheating, Abandonment, Jealousy, Mentions of Violence, Mentions of Weapons, Mentions of Death, Allusions to Suicide, Allusions to Shady Activities. Smut: Kissing, Allusions to Sex.

Valor Playlist: Apple Music | Spotify

A new project in collaboration with my talented co-writer @gretavanmoon.

HER POV

You could hardly see out the back window, your entire life piled up to the roof of the car. You were thankful on days like today, that you had a car big enough to fit it all. Your every worldly possession, reduced down to a handful of boxes and trash bags, now occupying your backseat. You shifted into reverse and turned your body to look out the back window of your old ‘73 Scout. Your eyes peeked through the visible sliver of the rear window, but not before catching sight of the dress you were slated to wear just 3 months from now. That, however, was the reason you were packed into this car in the first place. 

‘Go ahead and try to leave. You’ll be back when you realize I’m as good as it gets for you.’ his words still echoing through your head as if they were being played through a loudspeaker. ‘You need me. You have nothing without me. You’ll never make it on your own.’ And that’s exactly what he wanted you to believe. He’d told you that so often you wondered if it was himself he was trying to convince instead of you. 

You were set to marry Peter the second week of July. The plans were made, invitations sent. But as you stopped by his office to deliver his plate lunch, what you’d walked in on was not the scene of a man ready to be greeted by his soon to be wife. No, it was a very different scene, straight from one of those Playboy magazines you could buy at the Quik-Stop on Douglas.

You can still hear the sound of the ceramic plate shattering against the terrazzo floors. The gasp of air that left the lips of his new bookkeeper, sprawled out across his desk. You can remember the way the peas scattered across the floor in every direction and the way they felt smashing under your shoes as you fled his office. 

You waited for him to come home that night. Your things were already packed away in bags and boxes by the time he finally meandered through the front door of the apartment. Then came the excuses. The begging and pleading that quickly turned vicious and accusatory. The ‘maybe if you put out more, I wouldn’t have had to look elsewhere’ lines, that you knew to be a load of shit. You knew Peter wasn’t one to shy away from clearing his conscience at someone else's expense. Your mind was made up before he ever came home. You knew you couldn’t stay here, not with him. Not after this. 

You aren’t sure why you brought the dress with you. You could have easily left it at your mothers, letting it hang in her guest room closet to collect dust and rot until the end of time. But you didn’t, you knew that bringing it would give you that reminder of why you were leaving. So with fifteen dollars of gas in the tank, and your Bruce Springsteen 8-track, you and your things began the trek towards Atlanta, ready to start again. Ready to live a life uninhibited. Ready to find an adventure. 

—

The chorus of ‘State Trooper’ played through the fuzzy car speakers as you popped a cinnamon hard candy into your mouth. Your eyes caught sight of the welcome sign as you crossed the Iowa-Missouri border in a blur. It had been quite a few years since you’d been back to Missouri. Actually, you hadn’t visited since your family moved in the third grade. It was an abrupt move, your parents pulling you from school midway through the year with little to no explanation. You were placed in the back of your parents' Taurus and the life that you had known flashed by in a matter of the five minutes it took to make your way from one side of town to the other. You liked Iowa though. You made friends there, had a life and were active in school extracurriculars. It’s where you met Peter, and fell in love, though now that part didn’t exactly fit the narrative of your happy story. 

As the song began to fade out into the next track, you heard it. The metallic grinding beneath the hood. The hell is that? You spun the volume knob down to zero, listening again for the noise, wondering if maybe you had just run over something on the freeway. As you passed mile marker 22 you heard it again, louder. Whatever it was had your heart pounding in your chest. You didn’t know the first thing about cars, definitely not enough to fix anything. Then it became more frequent. Persistent. Something was really wrong. 

In a panic you pulled off the road into the overgrown grass of the shoulder, pulling out your roadmap and unfolding it across the steering wheel. You tried to get a sense of your surroundings, knowing you’d crossed the border not too long ago. You pinpoint your location in search of the next town you’d come across in what you knew to be a collection of nearly abandoned mining towns. A bead of sweat collected on your forehead, the wind dying down as the sun began to set. The impending darkness adds another factor of stress to an already stressful situation. As your finger traced a line up the interstate, you saw the familiar name. The place just on your mind mere minutes ago. You don’t remember too much about Joslyn, but what you do remember of it, is that there was an auto repair shop, and you were in desperate need if you were going to make it to Atlanta. With an estimated thirty miles to Joslyn from your current spot, you started your car back up, and pulled back out onto the road, praying you would make it there without doing anymore damage. 

The metallic noise seemed to stay consistent, but with every mile that passed you knew the dollar signs were adding up. Of course you took the money stashed away for the wedding, he didn’t get to keep that. Why should he? Consider it severance. However, car repairs was not how you wanted to spend that money. You planned to use it for a deposit and first month's rent on an apartment, hoping it would be enough to tide you over until you found a job. 

You knew you had plenty of useful skills, you were near the top of your class in school. You planned to work with Peter at the accounting firm after you married, and you hoped you’d be able to find a similar position in your new city. You were snapped from your daydreams as you saw the sign welcoming you to Joslyn, however, the old decrepit sign, about twenty years past needing to be replaced, sent a cold chill down your spine. The way it barely hung on to the wooden stakes made you feel anything but welcome, and your instincts told you to turn back. As you limped your car further into town, you realized that the vibrant city you left all those years ago had been in steady decline ever since. Homes abandoned and pillaged, with broken windows and spray painted siding. Cars sat deteriorating in driveways that were barely visibly under the overgrown grass and trees. You had no sense of ‘home’ despite this being the town you were born in. You barely recognized it, until you saw Louie’s. 

Knowing you would find answers there, you pulled into an empty parking space, almost afraid to pull the key from the ignition, wondering if it would turn on again when you got back inside. You grabbed your fringed purse from the passenger seat, and pushed your sunglasses to the top of your head as you jumped down from the driver's seat. The gravel crunched beneath your feet as you walked towards the front door of the diner, seeing a few older patrons lining the bartop and scattered through a few booths through the large windows. 

The bell rang as you pulled the door open, alerting everyone of your presence. Ten heads turned to look at you all at once, and suddenly you felt like a spectacle as you stood there in your halter top and waist hugging jeans. 

“Take a seat anywhere ya’d like, hun.” a lady in a pink apron called out from across the room. Her voice was gruff and far deeper than it should be for a lady, you thought. You made your way towards an empty bar stool, leaving a space between you and an older man in a newsboy cap, sliding his fork through a piece of cherry pie. You gave him a curt smile as you settled on the stool and placed your bag on the counter. It smelled good, and you felt a small rumble in your stomach as you watched plates being sent to the window. If you’d had more time you’d probably enjoy a late lunch, but you didn’t, so you couldn’t.

The same woman approached you, handing you a laminated menu and gesturing a coffee cup towards you in silent question. You nodded your head and smiled, placing the menu down on the counter. 

“What’ll ya have, sugar…” she asked, pouring coffee into your mug from the yellow stained carafe. 

“Oh, I’m great with just the coffee for now, thank you.” you responded, seeing her eyes rake over you with curiosity. 

“Just passin’ through?” she asks, placing the carafe back on the counter. 

“Sort of. I’m on my way to Georgia, but I think I need a mechanic to look at my car. Started knocking when I hit the border. This was the first town I thought might have one.” you answer. 

The lady’s eyes flash over to the man next to you. He looks over at you and looks back at her giving her a slight nod. “Yeah we got one.” he says, twisting his stool to face you. “You’ll have to try and get it down to Ace’s, well Jake’s now I reckon. But he should be able to get ya fixed up.” 

“Would you be able to give me directions?” you ask, digging into your purse in search of a pen. You grab a paper napkin from the dispenser, and click the end of your pen on the countertop as he nods his head. 

“Yeah, so you’re gonna take a left out of the lot here, go down ‘bout 2 miles ‘er so, you’ll see a Church of the Nazarene and take that left there. Go up that hill ‘bouta ‘nother mile and you’ll see a dirt road on your right. His shops’ at the end of the drive there. Can tell him Bubba sent ‘cha, and he’ll help out a pretty lady I’m sure of it.”

You quickly scribble down his directions, and toss the napkin and pen into your bag. “Thank you. I–I really should be going, It’ll be dark soon and I–”

“Should finish your cup there at least.” the lady says, leaning onto the counter. “You sure you’re not from ‘round here, honey? You look awful familiar.”

“Not exactly.” you say, cutting the conversation short. You place a few dollars on the counter and grab your bag, “Thank you. For the directions. I appreciate it.” you say, watching the man tip his hat to you as you make your way out of the diner and back to your car. Jumping into the front seat you send up a quick prayer that she’ll start and as you twist the key you hear the engine roar to life. 

With the napkin sitting on your leg, you pulled out of the parking space heading further into town. The clock on the dash read 4:43, and you hoped you’d catch them before they closed up for the night. You saw the church he spoke of up in the distance, what was probably once a pristine white building, was now showing wear and tear with no one to fix it up. You took the left, the metallic clicking beneath the hood growing louder as you pressed forward on the gas pedal to climb the hill. With the windows down the sound was deafening, the cool breeze blowing through the window alleviated the sweat forming on your neck. In the dissipating sunlight you saw the orange dirt road and hesitantly turned to travel down its short path. A multitude of old abandoned cars littered the premises, and you wondered if that was a good sign or a bad one. You slowed your speed to a crawl, the clicking from your engine announcing your presence as you pulled closer towards the building. 

Your headlights lit up the front of the building, an old gray sheet metal building, flash rust covering most of the sign that read ‘Ace’s Garage’. Two men in old rotted patio chairs stood slowly as you put the car in park. You shut off the engine and took a deep breath as you jumped out onto the dusty dirt road.  

“Hi, I’m sorry, am I too late? I know it’s close to closing.” you murmured, stepping around to the front of the car. They both just stood there in their faded blue coveralls that looked like they hadn’t had a washing in some time. The taller man had his unzipped and the sleeves tied around his waist. A dirty white t-shirt beneath concealed what seemed to be a plethora of ink adorning his body. Neither of them jumped to respond to you, and your eyes searched theirs for any sort of answer as the shorter man begrudgingly flicked his cigarette to the ground and stomped it out with his dirty boot. “Closed at 4:30.” he says.

“Shut up Jake. No. We heard you coming ‘bout a mile away.” the other, taller man said with a curt smile. His dark disheveled curls were tied up in a messy bun that hadn’t been touched since he put it there this morning. Wisps of hair surrounded his head in a halo of sweaty dark strands. “Doesn’t sound too good. Sounds like you’ve got something going on under the hood.”

“It just started doing it about an hour or so ago. Right after I crossed the border. Never heard it before, and I have a long trip ahead of me so I figured I should probably get it checked out.” you reply, twisting your hands around the strap of your purse. 

“Could be a number of things…” he pauses, stepping over towards your car. He places a grease covered hand on the hood of your baby blue Scout and turns to look at you. “These Scouts are pretty good little cars, but they are notorious for having engine issues. Afraid to say you might be a victim of that. Though, maybe it’s just a bad wheel bearing.”

“Nah.” the other man, who you now know as Jake, says suddenly, stepping forward slowly with his arms crossed across his chest. He doesn’t say much, just places his hand under the hood and opens the latch. He steps up on the front bumper, and takes a look into the engine compartment, resting his tattoo covered hands on either side of the frame. After a few quiet minutes he steps down, and closes the hood staring at the taller man. “Collapsed lifter, but that’s the least of her issues. Camshaft is fucked.”

“When did you say it started doing this?” the curly haired man asks. 

“About an hour ago. I know it’s bad but, what’s that mean?” you ask nervously.

“Means you better call your husband to come pick you up.” Jake said, looking out towards the field in the distance.

“Husband?” you question, seeing his eyes travel to the diamond on your left finger. You quickly flip it around and look back to him. “Oh, I’m not married. I don’t have a husband. I don’t live here. I was just passing through.”

“Shit place to get stranded.” he quips, turning on his heel and making his way towards the door of the car. He spits towards the ground as he pulls the door open and climbs inside.

“Stranded?” you blurt out, catching the eyes of the taller man. 

“Daniel, get her out of the fuckin’ way.” Jake says calmly, leaning his head out the window as he starts your car.

He grabs your arm and ushers you out of the way as Jake pulls your car forward into the empty bay beneath the buzzing fluorescent lights. He nods, motioning for you to follow him towards the garage, the air dusty as your tires kicked up dirt. The car shuts off and he jumps out, his boots making a loud thud as they land on the dirty concrete floors. As you follow Daniel into the garage he stops, placing his hands on his hips as he watches Jake lift the hood once more. This time, he grabs a ladder and a work light, hanging it from the inside of the hood. You look around at the garage, noticing the side you occupied was slightly more messy than the bay on the opposite side. Tools scattered about but in a way that you could tell they were exactly where they were supposed to be.

As you turned further you noticed a tan cover hanging loosely over a car parked between the two bays, you didn’t pay much mind to it, as your brain was bouncing from object to object. Your eyes caught Jake’s as he peered up from the engine compartment, quickly flicking them back down as he examined the condition of your motor. You let out a sigh and leaned backwards, resting your weight on the covered car. Daniel snapped his head in your direction seeing you before looking over at Jake. He quickly turned back to you, and pulled your arm to stand up again. “Probably don’t want to lean on that one. Here, let’s go find you somewhere to sit.” he said, walking you further into the garage. You looked over to Jake again, seeing him concentrated on his task, a single strand of brown hair hanging long in his face. 

You followed Daniel as he led you to a plaid nylon folding chair, similar to the ones they arose from earlier. The once white fabric was now a dingy, dirty gray, stained with oil and grease. He offered you a sorrowful smile as he gestured for you to sit. “Thanks.” you squeaked, checking your wristwatch for the time. 

Daniel walked back over towards the car, peering in as Jake inspected the damage. You watched his back muscles flex as he placed his hands on the open hood, his white t-shirt pulling tightly against his back. You could see the shadow of a dark image through the white cotton of his shirt, a large tattoo must be under there and you couldn’t help but wonder what it was. It was almost as if he could feel your eyes on him as he turned around to meet your gaze as he continued talking to Jake. Jake turned around too, catching your sight and you knew that the news they were about to deliver was probably not what you wanted to hear. 

Jake unhooked the work light, and closed the hood, stepping down off the ladder and wiping his hands on his coveralls. He used the back of his arm to wipe the sweat from his brow as he looked over towards you again. They both began walking over towards you, stopping short as they reached you. You stood to meet them, watching as Jake shoved his hands in his pockets.

He was the first to speak, “I can fix it, but I will have to order the parts. Don’t see too many of these come ‘round here.”

“Oh, so it’s an easy fix? Good, maybe I won’t be here too long.” you said cheerfully.

“No. I didn’t say that.” he bites back. “I said, I can fix it.”

You furrow your brow at his harshness and turn to Daniel. 

He rolls his eyes and looks at you, “What he is trying to say is that you need some major work done. We don’t have the parts we need– he needs, to be able to do it, so he will have to order them. Only problem is that the delivery truck only runs on the 15th of the month.”

You look down at your watch seeing the tiny ‘2’ in the window. “And today is the second…”

“Right.” he says, kicking his shoe against the floor. 

“I can call and order the parts tomorrow when the supplier opens, can give you a proper estimate then, but I’m gonna warn you that this ain’t no cheap fix.” Jake says, flicking his eyes up to yours. There is a smudge of grease on his cheek that catches the light. Your eyes travel down his face seeing a scattering of tattoos that decorate the side of his neck, disappearing down into the zipped coveralls. 

“I have the money.” you sigh, fiddling with the strings on your purse. 

Jake nods his head, “Right, well, see you tomorrow.” he says, turning to head towards a set of stairs at the side of the garage. 

“Jake. The fuck…” Daniel shouts, causing Jake to stop and turn around. 

“What.” he answers, slowly walking back towards you. 

“What do you mean, what? You’re gonna have to drive her down to Wanda’s.” he says, “I can’t take her on the bike.”

“No.” he says, far too quickly.

“Jake, what else is she supposed to do?” he says, throwing his hands into the air. 

“Dunno. Figure it out I guess.” he scoffs, trying to retreat again, before Daniel grabs his arm. 

“It’s Wanda’s or here. Make your choice.” Daniel growls.

“Why do you care?” Jake barks back.

“How about you quit being a prick for a minute? You’re going to take this nice, paying customer down to the Motel, so that tomorrow she can come back and pay for those parts, and you can fix her car, hm?” he seethes into his ear. 

Jake rips his arm from his grip, and walks over to the dirty, stained wall, snatching a set of keys from a hook. “Fine. Let’s go.”

You scurry over to your car, attempting to grab the few things you’ll need for a few nights stay at a motel, before quickly jumping down and looking around for Jake. You hear an engine roar to life outside the shop, seeing Danny pointing towards an old, Green Ford truck. His headlights flash on, practically blinding you as you start to walk towards them, turning to thank Daniel for his kindness as you run off towards your ride. 

—

The ride to the motel was silent for the most part, the sound of the static coming across the radio the only noise filling the cab of the truck. You sat shotgun while Jake rested his wrist on the steering wheel of the old Ford, the sullied fingertips of his opposite hand rubbing across his unkempt mustache as he slowly made his way back through town. 

“You can ask me.” He finally spoke, his eyes dashing quickly back and forth from the rear view mirror and the road. 

You cleared your throat, suddenly surprised he spoke. “Ask you what?”

“Where you know me from. I can tell you wanna ask.” He answered, his voice only a tiny bit louder than the rumbling engine. 

Damn, he was right. He did look familiar to you, and so did Daniel. But your mind was so frenzied with the anticipation of finding out what was wrong with your car, and then the news that the damage was far worse than you thought, that you pushed the thought far from your mind. 

“I mean, you do kind of seem…”

���…familiar? Yeah. I remember you.” He mumbled, his eyes still never traveling your way. “You went to St. James Elementary, right?”

“Yes…”

“So did we. Probably why you recognize us.” Jake turned the wheel a hard right, forgoing a blinker as he flicked his eyes to the rear view again. 

Ah, that makes sense. You had started the first grade here many years ago, and made it to the third before your parents ripped you away and set off toward Iowa. But the more you thought about it, the more you remembered them. Both of them. But that was over twenty years ago, how the hell did he remember you now?

“Shit, that’s right.” You glanced to the floor, trying like hell to stretch your mind back to the tiny hallways lined with lockers, and the playground out back where many of your earliest memories were made. “I remember now, you were what, a year older than me?”

“Yeah. Danny’s a few years behind me.” Jake reached in his front pocket and pulled out his half-empty pack of Lucky Strikes, patting the box on the heel of his hand before he pushed the lighter into the dash, waiting for it to heat. 

“So wait, you were the one that climbed to the top of that old Sycamore that day at recess…couldn’t get back down when the bell rang so you jumped down and broke your arm…” your memory probably didn’t serve you all the way right, but you couldn’t have made up the tall-tale. 

The lighter finally popped free, and Jake raised his left knee to steer the truck while he grabbed the handle, shielding the wind to light the butt of his cigarette. You watched as he inhaled, then cranked the window the rest of the way down to let the smoke filter through. 

“I didn’t climb all the way up. Just halfway. And I didn’t jump, I fell.” He tapped his cigarette in the tray of the dash, not caring one bit that the residual ashes fell into the floorboard. You watched them flutter down before fizzling out completely.

You laughed at the memory, finding it hard to believe that you’d found yourself here again, remembering things about your childhood that you hadn’t even come close to thinking about in years. 

“It wasn’t funny.” Jake said stoically, puffing the cigarette again. 

“Sorry. No, it wasn’t. But, I remember being glad you didn’t get hurt worse than you did.” You replied, hoping to warm up his ice-cold composure. 

“This is you.” He mumbled as he pulled into the lot of the old motel, the truck lurching forward as he put it into park. You popped the door open and slid out of the old bench seat, slamming the door behind you as you rounded the side of the truck to grab your suitcase from the bed. Jake didn’t get out of the truck or offer to help you with your bags, but after his less-than-happy attempt at making cordial conversation, you didn’t expect anything less. 

You perked back up to the open passenger window, seeing that Jake’s eyes were still darting from side to side out the windows. Why was he so paranoid? 

“Thank you for the ride, I really appreciate it. You’ll let me know when the parts get ordered, and I can give you the cash?” You asked, really not knowing any other way to go about this. 

He nodded his head, biting his cheeks in. 

“Okay, let me go check in, and I’ll come back and tell you my room number so you can phone me.” You said, walking toward the check-in office. 

“I’ll just call and ask for your room.” He muttered, throwing the gear shift into reverse. 

“But, you never even asked me my–”

“I remember your name, Y/N.” He spat, spinning his head around to check his surroundings before he whipped the truck from the parking spot, kicking up dust as he flew back down the road. 

——

Upon entering the check-in office, your eyes had to do little to adjust, as there were barely any lights on at all. The stench of the room itself was like must and rotting wood, with just a hint of Borax and lemon-scented cleaner. You glanced to the large counter that spanned the room, leaving your suitcase behind while you approached it. After a minute or two of waiting, you let your palm gently tap on the bell that sat on the desk, ‘Ring for Service’ written on an old note underneath it. 

“Hi, hello. Could I get a single room for the next week, please?” You asked the gruff woman that finally limped her way from the back room. 

“HUH?” She all but yelled, squinting her eyes as she held her hand up to her ear. She must be hard of hearing. 

You cleared your throat to speak a bit louder. “I’d like a room for the next seven nights, please.” You spoke loudly, mouthing the words clearly as you watched her read your lips. 

“Only room I got’s a double efficiency.” She barked, grabbing a pen as she lifted the glasses that hung from a chain around her neck to rest on her nose. You snarled your nose up in confusion, remembering that you only saw another one or two cars in the lot. 

“I don’t need something that large, it’s just me, if you want to put me in something smalle–”

“Double efficiency.” She said, writing down some number into her oversized ledger book. “It’s $35 a night. I take cash upfront for the whole stay. Fresh linens every other day.”

“Thirty-five a night? Ma’am, isn’t that a bit high?” Your voice was raised on its own now, out of pure surprise at the price. 

“Either that or you ride down to the new Ramada an hour and a half South, and seein’ as how Jake brought you here, it’s lookin’ like the double efficiency for yeh.” 

You seethed as she scribbled the math into her book, her jaws gnawing together as she chewed on nothing. “Two forty-five rate plus sixty-seven tax gives us…” she tapped away loudly at her printing calculator. “Three hundred twelve for the week.”

You felt like throwing up. That took a good chunk from the cash you brought along, but thankfully didn’t drain you completely. Luckily, the money you’d saved up for the wedding was well above what you’d need to survive on, so it didn’t hurt too badly as you begrudgingly counted out the bills from your wallet. 

“Write your name and date here, signature here.” She pointed in her book for you to sign next to room number 7. She smiled a large grin as you laid out the bills for her, her mouth showing no more than a few teeth. As she gave you her best fake smile, you noticed her right eye was almost completely glossed over with a blue sheen. “Need a receipt?”

“No, thank you.” You chirped, wanting to get the hell away from this eerie woman and into your double efficiency as quickly as possible. 

“I’ll bring fresh linens day after. No guests. Here’s your key, don’t lose it, I only got the one. Shower takes a good five minutes to heat, and don’t be smokin’ none of that grass in the room. Stinks up the place.” She said at a high volume while she wagged her finger toward your face. 

You raised your eyebrows at the irony of the smell of the place, nodding her way as you grabbed the key from the countertop. She turned away, taking your wad of cash with her back to the room she came from. “Name’s Wanda if you need anything.”

It was getting to be dark outside now, the dull streetlights barely illuminating the sidewalk enough for you to see the room numbers on the front of the doors as you passed. 

“Five…six…seven.” You whispered to yourself as you dropped the heavy suitcase beside you to fish the key from your pocket. As you slid the key into the slot and twisted the old knob, you were immediately met with the same stench as you were in the lobby. Old and grimey. 

You brought your bag inside and quickly turned to lock the door behind you, sliding the hanging chain into place. You inspected the room, seeing the two beds with old brown comforters laid across them, a nightstand in between, and a single TV on the chest of drawers in the corner. It’ll do. The bathroom wasn’t much better, and it looked as though the calcium and lime deposits on the shower head could kill a man. 

You sighed a deep sigh as you listened to your stomach rumble, your decision to forgo a late lunch at the diner earlier now seeming like a bad idea. The apple you had stashed away in your bag would have to suffice. 

After unpacking a little bit of your clothing from your suitcase and hanging a few things in the closet, you decided to turn on the television and tuck in early for the night. You twisted the knob, watching as the light on the screen came to life, the high-pitched squeal of the staticy screen making your skin crawl. You adjusted the antenna, trying your best to get a better picture of what looked to be the evening news, but it was no use. But, some sound was better than no sound. 

You slipped your top and jeans off and folded them neatly over the bed, planning on wearing them again tomorrow to save on any kind of laundry you’d end up needing to do. An old t-shirt from an old high-school boyfriend would have to be your choice of pajamas for the night. You flicked off the light, and climbed into the starchy sheets, the pillow feeling rock hard under your head. You shook your head as you looked at the ceiling, wondering how in the hell you got yourself into this mess. 

This was supposed to be an adventure. A period of regrowth. A time to just live, find yourself again. Maybe join up with a new tribe of people, try new things, see where the wind would blow you…

But no. You’re here in your old hometown in a sticky motel, with a broken-down car, and no dinner. On the first day of your escape. You crossed your arms across your chest, allowing yourself a second to pout. For a split second, you contemplated going back to Iowa, back to your mother’s, back to the comforts of home, but you’d never return to Peter. Not in a million years, the scumbag. 

You twisted up your nose as your legs rubbed across the hard mattress and scratchy sheets, wondering who the hell the last people to sleep here were, or worse, if Wanda had actually even washed them when they left. 

—

The sound of three quick knocks on your door awoke you from what must have been a light sleep, the noise making your heart immediately pound. You hopped up, snaking across the floor quietly and peeking out of the peephole. You half expected to see a murderer standing at the door, but then, why would they have knocked? 

Must be Wanda. 

No, she doesn’t care about anyone but herself, apparently. 

You squinted your eye to see a ruffle of dark curls in the pale light, standing and swaying back and forth while he waited for you to open the door. 

“Daniel?” You whispered, pulling the door open wide enough that the chain lock pulled taut. “What are you doing?” You pulled the chain free, opening the door all the way. 

His eyes popped out of his head as he took in a quick breath, the look on his face completely surprised, and a little embarrassed. 

“Hey, um…I’m sorry, I…” he muttered, pulling his arm behind his head. 

“No, it’s fine, you just surprised me, that’s all. Is everything…” you pause, noticing he wasn’t shying away from his awkward stance. You suddenly felt the breeze blow across your almost completely uncovered lower-half. 

“Shit!” You yelped, pulling your t-shirt down as far as it would go over your legs. You bounced back into the room, pulling the comforter from the bed to cover yourself. “I’m sorry, I completely didn’t even…”

“No no, I’m sorry.” Danny admitted from the open doorway. “I just came to…”

You wrapped the linen around yourself, a complete cocoon now as you waddled like a mummy back over to him with a shy smile on your face. 

He laughed, his bright white teeth a contrast to the dark complexion of his skin. You felt the pit of your stomach fall at the sight. 

“I just came to see if you wanted to grab a late dinner with me, seeing as how you can’t drive to get anything, and there’s no such thing as room service in a place like this.” He said, shoving his hands in his pockets. 

“Oh, no, Daniel, that’s awful sweet of you to offer. But, I had an apple, so I’m…all set…” you admitted, the pit of hunger in your stomach getting bigger as the minutes ticked on. 

He furrowed his brow. “You can…call me Danny, if you want. We aren’t complete strangers.”

You felt your eyes sparkle at him. Stop it, Y/N. 

You swallowed. “Okay, Danny…”

“An apple? That’s all you’ve had all day?”

“Yeah. And well, a few sips of coffee earlier…” you admitted, waving him off. “Truly, I’m just fine.”

He stood and stared at you a few seconds longer, his eyes slipping past you and into the empty room behind you. The light of the static-snowed screen reflected off his features, accentuating his face, his jawline, his lips…the tattoos that crawled up his neck…

“Okay, well. I’ll see you around then?” He stated more than asked, before turning on his heels and disappearing down the sidewalk. 

Shit. You were starving. And bored. And not sleepy anymore. And, after letting your eyes wander a little too long on him…you felt…

“Danny!” You called back, seeing him turn with anticipation. “Let me put some pants on?”

He grinned again, and began making his way back toward your door as you popped back inside to re-dress yourself. You quickly pulled your jeans and halter on, and took a second to fluff your hair without him seeing. You grabbed a light jacket and pulled it over your arms, and made sure to slip your room key into your purse before throwing it over your shoulder. 

You stepped back outside the door, catching Danny leaning against the wall smoking. “That was quick.” He said, blowing smoke into the air. You noticed it smelled different than what Jake smoked, it was sweeter and not as rancid. 

“Did you walk here?” You asked him as you locked the door, noticing that there were no new vehicles in the parking lot. 

“Hell no.” He chuckled. “I brought Ruby.”

“Who?”

As you rounded the edge of the building, you saw what he was referring to. An early model motorcycle, a little rusted and definitely dirty, but you could see the red paint peeking out from underneath the dust. 

You watched as he lifted his leg and straddled the seat, pulling his weight over to kick the stand up. He turned the key and revved the engine, walking it forward just a bit as you watched. He motioned with his head for you to hop on, of which you quickly denied. 

“No no, I’ll walk, it’s fine.” You muttered, the engine drowning out the sound of your voice. You backed away, crossing your arms nervously. No way you were going to hop on the back of a motorcycle with a man you hardly knew. In the dark in a strange town, much less. 

“Ah come on, it’ll take you twenty minutes to walk there.” He yelled over the purring, again tilting his head back for you to climb in behind him. He slowly pulled the tie from his hair, letting his elbow-length waves fall before re-gathering it, and twisting at his neck again. He gave you another side smile, raising his eyebrows as he playfully revved the engine again. 

Fuck it. 

You bashfully stepped forward, hiking your leg up over the seat to fit right in behind him, the seat forcing you to press against his back a little more closely than you were comfortable with. And to make things even more awkward, you weren’t sure what to do with your hands. You let them drop to your thighs as he walked the bike forward a little again, turning it before he caught pavement and took off down the road without warning. 

You squealed loudly, your unfamiliarity with riding on the back of a motorcycle startling you completely. Without hesitation and in fear of falling off, your hands wrapped around Danny’s torso, and your feet fell in behind his on the racks. 

“Oh shit!” You yelled as he took off down the road, your arms gripping him tighter as you tried to get your balance. You were positive if you let go for even the tiniest second, you were going to eat rocks. 

“You alright back there?” He asked, turning his head slightly. 

“No, not really! I feel like I’m gonna fall!” You admitted, the wind whipping your hair in all directions. 

“You won’t fall, I won’t let you.” His left hand came down to grasp your fists gathered across his chest, and slowly pushed them downward toward his stomach, instantly making you feel leveled out, and a ton more balanced. He patted your hands there, telling you to leave them. 

Then his hand found your thigh, running his hand along the outside seam of your jeans from your knee to right below your asscheek. What the fuck? Before you could slap the hell out of him, he gripped up under your leg, jerking your forward on the seat to press your chest hard against his back. 

Instantly more centered. 

“Is that better? Still feel like you’re gonna fall?” He asked through the wind. 

You gulped, the rush of the past 13 seconds making your head spin. But he was right, you no longer felt like you were going to topple over. 

“No, yes…it’s better…” you choked out as he began to pick up speed. 

“Good. Hang on.” He ordered, speeding up significantly as you barreled down the dusty pavement. And hang on you did. The wind across your face was literally taking your breath away, and making your eyes water. You blinked away the tears as you focused, truly getting your bearings and relaxing your body against Danny’s to get a feel for the bike beneath you. You took a breath and let your body fall into his back a bit more, the motions of his flexing back muscles pressed up against you as he lifted his foot to switch gears. 

What the hell are you doing? What is happening?

After a whirlwind two or three minutes, you were slowing down and pulling into the parking lot of Louie’s, the same diner you had stopped into earlier for directions. Danny slowed the bike to a crawl and walked it forward before lowering the kickstand. You instinctively pulled your feet to the ground too, only the tips of your toes reaching the dirt below them. 

“Don’t tell me that was your first motorcycle ride…” he said as he leaned his body weight to one side, standing all the way up on solid ground. You followed his action, letting your shaky legs hop off the bike with the help of Danny’s strong hand. 

“Yeah, uh. It was.” You tried to sound nonchalant, like it was no big deal, while on the inside, your body was screaming with nervous adrenaline. You patted your hands over your hair to calm your flyaways, trying your best to keep your cool girl composure. 

“No shit? Well, if I’d have known that I wouldn’t have taken off so quick. You felt like a natural once you got your balance…” he flitted his eyes your way as you began to make your way to the door. 

You gave him a shy smile back. “Are they um. Are they still open? It’s getting late…” you glanced at your watch, finding it to be 9:20pm. 

Danny swung the glass door open, frowning as you walked inside before him. “Oh, yeah. They’re open ‘til midnight. And it’s pork chop night, I never miss pork chop night.”

You walked inside the now neon-lit diner, finding many of the same shady-looking characters as you had seen earlier in the day. You nodded toward the man who gave you the directions to Jake’s, of which he returned with a curt smile. 

“Bubba!” Danny exclaimed, forcefully throwing two hands to the back of the man’s shoulders, startling him from his coffee. “Save any pork chops for me?”

“They’s a few back there, I’m sure. Ain’t too many people in today.” He answered, turning back to his coffee. “Geraldine! Danny’s here for his special!” The man yelled across the bar, moving sideways to see if he could see in through the opening in the wall to the kitchen. 

Just then the same woman in the pink apron waltzed through the double-swinging saloon doors, putting on a giant smile as soon as she saw you and Danny. She made her way around the bar, taking Danny’s face between her hands and squeezing his cheeks. “Evenin’, honey.” Her gruff voice said as she swatted his face. 

“Evenin’, Geraldine.” He answered, obviously this was a woman he respected. She turned and found her place again behind the bar, reaching into her apron pocket for her pen and order pad. You and Danny walked to a booth in the middle of the restaurant, and you moved to sit down before he stopped you. 

“Hmm-mm, let me sit there. Wanna see the door.” He said, grabbing your shoulders to scoot you sideways to the opposite booth. 

“Okay…what for?” You questioned. 

“I recognize this one from earlier today, hardly touched her coffee. You make it to Ace’s, honey?” Geraldine interrupted without making eye contact with you as she scribbled something down on her order pad. 

Danny cleared his throat and looked to you, raising his eyebrows. 

“Oh! Me! Yes ma’am, I barely made it, but uh. Got it there before it could die on me. They’re going to fix it right up.” You answered, feeling silly for having to practically yell your business across the diner to answer her. You watched the man you now knew as Bubba turn in his stool, holding the same flat smile as he did when you first came inside. 

“The normal, Danny?” Geraldine asked. 

“Yes please, thanks.” He replied, poking his wrapped silverware onto the tabletop. 

“And for the lady?” She went on. 

You looked down to see no menu in front of you, so you decided to go with your gut. “Um, I’ll have what he’s having?” Your tone was questioning. 

Geraldine smiled. “Pork chop in gravy, mashed potatoes, carrots, and peas, sweetie.”

“Oh, perfect. All but the peas, please.” You replied, watching as Geraldine nodded and made her way back into the kitchen. 

“Why don’t you like peas? They’re good for you.” Danny said, stretching his arm across the back of the booth behind him. You swallowed hard, recalling the memory of the peas rolling across the floor of Peter’s office. The smell of them smashed against your shoes, still fresh in your mind, and easily makes your stomach turn just from the thought. 

“Never been a fan.” You answered, resting your chin in your hand. 

Danny pursed his lips together, leaning in now across the table toward you. You watched as a tiny strand of hair fell in front of his eye, his tongue stuck to the back of his teeth as he inhaled. “I would’ve eaten your peas, Y/N. Tsk tsk.” 

You looked at him in amused confusion, unsure of what his angle really was. After being around him only a grand total of maybe an hour the entire day, you gathered that you could hardly tell if he was joking or serious at any given time. But his overall demeanor was kind, and playful, and he had invited you here tonight, so you intended on learning him better. 

Just while you were here, of course. 

Suddenly two steaming black coffees were placed in front of you, the aroma bringing your senses back to life again. “Cream, sweetie?” Geraldine asked, placing a tiny metal pitcher full of the milky liquid in front of you and turning away before you could answer. 

You poured the cream in, stirring it together until it was mixed, and you blew on it before you took a slow sip, Danny watching your every move intently. 

“Something I can help you with?” You asked him, commenting on his unwelcome stare. 

He snarled his top lip as he shook his head and readjusted in his seat. You took a second to look at him, hoping to maybe intimidate him right back. His dark waves still balled up at his neck, the loose strands falling as curls in front of his face and behind his ears. His tightened jaw and cocked eyebrow letting you know he was still sizing you up. His old black Ford Motors t-shirt stretched tightly across his buff chest and arms, the worn holes around the collar letting you know it was well-loved and worn-in. 

“So. Elementary school. You were there…” he finally spoke up, lighting another sweet-smelling smoke. 

“St. James, yeah. I think you were a couple of years behind me.” You answered, sipping your coffee. 

“Mhmm.” He hummed, taking a puff. “You left in the middle of the year.” 

“How do you remember that?” You asked, realizing he would have only been in the first grade when you left. 

“Because suddenly we didn’t have enough people to have even teams for kickball. You left and we were a man short. Had to ask Willie Addams to play and he couldn’t run for shit. Had the coordination of a fuckin’ baby giraffe.” 

You giggled at him, almost spitting out your coffee. “Ok, how do you remember that?” You pressed. “You were like 6.”

He shrugged his shoulders. “Jake says I have the memory of an elephant, whatever the fuck that means. Anyway, enough talk about zoo animals. Where were you really headed, Y/N? Before you got stuck here with us…” He leaned again, and you noticed his eyes began anxiously darting around, just like Jake’s had done earlier. 

You purposely waited for him to make eye contact with you again, finding it rude that he was looking everywhere but at your face after asking you a question. When he finally did, you answered. 

“I was heading to Atlanta. From Salvation, Iowa.” You replied honestly. “Why?”

“People don’t normally just casually cruise back through their hometown unless they’re looking for something.” He said dryly, taking a sip of his coffee. The white ceramic mug looked tiny in his giant inked hand. 

“Well I’m not people. I wasn’t looking for anything, I just—”

“So you were running.” He raised his eyebrows again, knowing he had struck some type of gold from the obviously surprised look on your face. 

You stayed silent for a beat. He laughed through his nose. 

“I wasn’t running, I was…just, getting away. It’s different.” You tried to dismiss his prying questions, wanting nothing more than for Geraldine to bring you a heaping pile of mashed potatoes so you wouldn’t have to go on about your wasted adventure with a man you hardly knew from Adam. 

“But you left home for a reason, right?” He went on. “If people plan to move, they usually bring along more than a couple suitcases and their old wedding dress, Y/N. You’re telling me you left your makeup vanity and trunk and sofa at home?” 

Fuck. You didn’t wanna talk about this. 

When you stayed silent again, he laughed in satisfaction. “You were running.”

You leaned in close. “Look, if you want to know every detail of my life, you’re gonna have to do a little more than invite me to dinner, Daniel.” You spat. 

“What if I already planned to do a little more?” He inferred, sitting back against the booth and running his hand along his slicked-back hair. 

You choked back. “That’s an awfully forward thing to say to someone you just met.”

“I didn’t just meet you. I knew you in the first grade. And I know I was upset when you weren’t there to play kickball any more.” His eyes began scanning the windows again, jumping back and forth as he spoke. Your heart began racing at his words. 

“Why do you care, Danny? About what I’m doing here?” You asked, truly wanting to know. 

He shrugged, taking another draw of his smoke. “You seem like a fun little challenge. I like challenges. Mysteries. Cracking codes…”

You scoffed. “Well, you sure as hell ain’t cracking anything of mine.”

“Yeah? We’ll see about that one.” The side of his lips curled up as you caught onto his flirtation.  Danny let his smoke hang between his lips as he rubbed his hands together, his fingernails still dirty from the workday. 

You were simultaneously turned off and turned on by his strange way of coming on to you; you knew that was what he was doing, but in some odd way, it was charming. You felt safe with him, even if his way of flirting was nothing like anything you’d ever seen before. 

In the nick of time, Geraldine brought your plates over, setting them in front of you with harsh thuds. “Alright one sans peas, one extra peas. Refill of coffee, and I’ll be back in a bit to check on ya.” 

“Thank you, ma’am.” Danny muttered. 

You held his deep gaze as you unrolled your silverware from the tight napkin, and dug directly in to the mashed potatoes without hesitation. He licked his tongue across his teeth as he followed your motions. The two of you ate in silence, and you let yourself enjoy the hot meal in front of you, wondering if Danny would let you forgo the motorcycle ride, and just walk home. 

After a basically wordless and slightly awkward meal, Danny sat and watched as you finished off your coffee, still pushing a pea around the plate with the end of his fork. 

“Good pork chops, right?” He finally asked. 

“Might be the best ones I’ve ever had.” You replied honestly. But you had been so hungry, you might’ve thought shoe leather sounded appetizing had you waited any longer. That apple was long gone. 

“I wouldn’t steer you wrong.” He growled, another sly smile creeping to his face. He stretched his neck, the thin lines of the spider web tattoo bulging over his artery. “What are your plans for the night?”  

You placed your napkin and silverware on top of the empty plate, pushing it back a bit to fold your arms across the table. “Sleep.” 

“Well that doesn’t sound like any fun.” He laughed, and if you didn’t know him any better, you would’ve thought he really didn’t believe you. 

“What? That’s really all I’m doing…what else would I do?” You asked sternly. “I don’t know anyone, I don’t have a car, this podunk town doesn’t have much to offer, Danny.”

He sighed as he put his elbows on the table, the sleeves of the tight shirt pulling against his biceps. You took a second to glance at his arms, tanned and bronze from the sun. The black-lined and barely-colored tattoos that covered his arms instantly piqued your interest, but you couldn’t let him know you were looking. In your three-second glance, you noticed the set of dice on the inside of his wrist, some type of messy writing along the inside of his forearm, and a tiger’s face peeking out from under the short sleeve of his shirt. And that was only the few your mind comprehended. 

“You’re right. Ain’t much here. But it can be a good time if you know what you’re looking for.” He raised his eyebrow in question. 

You shook your head. “Not me, thanks. I’d rather not have my face hanging on missing posters around town next week.”

“Why would you say that?” He was taken back. 

“Because you haven’t stopped darting your eyes to the door and out the windows since we got here. Your body language is forcibly relaxed, you’re a little on edge, and I think you’re kind of paranoid. I don’t know why, but you don’t seem like you feel safe in your own town, Danny.” 

He huffed an exasperated laugh. “Of course I feel safe here, why would I live here if I didn’t?” He said defensively. 

“How did you know what room I was in?” You asked, craning your neck sideways. “Jake left before I checked in today. Did you ask Wanda so you could keep tabs on me?”

You clicked your tongue as his eyes bulged from his head at your words. “That’s what I thought. Oh, and you have a switchblade knife stuffed in your boot.”

“How do you know that?” He muttered. 

“Saw it when your pants hiked up when you got off the motorcycle.” You pushed the plate a little further back on the table, and grabbed your purse to make your way to the cash register. You pulled a few crumpled dollars from your wallet and tossed them onto the table. You stood and came to the edge of the booth, leaning down close to Danny’s face to whisper. “If I didn’t know any better, it’d seem that you’re the one who’s running, Danny.”

You gave him a displeased look and turned, snaking your way through the empty tables to pay Geraldine for your suppers. “Thank you, sweetie. Y’all have a good rest of your evenin…” Geraldine said as the cash register dinged closed. You gave Bubba another nod before making your way to the door. You glanced back to Danny, who was still sitting stunned in the wooden booth. 

“You takin’ me back to the motel, or what?”

——

This time, finding your balance on the motorcycle was easy, like you’d been doing it for a hundred years. Danny hadn’t said a word since you left the diner, only offering Bubba and Geraldine a quiet “goodnight”. You pressed your front against Danny’s back, leaning into him as you wrapped your hands around his lower abdomen and sturdied your feet behind his. You let the shyness from earlier drift away, feeling more confident now that you’d spoken your piece to Danny. 

As he picked up speed down the busted pavement, you let your mind wander a bit. 

Ha, he thought he had you pegged. Thought you were another dumb female he could trick into his bed. Pshh. Asking you your plans for the night… please. Though going back to your room alone sounded less than exciting now that your stomach was full. And you were more awake than ever…and he had kind of offered…

No. No way. You didn’t know Danny. 

‘It can be a good time if you know what you’re looking for…’

No. Horrible idea. Sleep. 

Shower, and sleep. 

Just as you made your mind up, you felt Danny’s hand run along the outside of your leg again. What is he doing? He wasn’t cautious, he was confident. Like the motion was the most natural thing he’d ever done. You could feel the heat from his hand radiating through the denim of your jeans, and though his touch was unwelcome, you let it happen. Why were you letting it happen?

He didn’t need to pull you forward into him like he had earlier, you were already pressed against him as far as you could get. You watched as his shoulder flexed as his arm reached back and down to your leg, his fingers gliding lightly over your thigh while he steered with his other hand. Shit, the heat of his touch…

You let your chest press into him just a little closer, and the contact made your nipples instantly stand at attention. Your choice to not wear a bra tonight was silently working against you. But damn, you couldn’t deny…this man was attractive. Very attractive. And you already couldn’t deny the physical chemistry between you, his hand so nonchalantly petting your thigh while his other gripped the handlebar. 

You felt him take a deep breath, his grip tightening on your leg muscle. You realized your other hand had been resting gently on his stomach, holding on tightly as he navigated the bumpy streets. In an act of pure confidence, you let your thumb drift a few inches down, and loop into the hem of his jeans, your other fingers gripping onto his leather belt. With your motion, his hand tightened again, his thumb swiping back and forth as he let his hand drift further back. 

Your mind was frenzied, suddenly your stomach felt tightly wound with an unknown and unwarranted anticipation. Danny removed his hand from your thigh, and kicked his right foot a couple times to shift the bike down. He gripped the bars and turned, and suddenly you were in front of your motel room door. Damn, you hadn’t even noticed you were here already. 

He pulled the kickstand down as he shut off the bike, and you quickly pulled your hand from the way-too-intimate place near his groin. He stood and stepped off the bike, and you followed behind. You cleared your throat as you resituated your purse on your shoulder, suddenly feeling exposed. You pulled your jacket over your chest, and reached into your bag to find the room key. 

“Thanks for the ride.” You purred. 

“Thanks for dinner, I was supposed to pay, you know. I invited you out…”

“No, no. It’s my pleasure, seeing as how you thought of me, and all.” You answered, making your way to unlock the old doorknob. You felt Danny follow behind, walking you to the door. He had shoved his hands in his pockets, and his closed-off demeanor returned, quite the opposite of the confidence he dripped on the bike. 

You unlocked the door and pushed it open, flicking on the light inside. Danny stood in the threshold as you dispensed your purse on the table. 

“You were right. I did ask Wanda what room you were in. And before you get freaked out, it wasn’t because I was trying to keep tabs on you. Not in the way you’re thinking, at least.” He said, glancing side to side down either way of the sidewalk before he stepped inside the room just a little. “Y/N, look. You’re right. This town can be dangerous. It ain’t a five-star city. There is a lot that goes on behind closed doors here. So yes, I wanted to know where you were because—”

“You want to keep an eye on me. I get it. I owe you and Jake money, still.” You quipped, unsure of how to feel about that. 

He nodded slowly, leaning his shoulder on the doorframe as he crossed his flexed arms. “Well, yes, but…It’s more for your well-being, Y/N. That’s all. There are some…shady creatures here.” He mumbled, stepping a little further inside. 

You slowly sat down on the bed, feeling the stiff mattress squeak beneath you. His steps were heavy as he came further inside, slowly, his eye contact making you feel like you were going to forget how to breathe. You leaned back on your arms, the gritty brown comforter rough under your fingertips. “Are you one of those…shady creatures?” You asked, barely above a whisper as you found him standing almost directly between your legs. 

He lifted his almost completely-inked hand and pushed away a tiny strand of hair that had fallen across your forehead, brushing it back to join the rest of your hair. Your heart rate picked up at his subtle touch, his calloused and dirty fingertips just barely grazing the side of your face. “Guess it depends on who you ask…” his words were slow, his bottom lip biting slowly into his mouth as he spoke. 

Your breath caught in your throat, and you instantly felt the same chemistry as earlier begin to ravage your body again. He was towering over you so close, your legs pressed apart by the outsides of his. His knees touched the edge of the bed, and you could tell his hands were arguing with his brain about touching you again. Somewhere. Anywhere. 

He pushed your hair back again, drifting his hand down your cheek and finally to your chin, his thumb and pointer working as a team to slowly crane your neck up to look him in the eyes. Your hands were begging you to rake your nails up underneath his tight t-shirt, just to get a feel of what was beneath it. But you didn’t. 

“You’re different, aren’t you, Y/N?” He finally whispered. 

“Mmm, what do you mean?” 

He furrowed his brow as he lightly squeezed your chin between his fingers, his eyes studying every detail of your face. 

“I dunno…you just have something about you. Can’t quite put my finger on it yet.” He bit his lip again. You felt a ragged breath escape your lungs, and you hoped to god your body language wasn’t reflecting how you felt right now. 

“But, I intend on figuring you out.” His thumb drifted up a bit, barely ghosting over your bottom lip. It took everything in you to not pull it into your mouth, reach your tongue out and taste him, but you stopped yourself. Can’t go there tonight, as much as you really wanted to. 

Against every coherent thought, your knees pressed in toward each other, searching for some type of relief, causing Danny’s body to move in a bit closer to you. A low laugh left his chest as he continued to brush his thumb over your lip, pressing a little harder when you made him fall into you. “A fuckin’ gem, aren’t you?” 

You swallowed, unsure how to answer. Or how to think, for that matter. This gorgeous man standing between your legs in your hotel room, you barely know him at all…but already you felt like you could grip the soft cotton of his t-shirt and yank him down into the bed beside you, and have your way with him until the sun came up. Because, what do you have to lose?

“Will have a ride for you tomorrow. Get some sleep.” He muttered, his eyelids hooded over his deep brown eyes as he peered down to you. You watched his Adams apple jerk as he swallowed, regaining the same composure you were begging yourself to find. He stepped back and turned to exit through the still-open door. “Lock this behind me.”

And before you could gather even the simplest thought, he was gone. 

—

You stood naked in front of the scratched and lopsided hanging mirror in the bathroom, waiting the long five minutes for the shower to heat, just as Wanda had said. Your skin was still flushed from the close intensity from Danny just a few short minutes ago, and your heart rate was just now slowing from the interaction. 

Shit. You aren’t supposed to feel these things…you just left Peter. You were on the search to enrich your life, go wild, not add drama and danger to it…

But, you had set out in search of an adventure, could this be it? Could this strange, gritty, already confusing mechanic be your ticket to letting loose? You’d never had those young years to explore yourself and sow your oats; Peter was one of your very first serious boyfriends ever, and one of only a handful of partners you’d had before that. Half of your mind was terrified from Danny’s words of warning, and the other half of you said fuck it, chase it. Why not? What do you honestly have to lose at this point? 

You stepped into the now steaming shower and began to suds up the plain white bar of soap that was wrapped up on the countertop. You let the hot streams of water calm your muscles and your nerves as you ran over the events of your crazy day. 

‘Will have a ride for you tomorrow…’ 

What did that mean? You chalked it up to he would probably be picking you up again in the morning to go back to the garage to give a down payment, or something. Either way, you’d wake up to a new day, and you were already hoping it’d be just as eventful as today. 

——

The growling sound of an engine outside the motel startled you from your daydream as you watched the picture on the television blur and scatter back and forth. A glance at your watch told you it was 10am exactly, and you walked to the peephole to see who had pulled up. 

It wasn’t the person you expected to see. You unlocked the door and swung it open, the still misty morning air chilling your face. 

“Jake, morning. What are you—”

“You ready to sign your quote? I’m ordering the parts today.” He interrupted as he slammed his truck door shut. 

“Yeah, yeah. Just let me grab my bag.” You stepped back inside, slightly confused; you fully expected to see Danny pull up on his motorcycle to whisk you away again. 

You stepped outside and locked the door behind you, and you and Jake both hopped up into the truck. Jake was silent again, and you were coming to realize he didn’t speak unless it was completely necessary, or unless spoken to. He was a man of few words, but you gathered that he probably wasn’t being outwardly rude, just was his nature to be quiet. You hoped, at least. 

He reached down and cranked his window, the air blowing his freshly-showered scent around in the cab of the truck. The scent of Brut after-shave tingled in your nose; you’d know that smell anywhere. It made you look his way, seeing that his skin was actually visible now that he wasn’t covered in grease and dirt. His hand gripped the tree, shifting it to third as his speed leveled out on the road. 

His hands were completely covered in tattoos just like Danny’s were, and they crawled up his wrist and forearm, all the way to his shoulder and into his neck. His cutoff t-shirt exposed his chest and side, also covered in a swirling piece of art that was laced with deep reds and blues. There were hundreds of them. And you were willing to bargain that each and every one had a story. 

His ever-present cigarette hung between his lips as he stayed focused on the road, his shoulder length locks whipping around in the wind. You hadn’t seen him like this yet…clean, natural, and normal. His demeanor was the same as it was yesterday, straightforward and no-nonsense. 

“That’s yours, if you want it.” He gestured between you on the bench seat, pointing to a large biscuit wrapped up in wax paper. “I couldn’t eat two.”

“Oh, that’s nice of you. Thanks.” You began to unwrap it and tear off little pieces, bringing them shyly to your mouth. “Didn't poison it, did you?” 

He huffed what you think was a laugh through his nose. “No. If you died I’d have to steal the part money from your purse, and I don’t want to do that.” Was that his attempt at a joke?

You giggled, again unsure how to take him. 

“Where’s Danny? I figured he’d be the one scooping me up after last night.” You asked, taking another bite of biscuit. 

His head shot your way, his eyes narrowed. “Last night?”

“Yeah, he picked me up on his bike, we got some food at Louie’s. Said he’d be back today.” Now that you thought about it, he never actually said he would be the one picking you up, just that there would be a ride for you here today. 

“Ah, so he took you on a date.” Jake muttered, his voice low again over the radio. 

“No, it wasn’t a date. He just invited me to eat with him. Knew I shouldn’t walk through town to get food by myself. He was being thoughtful.” You suddenly felt defensive of Danny. 

“Thoughtful. So, a date.” Jake responded, blowing smoke out the window before flicking the cigarette onto the road. 

“So what if it was?” You decided to play along. “What would it matter?” 

He shook his head with a mock laugh. “Danny is a nice guy, but he doesn’t take women on dates. That I can assure you.” 

You felt offended. “So, what, just a one night stand kind of guy?” 

Jake let a one-syllable laugh fall from his lips as he raised his eyebrows, shifting back down to make the tight turn up the hill to the shop. “Guess you could say that.” 

Why was he always so vague? 

Just as you were nearing the shop, Jake reached his arm across the bench seat and across your lap, leaning almost all the way onto you to crank the window all the way down. He rolled the handle quickly, his bicep muscle flexing hard right in front of your eyes. 

“Oh, sorry, I could have done that–” you sputtered. 

“It’s a son of a bitch to roll, requires a little bit of elbow grease.” He said before throwing the truck in park and shutting off the engine. “I’ve got your paperwork ready, all you have to do is sign for the total and put half down. Rest will be due when it’s fixed.”

He was halfway out of the truck and still talking, so you clambered your way out, too, to make sure you caught the tail end of what he was saying. The two of you walked into the shop, vehicles already pulled into the bay with the hoods popped. Loud music was coming from an old radio on a high shelf, an old Johnny Cash song bouncing off the walls. 

“Daniel, can you please turn that fucking shit down? Jesus Christ!” Jake yelled. 

You watched as Danny’s curls emerged out from underneath an old Cadillac, his feet pushing him out as he laid on a creeper. He gave you a quick tiny smile when you made upside-down eye contact. 

“When you open the shop on time and get in here when you’re fuckin’ supposed to, maybe I’ll consider your goddamn propositions, Jake. I mean shit, we live here.” He rolled all the way out and stood from the creeper, watching as Jake slowly ascended the old metal stairs on the side of the building. “I’ve been the only one here since fuckin’ 7:00. Why the fuck would I turn my music down if I’m the only one getting my fuckin’ hands dirty?” Danny spat. 

You looked up onto the lofted area of the shop, watching as Jake topped the steps and walked across, flipping Danny the bird from above before looking to you and switching his middle finger to his pointer, signaling for you to ‘come here’, and follow him up the stairs. 

You hopped into action, making your way to the staircase to follow Jake to the top. When you got up there, you looked around to find this was the office area. Tons and tons of old papers stacked away in messy piles, collecting dust and dirt. Boxes that held forgotten parts, shelves filled to the brim with old 3-ring binders, dusty photos on the wall, and in the center of it all, an old wooden desk with a chair that had seen better days. You watched as Jake pulled the string hanging from a single fluorescent light, plopping into the chair as the light buzzed to life. 

He pulled on a pair of thin wired readers, peering down to a ledger that looked similar to the one Wanda took your room reservation in. He was fingering through a parts manual and double checking his work on a calculator, so you took a second to look at a few of the black and white photos hanging framed on the wall. 

One, a larger photo, hung right in the middle of the rest. It was a man in a white tank top, dirty as can be, a pair of old slacks pulled up to his belly button. He was leaned with his back against an old black Chevelle, a cigarette hanging from his lips. He wasn’t smiling, just standing stoically with his arms crossed across his chest. He looked strikingly exactly like Jake, except the photo must have been taken when the man was a bit older than Jake is now. 

“Jake, this man looks just like you…is he—”

“Was. My father, yes.” He said, voice flat. 

“Handsome…” you muttered. “Was this his shop before it was yours?” 

He nodded, still looking to his ledger. “Yeah. Ace.”

You pulled your eyes from the photo, walking slowly back to the desk. “Ace…Ace’s garage. How long has he…been gone?” You wanted to put the words right back into your mouth as soon as they left it. It wasn’t any of your business. 

“He died the day before my eighteenth birthday. You wanna come sign here?” Jake said, extending a pen out for you. 

Damn, Jake. That’s heavy. 

You walked over to take a look at the estimate, seeing that the price was actually not as much as you thought it would be. “So half now, half when it’s done?” You reiterated, signing your name across the slip of paper. 

“Yep.” He responded shortly. 

You reached into your purse and pulled out the white envelope of your cash, counting it out in hundreds and fifties. As you slowly counted out loud, you took special care to run your fingers over the stiff new bills, making sure none stuck together. In the middle of them all was an old fifty dollar bill, a giant red “X” drawn across the President’s face. 

“Someone didn’t like Grant, I guess.” You laughed, trying to break the awkward silence as he watched you count. 

When you were finally finished, you gathered the bills up and handed them to Jake in a nice neat stack. “Thanks.” He said, taking the cash and stuffing it in a till box before shoving it in a safe. 

“Thank you. Hey, think I could use your restroom really quickly?” You asked, feeling like your bladder was about to burst with shitty motel room coffee. 

He threw his glasses down onto the table and pulled the light off, giving you a funny look before leading you back toward the stairs again. “Only bathroom here is mine and Danny’s, probably ain’t the cleanest.” He said as he quickly jumped down the steps. 

“It’s no problem.” You answered. How bad could it be?

He led you underneath the loft and through a door, into a dark hallway with multiple doors. “Last one on the left.” Jake hit the wall with his palm before walking back into the bay. 

This must be the part they live in. As you passed by the other doors, one was closed, and the other was cracked open to reveal what looked to be a messy bedroom. A mattress on the floor covered in disheveled blankets, liquor bottles on the makeshift nightstand, and clothes strewn about. 

When you finally reached the bathroom door, what you found inside was nothing short of disgusting. Although he had warned you…

One light bulb hanging from the ceiling, the sink full of hair and stained black from the grease off their hands, a completely black toothpaste tube that didn’t have a lid, flattened toothbrushes that were missing half of their bristles…

The list went on as you looked around in utter disgust. Men are so gross.  You were positive the place had never been cleaned. 

You swallowed and held your breath as you opened the broken toilet lid, finding it less-than-desirable with a ring in the bowl. You shuddered at what you were about to do, but if you didn’t pee right now you were going to have to resort to the woods out back. Would probably be cleaner out there, actually…but at least there is toilet paper. 

You tried not to think too hard about it as you quickly relieved yourself, using a small piece of toilet paper to touch the lever handle to flush. 

“Ew ew ew ew.” You mumbled, deciding to not even wash your hands at the risk of dirtying them further. But even if you had, your drying options were toilet paper or their stained to hell bath towels hanging over the rod.

You were entirely grossed out, and decided to get back out to the bay as soon as you could. You flicked the light switch and reentered the hallway, noticing that the closed door across the way was opening at the same time. 

To your surprise, a woman emerged from the room, slowly closing the door behind her. She had to be about ten years your senior, at least. 

“Hey, Sug.” She murmured, rubbing sleep from her eyes. When she turned to face you, you noticed what she was wearing. 

Danny’s black Ford Motors t-shirt he had on last night. 

Your stomach dropped, suddenly it hit you exactly why he wasn’t the one picking you up this morning. 

You gave her a tight smile and a simple “Good morning” as her keys jingled in her hand. Her makeup was definitely left over from last night, and she was carrying a pair of red high heels. 

“I haven’t seen you ‘round here before…” she said, her voice still raspy with sleep. 

“Oh, I’m…I’m a customer. They’re fixing my car. Just was…using the restroom.” You explained. 

“Oh honey, no one’s ever just a customer…” She winked, before leading the two of you back out into the bay. 

Whose room did she just come from?

—

JAKE POV

Fuck this god damn piece of shit Chevrolet. 

Two weeks you’ve been working on this fuckin’ truck, and in those two weeks you had gotten barely anything accomplished with rebuilding the motor. And now you had another to do on top of it.

Isn’t it supposed to be Fords that have engine trouble? American muscle my ass. They’re all shit. 

You stepped up onto the step ladder and peered back down into the belly of your newest arch-nemesis, cursing at its guts with every turn of your wrench. You look down to the floor spitting before turning your attention back under the hood.

Come on Ace. What is wrong with this son of a bitch? Help me out…

You glanced over to Danny, watching as he walked outside to empty his stomach again after the late night he’d had. Out all night drinking with his latest piece, stumbling back into the shop at 3am. Then he was back up at 7? You weren’t sure where he got his stamina…maybe he just didn’t sleep at all. 

As you compiled the list of parts you’d need for Y/N’s engine last night, Danny swung by your office to tell you he was leaving, only to peer over your shoulder and see her name at the top of the Quote sheet.

“She’s a fuckin’ smokeshow…” 

“Can you please try not to sleep with this one? She seems like a decent human being… You don’t have to sleep with all of them you know.” you’d joked. 

“Jesus, Jake. I’m not that bad of a person. Cut me some slack. Just cause you haven’t gotten laid in few months doesn’t mean you have to shit on me…”

You’d pushed up from your chair and slammed your hands into his shoulders, pushing him back against the wall behind you, but his height was no match for you. 

“Fuck you, Daniel. Just…listen to me. I saw her making eyes at you…Don’t fuck this up for us.” you said. 

“Did you really?” You’d watched as his gears began to turn. “What was her room number?”

“I don’t fuckin’ know, Danny. You’re not going to her motel. Just leave her be.” You tried your best to warn him nicely. “Like you told me, she’s a paying customer. We need her to pay us…”

He sighed when he realized. “Shit. You’re right, damnit. Okay, okay. I won’t go.”

But, from the conversation you had with Y/N on the ride in this morning, you realized the fucker lied to you. He went anyway and she was clearly all about it. 

You wanted to warn her. You tried to tell her that Danny was a one night stand type, that he didn’t wine and dine like the regular guy would, but apparently she didn’t listen, either.  

As a bolt finally popped loose, it fell into the engine, tipping you over the edge of insanity.

Fuck! This! Truck!

You jumped off of the ladder and went over to the fridge under the loft, grabbing a cold Budweiser from the dirty shelf. You held the neck of the amber bottle on the edge of your toolbox, smashing your fist down on the lid, effectively popping it off. You tilted it back, letting the cold beverage run down your throat as you swallowed. Nothing like a breakfast beer. 

Just then, you heard the shop door close and two sets of footsteps making their way out. All you could do was watch as the perfect storm brewed right in front of your eyes. How the fuck was he gonna explain this one... Y/N, Danny, and whoever his woman of the night was, all waltzing into the middle of the bay at the exact same time. As you caught sight of the woman you let out a scoff. 

Fuck, Danny. 

Tanya. The woman that lived in that house down on Robertson, hardly any personality at all, great tits, and apparently she was a panther in bed. Or so you’d heard. She was nice enough, and Danny always ended up bringing her around every couple of months. You didn’t dislike her, but you sure as hell didn’t want to be her friend, either. You didn’t trust her as far as you could throw her, and last you heard, she was involved with some folks you didn’t need to be associating with. 

You paused with your beer in hand, sticking the other in your pocket as you watched the scene unfold. Your fingers twirled around a lug nut as your eyes followed Tanya, walking directly up to Daniel, wrapping her long skinny arms around his neck, and pulling him in for one last long, and especially involved, goodbye kiss. This wasn’t her typical goodbye, and you knew she was marking her territory in front of Y/N. Which is why you laughed, knowing that she wouldn’t hear from Daniel for at least a month. However, it wasn’t lost on you, the tense nature of Daniel’s body as she kissed him. His eyes open wide and looking across the bay towards Y/N.

Your eyes drifted directly to Y/N, watching as her face fell into utter disbelief. Her jaw fell slack for a second before she clamped it shut again, obviously feeling something unexpected from the sight in front of her. Whatever little daydream she had dreamed up between the two of them had all just come crashing down.

You noticed she suddenly felt out of place, bringing her embarrassed eyes to meet yours in question. You smirked, raising an eyebrow as you sipped your beer as smugly as you could. You shrugged your shoulders and raised your beer bottle in the air towards her as you watched her face flame red.

Hate to say I told ya so, baby. 

—

HER POV

You have got to get out of here. 

But where the hell are you gonna go?

You let your feet carry you out the bay garage door out into the heat of the day, wanting to be anywhere but inside that damn building right now. Why did it matter? Why did you care?

The moment you and Danny shared last night was anything but fantastic, but it was still there. It was intimate, though he had done nothing but skim his fingertips across your face. 

You didn’t care. It’s no big deal. 

But why did he look at you while he kissed her? And why was Jake so amused by it?

You stomped across the dirt parking lot to your Scout, flinging the door open to dig around and find anything that could offer up a distraction. You unzipped a suitcase, finding all of your clothing still neatly folded and tucked away. Underneath a pair of old ratted bell bottoms, you pulled out your ticket to diversion from Danny for the rest of the day: Maya Angelou’s complete collection of poems. 

Perfect. 

The book was worn around the edges, you had read it so much as a kid. You practically had every poem memorized. 

After replacing your folded clothing neatly back in the suitcase, you decided you had to make your way back inside at some point…you knew they had a full workday ahead, and it would be rude to ask for a ride back to the motel at this point. 

You slammed the door shut, shielding your eyes from the bright sun directly above. The shadowy silhouette of Tanya was walking toward you as you walked toward the building, still barefoot and wobbly as she crept across the dirt and gravel toward the road. You swallowed hard, knowing an interaction was unavoidable at this point. 

“Catch ya around, sweetcheeks.” She said as your paths crossed. She let her body come close to yours, her shoulder bumping into your chest as she stumbled. “And just so ya know, the tall, dark, and handsome one?” She pointed her finger tip into her own chest. “Mine. Got it, Iowa?”

You snarled your nose up to her at her display; you could still smell the liquor on her breath from last night. Her eyes were hazed and obviously still high on whatever it was she was doing the night before. 

“No worries on my end.” You said blankly, wanting to get the hell away from her while simultaneously wanting to punch her in the face for assuming you wanted Danny. 

You kept walking past her back into the shop, walking on the other side of the truck Jake was working on to stay as far away from Danny as you could. You didn’t want to risk him noticing that you even cared. 

You sat down in one of the ratty, dirty lawn chairs alongside the wall where Jake was working, getting as comfortable as you could before opening your book. You wanted to get lost in the words, letting them bring you back down to earth in a way only poetry could. 

You glanced to Danny as he stepped up on the wall of shelves on his side of the bay, reaching high above his head to turn the knob on his radio up to a higher volume. He hopped down, a giant cheesing smile across his face as ‘Fortunate Son’ blared from the speaker. Jake slowly raised his head from under the hood of the truck, shaking it from side to side as he stared Danny down. You realized then that’s why Danny put his stereo up so high, so that Jake physically couldn’t reach it. 

You flipped the pages of your book for the next half hour or so, letting Maya’s words take you to another planet entirely. You listened to the sounds of their socket wrenches and power tools as they worked away, providing a surprisingly relaxing background sound. 

“Whatcha reading?” Jake’s voice was barely audible over the loud noises around you. You closed the book cover, holding your fingers between the pages to keep your spot. 

“Maya Angelou’s poems. Kinda corny, I know. But–”

“The caged bird sings with fearful trill

of the things unknown but longed for still

and his tune is heard on the distant hill

for the caged bird sings of freedom.”

Your jaw fell open as Jake finished reciting Maya’s most famous poem to a tee, not faltering over any word and pausing at the most perfect times for the poem to hold its structure. 

He hadn’t pulled his focus away from what he was doing until he realized you didn’t respond, then grinned a smile so big it made your heart stop. 

“How did you…? You know Ms. Angelou?”

“My mom loved her. Read me her poems as a kid before I could even walk. I don’t remember the sound of my mom’s voice, but those words stuck with me.” He said, only glancing up to you every few words as he kept focused. 

You were floored. This was not something you expected from Jake, let alone for him to open up about his explanation as to why he knew of her work. You felt a warmth in your stomach…maybe there was something sweet under his tough exterior after all. 

After a bit, the shop telephone started ringing. You looked to both of the guys as they worked, realizing neither of them even noticed it was ringing. Maybe the phone doesn’t work? A couple minutes later, it started again, ringing and ringing off the hook for so long the shrillness started to irritate your ears. 

“Do you want me to go get that, or what?” You asked. Jake scoffed an exasperated sigh, hopping backwards off his step stool as he pulled his red towel from his back pocket of his coveralls. He wiped his hands as best he could as he rushed up the steps to answer it. 

You glanced to Danny, watching as he leaned over the hood of the car he was working on, wiping the sweat off his brow with the back of his arm. You hadn’t made eye contact or spoken since Tanya left a while ago, and you had to admit, it pissed you off a little. After last night’s…moment… he at least owed you something, right? 

Once he noticed Jake was all the way upstairs, he confidently walked over your way, twirling his own towel in his hands. “You gonna let me buy you lunch today?” He asked. 

“Why should I do that?” You answered blankly, not looking up from your book. 

“Because I’m hungry, I know you’re hungry, and you bought dinner. It’s only fair.” He was so matter of fact. 

“Are you not meeting back up with Miss Red High Heels for lunch today?” Shit. Your attitude ended up getting the better of you. 

“Who, Tanya?” He asked, pointing his thumb behind him. “Fuck, no. She’s just–”

“A good lay?” You inquired, pulling your eyes up to him finally, flicking your eyelashes in the most sarcastic way you could. 

He let his arms fall to his sides in defeat. “Listen, Y/N. Just let me take you to lunch, please? I promise I’ll be the perfect gentleman.” He finished the end of his sentence with a smirk and a wink, instantly making your insides swirl. What the hell is he doing to you?

“Alright, I guess. But only because I’m hungry, not because I want to hang out with you.” You gave him a side smile as you agreed. 

You watched as he leaned his elbows down on the side panel of the truck Jake was working on, resting his chin in his hand. 

“Mmm, I bet you do want to hang out with me though, especially if you let me a little further into your motel room after…”

“We gotta close up.” Suddenly Jake was bounding down the stairs, his steps heavy as he barrelled toward you and Danny. “Close it up, let’s go.” He slammed the hood of the truck down as soon as Danny had backed off of it enough. 

You stood from your chair in surprise. “Why, what’s wrong?”

You watched as Danny shoved his towel into his pocket, his expression immediately turning into alarm. 

“Fuck, was it Teddy on the phone?” He asked Jake as he ran around, closing the lid on his tool box and wheeling it under the loft. 

“Yeah, it was fuckin’ Teddy. Hurry up.” Jake hastily walked to the bay door, pulling on the long chain to lower the large garage doors down to the ground with a slam. 

“What’s going on? Who is Teddy?” You asked in a panic as they ran around you like chickens with their heads cut off. 

Danny closed all the doors on the vehicles in the bay, and threw a large black tarp over the motorcycle he had propped up on a block. They tossed all the rogue tools into the appropriate boxes, shutting the lids as they did so. 

What the fuck is going on?!

Anxiety began to creep into your chest as you watched them rush around in a panic. 

After a few minutes of fury, they met in the middle of the bay, in a fit of panted exhaustion and sweaty skin. They stood with their hands on their hips, looking around the shop. Jake pulled his Lucky Strikes from his pocket, nervously lighting one up with a zippo he pulled from his pocket. 

“Fuck!” He muttered as the smoke left his lungs. “Did we miss anything?” He asked Danny rhetorically. 

“No, how long do we have? Do they want a game?”

“Yeah, they want a fuckin’ game. They’ll be here at sunset. Shit.” Jake answered, both of their eyes still darting around in shifted motions. 

Finally, at the same time, their eyes landed on you standing before them in complete and utter shock. 

“Have her help you set up, then take her back to my bedroom. Lock the door.” Jake finally commanded Danny. 

“No, are you fuckin’ stupid? I’m taking her back to the motel, she’ll be safe there.” Danny argued. 

“No, god damnit! She’s staying here where we can keep an eye on her, the last thing we need is fucking free collateral, Danny. She stays here and hides.”

“Hides?! Wait, what the fuck–” your heart began pounding. 

“If she’s here, they’ll know we’re hiding something, Jake! They aren’t stupid! If she’s back at the motel at least she’s far enough away—” Danny was raising his voice to Jake now in opposition, their chests almost touching as they spat in each other’s faces. 

“Daniel, are you fuckin’ mental? You know Wanda isn’t trustworthy anymore. And Tanya was just here! You know Bubba found out who she’s been hanging around. And she saw Y/N! You think it’s a coincidence that two hours later, we get a call from Teddy?! Are you fuckin’ stupid?” Jake slammed a screwdriver across the floor, letting it bounce and glide across the concrete until it hit the wall. He stepped away from Danny, walking toward the back of the bay to continue what he was doing. 

“I told you to stay away from that fucking crowd, and what did you do? Bring one of them back with you to fuck into the mattress all night.” Jake yelled, and you watched as Danny lurched his way toward him. 

But before Danny could make it, Jake turned and held his elbow out, catching Danny’s body across the chest. “Don’t fucking come up on me like that Daniel, I swear to god. Go set up the fucking table, or get the fuck out of my shop. Take your pick.” Jake spat into his face. 

Danny begrudgingly backed away, his hands balled into fists. “I’m not leaving you here alone.” 

Jake’s demeanor instantly softened. “You better fucking not.” He mumbled, licking his lips. Jake motioned with his eyes for Danny to retreat to the back, just like he had asked. 

Danny breezed past you as he walked, catching your arm and pulling you along as he did so. 

“Come on, need your help.” He muttered. 

You ripped your arm from his grasp, flinging it away with as much force as you could muster. 

“Danny! Tell me what the hell is going on or I am leaving!” You yelled in his face, purely enraged that they were leaving you 100% out of the picture, while deciding what to do with you. 

He sighed, eyes darting around again. “I promise you, I will explain everything soon. And I promise, I will take you on that lunch date.” His hand came up and brushed your elbow, while the other pulled your hair away from your face. His touch was so gentle, while he had just been seconds away from a brawl with Jake. His eyes bored deep into yours, somehow soft while yours were filled with fear. 

“We’re gonna keep you safe. I’m not gonna let anything happen to you, you hear me?” He was gripping hard at your shoulders now, talking like he was hyping himself up instead of you. “I need you to trust me. Do you trust me?”

“Danny… I–I don’t even know you…” you mumbled, your fight or flight beginning to kick in as the sounds of Jake banging loud things together in the bay echoed off the walls. 

“Yeah you do, you know me. You knew me a long time ago.” His eyes shot to Jake again, still loudly throwing tools into containers. Suddenly his face was close to yours, his grip on your arms now almost an embrace. 

“I’m not a bad guy, Y/N. I swear I’m not. I’m just…” he winced as he searched for the words. “Listen, I like you, and even though you’ve only been around a day or two, you’ve been the only thing on my mind since the minute you pulled up at the shop, okay? You...you make me nervous. And people don’t make me nervous.” He licked his lips as his hands gripped the sides of your head. “But right now, I’m asking you to trust me. If not completely, just until tomorrow, okay? Please?” He pleaded. 

Fuck, did you have a choice?

You threw all caution to the wind as your mind fought against every red flag presenting itself. You nodded quickly. “Okay. Okay, shit.” you finally agreed. 

Danny’s expression fell straight to relief as he gripped his large, grease-covered hands over yours, pulling you back to their living quarters in a hurry. 

“Then let’s go. We don’t have much time.”

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[littlezorrillo]

Them

[budgetslow]

Part 0.5: The Aftermath

-----------------

The lights came back on.

The first thing they saw was their floor. Crimson.

And.. the lingering smell of iron.

-----------------

What could Enkai do?

Despite all the doctors’ effort, their damaged eye was left cloudy. Should… they feel glad they didn’t get it gouged out? On one hand, they managed to keep their eye. No need for an eyepatch, or to cover it up with… other articles. However… they wished it did.

A bionic eye would be very useful in their case. They could get their vision restored, along with additional perks, hell, even enhanced vision compared to what they had. The problem? Well, where would they even get the money for it? The limited amount of availability, too… practically nonexistent. They shuddered at the thought of having their eye replaced when they just had gone through treatment to keep it in their socket.

No. They decided it was too much of a hassle.

-----------------

And so, Enkai struggled with only having one functional eye for months. Their depth perception was abysmal, often missing where their hand might go to grab items, or even missing a few steps when going down stairs.

If they missed one? They tumbled like they just broke their legs. Or rather... they did break them one time when they fell from the stairs. Another hospital bill...

And yet, another day passed, just as usual. Another day where the world kept advancing, while they were stuck with themselves at home. Now that they were out of a job, and they were essentially visually impaired, what could they do?

What... more could they do?

Enkai asked themselves that question every time they looked into the mirror and saw that damned left eye of theirs. All that there was left of that night was a scar below it. Sure, it was healing... if the scar turning a dark purple was 'healing' to people.

They couldn’t drive to work anymore, either. Unless if they wanted to get into an accident.

They decided to turn to something else. Something less official.

A freelancer, it was, then. And this time, they'd go for something they never thought to dip their toes in.

What else was the world up to while they were cooped up in their home?

-----------------

Here they were. Their freelancing got them to... New Mexico, of all places. They’ve already did what they could to put food on the table, so now they were exploring.

Exploring… got them to a huge facility.

Was there even anything left for them to find?

Walking around, all they could see was dust. Debris. Remains of lab equipment here and there. A few announcements repeating themselves.

They looked up to see some of the posters.

SECURITY

NO VISITORS ALLOWED

DISPLAY ALPHA ID BADGE AT ALL TIMES

Ah. They weren't supposed to be here.

The big billboard above it didn't make things any better:

EVERETT-LINDE RESEARCH LAB

ALPHA SECTOR

RESTRICTED AREA

Kingdom. Of course it was them. But they heard nobody with them. Interesting. Where did they all go?

Turning around and looking slightly to the left, they could see something in the distance. Up on some rocks, was a device. A camera, perhaps?

Who could have been spying on the lab?

They decided to look for more clues. In the security terminal, was a very interesting message. They took a picture of it to decode later.

And on the way to the robotics department, they saw a buried business card with a symbol on it.

Very interesting, indeed.

-----------------

An... arcade?

They looked up.

TEMPORARY ROOM FOR RECREATIONAL ACTIVITIES

Huh. Neat. And- was that a KingdomStation inside?

Self-promotion at its finest.

-----------------

Walking past the room, they could see the landscape. Alpha and Omega was always divided like this; one flourishing with life, the other barren like a canyon.

They snapped a few pictures for safekeeping.

Climbing up on the rocks of Omega's side, there, they could faintly see it too.

The legs of the device. The same one as on the opposite side of the lab.

Two people were in on a plan. And it was most likely that they worked together, with that setup.

For now, they'd take this information with them. Another task complete, and they’ll be getting their pay soon.

And eventually, they'll be able to piece together everything.