Disclaimer: I don't own Hills Have Eyes never have, never will
I had this habit, you see, it wasn't something that I could necessarily control. Have you ever had those kind of people around you, the ones that get on your nerves no matter what? I did, seemed like all the time. Whenever this happened, my lips would instinctively roll into my mouth to be bitten down by my teeth. I then had some options: bite something, hit that person, or leave it be and leave teeth imprints in my mouth. I usually did number two and just pass it off as an accidental hit too hard but the others worked at my expense. My best friend, Matthew, knew about it but never teased me about it unlike the ones that didn't know but if they did it didn't matter they would still mock me. Okay, I admit it, I got serious anger issues.
A perfect example would be my younger sister, a certified brat. Every little thing she did bothered me to no end (or should I say, what little things she would do). Whenever my teeth instinctively clamped down, she would laugh and copy my actions. The little slut, who did she think she was with that smug and superior look she would flash at me?! Yeah, I enjoyed hitting her despite my mom's nagging to calm down. What did she want from me, even she admitted to being more than a little annoyed by my sister. She tried to get me in anger management classes but that never really worked out.
As I got older I realized that I couldn't pass off on hitting people all the time so I resorted to maltreating my lips and the insides of my lips with my teeth sharply pressing down. I fantasized the best ways to kill them, unknowingly turning myself into a Patrick Bateman-esque figure sans the actual killing. Matt didn't like it but, hey, I told him to blame people like my sister.
On the whole, though, I seemed completely normal. I had dark brown hair that waved at the end so it was usually kept just past my shoulders with pale-ass skin that never tanned or darkened. My favorite features were my green eyes and height, I wasn't a midget but above-average at about 5'8 which was an inch shorter than Matt. I loved my tallness as a way to tower over the rest of my siblings who all inherited the short gene, I was the fucking blessed one.
The car was on fire even though the ac was on full blast, I was in shotgun of Matt's car with the two most annoying, bitchiest voices behind me. Cassie and Danny were two girls that labeled themselves as our friends but they were really only here for Matthew because they had this stalker obsession with him.
I'm serious, think the Kanker sisters from Ed Edd n Eddy. Cassie was skinny and tall as fuck with greasy blonde hair and the worst hygiene ever, the bitch was always bragging how every time she ate junk food she would lose pounds. She treated her twin brother like crap even though Robert was way better to hang out with. Danny was tall too but heavyset with dark wild hair always in a sloppy ponytail with the most revealing clothes. Right now she was in a pair of booty shirts with her ass hanging out and a hot pink shirt that was the length of a sports bra. Poor Matt, right?
It wasn't like I got off easy anyway since Danny and Cassie were always trying to bring me down saying I wasn't good enough to be Matt's best friend. I beg to differ, bitches, since I am the only one he wants to hang out with! Sometimes Matt pisses me off because he's too nice and never wants to say anything bad to people so I always have to tolerate the bitches.
Anyway we were driving through New Mexico from Atlanta, Georgia because Matt got us tickets to go to a horror convention in Los Angeles. It was supposed to be the two of us but Cassie and Danny had invited themselves, they had made their rich parents use their connections to get them some expensive last-minute tickets. I cannot tell you how much I want to wring their necks for daring to come to Matt's place as if they owned it and threw my huge duffel bag out so they could make room for their stuff in the trunk.
Both me and Matt were upset but at least I managed to keep my seat and cool though I couldn't say the same for my lips. I only hoped that they would keep away from us especially since me and Matt had a group cosplay going on, the both of us were going as genderbent characters from classic horror movies. Since Matt had the blonde hair and was a Carrie fan, he was going to cosplay as the male version of Carrie White with me going as a female version of Michael Myers (Matt joked that I should've been Freddy Krueger instead and got a painless smack on the arm.)Dammit, why was it so hard to actually hang out with him?!
The sun was baking me alive with me in blue jeans, a gray tank top, and a pair of old running shoes on. I sighed pushing my hair back in a high ponytail. It wasn't even this hot in Atlanta that's how ridiculous it was. Matt looked over at me but I ignored the signal he was giving me to calm down, I was way too cranky to be dealing with this right now. I saw a gas station in the distance and hope rose in me. My water bottle went empty earlier so I hoped to buy at least a couple for the rest of the ride.
The gas station looked rundown, reminding me of ghost towns that I would see on old documentaries. There was one of those ancient pumping stations and an old man on an even older chair. Matt parked the car and immediately I jumped out to get a huge water bottle and a Coca-Cola bottle. I waited patiently for the old man and Matt to come into the store as I grabbed my drinks and a bag of Lemon Lays. My guilty pleasure along with most of the horror genre and white chocolate chip macadamia nut cookies. I smiled in nostalgia remembering Matt indulging with me in most of those pleasures.
The old man and Matt came in and I found myself smiling like an idiot.
"What's got you smiling?" He asked and I laughed.
"Remembering when I had to take you to the bathroom during Psycho, scaredy cat." He laughed with me and wrapped an arm around my waist while I wrapped mine around his shoulders.
The old man looked at us suspiciously as if we were a couple of crazies but rang us up anyway. "Where ya headin'?" He had this cautious air around him and I shuffled uncomfortably letting go of Matt.
"We're going to LA for a convention." That was Matt for you, telling a random stranger about our plans with his boyish smile that made him look sweeter than cotton candy.
I honestly needed to debate whether or not to give Matthew the talk about strangers and keeping as much information to yourself as possible. He was too soft and needed someone like me to rough him up or make sure to keep an eye on him. I was raised in a lower middle-class home with two younger siblings and one older with two other half-siblings, I was pretty much required to look after myself. Matt, on the other hand, was an only child that lived in the rich side of town with parents that always looked out for him. Looking back I remember when I first met him in high school, I had skipped a grade and he was that dude that always sat with the rich kids while I was stuck with the problem kids, the ones that only came together at lunch and each had a silent respect for each other.
I was brought out of my thoughts when I heard the man's gruff voice say the total price, only realizing then that he combined our purchases. Reaching into my pocket for my share, I glared at Matt when he paid for everything himself. I absolutely hated charity, that's why Matt had to convince me quite a bit to accept the ticket he bought me. The reason I had practically slaved away at a Subway was for the express purpose of not having anyone buy stuff for me. He held out my bag to me and I crossed my arms defiantly.
He sighed then, obviously knowing what I was thinking. "Come on it's my way of saying sorry for Cassie and Danny."
Like I said, I was too tired and besides the old guy was looking at us weirdly again. Huffing, I took the bag and stalked out of there and into the car, my good mood suddenly gone. Cassie and Danny were leaning up against the gas pump in a weird and awkward attempt to act like models. Try personality first, bitches! When I passed by they looked at me with the ugliest sneers then started making fun of my chips and beverages.
"Damn Jenny, do you REALLY need all that food?" Danny called as I fumbled with my seat belt. "I mean, you're just going to throw it all up later."
"Yeah, watching you fucking whores practically molest Matty would make me barf." I retorted as Matt came back out of the gas station.
"Fuck you, bitch!" Cassie growled and I rolled my eyes at how they immediately started coming onto Matt before they all headed back into the car.
Matt started the car again and waved at the man before we started on the road again. I looked in confusion as he took a different road from the map, I had that thing memorized but I looked again anyway. This road looked way different to the other and Matt seemed to sense my unease.
"The guy said there was a shortcut that cut through here." He explained out loud with Cassie and Danny pretty much praising him for being so thoughtful over them. Please, he just wanted to get away from you two sooner.
I was drinking from my water bottle when suddenly the car went out of control with me slopping water down my front. I heard the bitches screaming for their lives as Matt managed to get control on the road and I groaned when the side of my head hit against the window. That's going to hurt a lot later...
"Everyone alright?" Matt asked his breathing harsh.
I nodded, groaning when that left me a bit dizzy. I capped my water and looked down at my shirt that was clinging to me in the front now.
"Oh my god, I almost died!" Cassie was crying about her apparently 'almost-death'.
Danny seemed to be hyperventilating but I could clearly tell that was fake since one of my cousins had panic attacks and never hyperventilated like that. Rolling my eyes I touched the tender part of my head and winced slightly at feeling the small bump. I tasted a metallic tang in my mouth and briefly realized that I had split my mouth from the inside above my upper lip. My mouth was steadily filling up with blood and I lapped it up being one of those people that didn't mind the taste of blood.
I exited the car with Matt and we could easily see that three of the tires were punctured but we couldn't see anything that would've been sharp enough to rip them. I was immediately suspicious, what could've possibly punctured these tires? I heard Matt swear from the hybrid's trunk that he opened.
"We're officially screwed, the tire's not even here." He stated and I walked over to him, he regarded my stormy expression.
"What the actual fuck? Even if we only had two tires working we could've limped along!" I was furious now, that tire was always there! I was the one that made sure it was there before I even jumped in the car. We didn't even have our phones to rely on since there was no signal the last time we checked.
Then I thought of Cassie and Danny who had been in the back for a long time and got in after me. I was so fucking stupid for not realizing it earlier, dammit! My teeth stung the cut but I didn't care clamping down harder and feeling numb to the pain. I heard Matt calling my name but I didn't care and he should know better than to try and calm me down. I all but wrenched open the door and dragged out the two bitches that had already unbuckled their seat belts.
They landed on the ground, screaming, and I was just a bit satisfied when I heard that. Strands of hair had come away in my hands and I threw those fucking dirty locks into the sand.
"What did you two dumb fucks do with the tire?!" I yelled in frustration, Cassie stood first towering over me.
Her face was right in my personal space with her awful breath on my face. "You cannot just do that, bitch!"
She made to hit me but I stepped to the side and punched her, good and hard. I heard a crunch and Cassie crumpled to the floor clutching her bleeding and hopefully broken nose. No one lays a damn hand on me unless I deserve it.
I turned to Danny then seeing her glance at Cassie's pathetic form. "Okay Danny tell me what you did with the tire before I break your face!"
Her face scrunched up as she started to cry too. "We threw it out to make room for my suitcase!"
I was seeing red, the blood tasted bitter but I still swallowed it. I walked up to her sitting on the dirt and kicked her right in the stomach with my foot. "I am so fucking sick of you guys!"
"Jenn!" I turned and saw Matt looking at me scared, he's seen me violent before. He's scared, so scared and I try to calm down.
Danny's crying and saying that she's going to call the cops but I don't listen, I try to control my breathing and go to him, panting. Don't look at me like that, like I'm about to hurt you! I didn't want to see fear in his eyes.
"It's okay, Matty, I'm so fucking sorry. I promised you I wasn't going to fight, I'm sorry! Just stop looking at me like that, it's fucking annoying and sometimes I feel like I'm going to hit you too." I saw his eyes widen before he slowly nodded and hugged me but I couldn't keep that vision out of my eyes. Damn I'm realizing that to anyone we would look like some sort of abusive couple right now.
