Revealing Road Trip

Erik is driving with a silent Emma sitting beside him. A few miles ago they had ran out of petrol but Erik could make the car roll all on his own. Emma had joked about that; they could save a lot of money! They were searching for a new base for the Brotherhood as the old one had burnt down during a dispute between some of the more inflammable members.

They are supposed to be a cheerful happy couple wanting to buy a ghost town for the purpose of a theme park or bungalow park. They look the part although they don't get along. That much had been established in the few months they had worked together. Emma had never forgiven him for killing Shaw even if she was hardly capable of fierce feelings. Her cold and pragmatic behavior and demeanor was more than even he could take sometimes. Most of the time it was remarkably useful though.

They fill up the car at a stop and continue their long and tedious drive. Emma is bored and begins to show it. She starts on another long list of complaints—it could be called a rant if it wasn't for her calm and steady voice—and Erik turns on the radio to drown it out. She scowls at him but doesn't turn it off.

The moment Erik hears the song, however, he wishes she had. It is that song again. The hit of the week. Skeeter Davis' voice fills the air and Erik gasps for breath. Emma notices it and turns up the volume.

Don't they know it's the end of the world
It ended when I lost your love

"It's lovely, isn't it?" Her icy tone is covered with a thin layer of sugar. "So sad…"

Erik mumbles in agreement, his eyes fixed on the road.

I wake up in the morning and I wonder
Why everything's the same as it was
I can't understand, no, I can't understand
How life goes on the way it does

If only life was the same. If only he could wake up in the mansion with a special someone snoring beside him. If only…

Why does my heart go on beating
Why do these eyes of mine cry

Erik struggles very hard not to cry. Not here, not now. With Emma who is only too eager to question his leadership, to take the wheel herself. She is the last person on earth who should witness his vulnerability; not unlike that other telepath who meant—still does—so much to him.

The last tones slip away and another song begins. Erik sighs in relief. Emma hears it and wonders. Who has such an influence on this stern strong man? Who has the power to bring him close to tears? If only she knew…


AN: The song is End Of The World by Skeeter Davis and was a hit in the sixties. (It's a one-shot for now, though it might turn into a longer story at some point)