Title: Disturbance on Highway 86
Summary: "Welcome to Little Ridge," she muttered and glanced at Jess. "Not lost," he mumbled, his hand gripping the steering wheel, the other rubbing her leg.
Disclaimer: Eh. I won't claim anything. Eddie, maybe?
Author's Note: Just wanted one before we got started. Thank you for the reviews! Can't wait to see the response I get for this chapter.
Thank you, Red!
Rory squirmed around on the lumpy mattress, her back resting in a dent where the mattress sunk down. She lifted up on her elbows and looked at the blinking red numbers to her right 2:03. Using her feet, she pushed the sticky sheets off of her legs. Resting in only Jess' t-shirt and her underwear, she sprawled out, hoping to get a gust of air from somewhere in the room.
She wanted to open the window; maybe cool night air would be good. But then, the thought of that man sent chills down her spine and she decided against it. Spotting a rickety metal fan in the corner, she got of from the worn mattress. A squeaking sound filled the room, as her feet hit the wooden floor.
Carefully, she crept over to the box fan and turned the dial to two. A light breeze hit her face, as the blades turned clockwise. The noise it made was almost dreadful, sounding as if it hadn't been turned on in years.
Rory crawled back into bed and lay awake, waiting for Jess to open at least one eye. She heard him stir and move closer to her, throwing his arm securely over her bellybutton. Chuckling as a low rumble came from his throat, she nestled her back into his chest.
After at least thirty minutes, she turned to face him. Her lips touched his nose, softly, hoping to get a response out of him. He swatted her away like a fly and grumbled, his face burying itself into her neck.
"Jess," she whispered, shaking his shoulder, "Jess."
"Go away," he mumbled, trying to let sleep take him away again.
But she was persistent and he knew she would never give up unless he answered her. With a small sound of defeat, he looked up at her, his eyes weary. "Hi," she said, smiling only slightly.
"Rory, what the hell are you doing waking me up this late?" He grunted, turning away from her.
"Early," she corrected, reaching over to pull him back to her, "and I'm scared."
He sighed, "Well, I'm sorry. But really Rory, I need sleep and lots of it. I want to be well-rested for the trip to California in the morning, don't you get that?"
She huffed, crossing her arms over her chest, "Don't you get that the owner of this motel is a cold-blooded murderer?"
"Jeez," he rolled his eyes, shrugging her should off of his arm, "Go to sleep."
"Jess," she whimpered, the terror rising up in her voice.
Running his hand down his face, he turned to her, "I'm sorry. Come here, if I hold you nothing will get you."
"I'm not five, Jess! I swear he's going to kidnap me!"
He groaned, beating his head against the pillow in front of him. "He's not even here! He got into his truck, remember?"
"Oh, he'll be back," she grunted, turning to face the other direction.
"And turn that damn fan off," he demanded, curling up into the sheets, "It's freakin' loud."
She got up from the bed once again, not worrying if she'd wake him or not this time. She actually wanted him to be grouchy the whole time now. As she turned the dial back to zero, she heard a loud noise down the hall. In one quick motion she scrambled to the bed and crawled next to Jess, "What was that?"
"Probably nothing," he muttered, his eyes drifting shut.
"Jess, I'm serious," she pleaded with him, as the noise sounded again. She stood up and walked to their door, standing with her ear pressed against the wood. Her hand slowly made its way to the handle and she turned it ever so slightly to the left. It creaked open and she peeped through the crack she made.
"What are you doing?" Rory heard, jumping as her heartbeat sped up. She turned and saw Jess sitting upright in the bed, scratching his head.
Rory shrugged one shoulder, "I just want to check and see if the guy is alright."
"You aren't going out there alone. Not with the way he was eyeing you," he grumbled, throwing the covers off of his legs. He walked over to his girlfriend and moved her out of the way.
"See? I knew you saw it too!" She argued as he stepped out into the hallway.
"Uh, Eddie?" He called, taking slow steps into the lobby, "Are you here?"
"Hey there," he said cheerfully, stepping in front of the couple. His smile was too cheery at this time of the night.
Jess jumped back, startled, "Shit!"
"Are you okay?" Eddie gave a concerned smile that made Rory clutch onto Jess' hand in fear.
He nodded shortly, "My girlfriend just heard a crash down the hall and she wanted to see if you were alright. Are you?"
"I'm fine," he nodded, smiling at Rory.
Jess couldn't help but feel the same toe-curling chill as Rory had the whole time. He nodded his head once, "We need to get going now. We have to be in California at a certain time."
"It's not even daylight out, yet," he said, keeping that creepy smile on his face.
"I know, thank you for letting us stay," he smiled, pushing Rory back into their room, "but really, we have to leave."
Eddie took a step forward and stuck out his hand, "Very well then, nice meeting you Mr. Mariano."
Jess shook his hand once, letting go quickly, "Yeah you, too."
Rory was already in their room, slipping on her jeans. She threw the bag over her shoulder and placed the flip-flops on her feet.
When Jess walked in he zipped up his bag and took hers from her, "Let's go, now."
"Why now?" Rory walked out behind him, her fingers laced with his, "I told you we should have left earlier, but oh no."
"Shut up, Rory," Jess mumbled, walking outside of the motel. He threw the bags into the back seat and got in, waiting for her.
His hand turned the key in the ignition and it rumbled once, dying on him almost immediately. Rory's eyes turned wide and she looked at him, sharply, "Jess."
"Stop it," he warned, trying again. Turning the key again, it rumbled again only to die … again. She shook, involuntarily, goose bumps invading her arms.
"Jess," she said again, her heart pounding out of her chest. He sighed and tried one more time, only to hear it fail.
"Fuck," he muttered, harshly.
"Are we stuck here?" Rory asked, her voice shaky and her eyes wide.
Slamming his hands on the steering wheel, he nodded, "As of right now,I guess we are."
"No," she shook her head, violently, "No. We are going to get help. Go tell Eddie that our car died and make him let us use a phone."
"There's a payphone down the road," he muttered, nodding in the other direction, "I saw it on the way here. I'll go use it and you st—"
"No!" She squealed, her hand gripping his arm, "You are not leaving me here alone!"
With a sigh, he nodded, "You're right. That would be extremely stupid."
"Just go in and ask if he has a phone, okay?" Rory bit her lip, feeling that lurch in her stomach again. The one that placed itself there when something was going terribly wrong.
Jess looked up and shuddered at the sight in front of him. His eyes glanced back at Rory and she was looking at him, her eyes more fearful than they had been all night.
In the doorway in front of him stood Eddie, a large grin on his face, "Look's like you gotta stay here till' mornin'."
Swallowing thickly, Jess licked his dry lips, "Guess so."
Even Rory could hear the weariness in his voice.
Short, I know. But I felt it needed to be ended here! Oh and, I never really do this but I feel it needs to be said. Gilmore-007's story 'Is Mos Nunquam Existo' is wonderful, so far. You should really check it out.
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