Chapter Three
Waiting had been the worst part. Elizabeth hated it. She had been exactly twenty-two seconds early. The taxi was two minutes and twenty-nine seconds late. That had been the longest two minutes and twenty nine seconds she had ever been through in her entire life.
"So where are you off to?" the driver asked.
Elizabeth's first thought was not to answer him. Then she realized that would be stupid, considering he was the one that was taking her there. "Sunnydale. How fast can you get me there?"
The driver was pretty young. He looked trustworthy enough. For a stranger. But Elizabeth knew good and well looks weren't always precise. His brown eyes stared into her through the rearview mirror. "It's about hundred some miles from here. It'll probably take us about two hours," the man estimated.
"I'll pay you double if you can get me there in an two thirds that amount," she proposed.
The man's eyebrows raised. "Sure, kid." And with that, he drove away at seventy per hour in a thirty mile speed limit zone. "I'm Whistler, by the way."
"Okay. I don't really feel like talking," she told him, leaning her head against the window.
About five minutes into the silent drive, Elizabeth got bored. She wished she had brought her CD player or something. But she knew that would have meant sacrificing one of her outfits. She groaned. "So why were you late?" she asked the driver, deciding small talk was better than no talk.
"I wasn't. You said nine thirty."
"You came at nine thirty-two," she informed him.
Whistler stopped at a red light. "Only two minutes," he argued.
"And twenty-nine seconds," she muttered.
He looked at her again in the rearview mirror. "You anxious to get to Sunnydale, or what?"
"Yeah."
"What's there for you?" he asked, curious.
Too close! He's getting too close! Her mind was yelling. "I'm moving in with my mom," she lied, hoping it sounded convincing.
"How old are you, kid?" he questioned as the light turned green.
"Sixteen," she lied again. Elizabeth was well aware of the fact that she wore no make up, which didn't exactly make her look like she was older. She couldn't give any true information to the driver, and sixteen just came out.
"Where's your dad?"
"Um. My parents are divorced. I'm living with my mom this summer."
"Oh. That's cool. My parents are divorced too. It's not as big a deal as everyone says it is. I mean..."
Elizabeth tuned out his words and simply stared out the window. They were on the interstate highway now. So around here, it was okay for him to be doing sixty an hour. Of course, he was doing eighty, so it's not like it mattered. If a police pulls us over... She didn't allow herself to finish that thought. "Are you sure you should be going this fast. I don't wanna get pulled over and be even later."
"Don't worry about it. I've done this a million times before. I know where police usually are. You're safe with me, kid."
"But, aren't police in all different places? Why would they stay in the same place?" she asked.
"They want you to think they're everywhere. But they're not."
"Oh." Elizabeth continued to stare out the window, not really seeing anything, just lost in her thoughts.
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Elizabeth was a bit disoriented when she woke up. At first she didn't recognize where she was or why she felt so cramped. The sound of the driver's voice brought her back to reality.
"We'll be at the Sunnydale City limit in about three minutes, kid."
Three minutes. She'd be there in three minutes. She reached in her pocket for the fifties she had put in there before she left. There were five fifty dollar bills. Two hundred fifty bucks. Wasn't that much.
Then, she saw it. The big, "WELCOME TO SUNNYDALE" sign. Elizabeth was filled with the same rush of air she felt when she had stepped foot outside her house. Containing her excitement, she sat up straighter, wanting to see everything.
"Where do you want me to drop you off?"
The brunette nervously chewed on her fingernail, looking out the window. They were driving through a what looked like the heart of the city. Stores and shops here and there. People walking around, couples holding hands, it was a small town. It was Friday night though, she guessed that's why there were people out and about. "Just drop me off here. I wanna get a little walking done. I've been cramped up for too long."
Whistler did as he was told. "That'll be-"
She didn't let him finish. She handed him all five of her fifties, not caring if it was too much. "Thanks. For everything." With that, she took her stuff and got out of the taxi, watching it drive away.
Once the taxi was out of sight, Elizabeth scanned her surroundings. The thing that caught her eye was the barber shop across the street. A twenty-four hour barber shop. Not looking both ways, or even any way, she crossed the street.
She opened the door and walked inside. The place smelled like peroxide and shampoo. Elizabeth caught the eye of a woman, probably in her mid thirties. "Can you do my hair now?"
The woman nodded, making her crazy hairdo look as if it were bouncing. "Come over here, sweetie."
Elizabeth made her way to the empty chair. While taking off her hat, she debated on whether or not to take off her sunglasses.
As if reading her mind, the woman told her, "Honey, you're gonna have to take off those sunglasses if so I can see what I'm working with here."
Hesitantly, the Elizabeth took off her sunglasses.
Both the woman and Elizabeth stared into the mirror at Elizabeth's reflection. "Well, I-I think I can work with this. What would you like me to do?"
"Just make me...different."