Just to quickly explain (as it might not have been very clear in the story
so far) Randall and Jay are actually headed to University. So, other than
that, I have nothing more to say! (For once.) Anyhow, back to the story.
Oh, and thanks for the reviews!
Chapter 3- Overloaded Emotions
Randall turned to his so-called "friend."
"The joke's over. You can start the car." Jay looked slightly panicked; not because of Randall's growing anger, but because he himself didn't know what the problem was, let alone how to cure it and get on with their tiresome journey. He fiddled around with a few things in the car; turning some knobs, flicking some switches- anything to convince Randall that he knew what he was doing.
After several minutes of watching Jay pointlessly scrabbling about in the car, an impulsive thought struck Randall. He asked the question quickly and precisely, using it as though it were a knife to threaten Jay with.
"How much Scream did you put in the tank?" Jay carried on fumbling, refusing to make any form of eye-contact with Randall. In the end, Randall shoved Jay aside to such an extent that he almost fell out of the car. Randall struggled with his bristly friend, trying with all of his might to look at the Scream-dial without Jay's interference.
"Randall, I put loads in. There must be something wrong with the engine; maybe the battery's gone or something- you've got to remember that this is an old car," he babbled while practically sitting on the steering wheel, his tail neatly curled over the Scream-dial. With one last grunt of effort, Randall pushed Jay out of the car, incredibly aggravated at his resistance. He peered over at the Scream-dial which was just as he had expected it to be- a big, fat, and rather unwelcome, zero.
Jay scrambled off the ground, and began his defence as to why he hadn't got the Scream. This was what Randall had hoped wouldn't happen, but he had to face it; it was inevitable.
"It wasn't my fault, Randall." Randall's eyes looked up at Jay; two round pools of the most breathtaking shade of emerald, and were, according to their owner, a bane- they were his only features that ever revealed his true emotions. And, at this time, his overruling emotion was anger.
"Not your fault? NOT YOUR FAULT?! You...ergh." Randall wavered slightly, angry, but also astonished at the naivety of Jay. What did he think Randall was; stupid or something? Jay warily sat back down in the car, not afraid of Randall, but of what Randall might do.
"Randall, I know you might be angry with me, but...I thought you said that you were gonna get the Scream, so it's all just a big misunderstanding."
"Never knew you were a liar," Randall said in a surprisingly calm tone.
"But I'm not lying, honest-"
"Uh huh, sure," he replied dismissively. There was a silence for a second before the lizard-monster continued.
"It's your fault, Jay. So, because of you, we are stuck in the middle of nowhere; because of you, we're not gonna get to Uni on time. I thought I knew some real idiots in my life so far, but none of them are as dumb as you are." He slammed the car door open, causing it to almost fall off its hinges, and stepped out off the car; he couldn't bear to breathe the same air as Jay for a second longer. Unexpectedly, Jay didn't retaliate. He didn't even bother to say a single word against Randall. All he did was get out off the car, face his companion, and ask a simple question.
"Is there any way that you could, sort of, hotwire the car? Maybe to get us as far as the next Scream Station? I just thought, y'know, since you're pretty good with all that type of stuff that that maybe might...work..."
Jay finished quietly, trailing off and only just managing to see Randall's unique silhouette in the faint light of the car. Jay had done exactly the wrong thing, asking a question. If he had lost his temper with Randall, even though it would have been quite unnecessary, at least Randall would know that he had lost control as a pet-owner does as he is walking a Pit- bull terrier- inexplicably but with a consequence.
But somebody being nice to him, especially Jay, after he knew that he didn't deserve it...Or did he? Randall was confused; lost in a myriad of thoughts, feelings, emotions, and to not have control of it all was his worst nightmare. At this time, Randall was at breaking-point- leaving the orphanage; all of those pains and memories returning to him, choking him- and there was nothing that Jay could say or do to help him.
Suddenly, in all of his rage and fury, Randall heard himself saying things that deep inside, he knew he would regret, and that he knew there would be more severe consequences for. But even as he tried so hard to stop this from happening, it was unavoidable, and also something that he had been waiting to do for a long time.
"You're a liar, Jay- a stupid, untrustworthy liar. This is all your fault; everything, just because you couldn't control yourself! You blame me for everything that happened. You treat me like a piece of dirt; as though I'm lower in society than everyone else, so you think you can say what you like to me, as though it doesn't matter, as though I don't have any feelings. Well, here's a newsflash for you; I DO, just like everybody else, even though you'd hate to admit it."
These words poured out of Randall's mouth, yet, no matter what he tried to do, there seemed to be no end to them.
"And now, you expect me to fix the car? You think I'll just waltz right up to it and say "yeah, sure, no problem, you can use me as much as you like?!" Well, I hate to disappoint you, Jay, but that just isn't gonna happen. And if we're ever gonna be friends, you've got to be able to understand that."
Randall finished his little speech speaking almost normally, his anger having been blasted into the desert beyond. Jay could see that Randall's rage had disappeared, for the time being, that is, so he approached him quietly, even a little timidly. He nodded once, and, for the first time, began to understand Randall.
"So...do ya think you can do it?"
******************
The large boxes piled in, one after the other, and were crudely stacked by a variety of monsters in dark green suits. The huge ware-house-like doors of this giant hall were open, letting machinery come in and out as they wished, carrying more of these boxes. The doors exposed a glittering night- sky outside, and by them stood a small, ever-so-slightly reptilian monster that had a partially nervous edge about him.
The arrival of the canisters had been very late, so now there was a rush to get them all in and ready for the next day; the beginning of term was awaited by many University students. Because the boxes had been late, it meant that everything wasn't organised properly, and Mr Stefani didn't like it when things weren't organised properly. A hand clutched his shoulder, making him jump with alertness.
In front of him stood a crab-monster, his many eyes scanning Stefani for any signs of anxiety, but he only had to take a glance at him to know that he had bucketfuls.
"Calm down, my friend. Everything should follow the plan, at least, if that wretched lizard-monster gets here on time..." Right on cue, a smooth, sly voice spoke up behind him.
"What's that you called me? "Wretched?" Stefani stared at him in disbelief and relief, but the other one of this group of three was not impressed. Cyrus folded his coal-coloured arms, his claws gleaming white in the moonlight that flooded in through the mammoth doors.
"I said I'd be here, and I'm here."
"And I wonder why?" the crab said. "Are you trying to convince me that you lizard-monsters are trustworthy after all? Because if you are, you could certainly do better."
Cyrus, otherwise known as Cy, glared fiercely for a moment at the crab before addressing his smaller friend, Stefani.
"All the canisters will be here in the next two hours. There was a slight problem at the dock, but..." Cy grinned balefully. "...it's been sorted."
******************
As Randall poked his head under the rusty bonnet of Jay's car, the miniscule amount of hope he had had in him disappeared. The engine was incredibly old; so old, in fact, that it had been updated just to be able to accept the new model of Scream Canister that had been brought out over a decade ago.
Randall's eyes scrutinized the components of the engine, and he loosened a few nuts and bolts, Jay impatiently hovering beside him. Jay was clicking his claws together fretfully, and they were making a little clitch, clitch, the only noise to be heard between the two of them. While Randall tried his best to let the tube in which the scream would flow be cleared, his friend constantly looked around them, eyes flitting and feet shuffling, trying to comfort himself; Jay didn't like the dark.
The clitching noise continued until Randall could bear it no longer.
"Will you stop that?!" he shouted, seeming to breathe fire. Jay smiled innocently and put his hands behind his back. Randall turned his attention back to the engine in front of him. He muttered under his breath while trying to turn a little knob, but it wouldn't budge. The shortage of light and Randall's growing fatigue made working on the engine a very tedious job. His bright, reflective eyes aided the tired lizard-monster a bit, but, in all honesty, Randall didn't know what he was doing- not because of a lack of knowledge, but a lack of supplies that he needed to do the job properly.
After a very long period of struggle, Randall managed to turn the knob, and, as he did so, a little string of steam emerged from the pipe that it was attached to. Randall paused for a second, bewildered, then gasped lightly, his eyes widening in shock. Jay sensed this and peered over his shoulder.
"What's the matteeeerrr..." Randall grabbed Jay by the arm, ignoring the pain as a smaller spike pierced his hand, and pulled him to the side of the road, away from the car which was now letting out several streaks of steam. He yanked Jay onto the ground and lay with him, waiting.
The explosion was huge and powerful, and a thousand wails and screams sped through the air and seemed to shatter Randall and Jay's minds. The road and its surroundings were lit for the first time in hours, the glare so bright it was as though it was day again. For a nanosecond, the stars hid away at the new source of light but, as the explosion ended, reappeared, safe once more. Randall peeked over a clump of grass that was obscuring his view. As he cautiously got up, along with Jay, debris fell out of the sky like a hail-storm. The car was just a skeleton, all the bodywork gone, leaving only the remainder of an engine and a steel frame, both of which were on fire.
Jay gasped at what had used to be his car. Randall turned to him, looking slightly apologetic.
"I...couldn't see very well." Jay didn't move. In a second, Randall's remorseful mask was abruptly swiped off, leaving an almost blank face. A thought came into his mind, and he couldn't help but smile. Jay looked at him, still stunned.
"What are you smiling at?!" Randall shrugged.
"Now, we're even."
Chapter 3- Overloaded Emotions
Randall turned to his so-called "friend."
"The joke's over. You can start the car." Jay looked slightly panicked; not because of Randall's growing anger, but because he himself didn't know what the problem was, let alone how to cure it and get on with their tiresome journey. He fiddled around with a few things in the car; turning some knobs, flicking some switches- anything to convince Randall that he knew what he was doing.
After several minutes of watching Jay pointlessly scrabbling about in the car, an impulsive thought struck Randall. He asked the question quickly and precisely, using it as though it were a knife to threaten Jay with.
"How much Scream did you put in the tank?" Jay carried on fumbling, refusing to make any form of eye-contact with Randall. In the end, Randall shoved Jay aside to such an extent that he almost fell out of the car. Randall struggled with his bristly friend, trying with all of his might to look at the Scream-dial without Jay's interference.
"Randall, I put loads in. There must be something wrong with the engine; maybe the battery's gone or something- you've got to remember that this is an old car," he babbled while practically sitting on the steering wheel, his tail neatly curled over the Scream-dial. With one last grunt of effort, Randall pushed Jay out of the car, incredibly aggravated at his resistance. He peered over at the Scream-dial which was just as he had expected it to be- a big, fat, and rather unwelcome, zero.
Jay scrambled off the ground, and began his defence as to why he hadn't got the Scream. This was what Randall had hoped wouldn't happen, but he had to face it; it was inevitable.
"It wasn't my fault, Randall." Randall's eyes looked up at Jay; two round pools of the most breathtaking shade of emerald, and were, according to their owner, a bane- they were his only features that ever revealed his true emotions. And, at this time, his overruling emotion was anger.
"Not your fault? NOT YOUR FAULT?! You...ergh." Randall wavered slightly, angry, but also astonished at the naivety of Jay. What did he think Randall was; stupid or something? Jay warily sat back down in the car, not afraid of Randall, but of what Randall might do.
"Randall, I know you might be angry with me, but...I thought you said that you were gonna get the Scream, so it's all just a big misunderstanding."
"Never knew you were a liar," Randall said in a surprisingly calm tone.
"But I'm not lying, honest-"
"Uh huh, sure," he replied dismissively. There was a silence for a second before the lizard-monster continued.
"It's your fault, Jay. So, because of you, we are stuck in the middle of nowhere; because of you, we're not gonna get to Uni on time. I thought I knew some real idiots in my life so far, but none of them are as dumb as you are." He slammed the car door open, causing it to almost fall off its hinges, and stepped out off the car; he couldn't bear to breathe the same air as Jay for a second longer. Unexpectedly, Jay didn't retaliate. He didn't even bother to say a single word against Randall. All he did was get out off the car, face his companion, and ask a simple question.
"Is there any way that you could, sort of, hotwire the car? Maybe to get us as far as the next Scream Station? I just thought, y'know, since you're pretty good with all that type of stuff that that maybe might...work..."
Jay finished quietly, trailing off and only just managing to see Randall's unique silhouette in the faint light of the car. Jay had done exactly the wrong thing, asking a question. If he had lost his temper with Randall, even though it would have been quite unnecessary, at least Randall would know that he had lost control as a pet-owner does as he is walking a Pit- bull terrier- inexplicably but with a consequence.
But somebody being nice to him, especially Jay, after he knew that he didn't deserve it...Or did he? Randall was confused; lost in a myriad of thoughts, feelings, emotions, and to not have control of it all was his worst nightmare. At this time, Randall was at breaking-point- leaving the orphanage; all of those pains and memories returning to him, choking him- and there was nothing that Jay could say or do to help him.
Suddenly, in all of his rage and fury, Randall heard himself saying things that deep inside, he knew he would regret, and that he knew there would be more severe consequences for. But even as he tried so hard to stop this from happening, it was unavoidable, and also something that he had been waiting to do for a long time.
"You're a liar, Jay- a stupid, untrustworthy liar. This is all your fault; everything, just because you couldn't control yourself! You blame me for everything that happened. You treat me like a piece of dirt; as though I'm lower in society than everyone else, so you think you can say what you like to me, as though it doesn't matter, as though I don't have any feelings. Well, here's a newsflash for you; I DO, just like everybody else, even though you'd hate to admit it."
These words poured out of Randall's mouth, yet, no matter what he tried to do, there seemed to be no end to them.
"And now, you expect me to fix the car? You think I'll just waltz right up to it and say "yeah, sure, no problem, you can use me as much as you like?!" Well, I hate to disappoint you, Jay, but that just isn't gonna happen. And if we're ever gonna be friends, you've got to be able to understand that."
Randall finished his little speech speaking almost normally, his anger having been blasted into the desert beyond. Jay could see that Randall's rage had disappeared, for the time being, that is, so he approached him quietly, even a little timidly. He nodded once, and, for the first time, began to understand Randall.
"So...do ya think you can do it?"
******************
The large boxes piled in, one after the other, and were crudely stacked by a variety of monsters in dark green suits. The huge ware-house-like doors of this giant hall were open, letting machinery come in and out as they wished, carrying more of these boxes. The doors exposed a glittering night- sky outside, and by them stood a small, ever-so-slightly reptilian monster that had a partially nervous edge about him.
The arrival of the canisters had been very late, so now there was a rush to get them all in and ready for the next day; the beginning of term was awaited by many University students. Because the boxes had been late, it meant that everything wasn't organised properly, and Mr Stefani didn't like it when things weren't organised properly. A hand clutched his shoulder, making him jump with alertness.
In front of him stood a crab-monster, his many eyes scanning Stefani for any signs of anxiety, but he only had to take a glance at him to know that he had bucketfuls.
"Calm down, my friend. Everything should follow the plan, at least, if that wretched lizard-monster gets here on time..." Right on cue, a smooth, sly voice spoke up behind him.
"What's that you called me? "Wretched?" Stefani stared at him in disbelief and relief, but the other one of this group of three was not impressed. Cyrus folded his coal-coloured arms, his claws gleaming white in the moonlight that flooded in through the mammoth doors.
"I said I'd be here, and I'm here."
"And I wonder why?" the crab said. "Are you trying to convince me that you lizard-monsters are trustworthy after all? Because if you are, you could certainly do better."
Cyrus, otherwise known as Cy, glared fiercely for a moment at the crab before addressing his smaller friend, Stefani.
"All the canisters will be here in the next two hours. There was a slight problem at the dock, but..." Cy grinned balefully. "...it's been sorted."
******************
As Randall poked his head under the rusty bonnet of Jay's car, the miniscule amount of hope he had had in him disappeared. The engine was incredibly old; so old, in fact, that it had been updated just to be able to accept the new model of Scream Canister that had been brought out over a decade ago.
Randall's eyes scrutinized the components of the engine, and he loosened a few nuts and bolts, Jay impatiently hovering beside him. Jay was clicking his claws together fretfully, and they were making a little clitch, clitch, the only noise to be heard between the two of them. While Randall tried his best to let the tube in which the scream would flow be cleared, his friend constantly looked around them, eyes flitting and feet shuffling, trying to comfort himself; Jay didn't like the dark.
The clitching noise continued until Randall could bear it no longer.
"Will you stop that?!" he shouted, seeming to breathe fire. Jay smiled innocently and put his hands behind his back. Randall turned his attention back to the engine in front of him. He muttered under his breath while trying to turn a little knob, but it wouldn't budge. The shortage of light and Randall's growing fatigue made working on the engine a very tedious job. His bright, reflective eyes aided the tired lizard-monster a bit, but, in all honesty, Randall didn't know what he was doing- not because of a lack of knowledge, but a lack of supplies that he needed to do the job properly.
After a very long period of struggle, Randall managed to turn the knob, and, as he did so, a little string of steam emerged from the pipe that it was attached to. Randall paused for a second, bewildered, then gasped lightly, his eyes widening in shock. Jay sensed this and peered over his shoulder.
"What's the matteeeerrr..." Randall grabbed Jay by the arm, ignoring the pain as a smaller spike pierced his hand, and pulled him to the side of the road, away from the car which was now letting out several streaks of steam. He yanked Jay onto the ground and lay with him, waiting.
The explosion was huge and powerful, and a thousand wails and screams sped through the air and seemed to shatter Randall and Jay's minds. The road and its surroundings were lit for the first time in hours, the glare so bright it was as though it was day again. For a nanosecond, the stars hid away at the new source of light but, as the explosion ended, reappeared, safe once more. Randall peeked over a clump of grass that was obscuring his view. As he cautiously got up, along with Jay, debris fell out of the sky like a hail-storm. The car was just a skeleton, all the bodywork gone, leaving only the remainder of an engine and a steel frame, both of which were on fire.
Jay gasped at what had used to be his car. Randall turned to him, looking slightly apologetic.
"I...couldn't see very well." Jay didn't move. In a second, Randall's remorseful mask was abruptly swiped off, leaving an almost blank face. A thought came into his mind, and he couldn't help but smile. Jay looked at him, still stunned.
"What are you smiling at?!" Randall shrugged.
"Now, we're even."