Chapter 4- Postponed Arrival
Two hours they waited; two long, tiresome hours. What was left of the car had stopped burning, leaving a pile of scorched metal, and Jay and Randall had sat by it after salvaging some of their belongings.
"So, what now?" Randall asked Jay as the sun's rays began to scour the wasteland for any reminder of darkness. It was three in the morning.
"I have no idea," Jay replied. They both looked around themselves, realizing how deserted they really were. Randall chuckled.
"I knew something like this would happen." Now it was Jay's turn to glare.
"Oh, yeah, real hilarious."
"We could wait for a vehicle to come by."
"And how long's that gonna take? Come on, Randall, think of something that is REMOTELY sensible."
"Or we could start walking and go to the next Scream Station. That is, if the wild beasts in this place don't eat us first." Jay, after getting up to start walking, hurriedly sat back down again.
"I opt for the choice in which we DON'T get eaten." Jay noticed Randall smiling after he had made this comment. Randall, smiling? Maybe they were beginning to understand each other.
"Good idea," Randall said, finally enjoying the company of his friend. And there they sat for ten minutes, not saying a word, but basking in the early morning sunlight. Until what they had been waiting for rumbled down the dusty road. Randall leapt to his feet, Jay following close behind him, and stood in the middle of the road. The lorry was gradually getting nearer. Randall began waving his arms erratically; the vehicle didn't seem to be slowing down at all.
After less than a minute, the lorry was almost on top of them, yet its speed was constant.
"Uh, Randall?" Jay said, beginning to panic, as always. "Maybe we should get out of the road now..."
"No, we'll wait. He isn't just gonna run over us," Randall retorted, too confident for his own good. He stood his ground, but Jay could take it no longer. He fled behind the charred remains of the car, expecting Randall to do the same. The sun provided enough light, but not for the lorry driver, obviously- the bright lights of the lorry were aimed at Randall's face and he squinted, his eyes hurting from the overpowering gleam.
The lorry was incredibly close to Randall before it actually began to slow down, and, as it stopped, Randall opened his eyes to see that he was practically touching it. Jay had covered his own eyes, not wanting to see the outcome of this daring venture of Randall's, but as he heard the low, constant rumble of an engine, he looked up from his hiding place.
Randall had gone round the front of the lorry and was now knocking on the bright blue side-door with a clenched fist. The driver grumpily opened the door and, taking one quick look at Randall, was about to shut it again. But the lizard-monster was too fast for him. Randall grabbed the door, ensuring that the driver couldn't close it, and faced the bewildered fur-ridden monster. Jay crept up behind him, not wanting to be left out in the negotiations.
"What do you want?" the furry asked in a deep, almost explosive voice.
"A lift," Randall replied simply. Unfortunately, Jay's mouth wasn't used to be shut this long, and, in the fear of it being closed permanently, he said something quite stupid.
"Yeah, ya see, our car sort of blew up- it was actually quite funny how it happened; we were just drivin' along-"
"Ignore him," said Randall, interrupting his friend's abnormal babbling. "We've been here for hours, and we're late for our first term at Uni. It'd be a big help if you could just give us a lift, at least to the next Scream Station." Randall could see the cogs in the lorry driver's mind slowly turning.
"Which University?"
"Crynferse."
"Crynferse Uni? What a coincidence- that's where I'M headed! Uh, I mean...it might not be too much trouble, I guess." Jay beamed, shoved Randall aside and was about to climb aboard the lorry, but Randall stopped him.
"Hold on a second, Jay." Randall took a few steps back, looked at the side of the lorry, and then leaned back on the door.
"What have you got in there?" The bloated lorry-driver shook a flabby finger at him.
"That's none of your business."
"But what would a lorry be doing going to Crynferse Uni?"
"I dunno. I'm just paid to drive the thing, not to ask questions." Jay looked back at Randall hopefully. The lizard-monster rolled his eyes.
"Get in." Jay bounded up the metal steps and sat in the middle seat, Randall following behind. He shut the door once sitting down, and, five minutes after the lorry had continued on its journey, was in deep thought about something which Jay daren't ask about. Randall enjoyed the silence, but Jay, on the other hand, despised it.
"Don't you have, like a radio or something?" he optimistically asked the driver, who just gave him a weird look. Jay didn't take any notice- he got a lot of these uncanny expressions, but the thing that really bugged him was that he could never really figure out why.
"But...we don't need a radio, do we Ran?" Jay nudged his friend. Randall ignored him but Jay, obviously, carried on.
"Nope, that we don't! So...who's up for singin' some rounds?" There was no answer.
"Well, it looks like it's just gonna be me! But join in whenever you want." Jay took a deep breath, and began to sing.
"Oooohhhh...there was a sailor on the sea, and this sailor caught sight of me, and he said, 'look at you, young un', not out on the sea. Why don't you become a sailor just like me?' And I said..." Randall suddenly had the urge to throw up, for some obscure reason. But, instead of that, he tried to cease this unlawful form of torture.
"Jay-"was all he could manage to say before his friend carried on.
"I KNEW IT!" Jay exclaimed. Randall looked at Jay, a confused expression upon his face.
"Don't worry, Randall- you can join in too!" And so the torture continued. Half an hour later, Jay had gone through ten different songs in the attempt to try and get the other two to participate. Number eleven had just begun, when...
"WILL YOU SHUT UP?!" roared the lorry-driver, so aggravated that, underneath all of that wispy fur, his face had transformed to a pale shade of purple. Jay had paused mid-sentence, quite astonished at the lorry- driver's outbreak. Randall, alternatively, was just relieved that the driver hadn't joined in.
"If you sing another song," the furry said threateningly, "I'll push you out of the lorry myself." Jay nodded vigorously and smiled, trying to shed some light on the situation. And so another ten or so minutes passed. Randall was thoroughly relaxed and was just appreciating the view as the sun progressively transpired from the now slightly hilly surroundings, greeting a new day. Jay looked around himself, agitated, licking his lips as though it would rid him of the urge to speak. He looked at the little dashboard clock. 4:15am.
As his eyes scanned every molecule of dust in this tiny compartment, Jay noticed something. Now he HAD to say something about this; it wouldn't be right not to. But what if Randall got angry with him? "Oh well," he thought, calming down. "His bark's worse than his bite...isn't it?"
"Hey, mister?" The driver didn't take any notice.
"You do realize that your road tax for this lorry's outta date? You could go to jail for that!"
******************
As Randall picked himself up off the ground, he strode over to Jay, glaring, decided that nothing he was seriously thinking about saying to Jay would do any good, and took his anger out on an unfortunate rock.
"I'm sorry Randall, but I didn't realize the guy was so tetchy. I didn't expect him to chuck us out the lorry!" Randall was pretty much lost for words, due to the anger he was experiencing at that point, but figured that he had better get used to it.
"Do you do this on purpose?" he asked Jay, beginning to walk in the direction that the lorry had been headed.
"Do what?"
"Be so annoying." Jay jogged a little to catch up with Randall, and actually had a frankly sincere look on his face.
"Sorry."
"Forget about it." They walked on in silence for a little while, until they saw a blob on the horizon to the left of them. The ground had become quite hilly and grassy now, and the distant sound of the sea was brought to Randall and Jay's ears. Randall had a curious sudden impulse of a sort, and he turned to the left, leaving the road, and climbed up a particularly steep hill. Once he had reached the top, he grinned. Jay came up behind him, puffing and panting.
In front of them was a road that had branched off from the main highway, which led down to the sea. But what was more important than seeing a glinting strip of blue meet their eyes was a colossal building, a rustic look about it, accompanied by three others, all arranged like the four main points of a compass. A straight path was led from each of the structures and met in the middle of the four, all around them some beautiful yet varied gardens full of life and, in the morning, this miniature world would be packed with new students observing their fresh surroundings.
Everything had an eerie calm about it as Randall and Jay stared with wonder at the University laid before them. This was where they were to spend the next several years, learning, experiencing, enjoying the company of new friends...there was so much to be done. And, oh, how Randall had looked forward to this special day.
They had arrived.
Two hours they waited; two long, tiresome hours. What was left of the car had stopped burning, leaving a pile of scorched metal, and Jay and Randall had sat by it after salvaging some of their belongings.
"So, what now?" Randall asked Jay as the sun's rays began to scour the wasteland for any reminder of darkness. It was three in the morning.
"I have no idea," Jay replied. They both looked around themselves, realizing how deserted they really were. Randall chuckled.
"I knew something like this would happen." Now it was Jay's turn to glare.
"Oh, yeah, real hilarious."
"We could wait for a vehicle to come by."
"And how long's that gonna take? Come on, Randall, think of something that is REMOTELY sensible."
"Or we could start walking and go to the next Scream Station. That is, if the wild beasts in this place don't eat us first." Jay, after getting up to start walking, hurriedly sat back down again.
"I opt for the choice in which we DON'T get eaten." Jay noticed Randall smiling after he had made this comment. Randall, smiling? Maybe they were beginning to understand each other.
"Good idea," Randall said, finally enjoying the company of his friend. And there they sat for ten minutes, not saying a word, but basking in the early morning sunlight. Until what they had been waiting for rumbled down the dusty road. Randall leapt to his feet, Jay following close behind him, and stood in the middle of the road. The lorry was gradually getting nearer. Randall began waving his arms erratically; the vehicle didn't seem to be slowing down at all.
After less than a minute, the lorry was almost on top of them, yet its speed was constant.
"Uh, Randall?" Jay said, beginning to panic, as always. "Maybe we should get out of the road now..."
"No, we'll wait. He isn't just gonna run over us," Randall retorted, too confident for his own good. He stood his ground, but Jay could take it no longer. He fled behind the charred remains of the car, expecting Randall to do the same. The sun provided enough light, but not for the lorry driver, obviously- the bright lights of the lorry were aimed at Randall's face and he squinted, his eyes hurting from the overpowering gleam.
The lorry was incredibly close to Randall before it actually began to slow down, and, as it stopped, Randall opened his eyes to see that he was practically touching it. Jay had covered his own eyes, not wanting to see the outcome of this daring venture of Randall's, but as he heard the low, constant rumble of an engine, he looked up from his hiding place.
Randall had gone round the front of the lorry and was now knocking on the bright blue side-door with a clenched fist. The driver grumpily opened the door and, taking one quick look at Randall, was about to shut it again. But the lizard-monster was too fast for him. Randall grabbed the door, ensuring that the driver couldn't close it, and faced the bewildered fur-ridden monster. Jay crept up behind him, not wanting to be left out in the negotiations.
"What do you want?" the furry asked in a deep, almost explosive voice.
"A lift," Randall replied simply. Unfortunately, Jay's mouth wasn't used to be shut this long, and, in the fear of it being closed permanently, he said something quite stupid.
"Yeah, ya see, our car sort of blew up- it was actually quite funny how it happened; we were just drivin' along-"
"Ignore him," said Randall, interrupting his friend's abnormal babbling. "We've been here for hours, and we're late for our first term at Uni. It'd be a big help if you could just give us a lift, at least to the next Scream Station." Randall could see the cogs in the lorry driver's mind slowly turning.
"Which University?"
"Crynferse."
"Crynferse Uni? What a coincidence- that's where I'M headed! Uh, I mean...it might not be too much trouble, I guess." Jay beamed, shoved Randall aside and was about to climb aboard the lorry, but Randall stopped him.
"Hold on a second, Jay." Randall took a few steps back, looked at the side of the lorry, and then leaned back on the door.
"What have you got in there?" The bloated lorry-driver shook a flabby finger at him.
"That's none of your business."
"But what would a lorry be doing going to Crynferse Uni?"
"I dunno. I'm just paid to drive the thing, not to ask questions." Jay looked back at Randall hopefully. The lizard-monster rolled his eyes.
"Get in." Jay bounded up the metal steps and sat in the middle seat, Randall following behind. He shut the door once sitting down, and, five minutes after the lorry had continued on its journey, was in deep thought about something which Jay daren't ask about. Randall enjoyed the silence, but Jay, on the other hand, despised it.
"Don't you have, like a radio or something?" he optimistically asked the driver, who just gave him a weird look. Jay didn't take any notice- he got a lot of these uncanny expressions, but the thing that really bugged him was that he could never really figure out why.
"But...we don't need a radio, do we Ran?" Jay nudged his friend. Randall ignored him but Jay, obviously, carried on.
"Nope, that we don't! So...who's up for singin' some rounds?" There was no answer.
"Well, it looks like it's just gonna be me! But join in whenever you want." Jay took a deep breath, and began to sing.
"Oooohhhh...there was a sailor on the sea, and this sailor caught sight of me, and he said, 'look at you, young un', not out on the sea. Why don't you become a sailor just like me?' And I said..." Randall suddenly had the urge to throw up, for some obscure reason. But, instead of that, he tried to cease this unlawful form of torture.
"Jay-"was all he could manage to say before his friend carried on.
"I KNEW IT!" Jay exclaimed. Randall looked at Jay, a confused expression upon his face.
"Don't worry, Randall- you can join in too!" And so the torture continued. Half an hour later, Jay had gone through ten different songs in the attempt to try and get the other two to participate. Number eleven had just begun, when...
"WILL YOU SHUT UP?!" roared the lorry-driver, so aggravated that, underneath all of that wispy fur, his face had transformed to a pale shade of purple. Jay had paused mid-sentence, quite astonished at the lorry- driver's outbreak. Randall, alternatively, was just relieved that the driver hadn't joined in.
"If you sing another song," the furry said threateningly, "I'll push you out of the lorry myself." Jay nodded vigorously and smiled, trying to shed some light on the situation. And so another ten or so minutes passed. Randall was thoroughly relaxed and was just appreciating the view as the sun progressively transpired from the now slightly hilly surroundings, greeting a new day. Jay looked around himself, agitated, licking his lips as though it would rid him of the urge to speak. He looked at the little dashboard clock. 4:15am.
As his eyes scanned every molecule of dust in this tiny compartment, Jay noticed something. Now he HAD to say something about this; it wouldn't be right not to. But what if Randall got angry with him? "Oh well," he thought, calming down. "His bark's worse than his bite...isn't it?"
"Hey, mister?" The driver didn't take any notice.
"You do realize that your road tax for this lorry's outta date? You could go to jail for that!"
******************
As Randall picked himself up off the ground, he strode over to Jay, glaring, decided that nothing he was seriously thinking about saying to Jay would do any good, and took his anger out on an unfortunate rock.
"I'm sorry Randall, but I didn't realize the guy was so tetchy. I didn't expect him to chuck us out the lorry!" Randall was pretty much lost for words, due to the anger he was experiencing at that point, but figured that he had better get used to it.
"Do you do this on purpose?" he asked Jay, beginning to walk in the direction that the lorry had been headed.
"Do what?"
"Be so annoying." Jay jogged a little to catch up with Randall, and actually had a frankly sincere look on his face.
"Sorry."
"Forget about it." They walked on in silence for a little while, until they saw a blob on the horizon to the left of them. The ground had become quite hilly and grassy now, and the distant sound of the sea was brought to Randall and Jay's ears. Randall had a curious sudden impulse of a sort, and he turned to the left, leaving the road, and climbed up a particularly steep hill. Once he had reached the top, he grinned. Jay came up behind him, puffing and panting.
In front of them was a road that had branched off from the main highway, which led down to the sea. But what was more important than seeing a glinting strip of blue meet their eyes was a colossal building, a rustic look about it, accompanied by three others, all arranged like the four main points of a compass. A straight path was led from each of the structures and met in the middle of the four, all around them some beautiful yet varied gardens full of life and, in the morning, this miniature world would be packed with new students observing their fresh surroundings.
Everything had an eerie calm about it as Randall and Jay stared with wonder at the University laid before them. This was where they were to spend the next several years, learning, experiencing, enjoying the company of new friends...there was so much to be done. And, oh, how Randall had looked forward to this special day.
They had arrived.