The soft guiding rays of light from the street lamps played on Julie's exposed pale skin in the moonlight as they passed under the lit pillars. Her tank top left little to the imagination in the unbelievable heat that had just recently subsided to a dull arch in Adam's bones. He was so tired from fighting the exhaustion of the days weather that he struggled to keep his eyes open. He tried to keep his thoughts on the road but they kept falling back to her sleeping form in the seat next to him and her perfectly tanned skin he used to love to touch so much. He loved her more than anything else in the world, he would do anything for her. she would be his everything until the day he died whether she choose to be with him or not after this trip, he would always be there for her no matter what she needed. The realization was a strong one for him, he wanted her back, there was no doubt about that but how to do it was what was eluding him at the moment. He wanted the Julie she used to be back, not the scared, unopinionated woman that pretended to be her in the seat next to him. He had caught a glace of that girl in there somewhere but every time he thought Julie was coming back to him, she'd retreat back into the hard shell that she put on for everyone else. He let a heavily sigh escape his lips, leaning on the door frame with his hand and glanced one more time at her before returning to the road ahead. The headlights paved the way for him as he maneuvered through the dusty roads Arizona, not really knowing where he was going but somewhere other than they were. She had been so tired when they made it back to the car and they hadn't found anywhere to stay that he could deem safe, so he finally just told her to sleep and he'd drive to the next town, in hopes of getting an early flight there. The only problem with that was the fact that she was even more attractive to him asleep that she was awake. Asleep he could pretend that she was the same girl he fell in love with so many years before. Rubbing at his eyes with the back of his hand, he tried to focus his attention back on the darken road laid out in front of them and not on the sleep that continued to crawl up on him. He had to stop this, she wasn't ready for a relationship again and he wouldn't push her into one before she was ready. But to look at her curled up next him, the wind from the open window blowing her hair in her face, he felt like he was 17 again. Maybe they could have been on a road trip to get away from everyone. No, he reminded himself, looking back on the road, he couldn't do this to her. He wouldn't let himself ruin what they had been working on getting back again. Shaking his head to let all the thoughts he had go away, he tightened his grip on the wheel and resolved himself to act like whatever she needed at the moment. If that was a friend he would be here friend. They had been driving nowhere for so long that every road seemed to be the same. He silently wondered if they were the same and he was driving in circles. Wouldn't that have been a trip and another excuse for her to hate him. The rumble of his stomach reminded him that they hadn't eat anything that day and that if she were awake, Julie would probably be hungry too. He silently hoped his stomach hadn't awoken her, letting his eyes wander back to her to see if she was awake. No, he thought glancing back again, she was still sound asleep in the same position he had last found her in. He moved his hand towards her to brush a stray hair that had fallen in her face back behind her ear. It was habit more than anything else. As he did so, she moved to rest her head on his shoulder, a grumble of contentment playing on her lips before she went back to sleep. He tried again without success to concentrate on the road in front of them but his thoughts keep drifting back to her. She was touching him, maybe not consciously but she was. Her hair tickled the bottom of his cheek and her breath came in even patterns. If now was the time to die, Adam knew he'd die happy.
The lights of a road side bar came into view on the right and Adam pulled into the deserted parking lot, surveying his surroundings. Staring up at the sign in contemplation, he looked down the road farther for any other businesses. Nothing else was in view and this was the first restaurant they had come across in the past hour. He'd have to face it that this might have been their only option for food this time of night. He slowly turned the key over to let the car die down and shifted in his seat towards the unconscious beauty resting beside him. She stirred as soon as he moved and leaned back in her seat, trying to remember how she ended up against him in the first place. Her face heated up with embarrassment and she tried to smile slightly at him to not make him feel uncomfortable at their situation.
"Where are we?" Her voice was low with sleep still resounding in it as she rubbed her eyes and tried to determine their location. Her eyes feel to the large neon sign resting against the top of the large ranch like building in front of them. She could only figure it was a bar of some sort.
"I'm not sure but I think we should grab something to eat while we can, you haven't eaten all day." He reminded her. She glanced at the bar and back at him again wondering if it would be safe inside. she didn't have much choice or many options at this point.
"Are you sure this place is okay?" She asked uncertain, her hands finding each other and ringing them together with nervousness.
"Yeah, we'll be quick. In and out." He said grabbing her hand in a reassuring squeeze before exiting the car. she didn't pull back this time, whether it be from sleep or the fact that she was growing more comfortable with him, he wasn't sure but he would take it.
The small roadside bar was packed with bikers passing through for the yearly convention just two towns over, giving Julie and Adam just the amount of cover they needed to feel secure in their own skin. Julie moved to the back of the dusty, barn like, structure until they found a vacant table to sit down and hide behind their menus. The place was less than comparable to any of the restaurants that Adam had been to in the past year, he mused, feeling a little laid back in the atmosphere. Glancing around, he found no eyes watching them and he took a deep breath. A relief in a sense, that no one seemed to care who they were and what their business was. Looking to Julie, Adam tried to smile reassuringly at her but her eyes remained down to the table. Greg usually did the ordering for her, so she was pondering what she would want off the menu, It had been far too long since she had been able to choose what she ate.
It was a few minutes before a small waitress made her way over to the table to take their order. She had her hair tied up with a pen and her white dress shirt ties at the waist.
"Welcome to the Roadside Tavern. What can I get for you?" She asked, her accent definitely Texas based in nature. Adam's mind immediately feel to one cowboy he hadn't seen in years.
"Just two burgers and two fries." Adam mumbled, glancing at Julie for approval. Her eyes were everywhere but on him and she had closed her menu many minutes before mumbling she didn't care what he ordered for her. "Anything to drink?" She asked, chewing a piece of gum between her teeth and smacking it obnoxiously against the roof of her mouth. Adam had to stop himself from staring too long.
"Just water…" He conveyed, collecting the menus from them and handing them over. She just nodded and made a note of her check pad before walking away, a swing her in her step as she went. The silence was awkward, Adam thought, lacing his fingers together on the table and staring down at them. He cleared his throat before speaking.
"Are you okay, Jules. Is this alright?" He asked, conscience of her need to be in control of the situation for right now. She nodded her head feverously, trying to convince herself she felt secure in this place. Truth be told, she felt out of her element, not knowing how to act in this situation only that she had little choice but to deal as her stomach grumbled in response. He searched her face for a moment before shifting in his seat to be slightly closer to her.
"You don't have to lie to me. If you don't want to stay, we don't have to. I'll ask them to wrap it up." He said, leaning his mouth towards her ear to whisper his proposal. He could see her silently weighing the options before nodding slowly.
"Adam, I don't think I'm ready for this. Can we just go? I… I can't be here. All these people.." She felt her face heat up with worry and her skin begin to crawl with a near to be alone. All the people around her made her feel nervous and she needed to get somewhere safe.
"Okay, I'll tell them to wrap up the food and we can go." He said standing from the booth quickly. Julie grabbed his arm in a death grip before he could get two steps away from her.
"Adam, can I wait in the car? Would that be okay? I don't feel right in here." She asked, her eyes shining brightly in the dim light with a hint of tears that might start to shed at any moment. He looked down on her, wanting to take her into his arms in a bone crushing hug and tell her everything would be alright but instead he just nodded, helping her from the booth.
"Yeah, if that's what you want." He said, loosening her grip on him and turning for the front counter. She nodded in understanding and moved from the booth towards the door, not following him. He watched her go until she was out the door and glanced out the window to see her walking towards the car, no one in sight as she went. He sighed in relief, letting the air leave his lungs and moved towards the bar to see their waitress.
"Excuse me, can we get that to go? My friend; she's not feeling too well." He tried to explained, the waitress nodded, beginning to ring out the order at the register. He paid for the food and waited while they wrapped it up, glancing once again around the bar to see if anyone was looking his direction. Everyone seemed to be going about their business, a lot of people drinking and laughing. Some people doing karaoke at the other end of the room. Moving his eyes down the bar, he found one pair of eyes staring directly at him. A man sitting at the end of the bar, drink in his right hand, cigarette in the other, stared back at Adam as if he was watching every move he made. His hair was greasy and shoulder length, someone Adam was sure he wouldn't want to meet in a dark alley. His eyes reminded him of something he couldn't quite put his finger on. His stare seemed to penetrate his skin before the waitress interrupted him again.
"Here you are, sir. Thank you." The waitress said, distracting him from his thoughts and he took the food to head out of the bar quickly. Glancing once more back at the man at the end of the counter, he was no longer there, almost having disappeared into thin air. Adam shook his head to try to rid his mind of the thoughts that were running through it. He pushed open the door to make his way to the car, fumbling with the keys from his pocket. He wanted to get out of here as fast as possible, something didn't feel right about this situation. Stepping out into the warm night air, Adam was met with a fist to the mouth. His brain only register the trauma after his head made contact with the concrete of the wall. He could hear Julie cry out in fear as he fell back against the building with a thud, sliding down the side, the food he'd been carrying spilling all over the sidewalk next to him. It took a minute for him to regain enough composer to realize what was going on. His eyes settled on the cold eyes of Greg Williams sating a few feet away from him. He had Julie pushed up against the rental car, throwing hurtful words in her direction as he nearly spit each word at her from his mouth. Adam's eyes came back into focus and he began to hear what was being said for the first time.
"What did you think you were doing? You knew I would find you. Do you like to make me this angry, I wouldn't have to do this if you'd just do what you're told." Greg's voice filled the night air and Adam tried to stand again but another fist met his stomach this time, his attacker stepping into the light before him. The man that had been sitting at the end of the bar stared down at him, a playful grin on his face as Adam slid to the ground again holding his stomach. Taking a breath of his cigarette, the man watched Adam to make sure he wasn't going to try anything before turning back to Greg for instruction.
"Why wouldn't you just listen to me!" He heard Greg yell, Julie trying to explain herself before his open palm crushed her cheek against it, a resounding crack heard from her cheek being smashed. She yelped with pain, looking down at the ground to keep from crying. Her hand instinctively went to her face and she tried to sooth the aching flesh to no avail.
"You're mine, do you understand? No one will ever want you! You're trash, you're lucky I'm willing to take you back after this stunt!" He yelled against her hair, pressing his body against hers in a dominating fashion. Adam tried to move towards them but was pushed back against the wall, the man staring down at him as he pressed his boot heel into Adam's shoulder to hold him in place. Adam groaned in pain, trying to fight the man's boot from his chest.
"Julie!" He groaned, he could taste blood beginning to form in his mouth from the first shot this man had inflicted to his jaw. She didn't look at him but the sudden outburst had attracted Greg's attention. He threw Julie to the ground, next the wheel of the car, her hands slapping the gravel hard as she tried to catch herself before she ended up face first to the concrete.
"Shut up!" Greg yelled, pulling Adam to his feet against the wall but the fabric of his shirt. "You filled her head with all these ideas! She's mine!" He accused, slamming Adam's already weakened body against the hard brick to get his point across. Adam felt his head spin again, the fear of unconsciousness looming just beyond his mind. One more hit to the head and Adam feared he would be out cold for the rest of the night. Feeling Greg continue to slam him against the hard surface and yell threatening words in his direction; the only thing his mind could focus on was Julie's limp body, laying on the ground just behind Greg, her shoulders slumped and shook. She was crying, he realized with defeat. He had failed her, he had took his eyes off her for one minute and she had been put in danger. He should have stopped her, he should have know Greg would have other people to watch for them, this guy being one of them as he landed another punch to Adam's rib cage. He'd probably called Greg the minute they'd arrived. They'd been caught before they even knew it and there was nothing they could have done about it. He felt a black cloud begin to form behind his eyes and he could do nothing to stop it but watch it take over his vision. The sound of a door opening and closing somewhere near seemed millions of miles away before he was dropped to the ground, feeling all the air leave his body. He took a couple of deep breathes and spit out a mouth full of blood before his eyes came back into focus, the blackness seeping back into the recesses of his mind. Two bikers had come out of the bar to continue on their ride through town when they had come across the beaten couple being attacked by two men. Adam watched as the four men met before he tangled, throwing fists and knees. He could have only hoped for such a rescue. He only had a minute to take the advantage the bikers had given him. Looking back to the ground next to him, Julie still lay breathing deeply as her sobs seemed to subside. He crawled quickly over to her and grabbed her shoulders in his hands.
"No!" She pushed against him, her eyes filled with more tears as she struggled to get away. Adam spit out a glob of blood before he tried to speak.
"Julie, it's me. Come on!" He motioned for her to get in the car that they were resting next to. For a minute she looked as if she was deep in contemplation, looking to Greg a few feet away, still struggling to gain the upper hand against the burly biker that had come to help them.
"Come on!" He practically yelled at her before she quickly scrambled from the ground to the car door, opening it quickly to get in. He managed to pulled himself off the ground with help of the car before being slammed back into it. Greg had apparently knocked the man that had come to their defense out on the ground behind him. Julie screamed as Greg attacked Adam against the hood of the car, trying to choke him out of consciousness. Adam fought back, landing a heavy punch in Greg's abdomen, knocking the wind out of the stronger man for a moment and letting Adam move around the car in a limping pace. Greg moved to follow and Adam jumped in the car on the driver's side, locking the door before he fumbled for the keys to get the engine started. It only took a minute for him to find the right one before he slammed into the ignition. Greg was working furiously, slamming the window to try to break it open before Adam to get them out of here. The car came to life and Adam began to back up when Greg finally broke the window and grabbed a hold of his shirt where he had before. The car was still rolling back as Adam fought with Greg to get him to let go. He clawed at his fist trying to gain the upper hand. Greg jogged along the side of the car, keeping up with it's pace.
"Julie!" Adam yelled to the scared occupant of the seat next to him. She was nearly croached into the floor at the bottom of the passengers seat. "Take the wheel!" He yelled, resorting to biting at the hand of the man he was fighting with. She still didn't move at first, shaking her head frantically and hugging her knees to her chest to try to find comfort in the situation.
"Julie! I need you to take the wheel!" He yelled again pushing at the angry Greg as he tried to pull him from the car, he had him nearly out the window when they made it to the road. Julie looked up, meeting Adam's eyes for a moment before she grabbed the wheel with such force, her knuckles began to turn white. She quickly shifted as the road came under the tires and she moved towards him to try to control the car as the fight ensued next to her. She ducked a stray punch from Greg and nailed the brakes quickly to try to throw him off the car. Throwing the car into drive she watched as the fight continued against the car, Greg had swung a leg on the hood to kept from being thrown off when she had initially stomped on the brakes. Watching the scuffle for a few more seconds, Julie felt the anger she had for this man building up inside her. Why couldn't he just let her go? She had to stop this before he killed Adam. She grabbed the seat belt fast, quickly wrapping it around Adam and herself before snapping it shut into the buckle.
"Hang on!" She breathed against Adam's ear, slamming the gas as hard as she could to get the car moving. The car took off down the open road as Greg stopped his fight with Adam to concentrate on hanging on.
"Julie! What are you doing?" He yelled, through the glass windshield. "when we get home!" He tried to threaten but he threat went unnoticed. She ignored the question and let the car gain speed before stomping on the brakes causing Adam and herself to jolt forward. Greg roll off the front of the hood, unable to hold on any longer and stumbled to a stance just beyond the bumped. He stood in front of the car, in the headlights, his eyes sending a shot of fear through Julie's veins.
"Julie!" He yelled in his most threaten tone he had ever had with her. Adam looked over at her, her eyes staring intently in front of them.
"Julie?" He asked just as she hit the gas and tore ahead, narrowly missing Greg as he jumped out of the way.
Her hands were shaking with a mixture of fear and anger, letting them finally loosen from the wheel. Adam could feel her body shaking at the points where his form met hers. He knew she didn't want him to touch her and he could respect that, instead, he placed his hands on the wheel opposite of hers.
"Julie, let go." He whispered as softly as possible. He moved his foot to take over for hers and took control of the moving vehicle. She quickly unhooked the belt and moved back into her own seat, her hands clutched together to control the violent shaking. Pulling her knees against his chest in a protective manner again, her eyes scanned the road side as they passed. Adam glanced at her every few minutes to make sure she was okay before pulling off the road.
"What are you doing? He's going to follow us!" She yelled at him, trying to make him continue. He placed the car in park to look at her.
"Julie, calm down!" He ushered, trying to sooth her. Her face was red and tears began to fall down her cheeks creating lines of paled skin against the redden patches on her cheeks.
"We need to go!" She cried, holding her head in her hands to try to control her anguish.
"Okay, okay. " He finally agreed, pulling back on the road. He had wanted to talk to her about what had just happened but he wasn't going to force her. She'd tell him in her own time.