Page 9 of Dead End

“She did it. No doubt about it,” Michael said in disgust, grimacing as he slid both of his hands through his silver hair, making his biceps flex. I glanced away, not wanting to get caught staring or, worse, drooling. I almost couldn’t help myself. A few minutes ago, they were all dead.

The guys started arguing, just like in the old times, about how it was all my fault and they should have left me back in Sunset Hollow, as if it were even their choice to make. All the while, I just stood there with my arms crossed over my chest, staring up at the ceiling in annoyance. Maddie entered the fray when they started to get irate.

The bus doors creaked wide open without warning, metal sliding on metal, until cold air rushed in to greet us. All arguments stopped as we collectively stared at the creepy, orange-tinged fog that began to roll in. There was no driver, and none of us were anywhere close enough to pull the lever and open the door. Jason stepped into the aisle, since he was the closest, and made his way to the door on quiet feet. I held my breath as he bent over to look outside.

“What is it?” Maddie asked, standing on her tiptoes to see over the seats. I was doing the same.

“It’s just more orange fog. I think we’re still on the road.” Jason looked back at us with a deep, confused frown. “I say we get off this creepy bus and head to town on foot. I’d rather not get murdered in a cornfield, you know? Can you imagine what the newspaper would say? We’d be known as those dumb fucks who disappeared in a freaking cornfield...probably abducted by aliens.”

My whole body shuddered at the thought, but crickets only met his suggestion, along with raised eyebrows all around.

Well, if no one else was going to do something, I would. I wasn’t going to be a sitting duck out here. Jason was right. I wasn’t ready to have a movie based on a true story made about me. I cleared my throat, smoothing my dress down the front of my body, and made my way down the aisle, only to be blocked by Michael. He held a hand out, clamping down on my shoulder.

“We don’t know what’s going on yet. It might be safer to stay on the bus and wait, and you're definitely not going outside in the dark alone.” He was holding my shoulder to the point that I couldn’t move. It didn’t hurt, but was it just me, or did he seem stronger than he should be? His eyes were deadly serious, enough to make me question if he might be right.

I matched his stance, not backing down, because fuck if I was going to let him intimidate me. The only way to get answers would be to get our asses off this bus. Despite my hesitance to explore the unknown, I wasn’t about to be trapped in a vehicle again. I wouldn’t let them see me like that. Closed spaces made it difficult to breathe sometimes, and they brought so many horrific memories to the surface that I would rather not relive them.

I started to breathe a little harder now that I was thinking about it, now that the images from the crash that I wasn’t one hundred percent sure even happened came barreling back in. “I can’t be here…” My eyes shot to Michael, and I knew he could see the panic on my face. There was no hiding it, but right now, I didn’t care. I just needed to get out of this metal death trap.

He didn’t say anything for a minute; he just stared down at me before glancing over my head and off into space as if deliberating. He nodded to himself and then stepped to the side for me to pass. The space was a tight fit, so my body brushed against his, and a small whisper of his husky voice caressed my ear, saying, “I’m...here.”

My feet couldn’t carry me off the bus fast enough. I barreled past Jason, not even bothering to say anything, and flung myself off the bus. I gulped in the strange fog-filled air like my life depended on it, bending down with my hands on my knees. The smell of fall hit me like a train—hay from the surrounding fields, a small hint of burning wood, and the decay of dead leaves.

There was a shuffle of moving feet behind me. I guessed they all decided it was indeed better to get the hell out of that bus. Maybe they chose not to become sitting ducks for the local axe murderer. Not that quaint little Sunset Hollow had a local axe murderer, but who knew?

A soft hand grasped mine, tearing my attention away from the undulating fog. I’d been zoning out for a second, but then I looked at Maddie. Her eyes were scanning our surroundings, and her grip was growing tighter and a little sweaty.

“It’s too dark out here, Toby... It’s not right. I’ve been out here a bunch of times to pick peaches in the orchards, and it’s never been this dark.” Her eyes met mine, brimming with tears, until she blinked rapidly as she glanced up to get rid of the waterworks on the way. “I need you to tell me it’ll be okay. Please, even if it’s a lie.”

“We’re going to be fine, Mads. I promise. Let’s just head towards town before Pennywise shows up with a red balloon,” I said, trying to make a joke and snorting awkwardly, but she didn’t even move, let alone laugh, as she continued to look up at the sky.

“So not funny, Redrum,” Freddy snapped, stepping up to my side. I nearly jumped out of my skin. Damnit! How the hell did he sneak up on me? He was normally lumbering and heavy-footed, since he was such a big dude.

I chose to ignore him in favor of staring at the side of Maddie's profile in confusion. Is she okay? She wasn’t talking like her normal, bubbly self, and it almost looked like she was shaking. In fact, she was shaking. Her hand was covered in sweat, and her fingers gripped mine like a vice. Her head tilted back even further, and I followed her gaze. Holy fuck! I stumbled back a step, and a yelp ripped from my lips.

“What the hell is wrong with you guys?” Freddy snapped. “Hello, Earth to freak!” He waved his big hand in front of my face, but I couldn't look away from the sky. It was all wrong. So fucking wrong.

I blindly reached up and grasped his chin, pointing his face upward. He shut up real fast, but in less than a heartbeat, I could have sworn I heard him whisper, “Her skin is so soft... What the fuck—”

I shook my head. There was something wrong with his voice. It was only a soft, echoing whisper in my mind, like he was talking to me from the other side of the street. Whatever it was, I didn’t have time to think about it.

“I don’t think we’re on Earth anymore,” Jason said at my back. His voice shook and he sounded uncertain, which freaked me out because Jason was usually the voice of reason. He never let his emotions get the better of him in all the years we’d been friends. Right now, Jason was afraid, and that made the rest of us afraid too.

“I’m going to wake up any moment now, and there definitely won’t be two fucking moons in the sky!” Michael said as he paced back and forth, looking panicked. He was gripping his hair and reminded me of a caged animal, repeatedly stopping and looking at the sky.

I had to look back up again to make sure I wasn’t hallucinating. They were still up there, the twin moons. They hovered in the starry sky, like mirror images of each other, except the one on the right was a little bit darker than the other one. Both were tinted slightly orange, just like the fog that flowed over the road. I was shaking now, too. I didn’t know what to do. Clearly, we weren’t in Sunset Hollow anymore. But how could that be? I recognized the stretch of road we were on. I’d know this place anywhere, but I knew for damn sure there had always been exactly one moon in that sky.

I was officially losing my mind. At least I wasn’t alone.

“Maddie,” I said calmly, surprising myself. “Let’s head to the aunties’ house. I don’t know why, but I have a feeling those two will know what’s going on. Maybe they slipped something in our tea again?”

They’d been known to experiment with their herbal teas, claiming they were trying out some new medicinal herb, but it never ended well for the test subject—usually me or Maddie. Somehow, though, I just knew that if anyone had a chance of helping us, it would be those two crazy women. If they were even there... Oh god, what if they weren’t there?

Maddie nodded numbly, giving me a pathetic smile, but I watched her take a deep breath and square her shoulders before looping her arm through mine. We took off down the road.

I glanced over my shoulder and noticed the guys were now arguing quietly. I shook my head. Nothing ever changed. It reminded me of the good ole days, when no one seemed to be able to make a decision until I stepped up and made it for them. Freddy usually sided with Norman, and Jason sided with Michael based on principle alone. A wave of nostalgia so strong it almost made me stumble came over me, but I shrugged it off. Now wasn’t the time for a walk down memory lane—pun fully intended.

“Are you coming or what?” I eyed each of them individually. “Unless you feel like hitchhiking.” I shrugged, turned back around, and continued down the road. Maddie snorted a quiet laugh.

---