The Black Bear

Our visibility was only reduced more severely with every drop of rain that smashed loudly into the windscreen. We'd been driving for only a couple of hours, but that was enough time for the weather to change from a dim overcast to a catastrophic thunderstorm that could give a monsoon a run for its money. And with the night slowly approaching, our ambition to soldier on would eventually become an impossibility. The damp, marshy soil of the moors had whipped up a thick fog that had now left us with about a foot of tarmac ahead to work as our saviour to prevent us swerving off the road. My two friends weren't handling the situation well; they were beginning to grow anxious as to what our outcome would become if we bravely carried on.

"Just slow down before you force us to spend the holiday at the morgue!" Ben begged whilst focusing on the side of the road to watch for any sudden turns.

"Why the hell did I agree to come with you!" Alex's voice butted in from the back seat, before being drowned out by a crash of thunder.

I was close to banging my head against the steering wheel to release my frustration. There was only so much of their whining I could stand whilst trying to drive us safely to our destination.

"Look, will the pair of you just shut up!" I yelled. "I would stop if it wasn't about ten below outside and I could see further than the bloody bonnet!"

Turning my head quickly I fixed a frosty, piercing glance on them both.

"I'm trying to do my best to get us out this shitstorm, but if you've got an issue with my driving you can both get out of my car right now and hike your way off these damn moors!"

Ben pursed his lips as if he was going to attempt a retort toward my outburst. I keenly stood by for his response. But instead, he decided to turn away and continue staring out of the window; not bothering to utter a syllable. No words emitted from Alex either.

"Thank you," I huffed sarcastically.

I had hoped that the longer we pushed on, the calmer this weather would become. Obviously, nature wasn't on my side today. And it didn't help that the weather was managing to raise the tension between me and friends. The map book had been thrown around person to person as we argued fruitlessly as to what road we were actually driving on. Alex had even suggested that we turn around and go back the way we came to avoid getting any more lost than we seemed to be. My temper had started to boil over as the frustration started to make me itch all over.

It took a lot of restraint to stop myself slamming on the brakes and knocking a bit of sense back into my mates. And since the weather was worsening I knew it would only be a matter of time before I snapped.

It was then that something appeared in the distance and took that idea out straight out of my head.

There was a faint orange light hovering gently in the fog; it was like an orb piercing its way into our world. I noticed my foot beginning to push down harder on the accelerator. There was an optimistic sensation in the back of my mind that this was our guide to safety.

The light's origin began to unravel itself the closer we got. Ahead of us was a cosy looking pub situated at the side of the road. It had a white coating that gleamed through the storm with a luminous presence and sat proudly above the front door beamed the little lamp that to me had saved our skins. Above it swung a creaking sign that read, 'The Black Bear'. It seemed the owners were more than prepared for the torture that this ferocious storm was throwing against them. Every window was sealed with secure shutters that blocked out any possible light sources that tried to escape the building.

Even though the action was pointless, it was an embedded routine; I flicked down my indicator to warn any invisible drivers I was imagining were trailing behind me. Then slowly and with careful precision I swerved the car onto the gravelly little layby lined up beside the pub. To me, the vivid charm of a traditional English pub gave equal joy to that of the colour and beauty of a Christmas tree. The delightful glow and architecture that screamed with individuality was almost begging you to come inside and have a drink no matter what mood you might be in.