She was shivering.
At first I didn't notice; I was focused on the road ahead, and the furnace was cranked, blowing warm air all around. Neither of us had spoken since I walked her to the truck, but that was another thing I didn't notice.
When I did, finally, pick up on her unease, I pulled the truck over to an approach, parked it, and reached to the backseat. "Ethan," Nevada said softly, teeth still chattering, "what are you doing?" Yanking the blanket up, I unfolded it and wrapped it around her shaking body. Undoing my seatbelt, I inched closer to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulder, tugging on the blanket to cover more of her body.
Then, I reached over and undid her seatbelt; it slid back. Twisting around in my seat just a little more, I said, "Come here." She did, twisting a little herself to slide over. Her body still shook, but I could feel the heat between us. It made my cheeks flush red, being this close to her, but I ignored it. We had not been heading back to the city; I had continued driving in direction of my destination.
Before Nevada had climbed into the truck, she had told me she was visiting other Family on a farm. A Friend of the Family had offered to drive her home--the man I had shot. Something inside me had clicked; I wouldn't let anyone hurt her again. She moved a fraction of an inch, so that her forehead leaned against mine. My breathing hitched, and I swallowed--hard. "N--Nevada..." My voice was shaky, surprising me. Since when had I started feeling like this? Since when had I started caring again and letting people in?
Her lips parted, and she began to lean closer. Could she hear my heart, ramming in my chest? Was I that panicked? Scared? Nervous? In lo--
Stop it, Ethan! a voice shouted at me in my head. Pull away, damnit! You really think you love her? What happens when you want to kill and that girl is the closest thing around?
That thought scared me enough to draw back, and I did. Faced the steering wheel, actually. From the corners of my eyes, I watched as Nevada's cheeks flushed crimson red, and she brought a hand up to her mouth. Leaning back in my seat, I ran a hand through my hair and momentarily closed my eyes. "Let's keep going," I told her and shifted the truck into gear. '
"I-I'm sorry," Nevada whispered. I didn't dare look at her.
"Don't worry about it, " I replied casually, trying to act as if it hadn't happened.
Good, that voice rose up again. I felt like vomiting. You're a murderer; a killer. You cannot develop attachments. They cause trouble, so it is better to avoid them. It's like you are no longer capable of human emotion.
I was haunted by the thought of murdering Nevada all night.
As I planned, we had made it to the next town. Quiet, lights flashing through our windows as we drove, searching for a vacant motel. Nevada gave me the direction once she was ready to speak again and I was awake enough to listen to what she was saying. A small single-floored motel was our choice. Silence wrapped itself around us once again as we made our way to the desk inside. The lady behind the desk smiled a wide smile at us, a smile suggesting we wouldn't just be sleeping in the room we were given. I began to feel sick again, but I swallowed whatever bile was rising in my throat and spoke.
"Alright, enjoy your stay!" the lady called as we made our way to the room. I unlocked the door, let Nevada inside, shut it and locked it behind us, tossing the keys onto a wooden table. A single bed covered in red sheets and a large red blanket sat in the middle of the room. Fantastic. Before shrugging my jacket off, I stared over at Nevada, who was frozen at the foot of the bed, gazing down on the thing as if it might bite her. Her head turned and her eyes met mine; I could read her thoughts:
No way.
My heart sank in my chest and maybe I frowned. Nevada opened her mouth but I didn't let her speak before I did. "Go on and get some sleep. It's been a long night." Those were the last words that would be coming out of my mouth for the next nine to twelve hours. With a sigh of relief, Nevada slowly made her way over to the side of the bed, wrapped her arms around my neck in a hug, and pecked my cheek, before she pulled the covers of the bed back, and lie down.
...What did she just do?
~~~
This was rushed completely. Sorry. I wrote it in Science class today, and then typed it up when I got home. It all deleted itself somehow.... DX so I had to retype it...
--Allison.
