Hayden

Chapter Twenty One

After eating our dinner, Jamie and I headed back to the apartment duplex. Andi had shown us around, and I found it quite lovely. It seemed as if Jamie could care less, but I understood. She was just tired.

As soon as Andi left, I told Jamie to lie down on the bed and rest while I unloaded the car of our belongings. I managed to put everything in its place, but I had gotten the shivers when I laid eyes on the hand gun I had snuck out of my condo.

My heart pounds as I remember that Zephyr and his mates are after me. I soon grow scared for Jamie's sake, and mentally hope that they don't find me. Soon, that is, at least.

When I have all of our important objects hidden in a safe place, I leave Jamie a note saying that I will be back soon. We need food in the apartment, and some dishes wouldn't hurt, either.

The wind outside is quite strong and tugs at my hair and jacket, but it doesn't bother me. It only feels like home where the chills are normal and the excitement was rare.

There aren't a lot of people outside, as this is a small town. I had never quite been used to small towns, but I know that I will have to make the most of it for now. There is nowhere else to go, and if all else fails, I feel safe here.

I soon find myself at a corner store named 'Griell's Grocery' and venture inside after examining the building for a moment. There are tall stands with fresh fruit, and bags of chips across from them. I grab a shopping cart at the entrance and look around for what would be reasonable to take back to our new home.

A few minutes into my shopping spree, I spot a mother and son pacing between isles. The boy seems to be no more than three years old, but acts much older. He is adoring of his mother and listens quite nicely; and it angers me to wonder why my mother was never like that.

I could have been like that little boy, but here I am now. A killer. A monster.

I shake my head of the thought and try to continue on without remembering my childhood, or what things could have been like if my parents had given a shit about me and my brother.

I think about him quite often and wonder just where in this world he could be right now. Is he like me? Does he remember me? Or does he even think of me?

"Excuse me, sir, is everything alright?" I jump when I hear the sudden voice and turn my eyes from the isle in which I saw the woman and boy to a woman in front of a register. I shake my head and try to manage a smile, but I can feel the failure.

"No. Thank you, though." I attempt to walk forward with my cart, but the woman speaks again.

"You were staring in the direction for some time, there. And you even turned pale for a moment. Are you sure everything is alright?"

I half smile and nod, failing to keep continuous eye contact. "Yeah," I breathe. "I just moved here, is all. Just a little nervous. I don't usually do this."

The woman nods mischievously as if she knew that part of my statement was a lie. She seemed to be able to read me, which freaked me out a little. I never really understood others who could read people like books. But I just clutched onto the handlebar of my shopping cart and began to quickly walk away.

After finding everything that I believed Jamie or I would need, I proceeded to an open register, making sure that the checker was not the woman who had tried to crack me. The line went rate he fast, and before so knew it, I was being helped to the car, and heading back to the apartment.

The traffic seemed to have gotten worse while I was at the store, and it had even started to rain. I somehow managed to hit every stoplight on the way back, which put me in an even worse mood.

I reached over to the cup holder and grabbed the Dr. Pepper bottle I bought at the last gas station Jamie and I had stopped at before finding the apartment duplex.

My phone buzzed suddenly, and I saw that there were texts from Zephyr, Taylor, and Jade. As I went to open them, a stoplight turned straight from yellow to red while I was in the middle of the intersection, and as I placed my foot in the brake to slow down, a truck merged over from the lane beside me and forced my car to lean onto the two left tires. I tried to turn it back, but nothing was working.

After trying to control the car and letting it land back on all four wheels, I realized that this was not an accident from two things: one, the car purposely jerked it's wheel to force my car to flip, and for a split second, I saw that the driver was Zephyr.