Artificial Earth

17

SARAH WAS SITTING UPFRONT INSIDE the van checking messages on her phone. Being a celebrity, she usually gets an average of fifty to seventy messages coming from love ones, co-workers, advertisers, fans, admirers and her boss on a daily basis, today she had none. "No messages..." she thought, "Maybe the networks are down because of the storm." She looked at the time on her phone, 4:30 a.m it read, it was still very much dark outside, like midnight. Sarah gazed out from the window on her side of the van, Andy and Bob were outside in the rain trying to fix their tire. She opened her side of the door slightly, wind and some sprinkle of rain greeted her, clinging to her face.
"Andy!" she called out over the noise of the rain."Hey Andy!!!"
Andy was standing next to Bob who was hunched over the rear end of the van. He heard Sarah calling him, turned around and walked towards her. "What?" Andy asked, squinting in the rain.
"How much longer?" she asked, speaking louder.
"Bob just finished inserting the Jack, he's taking the bolts off the tires now."
"How long?"
"Can't say, doing the best we can.."
Sarah closed the door and Andy went back to help Bob.
"What does she want?" Bob asked.
"She asked how much longer will this take." Andy said, wiping water from his eyes. "Told her can't say."
"Bitch." Bob said.

Sarah took out her purse and got a tissue then started wiping her face, looking at the rear view mirror. After cleaning her face she reach down the glove compartment and threw her purse inside. "My first time on the field again, and I'm stuck in a middle of the road on route eleven, great." she said out loud, talking to herself.
She took out her cellphone and was about to dial when she noticed the sky getting darker, just out ahead, over the other end of route eleven, a dark cloud was forming touching the ground.
"Oh My God.."
Sarah opened the door and called out. "Andy! " she screamed. "Andy! Bob!" She hopped out of the van and ran towards them.
"What? Listen, were doing the best we can, okay?" Andy said.
"You've got to fix that now!"
"You just go wait in the van and let us..." Andy was saying.
Sarah pulled his jacket and pointed at the road ahead.
"Oh Fuck!"
Andy hunched towards Bob.
"Take that tire off and put the other tire on, now!" Andy ordered.
"Jeez man....doing my best here.." Bob was saying.
Andy grabbed Bob and pointed towards the Twister.
"Holy Shit!" Bob said, hunching back and working faster.

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ROUTE 11

A CONVOY CONSISTING OF FOUR VEHICLES were on their way to Marble City, spearheading the group was an RV followed by a Pick-Up truck and two SUV's.
"I still don't understand why we left, most of my classmates parents stayed, John's Dad told us that there really was nothing to worry about and that the news was totally exagerated." Ned said, sitting in the RV.
"If they call a storm, missing people and a creature out in the lake nothing to worry about, normal...then I say they're either crazy or stupid." Randolf said with heavy sarcasm.
"But Dad..." Ned was saying.
"Ned that's enough." his mother said, walking towards them.
"But..." Ned was about to add.
"Enough."
Ned sat there pouting, being fourteen sucks, he thought. His sister Nikki, seventeen was lucky, she's back there riding with her boyfriend Albert while he was stuck with his parents on the RV.
     Basically, Ned was a good kid, though not popular in school. He was a part of the honor roll, inspite of this, he lacked the ability to interact with his peers, having no common interests with kids his same age. MetaPhysic's the culprit. He spends most of his time watching sci-fi flicks on T.V and reads Wattpad stories about aliens, portals, wormholes and gravity, surfing the web for answers on the basic causes and nature of things.
"You go on back and play with your laptop while I talk with your dad." Angela, his mom said, taking his seat up front.
"Okay." Ned sighed, moving back.

Inside the Pick-up truck behind the RV,  Ned's older sister Nikki was sitting beside her boyfriend Albert who was driving.
"Thanks Albert." Nikki said.
"For What?" Albert asked.
"For coming along." she replied.
"No biggy."
"Really, I mean it, I appreciate you coming along with us."
"No problem, besides, sucks staying at home, mom and dad are always at each others throat, arguing day in and day out. Geez, why don't they just get a divorce and get it over with..."
"You don't mean that.."
"Yes I do, the constant drama's killing me, feels good to just get away from it all."
"Did you tell them you would come with us?"
"Didn't need too...They don't even know I exist."
The RV in front of them stopped, Nikki's father Randolf and her mom Angela stepped out of the Rv into the rain.
"What's wrong?" Nikki asked, looking ahead.
"Don't know..." Albert said.
"Stay here while I check what's going on." Albert said, opening the pick-ups door.
"What seems to be the problem?" he asked over the pouring rain, walking over the RV.
"Accident." Randolf said, pointing ahead. Two cars were blocking the road, both smashed, and a single police car was parked in front of it.
"Collision, it seems...totally wrecked each others cars." Randolf said, putting his arm around his wife's shoulders.

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I looked at the rear view mirror and saw Maya staring back at me, our eyes met and I had a feeling that she understood what my eyes were trying to convey, or should I say...I was hoping that she would be able to understand what I wanted to imply, staring back at me a few more seconds before excusing herself.
"Okay, Bone come along now, let's get you something to nibble." Maya said, addressing Bone.
After they went inside through a door connecting the truck to the trailer, I looked sideways at Grey who was still staring at the windshield. "I must've hurt his feelings, not to mention, embarrassed him." I thought to myself.
"Grey?" I said, still staring at him.
"What is it Abby?" he asked, looking straight ahead.
"I really am sorry for laughing a while ago..ahem..It's just that..." I was saying.
"It's fine Abby, I'm fine, I mean...we're fine." he said, looking away, at the window beside him.
"No Grey, I really owe you an apology and an explaination, so please hear me out, okay?"
Grey was silent for a minute and I mentally prepared myself for what I was about to say.
"The answer to your question is "Yes.... I'll go out on a date with you....and I'm truly sorry for laughing, It's just that, we've known each other for a long time and I never thought you'de ask me out on a real date, It was wierd for me..." I added.
"You don't need to feel sorry for me Abby, I know your doing this just to avoid hurting me.." Grey was saying, looking straight ahead again.
"Okay, why not just let's try, what I meant was, let's be open and see what happens...take it one step at a time, fair enough for you?" I suggested.
Grey looked at me and smiled.
"Deal?" he asked.
"Deal." I answered back.
Beside me Connor smiled.
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Authors Note

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