Wish's Folly

Chapter Four: Night of Suffering

Liv shot upright. She was standing in less than a second, eyes focused squarely on the door. There was a knock.

"Liv, it's time." She slowly walked towards the button on the floor. One foot pressed down. The pressure plate slid into the floor, and the garage door started to crank up. She was greeted with the visage of Sally, the car of whom was smiling politely. The lids of her eyes were drooping, ready to sleep at any second. "... Sheriff's watching Stickers for a few more minutes, and then it's your turn."

"... Thanks, Sally."

"I HATE THIS PLACE!" Ah... The guy must've been having a lovely time. She stepped out, straightening out her clothes before noticing the wavering line of broken pavement all down the main road.

"... What happened?"

"Stickers went too fast, tried to race Doc for his freedom at Willy's Butte... Spun out into the cacti." She chuckled. "... Had to break up the bad road he put in... And now he's back at square one.... Not to change the subject abruptly, but did you sleep well?" Liv nodded, offering a polite smile. She noticed the sun was already gone, with stars beginning to pop up here and there in the sky.

"Yes... Thank you, Sally."

"It's no problem... I'm gonna go to bed... But good luck with Stickers." Sally grinned, but it was sedate. She backed up and drove towards the central building surrounded by all the Cozy Cones, and vanished inside. Shortly thereafter the light went out. The ticking paused.

Liv wandered away from the cone, pausing at the edge of the road. She glanced both ways, easily spotting the sports car- Stickers- at the end of the road. He was hunched, eyes screwed shut. Near him was Sheriff, trained on the guy like he would run at any second. Technically, she supposed, he might. Bessie- the giant concrete machine that looked like a monster in the light of the flood lights Sheriff had used- was mid-bubble.

She ambled over, pausing only long enough to hide beside Sheriff. She let the ticking resume, slower than it would naturally be. Liv tapped against his side, gentle and quiet, three times. When she was done, the ticking stopped again.

She shot towards the nearest building. Her speed helped her to spider-climb her way up the bricks, until she managed to cling onto the outcropping of the building. After a few seconds of pulling up she was over the other side. Thankfully the flood lights didn't shine in her direction, leaving her in absolute darkness. Once more, the ticking resumed.

"I'm going to get some shut-eye." The car brightened, eyes opening and firing instantly towards Sheriff. "... But keep in mind... You're being watched, sonny." Sheriff smirked as the car huffed.

"Oh come on...! I don't even have enough gas to leave town!" Sheriff chuckled.

"I know." He drove off, vanishing into the darkness towards his office. Liv grinned a little bit herself.

"'You're being watched, sonny'- oh come on! It's not like anyone's even out this late, I mean.. All the lights are off!" Oh please. She would be watching him all night. The guy wouldn't be alone, although she couldn't exactly state she was there. She could leave a message or something, but she couldn't sign her name... No, it was best to just straight up ignore the guy. Didn't matter if she was watching him all night.

Stickers groaned, pulling Bessie ever-so-slowly forward. Liv's eyes flicked behind Bessie- a few feet of road. It was smooth, smoother than any of the brick-sides on the buildings in town. It nearly reminded her of the freshest paved roads she'd seen at night... At least he wasn't screwing up the road twice.

Liv remained standing. The lip of the building was enough to obscure her, and she had elected to remain behind the floodlights' embrace. And so it would be for some time, with Liv periodically taking her eyes off of Stickers only for them to flick right back when he complained. The complaints were common, racking up and stacking on one another. It was only about halfway into the night that his complaints got worse... And he started calling out.