Stranded

The white smoke billowed up from the front of my car and caused me to slam on the breaks, a low, irritated groan sliding from my lips. Great, just great.

Exactly what I needed. 

The highway stretched endlessly on both sides of me, a reminder that I was quite literally in the middle of nowhere. 

The stars twinkled brightly above me, a stark contrast to the dark anger boiling in my chest. At that moment, I hated that my mother was right. She’d warned me about taking such a long trip in my ratty old lemon lot car. I’d insisted it would be fine. 

I could imagine her snarky tone, her “I told you so, Laura Lee.” 

I had been returning from a childhood friend’s wedding. My first I’d been invited to, much to my disgruntlement. Four of my high school friends had gotten married already and I hadn’t gotten a single invite. So when I received the invitation to this wedding, I’d been over the moon. Desperate to go as well, even if it was a days drive away from my mother’s cabin. The morning I’d left, my mother had clicked her tongue and had told me I would be lucky to make it. 

I did make it, and had spent a wonderful day with my old friends. 

I opened my car door after pulling off to the side of the empty road, the cold air hitting my face like an ex’s lover’s last kiss. I pulled a spare jacket from the backseat and wrapped it tightly around myself as I gingerly made my way to the front of the car. My hand’s struggled with my hood before it clicked open and swung open, smoke pouring out as I coughed and swiped it away. 

I didn’t know the first thing about cars or engines but I do know that the rattling sound it was making wasn’t a good sign. I frowned, cursed, and slammed the hood shut. It couldn’t have been the oil, I’d made sure to take it to the local shop and have it changed. 

I looked in both directions, looking for headlights, but there was only me, the road, the sparse cacti around me and the stars. There wasn’t even a moon. I rolled my eyes up to the sky, glaring at the stars like it was their fault for my misfortune and then returned to the front seat of my car. 

My fingers fumbled around to find my phone, my radio still blaring old blue’s, my temper starting to flare. I finally located the flip phone and lifted it, seeing the battery light flashing, indicating that it was dead. “Are you kidding me?” I spat, wanting to throw it to the ground. 

I had forgotten my charger at home, I already knew that. My phone had died on the way to the wedding and one of my friend’s had allowed me to borrow hers. My mind raced with the chances I had. I could either sit here, wait for a car to show, or drive my car slowly and hope there was a gas station close. I wasn’t walking, no way Jose. 

After a few minutes of pondering, I finally started up the engine. It spluttered and my hope started to die before it caught and rumbled to life. “Thank you.” I mumbled to no one in particular and pulled off the side of the road to slowly inch along. 

The smoke wasn’t pouring from the hood but the engine sounded awful still. Like metal grating on rocks. I hated the sound. 

My flimsy headbeams lit the road in front of me, and I nervously glanced out my windows. The desert was chilly, and it didn’t offer me any solace. Who knew what lurked out there in the dark. What was watching me at this very moment. 

After about 15 minutes of slowly driving, I finally saw the glimmer of lights ahead of me. 

A gas station. 

I let out a small breath of relief and continued to drive there. The old blue’s still echoed through my car; it was one of three stations my car played. Blue’s, jazz, and a station that eerily echoed static with garbled words. 

When I rolled up, I saw that there were lights on inside, indicating it was still open, even at 11:30pm. I stepped out of my car, clanging the door shut behind me, and hurried towards it. There was a dimly light sign reading ‘open 24/7, 365 days!’

As I stepped inside, the bell ringing above the door, I grew aware that the same blues station was playing quietly on the speakers. Glancing at the counter, I saw there was nobody there. It was late, they were probably off doing gas station attendant things. 

I wandered through the aisles, grabbing a bag of chips, a bag of candy, and a soda. The fluorescent lights hummed above me, a few flies buzzing inside that had gotten trapped. I found a crappy, overly expensive charger that would work. I walked up the counter, placed my treasures down, and waited. 

Waited for a total of twelve minutes before I got impatient and leaned all the way over the counter, searching for someone. “Hello?” I called loudly. 

No noise or movement. Weird. 

I leaned back onto my heels and frowned, irritation flaring back inside of me. “Hello?” I repeated, louder this time. 

Finally, I heard a door slowly wheeze open, somewhere I couldn’t see, and then a young man came walking from behind the corner of the wall I hadn’t noticed as a hall. He was chewing gum slowly, a bored expression on his face. He looked pale, very pale, his dark hair looking like he hadn’t showered in quite awhile. Acne peppered his cheeks and forehead, and his brown eyes looked dark and empty. “Yes?” He grouched at me and I was taken aback. 

“I have stuff to buy.” I said quickly, gesturing to the stuff on the counter. 

Without another word, he made his way to the counter, as if he had all the time in the world, and grabbed the chips, scanning them. When he was grabbing the charger, he paused, looking at it. Finally, something registered in his eyes and he looked up at me, squinting. 

He stopped chewing his gum. His eyes flicked out the windows, seeing my car, seeing the smoke drizzling from under the hood. Unease grew in my gut. “Hm.” Was all he said before he scanned the charger. 

I held my breath as he told me the total, but he seemed more alert now. That empty expression was gone from his eyes, and replaced with something I couldn’t place. 

I went to grab the plastic bag but his hand shot out, gripping my wrist. I yelped, jerking my arm away but he hung on. “You want me to look at that?” He asked, nodding his head outside. 

There weren't many options at this point but he still had my wrist. “Let go.” I barked and he complied, leaning back. 

“Sorry.” was all he said. 

“If you would like to, sure. It’s not the oil, I had it changed before I drove out here.” I said evasively and he nodded, putting up a sign that read ‘be right back’ on the counter, as if there were any customers. 

He glanced down at his watch, reading the time, before he nodded to himself and looked back up at me. His gaze was intense now. “Stay here.” He instructed. “Don’t go outside. Not safe. Not for a female like you.” His left eye twitched.

His warning sent shock rippling through my chest. “Do you have somewhere I could charge my phone?” I asked. 

“Sure. Behind the counter.” He pointed and then made for the door. But he paused, side eyeing me as his hand rested on the glass. “How old are you?” He asked quietly. 

Against my better judgement, I answered honestly. “Twenty six.” 

He nodded. “Name’s Phillip. I’m twenty five.” He took a deep breath, pushed the door open slowly, and then he stepped outside, the door shutting behind him. 

His behavior was unnerving me and I wanted to call my mother right away in case something happened to me. I hurried behind the counter and found the outlet he had mentioned. I quickly plugged the box in and plugged it into my phone. 

The battery started to move forward and back, telling me it was charging now. My shoulders were still tense and there was an anxious feeling gnawing at me, my palms growing sweat despite the chill of the gas station. The clock read 11:50pm now. I looked out the window, to my beater, and saw Phillip had the hood up, bent over it. His arms were moving. I had no clue what he was doing. 

My hands worked to open the bag of chips and I munched on them while I waited for him to finish and for my phone to charge. I looked down at it, saw it was almost close to turning on, and looked back out the window. Philip was gone, the hood still open, and the time read 11:58pm now. I straightened up, my heart racing, and I felt the urge to run. 

To leave, get out of that gas station. 

I was reaching for my bag of things, for my phone, when the door swung open and Phillip stood there, his hands greasy. “I know what’s wrong, but I’ll have to wake my pa up to help me.” His gaze was still intense as he watched me. 

Without thinking, because I was on edge, I blurted out “you’re not going to kill me are you?”

A grin split his face. “No, no. I can see why you’re a little freaked out, but I assure you I won’t. Though I doubt that eases your worry. Here.” 

He dug in his pocket for a moment and then tossed something to me. I caught it, and looked down. It was a cellphone. I looked back up at him. “So you can call for help if you feel the need to. It’s a very small town, John would get here in under two minutes.” 

He knew the cop on duty by name. I wanted that to be enough to relieve me, but there was something still… not right. Something was still off. I just didn’t know what. “Thanks?” I responded and he nodded, his eyes flicking up the clock on the wall. Midnight. 

Suddenly, a giddy look crossed his features but it was gone just as fast. “Wait here. I’ll be back.” He said suddenly. “Pa won’t be too happy about being woken up but we have travelers with broken down cars all the time. Keeps his shop afloat. He’s just down the road. It'll only be a few minutes. Stay. Here.”

His insistence on me staying should’ve alarmed me. But suddenly, I was exhausted, unnaturally so. I yawned and his eyes watched me. “There’s a cot in the back, if you’re tired. I’ll wake you up when he’s done.” He checked his watch again. “Angie should be here in two hours to take over. Hopefully you’ll be gone by then.” 

As his back turned and he stepped out, I could’ve sworn I heard him add “you’ll like her.” 

I popped his phone open and dialed the number I knew by heart. It rang and rang for a few moments before she answered. “Hello?”

“Mom?” I asked. “Mom my car broke down, I don’t know where I am but someone is gonna try to fix the car up for me.”

“Hello?” She repeated and I froze. 

“Mom? Can you hear me?”

“Hello? Laura Lee? Is this you?”

“Mom? Mom?”

She hung up.

I stared at the phone in my hand, panic growing in me. My own phone chimed, letting me know it was on. But when I flipped it open, the service bars were empty. No service. 

By now, ten minutes had passed. Phillip had not returned. 

I looked up from behind the counter, my car still sitting there, and a wave of tiredness swept over me. 

I yawned, stretched, and made my way to the hidden hall I’d seen Phillip emerge from. There was a door, which I opened, and found a cot was pushed against the wall. Complete with a ratty pillow and a ratty blanket. Just like my ratty car. 

My muscles were heavy, my eyes burning, and I collapsed into the cot, immediately falling asleep. 

When I awoke, there was a hand shaking me. I sat up quickly, dazed, and saw a plump older woman standing there, a bright smile on her face. “Hello there!” She said happily. 

I glanced at my phone, and saw it was 5 am. I stood up quickly, the blanket pooling around my feet. “Did Phillip fix my car?” 

“Who?” She tilted her head to the side as she followed me out to the counter. 

“Phillip. My car broke down and he said his pa–” I looked out the window and to my horror, my car was gone. “My car–”

“You must be the new worker.” She interrupted and waved her hands in the air. “I haven’t had a new coworker in so long. We rarely get customers anymore. Let alone young ones.” 

My heart began to race and I sprinted for the door, flinging myself against it. 

It didn’t budge, even though it had opened for me so easily yesterday. “It’s no use.” The woman said behind me. “Until you get a 27 year old to stay here past midnight of their own accord, you’re stuck here. Can’t tie em up, won’t work that way. And if you do leave, well… you die.”

I slowly turned to face her, my breathing coming quick now. “What?”

“Hush. You’ll forget soon enough. You’ll only remember when it is your time.”

And as she spoke, I forgot why I was here in the first place. 

I blinked as I gazed around me at the gas station.

There was stuff to be done. 

Shelves to be stacked. 

Floors to be mopped. 

Money to count. 

I moved towards the closet and opened it, grabbing the broom out. 

And the woman stood behind me, watching me with that same creepy, bright smile.