Far Away from Here [closed]

Ally & Brian

Emma & Matt

Emma raised her head up off the bus seat in front of where she sat, rubbing her forehead where she was sure there was a large red spot now. She looked out the window at the deserts of Texas rolling by. All there was to sea was rocky terrain and mountains in the distance. Looking to her left, she saw the lights of a bar coming up, and she raised her hand to pull on the bell to the left the bus know to stop.

"This is the first place I've seen since this morning." She told Ally as she pulled on the bell, "I'm hungry and exhausted." Little did she know this was going to be the first of many horrible decisions. The bus came to a rolling stop and she grabbed the only bag she owned off the floor and pulled it onto her back. Following her friend off the bus, Emma was relieved to fell the sensation of a cold breeze against her face. "Finally, that bus smelled like old people and fish." She laughed as she led her friend towards the entrance of the bar.

She could feel a lump start to form in her stomach. There were no cars here, only a long row of parked motorcycles and it sounded loud on the inside. "This might not have been the best place to stop..." Emma said as she peeked in through the window on the door, seeing nothing but men inside. Ever since Emma was little she had a fear of men, especially ones larger than herself. Her father and her uncles had sparked that fear in her from a young age, when they all started taking whatever they wanted from her. She was afraid that every man was the exact same way.

Opening the door, she followed Ally inside the bar, and the moment they stepped in, even though the music was loud and the men's voices were louder, it was like they all heard the chime of the bell and they all stopped for a moment to look over their shoulders at the two girls. A few raised eyebrows, but then carefully turned back to continue their conversations. Emma let out a relieved sigh. "I think I see an empty booth over here..." Emma whispered to Ally and she led the way.

---

Brian placed a clean glass down below the bar and glared over at Johnny, "Did you really have to kill our last bartender for being late?" He hissed, as he continued to wipe down glasses, one after the next. It was hard to hear Johnny's retort over the loud music playing from the jukebox, but one thing Brian could always hear was that damned bell.

He was used to ignoring the door every time he heard that little bell sound. Day after day all they served were biker gangs and the occasional drunk from their town. The only time a woman came in here was when it was time to drag her husband home by his ear. Or when they forced a little lady inside and made her work. But what really caught Brian's attention was when the whole bar seemed to stop, every man hushed for just a second, and that was strange.

Looking up, Brian eyed the two girls that had came in, and watched as they scurried to one of the empty booths in the place. That was strange. Raising an eyebrow, he sat is rag down and hurried into the back of the bar to find Matt, lazily just counting money from the night before. "You won't believe what just scurried in here." He beamed and told Matt of the two young girls. "I think a drink is on the house, don't you?" Brian smiled, before slapping the frame of the door once before returning to behind the bar to grab two glasses.

Hearing Emma, Ally lifted her head and looked out the window. She threw her bag over her shoulder and walked off the bus, knowing Emma was right behind her. “Em, just, uh, stay close...” Ally said softly before they walked into the bar.

Ally quickly went to the booth with Emma, she pulled the sleeves of her flannel shirt down and toyed with the ends, “Let’s just, eat and get out of here...” She was uncomfortable, feeling the eyes on them. She ran a hand through her hair.

Everything had been so fast, Ally decided to run after talking with Emma. Ally packed a bag, and left her boyfriend in the middle of the night. She wanted to be as far away from him as possible and so far it was working great.

---

Matt was irritated to hear footsteps coming towards the door, he continued counting the money before Brian opened the door. He was intrigued to hear that two girls were in their bar.

“A drink on the House is a great idea,” Matt agreed. He put the money away before getting up and going to see what was going on. Matt followed Brian out to the front of the bar and smirked when he saw the girls sitting at the booth.

He nodded, “Nice, make sure they get whatever they want.” Matt knew there was no way the girls would be going anywhere anytime soon.

@ dance macabre

Emma looked up when a man came up to their booth, carrying two drinks in his hands. "These are on the house, ladies." He smirked, looking between the two. His eyes seemed to linger on Ally and Emma felt even more uncomfortable. She liked to chalk it up to her paranoia, but she had a feeling in her gut that something was definitely wrong here.

She took her drink quietly, setting it down in front of her, though she had no intention of drinking it.

"My name is Brian." The man spoke up again, clasping his hands behind his back once the drinks had been sat on the table. "Are you two hungry? You look hungry. I can get you whatever you want."

Emma looked between the man and her friend, knowing there was no way they were just getting these drinks and whatever food he gave them completely on the house. There would be a catch.

---

Brian lingered, waiting for the girls to answer him. They both looked like they were shaking in their boots, but Brian figured it was just because the scene they were in. He figured all the biker men were making them uncomfortable and that was it. This wasn't really the place for young girls.

"Cats got your tongues?" He asked with a chuckle. "I'll bring you guys out some fried pickles and we'll start there." He smiled.

Brian gave Ally another glance, eyeing her up and down. She definitely wasn't leaving his grip.

Returning to behind the bar, Brian called for Johnny to whip up some fried pickles for the girls, before looking at Matt. "I barely got a thank you. They're shaking like leaves." He laughed.

@ foREVerYours.

Ally eyed the drinks after Brian left, she glanced at Emma, “Something is very off here...” She knew her friend was feeling the same way, just judging by her body language.

“And free drinks and food? I don’t think this was a good idea at all,” Ally felt incredibly bothered, not just by the suspicious drinks and food, but the way that Brian had looked her over before he left. She felt like his eyes roamed every inch of her.

She watched as another man started to approach their table, “And here comes another one...” Ally said softly before he got to their table.

---

Matt shook his head slightly at Brian’s words, “You probably scared them half to death.”

Once their fried pickles were done, Matt took them before Brian got a chance, “Let me give it a try.” He carried the food over to the girls and placed it on the table in front of them.

“Sorry about Brian, he comes on a little strong sometimes,” he laughed softly. “I hope you girls enjoy your drinks and food, I’m Matt by the way. Is there anything else I can get you?” He looked between them for a moment.

@ dance macabre

Emma looked over to see the man Ally had pointed out, and she was right, he was making a beeline straight for their table. When he sat the fried pickles down on their table, Emma started to nervously chew on the inside of her lip. She was starving, and she knew Ally was too and there was no way just a little appetizer was going to do them any good.

"U-Uhm,-" Emma forced herself to speak up, even though the last thing she wanted was Matt's attention, "I think we're okay, right now, but- uhm- we can pay for this, we couldn't possibly just take this." Emma couldn't handle her constant 'uhm-ing', it was a nervous tick, especially when it came to men like Matt.

---

Brian watched from the bar, shining yet another glass, and he watched as Matt was actually able to make one of the girls talk. He could see when he was up close to them that they were both exhausted and starved, which he thought was a little odd. He wondered where these girls had came from. "Do you have the burgers ready yet?" He asked Johnny before grabbing the two plates from the window and hurrying across the bar to Matt at their table.

"Here you go, girls." He smirked and sat the two plates down in front of them. "You both look like you're starving." He asked, looking between the two girls.

@ foREVerYours.

Ally watched as the men left the table. She glanced over at Emma before deciding to start eating. She ate one of the fried pickles before taking a bite from her burger.

She took a drink and glanced over at Emma, “This is actually really good.” Ally didn’t really care about anything besides eating her food.

---

“Don’t worry about it, you two look like you’re starving, this much is on the house, anything else you can pay for,” Matt said, flashing a smile. He wanted to make the girls a little more comfortable.

He moved out of the way as Brian brought their burgers over, “Enjoy, on the house and if you need anything else we’ll be at the bar.” Matt nudged Brian away from the table.

@ dance macabre

Emma frowned and looked across the table at Ally when they were finally left alone. "Yeah, but they're going to want something for all of this- something I don't think I'm prepared to give!" She rubbed her face as she picked up a few pickles and popped them in her mouth. They were delicious... "Look at this place, Ally, it's a sausage fest. These guys probably don't even know what to do since there are girls in here. This was a horrible idea."

She tried to shake it off and just eat. She had a feeling it wouldn't go over well if she didn't eat and just tried to leave, so she would take what they offered for the moment. Finishing their food, Emma stacked the plates together and rubbed her arms. "Do you wanna try to just leave some cash on the booth and sneak out of here?"

---

Brian kept an eye on their table from across the bar, "They seem really shaken up about something." He observed, looking over at Matt. "They're obviously not from around here, what do you think they're doing here?" Brian turned his back for a moment to talk to Matt about the girls, and it wasn't ten minutes later that Johnny was punching him in the shoulder.

"Your eye candy is trying to sneak out the back."

Brian turned around quickly and chuckled, before heading after them and sliding in front of the door before they could find their way out of it. "Leaving so soon, ladies?" He asked, "Not even going to tell us if you like the food?"

@ foREVerYours.

"Honestly Em, we haven't had any actual food in how long? I'm so hungry I can't really care," Ally said. She knew it was probably against her better judgement, but the food tasted so good and for once her stomach wasn't growling at her. Once her food was gone, she looked over Emma for a moment.

She nodded, "Let's try and get out of here." Ally said as she pulled some cash out of her pocket and laid it on the table. She quickly followed Emma as they made their way to the door. Her eyes widened slightly when Bran stopped them, "Y-yeah, we uh, we're just passing through. The food was great by the way, we left some money at the table." Ally took Emma's arm and tried to move around him.

---

Matt looked towards the door when Johnny spoke up. "Oh here we go," Matt followed Brian as he walked towards the door, he watched how the girls were reacting. He figured the girls were spooked, and that they were looking for a way out. He sighed softly, going up behind them, "Hey, why don't we all just sit down and talk for a little bit?"

He wanted them to feel comfortable and let their guard down just enough. "You girls look exhausted, just take a break for a bit longer," Matt suggested, hoping they would take the offer.

@ dance macabre

Emma frowned as Matt ushered the girls back to another empty booth. Emma slid back down in her seat and she flashed Ally a look that showed how terrified she was.

"Yanno, guys, were really thankful for the hospitality, but we really should be going... we have a road trip and it's all scheduled and we have dates to meet-" Emma tried lying, anything to try and get them to just let them go.

---

Brian sat down next to Ally and didn't care to hear where Emma was going with her excuse. So he just cut her off. "Calm down." He smiled, "You guys are acting like we're holding you hostage." He laughed. "You can spare a little bit of time." A smirk appeared on his face as he looked towards Ally. "I don't think you two gave us your names."

@ foREVerYours.

Ally gave Emma the same terrified look. She was starting to realize the grave mistake she had made with her friend. As Brian sat down next to her, Ally tried to scoot away from him.

Hearing him ask her name, she bit her lip before hesitantly answering, “My names Ally...” She said it quietly, just wanting to get away from these men and their bar.

---

Matt sat next to Emma, pretending to listen to what she was saying. “Just take a load off, you girls aren’t in any danger here,” he told them, giving them a smile.

If the girls had known what would happen when they walked through that door, they would have thought twice. “What about you? What’s your name?” He asked Emma, looking her over.

@ dance macabre

Emma frowned and looked up at Matt, not believing him for a second. She was almost positive that they were in danger. "Emma." She whispered, feeling so scared that it felt like her throat was closing up.

---

Brian could tell something was wrong. It was pretty much obvious from the looks the two girls kept passing between themselves. "Something wrong, girls? Let me go get you two two more drinks, help you loosen up." He smirked. He stood up and walked back to the bar, telling Johnny to get him two L.I.T.s.

@ foREVerYours.

Ally shook her head slightly, “No, we’re fine...” She watched as he got up and walked back to the bar. If she had been there by herself she would have tried to run for it. Her only hope was that Matt would get up and give Emma a chance to run too.

---

Johnny smirked as he looked at Brian, “Girls aren’t giving up to easily are they?” He asked as he got the drinks.

Matt could see that the girls were uncomfortable, he glanced over at Brian. The girls were getting anxious, he was hoping it wouldn’t take too much longer. Even if the girls tried to make a scene, no one in the bar would do anything.

@ dance macabre

Brian shook his head, "Nope." He grabbed the two drinks and returned to the booth, sliding them both in front of each of the girls. "Long islands, ladies. Made 'me super sweet for you."

He leaned back in the booth and smiled, "So, it's obvious you two aren't from around here. Where you from?"

---

Emma held the glass in her hand and just looked down into the drink. They hadn't barely even took a drink from their first one he gave them. But now that the two men were sitting at the booth and staring them down, the last thing she wanted was for one of them to call her out on wasting the free drink. She took a sip and looked down at the table.

"Illinois." She whispered, pulling the sleeves over her shirt over her hands.

@ foREVerYours.

Ally quietly thanked Brian, just trying to be polite. She nodded when Emma said Illinois. Ally was feeling scared for the first time since she had left home. Surely there was nothing worse than what she had left behind.

She slowly sipped at her drink, not wanting to seem rude since the drinks were free.

---

Matt raised an eyebrow when Emma said Illinois, “Really? What brought the two of you all the way out here?” He asked curiously. There had to have been a reason for the girls to be so far from home, besides a road trip as Emma had said.

“What are you two doing going on that long of a road trip by yourselves?” He questioned, it was dangerous for the two of them to travel alone. There were more people like himself and Brian out there just waiting for girls to be vulnerable.

@ dance macabre

Emma shrugged and sat her drink down. "We were just headed to California for a vacation, thought a road trip sounded fun..." She lied. Whenever she lied and she was scared, her face always got a tiny of red across her cheeks and she couldn't make eye contact. It was from all the years of her father abusing her whenever the slightest little lie would slip.

---

Brian leaned back against the seat and looked the girl up and down. "You two just look so scared. I think you're lying..." He smiled, leaning in and putting his elbows on the table. He turned to look at Ally and leaned in closer to her, "What's your friend lying about?" He smiled and tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear.

@ foREVerYours.

“She isn’t lying, we’re just on our way to California,” Ally lied, shrugging her shoulders. “Living in Illinois going to California sounded like a great vacation,” She was used to lying, Ally did it all the time to her ex boyfriend. Truth be told, most of the time he knew and that was what got her into trouble.

---

Matt glanced over at Brian as Ally spoke, he didn’t buy any of it. She was a bit more convincing than Emma had been, but not enough for him to believe it. “I still don’t believe it.”

@ dance macabre

Brian let his eyes flicker towards Matt for a moment, before they returned to Ally. "I don't either. Maybe they'll spill the truth if they're split up." He chuckled and wrapped his arm around Ally's shoulders. "How does that sound?" He pulled her out of the booth with ease. The thought of her putting up a fight would've been enough to make him laugh. And even if she did, no one in this bar would interfere. Brian strolled Ally into the pool room and leaned against one of the tables. There were only two other men across the room playing, but they knew this place well enough to keep to themselves when Brian was talking to a girl.

"Now, why don't you tell me why you're really all shaken up?"

---

Emma's eyes widened as she watched Brian force Ally out of the booth. She started to get up, pressing her hands down on the table, but Matt had her blocked into the booth anyways. Her heart felt like it was up in her throat, beating hard and fast. She tried to swallow the feeling as she slowly sat back down.

"Why are you doing this?" She frowned, looking up into Matt's eyes.

@ foREVerYours.

Ally’s eyes widened when he mentioned splitting them up. Before she had time to react, she was alone with Brian. Crossing her arms over her chest, she looked at him, “We were on a bus for what felt like forever and only stopped here to get something to eat.”

She wasn’t going to give him anything else, Ally was just hoping Emma would hold up with Matt.

---

Matt watched as Brian took Ally to the other room. He turned his attention back to Emma, “I’m not doing anything, we’re just concerned about two girls showing up to our bar starving.”

He sat back in the booth, “Now, why don’t you tell me what’s really going on? If you were really on a road trip, you wouldn’t look like you haven’t eaten or actually slept in days and no offense, but you smell like you haven’t showered in a few days either...”

@ dance macabre

Brian crossed his arms over his chest, growing a little annoyed. He tapped his foot and tilted his head to one side. "...So, you were on a bus. So you're on a road trip, and decided to take a bus all the way from Illinois to California. Where'd you get the money for that?" He asked, beginning to catch up to her in her own lie. "I can tell you're running from something."

---

Emma frowned and looked down at herself wondering if she really smelled that bad. She looked back up at him and shrugged, "We've literally just being bus hopping for days, we're two broke girls, all of the money we have saved is for California, we don't have cash to spend on a motel every night." She shrugged, "You gotta do what you gotta do to get where you wanna go." She tried to keep the lie going. She picked her drink back up and took a long sip, hoping if she could get just a little buzzed the lies would come easier.

@ foREVerYours.