Break Out

We got up early the next day and got everything packed in the trunk of the car and ready to go. I was driving first today, so I was thankful that I fell asleep when I did last night.

I was driving until we reach a small town outside of Elko, Nevada called Deeth. Then Matt would take over for eight hours until we reached Helena, Montana. Finally, I'd drive the last leg of the trip, almost four hours to Hingham, Montana.

Matt and I had done our research well for picking out the town we'd be going to. Hingham was in the far Northern part of Montana. The population was only 157 at the 2000 census and is only 162 now.

"You all ready to go?" Matt called out to us from the front of the car.

Zack turned to me as he stood up and offered me his hand, pulling me up as soon as our hands made contact. We made our way towards Matt.

"Know where Johnny went?" Matt asked us.

I shook my head and Zack answered with a no. I looked around for the short shit, but started to get worried when I didn't see him strolling towards us.

"Shit," I swore under my breath.

Matt lifted his arms and rubbed his eyes with his palms, "He's got two minutes to get his ass here or we're leaving him."

"Yeah, why not?" I replied sarcastically.

But as soon as we turned to leave Johnny came sauntering out of the nearby patch of trees. We were all watching him as he made his way to us.

"What? I had to take a piss?" he questioned.

"Next time, tell someone before you leave. Now get your ass in the car," Matt growled obviously angry.

Johnny climbed, without another word, into the backseat and smalled his door behind him. "Zack do you want the front or the back?" Matt asked as he walked to the other side of the car.

"I'll take the front."

I pulled the keys out of my pocket and sat down in the drivers seat. After pulling the seat forwards so I could reach the gas peddles I shoved the keys into the ignition and started the car. Zack hit the button to turn the GPS on and started I started following the directions it gave me.

"Where are we doing anyway?You didn't really explain it well last night," Zack asked.

"We're going to Montana. A small town called Hingham, Chris and Emily are finding somewhere in the town we can go to hide out. We'll stay there until everything cools down. There are only two of you and they don't have many, if any at all, leads on as to where you could possibly be going," I explained thoroughly.

They didn't ask any more question and the car was silent for a while. I peered into the rear view mirror to check and see what Matt and Johnny were doing. It didn't surprise me to see that they were sleeping. But what did surprise me, and make me laugh, was the position they were in. Johnny had his head leaned over onto Matt's shoulder and Matt's head was rested on Johnny's.

I went back to watch the road after that. At least until a hand pulled my right arm off the steering wheel and inter winded its fingers with mine. I looked over to Zack and saw him smiling back at me.

"I really did miss you," I expected him to say something like that, and I knew where this conversation was heading. "It was terrible in there. I was stuck in a cell with a rapist, and I hardly saw Johnny at all. I never though that I'd miss that little fucker so much."

"We're going to do all we can to keep you out of there. I don't know what I'd do if I lost you again," I could feel tears around the brims of my eyes and I blinked repetitively to get them to go away.

"Oh, don't cry. I hate seeing you cry, you know that."

"I'm not crying," I shot back. "It's allergy season and you know it."

Truth be told, it was July, and Zack knows or knew that I only get my allergies when it was cold out. That's why I loved California, the weather there was great. Montana was going to be a bitch.

He didn't say anything back. It shocked me too. Before, he would have caught me on that real quick. He could have just forgot.

If he forgot that then what else had he forgotten?

+++

The last six hours of the drive consisted of Zack and I talking while Matt and Johnny slept. He told me about life in prison and I filled him in on everything that had been happening outside the walls.

I could have told him all this over the phone or gone to see him. But he refused to let me see him in there like that.

Phone calls were very restricting. Inmates only had five minutes on the phone once a day. Most times it was spent explaining how the plan was going.

I guess it was good no major events happened. No one got hurt, Chris and my sister postponed their wedding. Brian, Jimmy, Matt and I were all fine. We all just missed them a whole lot.

We were currently stopped at a McDonald's. I ran inside and got everyone what they wanted. Matt was finishing off his burger then we were leaving. I couldn't wait to just curl up to Zack and go to sleep. I tired to last night, but the only comfortable way to sleep was on my back. There better at least be a comfortable bed at the place Chris and Emily found.

"Kay, let's get the fuck outta here, I just want to get to Montana. Casey, one of us should have just learned how to fly, then we could get there faster. Not to mention I bed it's safer from getting caught," Matt said, I was drowning him out by the end of his little speech.

Zack jumped off the hood of the car and I pulled my feet into the car and shut the door. He got in on the other side of the car. Then as soon as we were pulling out of the parking space I scooped up my blanket off the floor and threw it over my body. Zack already had his arm thrown over the back of the seat and was waiting on me.

"You're comfy," I whispered up to Zack as I settled myself.

I heard his light laugh as I closed my eyes and drifted to sleep.

+++

The car jerking to a stop and me rolling to the floor board is what awoke me from a very good dream.

"Ugh," I groaned as I picked myself up and glared toward Matt.

"Sorry, Casey. I didn't mean to," Matt laughed.

"Sure, you didn't, Matthew," I replied trying to hide the laughter in my voice. I think I did a pretty damn good job.

"Anyways, it's your turn to drive. Only three and a half more hours to go!"

Zack and I quickly switched spots with Johnny and Matt. I pulled the car into drive and started the three hour drive to Hingham, our final destination.

Once we got back on the highway a very interesting conversation started up.

"Did you guys ever think of getting married?" Matt's question surprised me. Of course before Zack went to prison we'd talked about getting married and even having kids. But as soon as we heard the time he had to do was five years, it slipped my mind completly.

Zack answered before I could. "Matt, man come on be realistic. I love Casey to death, and I would love to marry her, but don't you think that someone there might slip and call the police? The minister surely would as soon as he saw me."

"What if someone we knew and trusted did it? It's supposed to be easy to get a license to do stuff like that," Matt explained. He must have been set on something. He usually wasn't this persistent.

"Good luck with finding someone that will do it, but if you do find someone please do share it with us."

It was quiet after that. Zack looked tense and upset and it wouldn't take a rocket scientist to figure out why. He wouldn't be able to do half of the things he did before. Of course I'd be the paranoid one. Always thinking that people would see him and turn them back in.

+++

"Are we finally here?" Matt questioned impatiently from behind me.

"Yes," I replied just as relieved by the answer as he was.

I pushed my sunglasses up onto my head to get a better look at our new house, for lack of a better word.

My eyes widened at the very rundown trailer in front of us. I'm sure I speak for everyone else too when I say that I was not expecting a piece of shit like this.

Emily and the guys must have finally realized we were here because they were all slowly making their way over to us, with the exception of my sister. Who was running.

"We haven't seen you guys in forever!" she was always over dramatic, sometimes it could get really on a person's nerves too.

"You saw us two weeks ago," I explained as she pulled me into a hug. "Well you saw me and Matt then. You have a right to be excited to see Zack and Johnny."

Everyone exchanged their hugs with the two returning prisoners, while Matt and I got the bangs out of the trunk.

"let me help you with that," deep voice whispered in my ear as they took the bags from my grasp.

i rolled my eyes and grabbed the last back out of the car. Zack slammed the trunk shut and we started following the other towards our new living quarters.

"Don't worry. It looks much better on the inside."