Love from, Hell

She was allergic to bees, spiders, and fire ants. Malcolm found himself wondering why he had never read up on this subject, but realized it would have been a little useless since Hell didn’t actually have real insects and such. Kind of like studying a dead language, Malcolm thought ironically, what’s the point?

The sun had moved in the sky and the moment it appeared in Malcolm’s vision he flipped down the visor.

“Are you allergic to anything?” Julie asked and he looked at her. Her green eyes were studying his dashboard.

“Not that I’m aware of,” Malcolm answered.

“So, theoretically, you could eat anything you wanted?” Julie asked.

Again with his eating habits? “I suppose,” Malcolm said.

“You do eat, then?” she checked.

Malcolm looked at her and she was looking at him. He locked in to her doe-eyed stare. “You should consider becoming a dietitian,” he said.

Julie smiled at his comment. Malcolm looked swiftly back at the road.

“I’m studying English right now. No sciences,” Julie said.

Malcolm liked English better than sciences he’d discovered after he had studied all the subjects fairly.

“Do you… like music?” Julie asked carefully.

Malcolm didn’t answer, but reached forward and turned the radio dial until a station came in clearly. It was jazz. Malcolm had no idea what kind of music Julie would like. He left the jazz station. With the music playing, Julie didn’t try to talk over it. Malcolm blinked, feeling unsettled.

“Do you hear that?” her question came suddenly.

Malcolm listened intently. Behind the soft saxophone was a distinct click that wasn’t in time with the music. Malcolm shut off the radio. For a moment there was nothing, but then he could hear that quiet clicking.

“What is it?” Julie asked.

Malcolm wasn’t sure and didn’t want to say his suspicions out loud. He drove on in silence. Neither said anything and the strange click went on like a ticking bomb.

Twenty minutes later, Malcolm pulled up to a gas station. Julie excused herself to use the washroom. The moment she was gone, Malcolm began to quickly and methodically run his hand along the interior of his car. If there was a tracking device, Malcolm needed to find it and get rid of it before they got off at their final exit.

He found it under the passenger seat. It was silver, as small and as thin as a finger nail. With it in his hand, Malcolm could hear the clicking much more clearly. He turned and threw the device back on to the road.

Julie was washing her hands in an OCD fashion in the sink. Malcolm was definitely a spy. She didn’t really believe in that espionage, men in black stuff, but she was sure Malcolm was an agent. His avoidance of conversation, his careful and guarded demeanor, his saving her and then not saying a word about it after, even his car said secret service.

Julie shook her head. She was being ridiculous. A guy working for the government wouldn’t just run over two men, although, if he worked for the government he could get away with it. No, Malcolm was too young and plus, what were the chances of her running into a secret agent in the middle of the night outside a bar? But then, what were the chances of a normal person appearing out of no where in the middle of the night to rescue her? And that clicking! Julie doubted very highly that it was any malfunction of the car.

She quickly wiped her hands on some paper towel, and then rubbed her hands on her jeans. Either way, she thought, Malcolm had saved her life. So he couldn’t be all bad. Julie took a deep breath and walked out of the bathroom. Malcolm was standing next to the gas pumps on the raised platform by his car, hands in his pockets. Julie was surprised that he hadn’t used this time to smoke another cigarette. She started to walk across the lot. She couldn’t remember what Malcolm looked like in the dark- since she’d been piss drunk the last time, but this twilight setting suited him more than the daylight. Julie guessed that the darker it got, the more incredible Malcolm would look. Even now, Julie was feeling quite breathless, staring at him as she walked.

The car came out of nowhere, squealing into the gas station. Julie was dead straight in its way. She was a few feet away from the safety of the gas pumps. The headlights blinded her- so she could only feel a sharp yank around her waist, practically lifting her off the ground. This was not what she expected being hit by a car to feel like. The car had screeched to a halt. A short, stocky girl scrambled out of the car.

“Hey! Sorry I totally didn’t see you,” she began.

Julie looked around at Malcolm. He had released Julie as quick as he had snatched her and was already climbing into his car. Julie looked at the girl.

“It’s, um, ok. I shouldn’t have been standing there,” Julie said.

The girl pursed her lips. Malcolm’s car engine revved with impatience. Julie quickly hurried around to the passenger side.

“It’s a good thing your… um, he pulled you out of the way,” the girl said.

Julie smiled awkwardly and sat down in the car. Malcolm pulled out of the gas station smoothly as she shut the door. Julie tried to avoid looking at his face, but couldn’t. She glanced up at him quickly. He looked annoyed.

“Thank you,” Julie muttered.

Malcolm didn’t reply for a moment. “... could you try to be a bit more careful?” Malcolm finally requested.

Julie blushed bright red. His tone was pretty irritated, matching his facial expression.

“Uh yeah, course. Sorry,” she said again, this time apologizing for irritating him. Julie looked out the window.

Malcolm continued to speed along in the progressing dark. As the blush faded from her cheeks, a new emotion besides embarrassment took over. She knew she should be feeling immense gratitude, and probably overwhelming awe, toward Malcolm. He’d saved her life twice in the last 24 hours.

And yet, all she could focus on was how much he didn’t like her. Julie knew it was stupid and that it was completely selfish, but she couldn’t shake her irritation. What was it about her that he just seemed to loathe so much? Wasn’t saving people supposed to make the person more… endearing? The whole Florence Nightingale and everything. At the same time, she could see why Malcolm would be annoyed with her- driving her across the state and all. But Malcolm had hated her from the very beginning. Julie sighed quietly, inwardly angry. She pursed her lips tightly- unsure that her overwhelming intimidation of Malcolm would keep her mouth shut.