Azure

The room was quiet when I woke up. Outside, the sound of cars zooming by filled the silence. Through the crack underneath the door, light spilled in from the room, letting me know that it was morning. I wasn’t sure of the time though. Who knows how long I’d been passed out for. Standing up, I shook off the stiffness in my limbs, trying to regain feeling in my legs. Spending the night in the bathroom really wasn’t a problem, but I at least should have slept in a more comfortable position.

I blindly groped the wall until my hands found the switch, turning it on. The lights flickered, dousing the room in its yellow hue. I cringed, eyes taking a moment to adjust to the sudden brightness before taking a glance in the mirror. My eyeliner and mascara had smudged from crying the previous day. I scoffed. Yeah, I was cute- for a raccoon. I sighed, tilting my head to either side to crack my neck.

The water was cold when I turned it on. I tried to wait for it to warm up, but after a good minute or two of letting it run, I realized that it wasn’t going to get any warmer. I braced myself for the cold, puffing my cheeks up before splashing the cool water onto my face. That definitely woke me up. I grabbed one of the towels provided by the motel to pat my face dry. I took special care in wiping away the running make up. It wasn’t completely off, but it was better than before. After rinsing my mouth out a few times to rid the taste of plaque in my mouth, I finally unlocked the door to the bathroom.

Part of me didn’t want to go out there. Hell, if there was a window in here, I would have been long gone. That guy out there- whoever he was, he knew who I was, and from the looks of it, he wasn't planning on letting me go anytime soon. Frowning, I hesitantly turned the doorknob, peeking outside. My eyes swept over the room to find Alex laying peaceful at the center of the bed. His face was illuminated by the light of his phone. He looked to be typing something until he spotted me. We met eyes for a brief second before I turned to look away, but not before missing the way he slipped his phone into his back pocket. Why stop because I was here?

I could feel his eyes on me. He was always doing that; just watching me silently. I felt my face heat up, and I shifted uncomfortably. Images of last night flashed through my mind. So, regardless of what he said, he could get aggressive really quick. I had to be more careful. I can't let my emotions get the best of me.

Clearing my throat, I decided to be the first to speak up. There was no use in letting this silence linger. I took quick glances at him, noticing how he was still looking at me, "Where are we?"

"I'm sorry," Now that sure as heck was not an answer to my question. I turned to him, brows furrowing in question. I wanted to bite back. I wanted to scream and yell and argue that an apology wasn't going to make this better. I didn't. Instead, I repeated my question, this time, more firmly. Alex sighed, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed.

"We're in Harrisonburg, Virginia." My eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

"Wha- how? How?" Was all I managed to sputter out. Standing up, he walked over to the other side of the bed, pulling out a bag that I hadn't noticed before. He must've brought it in from the car while I was still sleeping. He began rummaging around, mouth pulled into that same frown from last night.

"It's about a three hour drive from Baltimore." He was still looking through that damned bag of his and for once, I wanted him to look at me. Why aren't you looking at me?

"Why did we have to come so far?" He finally pulled out what looked to be a red t-shirt. Walking over to me, he placed the shirt in my hand. I looked at him, confused as to why he would give me this.

"We're going to California." There it was. That was the sound of my sanity running away to fucking China. My head spun with his words. California. Right.

The room was tilting on its axis and had it not been for Alex, I'd be on the floor right now. His arms wrapped around me. My arm instinctively went up to grab his shoulder. I could feel his muscles flex with the strain of holding me up beneath my fingertips. I felt him pause for a moment, and I swore his face really needed to learn the concept of personal space. It took another second before he had me steadied against the wall. His lips were moving but I couldn't understand the words that were spilling from his mouth. I shook my head, shrugging off his hands that were placed on my shoulders.

"What's this for?" I held up the shirt between us, wanting to get the conversation off California. That was not something I was prepared to talk about, or even acknowledge at the moment. Alex looked like he was ready to catch me any second. Rest assured, I wouldn't be passing out anytime soon.

"For you to wear," his words came out slow and careful, eyes filled with concern. I take it back. Don't look at me. Stop looking at me like that; like the relationship between us was something more. I rolled my eyes, tossing the shirt in his direction.

"I don't need it." He pursed his lips, holding out the shirt again.

"Aren't you uncomfortable? I know you're still in your work clothes. It'd be better to change into this." I scoffed, pushing myself off the wall to walk towards the bed.

"I'd be uncomfortable regardless of what I was wearing." The room was quiet again, only making the tension that much more unbearable. Alex didn't say anything after that. Not when he put the shirt back in the bag. Not when he clicked the cuffs back onto my wrists. Not when he led us out to the van.

He helped me into the back seat, even going as far as to put the seatbelt on for me. I don't know why he bothered. I wasn't any safer. Not with him around. Instead of leaving my hands to rest on my lap, he went to hook them through the roof handle. My hands grabbed onto the handle to prevent putting any pressure on my wrists. Looks like sleep wouldn't be an option.

Throughout that whole process, there wasn't so much as a bird to be a witness. Even if anyone from the check-in building did see, they sure as hell didn't look like they'd be doing anything about it. They probably thought we were a couple with some weird kink.

The ride was quiet, neither of us making the move to start conversation. Should I even try? I watched him through the rearview mirror. He hadn’t smiled at me at all since yesterday. I wondered if I had ruined my plans of acting like his perfect dream girl. Sighing, I rested my head on my dangling arms, watching the scenery outside whoosh past.

“Where are we going now?” It was something. Anything was better than this silence. He didn't reply. I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath.

“I’ve never seen you before. I don’t know who you are, but- but how do you know me?” Ah, that got his attention. Our eyes locked for a second before he went back to focusing on the road. His jaw locked in place. When he spoke, the warmth that I didn't realized I’d become accustomed to was gone.

“We’ve met before.”