Erik

The car was speeding along the desolate highway, windows open wide and music blasting through the speakers. Jessica was stretching her arm out the window, letting the strong breeze whip her hair around, and hollering out the lyrics to the songs I had never heard before in my life. In her small little bag bedecked with garish little badges and antique keychains, there were at least a dozen CDs from the 00s and 10s. She was in charge of the aux cord while I drove in silence. I couldn't sing along even if I wanted to.

"Wish we could turn back time... to the good old days," she belted out, bopping her head and tapping the top of the car with her arm to match the slick beat of the song.

I kind of liked the melody, and the lyrics were sort of standing out to me considering we were close to being stranded in the middle of a desert road while the ongoing apocalypse deteriorated the world bit by bit even at this second. I could barely recall my early childhood, but the remnants of the faded memories swarming in my head were something nice and warm. Worthy of remembrance.

So I asked her. "What's it called?"

"What's that?" she yelled, a little pissed off. I had interrupted her in the middle of an important singing session.

"What's the name of the song?" I inquired again.

"Oh, you uncultured swine." Jessica huffed out a burst of incredulous laughter. "It's 'Stressed Out' by Twenty One Pilots. It was a bop in the 10s. You seriously don't know this classic?"

"No, I was never a music guy," I responded. Really? This girl was shaming me for not knowing a song from decades ago. But I let it slide because the song was pretty neat. My fingers tapped the steering wheel to the beat and a smile began to form on my face. It was an entirely unconscious reaction.

"Pity," Jessica commented. "You have a lot more to learn than I thought."

"Don't think of this as a tutoring trip," I remarked.

"I think we already shared lesson one back at the inn." She giggled and poked my cheek mischievously. My face burned up at the thought. My eyes were glued to the bumpy road ahead, and I refused to steal a glance at the brunette doing everything in her power to acquire my attention. Drive away the thoughts, I mentally screamed at myself, because once again blood was rushing to my lower stomach.

"Don't worry, though, you weren't that bad. I've met worse." Jessica heaved an irked sigh. She was probably recollecting her flamboyant past of intercourse with manifold bedmates. "You're a quick learner, darling. So much potential."

"Shut up." I rubbed my face to scour out the red.

"Whatever, fuckboy," she snickered.

The road stretched on for ages, it seemed. My beautiful Cadillac was running out of gas, and I was concerned. The last time I had filled it up was at a tiny little gas station adjacent to the bar I had been beaten the shit out of. Though rotting away, that gas station was no different from an oasis in the Sahara. Now that we were actually driving through a critically arid part of the Wasteland once called California, we were in dire need of another oasis. Sooner or later we were going to run out of gas and water. Hopefully, Jessica was acknowledging that vital fact, too, since she had led me this way. Taking this road was not part of my original plan.

"Never mind the gas, Erik, and drive on," Jessica intoned in a soothing tone. A few hours had passed and she was peering out the now-closed window with her elbow rested on the windowsill. Had she just read my mind or was it just a coincidence?

"How can I not? We'll be marooned in the middle of nowhere at this rate. Look, the sun's already getting low." I pulled out a few strands of my own hair out of frustration. I didn't like how Jessica appeared to be impervious to any life-threatening situation unless it was her who was threatening life. She seemed so chill and confident about everything. When she had pulled the trigger at the innkeeper a night ago, she couldn't have looked more deadly and apathetic, but strangely avid, too. What if she had for real busted my wasted brain out last night? I could only shiver.

To prove my point, I pointed at the scathingly bright ball of blood red gas sinking lower and lower toward the flat line of the horizon. The sky had turned to a gradient of hues, a vast palette of colors one could pick out to carelessly paint on the boundless firmament. I would have stopped the car right there and appreciated the desert dreamscape in awe had not the car been warning me of low gas with haunting bleeps. I was on edge, sitting forward and gnawing on my fingernail out of habit.

"Chill out, bud. We're nearly there," Jessica muttered, words slurred and scattering everywhere. She was dozi—she was dozing off! In this horrible situation! But what did she mean by "nearly there?"

"Don't fall asleep! You're shotgun and my extra set of eyes," I snapped at her a little too harshly. No one could blame me, though. We were not on a nighttime promenade, or an evening drive through a quiet neighborhood. We were literally in the desert with seemingly no end. To my relief, Jessica shook her head to shoo away the sleep seeping in and sat upright. She yawned once, cracking her knuckles and lightly slapping her cheeks to drag herself up to a level of full consciousness.

"Sorry, ya know, singing and dancing take up a lot of energy."

"You're saying that to a person who's driven for eight hours straight," I barely contained the irritation sizzling on my tongue.

"Hey, I've been good company," she smirked and nudged my arm.

"That's not even important right now. Where do we stay for the night?" I could sense the anxiety building up in my tone. I hated letting it show, but my body always chose to candidly display my mental state, which made it hard for me to lie or conceal my feelings... though there were exceptions.

"What, you want a second go already?" Jessica didn't even bat an eye throwing that dirty joke in my face.

"Can't you be serious for once? We're out of gas, we're short of water, and we're not getting anywhere," I barked. She kept on getting on my nerves. The fact that she was unmoved by my attitude or the circumstances we were cast in annoyed me even more. The girl was the one who told me to come to my senses and confront the shitty reality. What the hell was she doing now? What the hell was wrong with her?

Just then, two faint lights blinking from about a mile away caught my attention. Lights? Headlights? In this freaking portion of a colossal wasteland? Another car in this world could either portend a peril or help. The latter was always less likely. Still, I hoped for the best.

"There they are," said Jessica, lazily. I slowed down the car and turned around to look at her, wide-eyed.

"You know who they are?" I couldn't lie. A mild feeling of betrayal washed over me. Why couldn't she have told me about them before?

"I told you to watch me and follow me for now. I didn't tell you to take this road for no reason. I have friends here," she rolled her eyes and gestured at me to go on. I held my tongue and did as ordered but with reluctance. It was a relief to find safety in this godforsaken place at night, but that didn't stop me from feeling bitter about the girl not saving me from the hours of agony spent floundering in the sloughs of terror and anxiety.

We pulled up right beside the large camping van parked on the roadside. There was a man already outside, waiting for us to come out. Though the dark had settled and he had on a loose t-shirt covering all of his upper body, I could still observe the fine contour of his well-built frame behind the thin fabric. "DAMN," the gray t-shirt read. Damn, yes.

"Heyo, Sica. How you been?" the buff man greeted Jessica with a wide, pearly grin hanging from ear to ear. Sica? Really?

"Fine and dandy, Jos." Jessica ran up to him and gave him a firm hug. I stood there awkwardly and studied the rocks and grains on the ground like they were suddenly the most interesting items in the world. They were more than acquaintances; I was the odd one out, a mere stranger.

"So this the plus one you've told me about?" the man Jessica called Jos pointed at me, not in a rude way, but just to get assurance. I stepped up to him and offered him a hand for him to shake before Jessica could speak in my stead.

"Yes. I'm Erik Becker." I tried on a smile. It must have looked hideous since I was attempting to hide the nervousness behind it and failing miserably.

"And I'm Josiah. Josiah Nolett. Nice to have you here, man," he responded with a good-natured smile. But oh, the grip he had. He must have meant to give me a short, quick handshake but my bones felt dislodged after it happened. I cracked my hand behind my back, putting on a placid face just to hide my embarrassment and admiration.

"Good, good! We're all acquainted, now. Let's get inside, folks." Jessica came up to us two and grinned.

Before entering the van, however, I turned back and whispered to her: "When did you contact him and why didn't you tell me?"

Jessica lightly slapped my back and uttered under her breath, "You passed out after round two, remember? Weak-ass. But you'll make progress." She pinched my cheek impishly.

My face reddened for the millionth time. "Don't mock me like that."

"Baby steps, darling. Baby steps." Then she disappeared behind the door. I glared at the stray beam of light streaming from the crack in the door for a few seconds, and then forcefully swung it open.

The inside of the camping van was far more snug and well-decorated than anything I had expected. To be honest, the buff guy—Josiah—didn't seem like one to keep his place nice and tidy, much less ornamented with delicate wooden horse carvings and flower paintings. Never judge a book by its cover, I rebuked myself. Until, well, someone new emerged from the back of the trailer that could be the explanation to all this candied homeyness.

"Well, hello, there." A pale boy with a slim frame and raven black hair sluggishly came up to us. He was wearing an oversized burgundy cardigan that almost reached down to his knees, and a pristine white shirt underneath. A little shorter than myself, the boy of east Asian heritage seemed around my age but with a more fragile look about him—the bags under his eyes played a huge part.

Josiah immediately wrapped his arms around the boy's thin shoulders. I could assume their relationship right away. Either boyfriends or husbands. Which meant Josiah was taken.

"Erik, meet Soeun. Soeun, say hi to Erik." He introduced both of us to each other.

"I already kind of did, but yeah, if you wish." Soeun shrugged Josiah's arm off and held out his hand. "Hi."

"Um... hi," I answered awkwardly. Jessica hardly showed any effort to hide the laughter simmering from within her.

"I'm Soeun Jeong. You? Jos didn't tell me your last name, so I'd like to hear it if you don't mind." The black-haired boy shook my hand once and promptly retracted his hand, stuffing it in his cardigan pocket like he'd touched something he hadn't wanted to.

"Becker. But please call me Erik." I scratched my neck and averted my eyes. Whatever this guy was like and known as, the first impression I received from him was definitely not a pleasing one.

"Sure. I'm happy to meet ya, Erik." He didn't look happy.

"I'm sorry, he's actually a sweetheart, but meeting strangers sets him off, sometimes." Josiah shook his head with an apologetic expression, though Soeun's ravishing face behind him morphed into a mask of something between chagrin and disconcertion.

"Shut your mouth, Josiah Nolett." Soeun punched the big guy on the chest. I was taken by surprise for a moment, but Jessica hummed in my ear:

"They're always like that. Don't mind it."

"Baby, I get bruises, you know that?" Josiah complained, but his face was filled with pure affection plainly readable by anyone with functioning eyes. That was what sincerely surprised me.

"Okay, stop your love bickering and let's sit down and have a talk. We have some matters to discuss." Jessica clapped her hands, successfully winning the attention of every man aboard the trailer. I obliged and found myself a spot on the couch to plump down on. God, did it feel so ethereal to sit on a cushiony sofa; driving eight hours straight did no good to my ass or spine. The peculiar mixture of acute pain and numbness dissolved instantaneously as I leaned on the back of the couch and let out a blissful sigh. Jessica sat right next to me, arms and legs crossed. Josiah and Soeun chose the other side, on two green armchairs apparently made for the two of them.

Soeun chucked an apple my way out of the blue. I would have seized it with the bones of my nose had my reflexes not been swift enough to catch it in my hand mid-air. Jesus, what was wrong with that guy?

"Eat it, you look famished," Soeun half-ordered, throwing another at Jessica and then taking a bite out of his. It was out of good will, but the method induced serious doubts out of me. How a man like Josiah Nolett came to fall in love with the guy was a wonder. Though I must admit, his face was that of a celestial creature's. Perhaps the process was similar to how Jessica had approached me and threatened me to take her with me to Elysia—out of physical attraction.

Elysia. Yes. I remembered. We were here for Elysia.

I sat forward, a sudden fervor flashing in my pupils. "Thank you for letting us in, thanks for taking us in. But I don't quite grasp the situation here because Jessica hasn't even told me about you guys."

Soeun gulped down his lump of apple and shrugged. "Simple. We give you fuel, water, supplies and anything else you might need on the trip, and we say our farewells."

"And let you stay here for the night," Josiah added.

"Jos, I have not agreed to that." Soeun shot a hot glance at his lover.

"Guys, you can go one day without screwing, alright? We'll stay quiet and we won't take up too much space. Erik and I...," Jessica suggestively eyed me. "Can do intimate." My ears rang.

Soeun narrowed his eyes at us and exchanged glances with Josiah. Then they simultaneously broke into a knowing grin. "You always had a thing for blonds." Josiah chuckled.

"And ginger," Soeun added.

"Hey, that's not the important part." I shattered the uncomfortable atmosphere. "Why are you even helping us at all?"

"Well, that's a long story, kid." Josiah sat back and pulled out a cigarette. "Mind if I...?"

"Yeah," I frankly replied. "Not indoors, please." Josiah nodded and put it back in his pocket. Soeun and Jessica turned to look at my face like they couldn't believe what I had just done. Well, I'm not a fan of smoking. So what? I avoided their questioning stares. "But tell me everything."

Josiah cleared his throat once and began to tell his story. "As soon as the actual government began failing due to the War, the provisional government employed supply runners for the citizens in the evacuation shelter. I was one of them. But my job didn't last long because the War destroyed just about everything and all the shelters became the target of the hostiles. I still kept doing what I did, though, as practically a non-profit freelancer. I knew where the canned goods were, where the water was, where all the gears for survival were, so I used that knowledge and strength to help people. Along with my... my ex-husband, Troy.

"Troy was a good-hearted man. We were truly in love with each other, and what we did. But one night... a missile from the hostiles hit his area, and he was found dead the next day. In pieces. I was utterly devastated, body and soul." The solemn glint in his eyes served to mute me at once. This man had profound hurt within himself, and spilling that past out at this moment had to be burdensome beyond words.

"That was when Sica found me. She could have just passed me by, but she stopped in the way and handed me a handkerchief to cry into. When no one else gave a damn about a man who had lost his other half. She gave it to me without a word and then left. But I couldn't let her go just like that. I had to reciprocate this gratitude I felt for her, so I volunteered to become her personal runner."

That was a whole new side of Jessica I could not have known without the story Josiah had just told me. So far, I only knew her as a car-thief, gun-bearer, and a heartless psychopath who exuded extreme sexual air like a winged creature emanating pheromone. What I had just heard changed my view of her as a human being. Jessica had compassion tucked away somewhere inside her heart, covered in an icy, sometimes fiery, armor. I gave my attention to Jessica, who was studying her chipped red nail polish with an uninterested look on her face.

"That's not all. Jess introduced me to Jos." Soeun took another bite out of his apple and before chewing it, shared it mouth-to-mouth with his lover to break it in half with his teeth. An unnecessary excuse for a kiss, I mused to myself. A triumphant smile, for some reason, was adorning his face. I raised my eyebrow, unable to comprehend the meaning behind the action. "I was one of the citizens that survived the bombing. Jess found me stuck under a fallen column and helped me out, even when she could have just left me to die and stolen my things. My cooking pan, my handy lighter, some food I had in my bag and such. I used to be a chef apprentice, so, yeah."

"But you're a thief." I eyed Jessica, quizzical.

Jessica pushed my face away with her fingertip and spat: "Selectively to rich boys, jackass."

"Oh."

"Anyway, she linked me with her supplier four years later, which happened to be Jos, and we've been in love ever since." A bashful glow of pink rose under the dark shadows beneath his eyes. "That's why we owe Jess. We'd do anything for her if she asked."

"Alright, then. That's one new thing I learned about this mystery woman," I sent an inexplicable glance at Jessica to which she playfully bared her teeth.

"Speaking of which, how have you been doing, Sica?" Josiah asked with interest twinkling in his eyes.

"Nothin' much exhilarating aside from meeting this dork." She pointed at me with her thumb. "I've finally found a partner for the journey to Elysia, so I guess that's good news."

"Congrats on that, Jess." Soeun nodded. "Though our Erik here should prove himself if he can withstand such a long, tedious journey." That son of a bitch was getting on my nerves again. I hated that arrogant look on his face.

"He'll learn." Jessica laughed it off before I could protest in anger. "Like he did quickly in bed."

"Are you fucking seri—"

"Fine, fine, I won't talk about it." Jessica tapped my shoulder twice to assuage my skyrocketing embarrassment and plummeting reputation.

"Well, would you like some tea? Or coffee? Snacks? We're short on nibbles right now but for special guests, I can manage." Soeun got to his feet and looked around the three of us, seeking an answer. Who knew this guy could be hospitable for a change?

"Just water, thanks," I replied dryly.

"Coffee sounds lovely." Jessica winked.

"One for me, too, honey. And I'll bring the bread." Josiah followed Soeun down to the kitchen. It was kind of obvious what they were going for, so I leaned back on the couch, closing my strained eyes and consciously curtaining my mind from the distant sound of the two making out in the kitchen area. Jessica tittered softly and shifted her position so that her elbow was on top of the headrest and her face was looking straight at my profile.

"Aren't they a cute couple?"

"I don't understand how Josiah stands that Soeun guy. He's a pretty face with a hell of an attitude," I grumbled.

"Are you describing yourself?" she tilted her head, amused.

"You're kidding." I glared at her.

"Yes, I am." She giggled and leaned in closer until her soft fruity breaths tickled my cheek. "You're a half-pretty face because of that bandage covering your left side."

"Aw, fuck off." I swatted her away with my hand. She was just messing around. The rather wild night we had shared before left my face in an even more aggravated condition, and when I woke up, there were bandages cleanly stuck on my face thanks to Jessica's work while I was blacked out and splayed out on the bed. "But thanks for taking care of me," I timidly added.

"No problem, darling." She pecked a bird kiss on my ear and blew air into it. I yelped and winced; it was... it wasn't uncalled for, but not expected.

***

While everyone in the trailer was distracted by some type of romantic act, a whit sedan was approaching them at full speed.

"I see 'em," he murmured as the distance between his car and the two blinking yellow lights became narrower and narrower. It was time. Finally a chance to seize the moment, seize the bitch. His bitch.

"After all this time." The woman sitting next to the man gritted her teeth and glared straight at the lights in front of them. "I get to meet my ex."

Letting the car come to a stop a few hundred yards away from the camping van, the man jumped out of it and loaded his rifle with the rarest and most precious ammunition he had obtained on the black market. The rifle itself was a picturesque rarity, too. He grinned to himself, certain that he wouldn't fail this time.

While the woman stayed in the car for a while, assessing the situation, the man approached the vehicles in long, proud strides and halted when he got close enough. Then he held up his gun, aligned the scope with the left back tire of the black Cadillac, and fired. A thunderous noise boomed from the machine, and he nearly stumbled back from the hefty recoil. A hole the size of a fist was marked on the tire. He watched pleased as the car sat down, tilted uncomfortably to one odd angle.

Then the man laid his eyes upon the big trailer ahead of him. He bellowed on top of his lungs, "I've come for you, Jessica Garcia!"

------

Thank you for reading! Comments and votes highly appreciated. Let me know what you think!

psst SHOUTOUT TO TWENTY ONE PILOTS FANS