You got some looks when you walked into the nearest gas station asking to use the phone. The owner knew your aunt well so by default, they knew you well. And you had to admit, you hadn't thought of a good excuse to be walking around with a backpack, no phone, and no car.

But you were also creative enough to tell them the car broke down, the bag was for toting the parts, and your phone broke because you were a klutz and needed to get a ride into town so the gas station was the best option. You didn't really have an excuse for carrying a grumpy looking Hobbes under your arm, stuffed into a blue sequined harness, but that problem solved itself when the station owner handed you their cellphone to borrow, going on about how the cat must bring you so much comfort in your time of need.

Right, you weren't going to correct that.

It was just one quick call to the local taxi service and you were on your way, except you didn't plan on going very far, just out of the way of the men. So you ended up on the other side of town, in a small, somewhat questionable motel. It had great rates, wifi, and free breakfast though, so you weren't going to complain.

When you settled into your room, you spent quite some time sitting on the bed, facing the phone, and debating if waiting the men out was the way to go. It'd be so much easier to call the police, tell them what had been going on, and get back to how things should have been for some time now. You wouldn't have to argue with them all the time anymore. Feed them. Go on those long day trips to look for one little object that you weren't even sure was real. Hell, you still were pretty torn on how sane they were to even think up all of this.

And yet, part of you wanted to believe them. Badly.

Their world, real or not, sounded scary yet so fascinating. Every day seemed like an adventure, some kind of storybook drama like the kinds you read when you were a kid. And you couldn't lie, you were stuck in such a dismal place yourself that their world seemed like an escape.

So maybe you were hopeful. If what they were saying was true, maybe they'd just go back to where they came from eventually. They'd find their weird little orb and leave you back to your monotony. You could finish school, get some kind of career, and have their stories to keep you entertained every once in a while.

In the end, you stayed there for most of the day and into the evening, going between slowly progressing through what felt like mountains of homework and debating picking up the phone. Eventually the urge to call the police shifted into maybe calling your cell and seeing if Law would pick up.

Would he be surprised to hear your voice? Would he have guessed that you'd leave the house? Did he actually trust you to stay?

And then your thoughts drifted to Kid. Would he be angry? Probably. That one didn't take much thought, he was always grouchy about one thing or another. But would he feel hurt or betrayed? You weren't so sure.

Either way, you couldn't lie. There was a tug at your heart when you left. It was something you never thought you'd feel for the men. You had become a little....attached to them.

"Can't fix crazy." You finally said with a sigh, after hours of pondering the situation. "I'll just be kind enough to let them figure out they gotta get themselves straight on their own."

You'd consider it the last nice thing you'd do for them, give them a chance to do their own thing without sending the police on them.

The rest of your evening went rather quietly. You took the time to a long hot shower. A really long one. It was actually relieving to be able to take your time to soak under the water without fear of someone popping in randomly to complain. No more lack of privacy.

From there, you got to enjoy having your favorite takeout delivered and watch your favorite kind of shows on the TV, not someone else's. And after that and some homework, you fell into bed with Hobbes to keep you company. Something told you he might already be missing getting to choose who he kept company but at the same time, you knew he'd get over it. He was your baby after all.

----

As you left the guys with the car, you figured it was best to lay low and stay at the motel in case they decided to tear the town apart for you. To you, that seemed silly that they might even do that much. It wasn't like Law didn't have a decent grasp on how the area was laid out or how to look up things. He'd surely lead them in the right direction, especially with Kid being able to drive them around.

Still, you couldn't be too careful and staying put was better safe than sorry.

So the next few days all went the same. You'd start your morning with coffee and time with Hobbes. Midday you'd debate whether school was worth it or not or you'd look up career options in hopes that one would strike your fancy. In the end you'd just settle for doing homework again and hope you'd figure it out soon. By the end of the day, you'd clean up and order in food to eat while watching shows.

It had been great, especially the first day, but you could already feel the appeal of your regained independence fading.

You were used to having people around. The guys came around almost right after Wren's passing, and between her and them, the friends that knew your late aunt had checked in on you for a bit. It was almost strange being alone now. Uncomfortably so.

You weren't sure how much longer you could tolerate it and part of you wondered if the few days were enough for Law and Kid to realize they should move on.

But you weren't about to check in on that. Not yet.

Sorry for the short chapter guys! This one is kind of more of a bridge between last chapter and next. Plus I kinda struggled with where to go on this story and I think I've finally figured it out, thanks for being so patient with me!