I looked out at the darkness, not knowing whether I wanted the guy to come back or not. I didn't like him in the slightest, but being in the dark by myself made me feel nervous. He had told me that "they" could find me. I wouldn't have been able to defend myself if whoever was out there did.

After a few minutes, two figures came down the road and towards my car. Fear closed up my throat and sent a wave of panic through my body. When I made out one of them to be the man who had brought me here, I relaxed. I rested my head on my seat and closed my eyes. I don't know why his presence was reassuring. He could have brought his friend over to help him kill me.

Something didn't make me think so, though. He had told me that turning off my headlights was to keep me safe. Why would he go through that trouble just to kill me?

I rolled my window down to get some fresh air. I was also hoping to hear what they were discussing outside. They were still a little far, but I managed to make out what they were saying.

"Who did you say was in the car?" the one I didn't know asked. He was at least a head shorter than the man.

"I already said, she's just dropping me off. I just needed a ride here."

"Psh, the Collin I know doesn't just have a girl in a car who's dropping him off."

"No, I'm serious."

"Oh my lord, did you get a girlfriend?"

"Jake—"

"You did! Already?"

"No, listen—"

I slid lower in my seat. I suddenly wished that I hadn't heard anything. The guy—Collin?—better have made sure that I was leaving tonight. Hopefully he and the other guy would leave to wherever they were supposed to go so that I could reverse the car and go home.

"What did you hear?" I turned, nearly jumping in shock to see Collin leaning into my open window.

I shook my head. "Not—not much."

He tapped his fingers and looked at the sky. Then he looked behind him to where the guy he had been talking to was standing. He looked back at me. "I'll explain everything in a minute. Roll up the window."

Though hesitant, I did as told, trying not to look at the guy outside. Collin slipped into the passenger seat and closed the door. My finger lingered over the "power" button.

"Are these people dangerous?" I asked. The man was walking back up the path. He soon camouflaged with the darkness.

Collin didn't respond for a minute. "Yes."

Nope. Not going any further. I turned the car on and switched to reverse. If he wanted to keep going, then it was going to have to without me.

Collin leaned over my direction. His sudden movement caused me to slam on the brakes. He quickly pressed the "park" button. My jaw dropped. Did he really...?

"Go forward," he said. "If we leave, they'll chase us down. You don't want that."

I stared at him. He was serious. He said everything seriously. It scared me how real it all was. None of this happened in my world. I just wanted to go home and to see my parents. I wanted to forget that any of this happened.

Collin's eyes softened. "Everything's going to be okay," he said quietly. He sounded like he was trying to calm a frightened animal. "I'll get you out safely, I promise. You just have to do everything I tell you to do, okay?"

With a sigh, I started my car and drove forward. His words reassured me but didn't calm my nerves. I evened my breaths and kept driving.

After some time sitting in silence, driving through the potholes, and trying to see through the darkness, Collin spoke again, "Jake thinks that you're my girlfriend. He's probably already at the house, so everyone else probably thinks the same thing. We're going to need to act like we're a thing."

"How—"

"Just let me do the talking. If they find us suspicious, then they won't let us leave."

I didn't respond. I wasn't a very good actress. Making anyone believe that we were together was going to be impossible.

"Don't talk to any of the girls. They'll be the ones to figure you out first."

"I don't understand." I saw the silhouette of a house in the distance. "So what if they figure out that your friend was wrong? It's just a misunderstanding."

"They won't think so."

Collin had me park a little ways from the house. I slid my keys in my pocket. We walked to the house, standing inches apart. When we reached the door, Collin grabbed my hand. Hesitant, I laced my fingers with his.

"One more thing," he muttered. "If they offer you their drink, don't take it."

"What—"

He barely had to knock before the door swung open. A girl with a half-shaven head and large eyes smiled. "Collin! Come in, come in."

Collin walked inside, pulling me gently behind him. I held his hand tightly and wiped the sweat from my other palm onto my jeans. I forced a smile, hoping that my fear wasn't displayed. Could they hear my heartbeat? It sounded like a banging drum in my head.

The girl led us to what looked like a living room. There was a small TV and a coffee table. The table had empty bottles on top of it. Trash was littered all over the stained carpet. Three other people were resting on two worn-out couches. One of them looked like the person who Collin had been talking to outside.

"Collin." A large man got up and patted Collin's shoulder. "It's been a while. How've you been?"

"Busy," he replied. "I need to lay low for a couple of days, is it fine if I stay here?"

"Of course." The man said. "Stay for as long as you need."

"And who's that?" A girl sat next to the one who had greeted us. She had blonde dreadlocks and large, intricate tattoos climbing up her arms. She took a swig from a bottle.

Collin looked at me. I forgot that I had never told him my name.

"Natalie." My voice came out hoarse. I cleared my throat and repeated in case they didn't hear. "My name's Natalie."

The girl scanned me from head to toe, scoffed, and swung her legs over the arm of the couch. Jake stared at me, an excited smile playing on his lips. I tore my eyes from his and stared at my shoes.

"Right." Collin pulled me next to him. I tried to back away. It made me feel safer to hide behind him. He tugged me forward again. "This is Christian." He pointed at the large man, who nodded in response. "That's Paige." The girl with the half-shaved head smiled kindly. "That's Esme." Esme raised her bottle. "And that's Jake." Jake grinned wider. Not knowing what to do, I just awkwardly smiled and gave them a small wave.

Collin looked around the room and then at Christian. "Where's Vito?"

"Getting more drinks," Christian replied. "He'll be surprised to see you."

"Is she staying with us, too?" Esme asked, nodding my direction.

Collin shook his head. "Just me."

They all looked at each other. I chewed on my lip. They didn't seem too happy about that.

After a moment of standing around in uncomfortable silence, someone else walked into the room. He had a few bottles in each hand. They were filled with a bright blue liquid that reminded me of Kool-Aid.

The man had platinum blonde hair and overly baggy clothes. He looked at Collin for a moment before his eyes landed on me. He stared at me with suspicion.

"It's good to see you," who I assumed was Vito said. He set the bottles on the table. He looked back at me and Collin. "What are you standing there for? Sit."

Paige scooted over. After a moment of hesitation, Collin went over and sat. I sat down next to him. I felt my body sink into the cushions. The couch seemed to sag under our weight.

Collin swung his arm on the cushion behind me. I stiffened. He shot me a warning glance, telling me to relax. I crossed my legs and laced my hands together. I forced another smile.

Vito sat next to Esme. He grabbed her bottle and downed the last of the liquid. I looked at the trashed room and longed to be back in my car. It had been safe in there. Even with Collin sitting next to me, I hadn't been worried. I could have jumped out at any time.

In this room, I was vulnerable. I didn't know anything about these people. They were conversing about something I didn't know about while giving me side glances. It felt like they were reading through my act. They had to know that this was fake. There's no way they didn't.

"So tell me," Vito said. "How long have you been together?"

"Two months," Collin replied without much thought. I nodded.

Paige smiled. Out of everyone in the group, she seemed the friendliest. "That's great. Where'd you meet?"

"Apple Valley. Just a few hours from here."

"Oh, is that your home town?"

Before Collin could respond, Esme raised her hand. "That question's for Natalie."

I stared at the group. I tried to say something, but no words came out. I had never been to Apple Valley. If they asked me questions about it, I wouldn't know anything. "...Yes. That's my home town."

Esme nodded and didn't ask further questions. A wave of relief flooded through me. I looked at Collin. His jaw was clenched and his fists were balled. I looked away. It was only one question.

"Want some?" Esme held a bottle towards me. The blue liquid swished around in the glass. This must be their drink.

"No, I'm...I'm okay."

"Not a drinker?" Esme raised her brows at Collin.

Christian chuckled. "Where'd you pick this one up?"

"Hey, I think she's cute," Paige said. I stared at them as they talked, confused and shocked. I suddenly had the desire to defend myself. They were talking about me as if I was a child. Collin had told me to refuse their offer, though, so I stayed quiet.

"Well, how about you?" Esme now extended the bottle towards Collin. He shook his head. Esme shrugged and set the bottle back on the table.

"Where's the bathroom?" I asked.

"Take a left. It's the door on the right," Paige replied.

I got up and followed the directions. I barely kept myself from running. Once I entered the bathroom, I sat on the toilet and hid my face in my hands. My entire body was trembling. I took in deep breaths to try to calm myself down.

Why was I so scared? These people hadn't done anything to frighten me. They hadn't shown any signs of wanting to harm me. Everything that Collin had told me swarmed around my brain and caused my head to pound. They won't let us leave. They'll chase us down.

Why? What was I not supposed to know about?

I stood up and went to the sink. I splashed water on my face. The cool liquid helped to calm me down. I stared at my reflection through the broken mirror. I looked scared. I smiled. Though it was tight, it was believable.

After another minute, I opened the door. Standing in the doorway was Vito. I jumped back in shock.

A grin stretched on his lips. "Did I scare you?"

"No." I took a moment to recollect myself. "Of course not."

I stepped forward, hoping that Vito had just been waiting to use the bathroom. He didn't move.

"You and Collin. It's...unexpected."

I searched my head for what to say. I didn't know how Collin had done it so easily. "Yeah, he said the same thing when we first met."

He stared at me with interest. I craned my neck to look up at him. God, he was tall. I looked like a little kid compared to him.

"I don't believe it. Any of it," Vito said. He leaned close to me. My stomach flipped. I tried to even my breathing, but it only grew faster. "Tell me. Why are you actually here?"

"I," my lips had gone dry, "Collin asked me to take him here. Said he needed to hide."

I mean, it was true.

Vito continued to gaze at me for a second longer before he took a step back. The space gave me room to breathe. Without looking at him, I returned to the living room.

Collin watched me as I walked over and sat down next to him. He took my hand and squeezed it gently.

"Are you okay?" he whispered. I nodded. No, not at all. I want to leave.

I tried not to stiffen when Vito came back. He didn't look at me as he grabbed another bottle and sat down next to Jake.

Another conversation filled the room. I dozed off, uninterested. I pictured myself driving away and leaving behind the miserable nightmare that I was in. I imagined being back in my small, innocent home where my parents were happily cooking or watching a show. It was classic, typical, and safe. I hugged the vision tight, wishing that I could just hop into it and leave this existence behind.

"...then kiss." I snapped back to reality. Collin had grown tense next to me. Everyone else was staring at me expectantly. I looked at Collin, confused.

With a sigh, Collin leaned over and kissed my cheek. Though it was small and short, it still left me flushed and baffled. My cheek tingled, reminding me that it had really happened. This stranger whom I had only known for an hour had kissed me.

"Awe come on!" Jake slurred. Whatever he was drinking had made him sluggish. "Why are you acting so shy?"

Collin's face didn't reveal anything that he was thinking. He was looking at Jake with a blank stare. Vito raised a brow.

Esme chuckled and sank further into the couch. "Chill out, guys. Maybe Collin's taking things slow for once."

I nodded and smiled with relief. That was good reasoning. We were taking things slow. We haven't even reached acquaintance-status yet.

Collin glared at Esme. Then he looked at me. His eyes had hardened. He snaked his arm around my waist and pulled me closer. My eyes rounded. Collin leaned close. Our lips were inches apart.

He looked into my wide eyes. His face suddenly softened. "Are you scared?" he whispered.

Yes. I don't want this.

He leaned even closer. His breath was warm on my face.

No, I don't want this...I don't want this!

"You weren't in Apple Valley two months ago." Collin froze. He slowly sat up and turned his attention to Vito. "You told me that you were heading to Napa Valley the last time you were here. What was that, eight weeks ago?"

Collin looked to the left and down the hallway where the bathroom was. He clutched my hand.

Vito leaned forward and clasped his hands together. His voice came out as a whisper. "What are you hiding, Rat?"

Paige glanced at us nervously. Christain stood up. The kindness that he had expressed earlier had disappeared. Their friendliness was replaced with suspicion. It felt like a switch had been turned on. They had altered so quickly.

Collin pulled me off of the couch and ran. Footsteps followed behind us. I looked behind me. My heart caught in my throat. Vito and Christain were behind us and ready to grab me. They would have been able to, too, if Collin hadn't been moving so quickly.

He pulled us into the bathroom and locked the door. The door trembled as the two men behind it tried to get in.

"Why didn't we go out the front?" I asked.

"The girls are waiting for us there," he answered. "Come on, I'll give you a lift."

I looked up at a small window. It was going to be impossible to squeeze through.

Collin didn't give me time to argue. He grabbed my waist and hoisted me up. I tried to lift the window up. It didn't budge.

"Locked."

Collin set me back down. He looked at the door, cursed, and slid a gun out from his belt. My eyes widened at the sight. I didn't know he had that.

The bullet flew through the air and shattered the glass in an instant. I jumped back as little pieces of glass fell all over the floor. Collin pushed me forward, lifted me again, and helped me through the window.

I stumbled and hit dirt ground. I waited outside for Collin. It took him a minute before he was able to get himself out. He grabbed my hand again and broke out into a sprint.

"I always knew!" Vito shouted from the porch. I looked back. He wasn't chasing us, just yelling. "You can't run forever!"

I fished my keys out of my pocket, unlocked my car, and slipped in. "Go, go, go," Collin muttered as he closed the door. I didn't hesitate to start the car and to get out of there as quickly as possible.

Once we were on the road for a while and the house was far behind us, I said, "You had a gun? This entire time?"

"Um, yeah."

I held back a laugh. Why hadn't he used that when that guy was trying to shoot him in the gas station? If he would have done that, I wouldn't have ever gotten pulled into this mess.

But, as shown by my luck tonight, that wasn't considered in my favor.

***

Adrenaline was still pounding through my veins long after. My hands were trembling. That bathroom door only had so much longer before it would have opened. We were lucky that Collin had been able to break that window. There had been so many factors during that situation that could have ended for the worse. And yet somehow we made it out.

I looked over at Collin. He appeared unfazed. It seemed as if he got kicked out of houses this fashion often, so having to escape through windows was probably something he was used to doing.

"Where are you going to go now?" I hadn't wanted to ask, for it implied that I would drive him somewhere else, but I knew that he had intended on staying with those people.

He shrugged. "I always get by."

We drove in silence, barely talking. I didn't know where I was going. I was just going straight. I checked the time. It was four-thirty. Only an hour and a half had passed. It felt like longer.

The clock reminded me of my exhaustion. All of the excitement and action that occurred back in the house dissipated. I had to bite the inside of my cheek to keep myself from dozing off.

My car suddenly slowed. The steering wheel gave left, making it difficult to control it. Something under my car thumped. With an irritated sigh, I pulled over and stopped the car.

I went outside and checked my car. Something had to be wrong. God, what now?

"Your tire's flat," Collin said.

I clutched my hair and suppressed a scream. Of course it was flat. Of course it was.

"Hey." Collin stood next to me. He put his hands in his pockets. "We'll fix this in the morning. Just...just go to sleep."

I wanted to argue. I wanted to fix this now so that I could drive home. But he was right. I was too tired. Too much had happened in one night.

I crawled into the driver's seat and leaned the chair back. Collin did the same with his. I locked the car, closed my eyes, and tried to forget that any of this happened.

If I really only have ten days to do everything I want to do, I thought, then this isn't a very good start.

Wow, that was a close one! Nat's luck doesn't seem to be in her favor, huh? What do you think will happen next? Is her adventure with Collin over (ha, as if :P)?

Thank you so much for reading! If you liked this chapter, try voting for it with a car key. Stay incredible!