Being stuck in a car with a baby and a small puppy is not something I ever wanted to experience, but I have a feeling there will be a lot more days like this in the future. We have been driving for what feels like forever, but what is more than likely just a couple of days. Still, there is no room for any of us to stretch out, and we are all getting a little stir crazy.

Cracking open my eyes, I force myself to sit up, popping my neck to relieve some of the soreness of having my head rest against the window for the last few hours.

The sun is getting close to setting, meaning that it is somewhere around six o'clock in the evening. We haven't stopped since this morning when we had to refill the tank.

Viola wiggles against my chest, protesting my movements. She settles back down, though, once I start rubbing her back, happier than ever to be in the makeshift sling I had constructed a couple days ago. Stretching out is an impossibility in here, with the back of the car full of necessities, Viola on my chest, and Harry laying across my lap.

With a tired sigh- because one does not get much restful sleep while in a car- I look over at Finn. My eyes widen when I take in the state of him: dark circles under his eyes, drooping eyelids, and shoulders slumped as he stares out the windshield.

The exhaustion is all but screaming from him. Licking my lips, I clear my throat, letting Finn know that I am awake. He startles a little bit, and that is what really tells me that we need to stop soon. I wasn't exactly quiet in my waking up, but Finn didn't seem to have heard any of it.

"Finn," I say, making his eyes flick over to me before returning to the mostly empty road in front of us. "I think maybe we should stop soon, so all of us can get some rest. But you especially need to lay down, it looks as if you are about to drop dead any minute."

Finn lets out a low hum, not saying anything for a couple of seconds. Finally, he lets out a long breath, shoulders slumping even more.

"Alright. We will stop in the next town, see if there is an abandoned house we can stay in."

Viola starts to stir against me, rubbing her face against my chest as she wakes up. Looking down at her, I try to rub her back in soothing motions, hoping she won't get too worked up while we are in the car. She lets out a yawn, eyes blinking open as she wakes.

"Good, because I don't know how much longer any of us can stay in this car."

An affirming grunt comes from Finn, and I roll my eyes. Neither of us says anything else though, just watching as the sky changes from blue to different hues of orange.

A green road sign comes into view a few miles later, welcoming us into the town of Charity. Well then, it will be interesting to see if the town lives up to its name.

The streets are relatively lively, which catches me off guard at first. I haven't seen this many people together, none of them fearing for their lives, in a while. A few people watch as our car drives by but don't seem too wary of us, instead going about their own business once they realize we aren't a threat.

"This is so weird," I say, voice coming out slightly awed.

"Agreed," Finn says, the car slowing down as we get to the end of the main street. "It looks like there is a small bed and breakfast on the other side of the block. Maybe they have some rooms there we can book."

"Hopefully," I say with a sigh, wincing when Harry claws me in his haste to stand up and look out the window.

Finn parks the car in the small lot at the back of the bed and breakfast. Turning the key, he allows the engine to turn off, leaving us in semi silence. Viola doesn't let it last, though, letting out a small cry of displeasure now that the car isn't moving anymore.

"Alright, I'll go see if they have any rooms available, you guys stay here." Finn moves to get out of the car, but my hand shoots out, fingers wrapping around his arm and pulling him back into his seat.

"Uh-uh, I don't think so. We've all been stuck in here way too long, and last time we decided to split up, things didn't go too well." Shaking my head, I release his arm, opening my own door so that I can clamber out. Harry wags his tail in excitement, running over to some grass to do his business. "No, we are coming with you."

Finn lets out a long sigh, stepping out of the car and closing his door. "Alden, we don't know if it is safe in there or not."

Shooting him a harsh look, I cut off his next words. "We are safer together, so we are going to actually stay together this time."

Finn just shakes his head in defeat before moving so that he is standing next to me. "Fine."

With a satisfied smile, I start walking towards the entrance of the bed and breakfast, Finn calling Harry's name so that he will follow us.

Walking into the bed and breakfast is like visiting home during the holidays. The entrance is a little old fashioned, a fireplace to the right with a small fire flickering inside, and in front of it are two overstuffed love seats, blankets lying on their backs. A black cat lays across the back of one of the loveseats, completely oblivious to the world around him.

Looking to the left, I see an older woman walk into the room from a door that is situated behind a small desk. She smiles over at us, carefully lowering herself into the chair closest to her and pulling out some pieces of paper from a small pile on the surface of the desk.

"Well, hello," she says, her voice sounding quite a lot like my grandmother's. "How can I help the two of you?"

"Hi," I say, walking so that I am standing in front of her desk. "We were wondering if you had any rooms available?"

The woman smiles at me, her eyes flicking between me and Finn. "Let me check, but I am almost certain that we have some room available."

Pulling on her reading classes that had been hooked to a small chain around her neck, she looks through a small journal, making little humming sounds as she looks it over. After a few minutes, she lets out a satisfied sound before looking back up at me with a smile. "Ah, yes, it seems we do have one room left: The Verona Suite."

My heart skips a beat slightly at her words, and I don't even allow myself to dwell on the name of the room. "Just one room?"

The woman's eyebrows scrunch together in confusion, and once again she looks between me and Finn. "We are almost completely booked, with people leaving the cities, so I have no other rooms available. Will that be a problem?" She looks genuinely worried, and I rush to placate her, not wanting to risk losing the prospect of sleeping in a real bed instead of in the car.

"No, no, that won't be a problem." Smiling, I hope to calm some of her worries. It seems to work, because she smiles brightly, scribbling something in her book.

"Alright, dear," she says, pulling out a key from one of the many drawers in the desk. "This room is seventy-five dollars a night, and includes all three meals of the day."

"That's no problem," I say, and before I can even contemplate reaching for my wallet, Finn steps forward.

"Can we have the room for three nights, please?" he says, pulling out his debit card.

"Oh, yes, of course," the woman says, taking Finn's card and running it through an accessory for her computer.

It takes a little while for the card to finally go through, but it surprisingly does. It is truly surprising that they have electricity in this town, while it was barely holding on in the city.

The woman hands over the room key, gesturing to the hallway behind her. "Your room is going to be on the third floor, the last one on the left. Just take those stairs right over there and you will be able to find it." She turns back over to look at us. "Dinner is in a half an hour and you can come down anytime after that. Just walk through this door behind me and you will be in the dining room.

"Thank you," I say, taking the key from her and following behind Finn as he starts walking towards the stairs.

The steps creak as we climb them, and I have to hold onto the railing to make sure I don't fall from their impressive incline. Our room isn't hard to find, and when Finn opens the door, a small smile spreads across my face.

The room is surprisingly spacious. A queen size bed sits under a set of large windows framed by curtains. The comforter looks to be as soft as clouds, and I cannot wait to sink into all that comfort. Finn reaches over to turn on a standing lamp by the door, illuminating the room in a soft glow, making it easier to see everything else.

Intrinsically decorated rugs cover the dark hard wood floor, and a cushioned armchair sits in the corner of the room, a fully stocked bookshelf beside it.

Finn makes his way over the door on the left wall, opening it enough to peek inside. "We lucked out with this place," he calls over his shoulder. Curious, I join him in looking over the bathroom.

My eyes widen when I notice the large tub sitting in front of a window, something that I haven't seen outside of magazines. Finn lets out a low whistle of appreciation and I couldn't agree more. There is a standing shower and a toilet on the other side of the bathroom, making it obvious that the bathtub is supposed to be the focal point.

"I never thought I would be so happy to see a bathtub in my life."

Finn chuckles at my words before turning to walk back into the room. "You guys get settled, I'm going to get our stuff from the car."

"Okay," I respond, gingerly taking Viola from the sling holding her to my chest. Finn closes the door quietly behind him, leaving me alone with Harry and Viola. The baby starts to fuss a little bit from being moved, but I shush her while laying her down on the bed, settling pillows around her so she has no chance of hurting herself.

Walking over towards the windows, I take in the view, and my breath catches from the beauty of it. The setting sun casts a myriad of colors across the sky, making the forest below look like a place from old stories.

But then my smile slips from my face.

This place makes it seem like nothing is wrong with the world when that could not be further from the truth. The woman at the front desk had said that they had more customers than usual, people trying to escape from the disasters that are now the cities.

Who knows how long we have before the monsters follow us here before this little place of beauty is destroyed as well.