Thunder

The rain pelted down on my face, leaving it sore and cold. The lightning cracked, sending another boom of thunder rumbling through the sky. I sped on forward, trying to escape the demons of my past. The highway was pitch black, offering no indication of my surroundings other than the trees that passed me. I had no clue how long I had been driving, I had no clue what state I was even in. I just knew I had to keep going.                The rain started coming down harder, making it difficult to see the road in front of me. As much as I wanted to keep going, I knew it was dangerous and stupid to continue in these conditions. As if to answer my prayers, I saw lights in the distance. I slowly pulled into the convenience store and parked under the awning. With my clothes and jacket clinging to my skin and dripping wet, I made my way inside to wait out the storm. The clerk raised her head from the counter and looked at me up and down with her eyebrows quirked. “Do y’all have a bathroom I could use?” I asked gripping my bag of supplies. She just pointed to the back corner. I stalked away, grabbing a blow dryer from the shelf. I locked to door behind me and just stood there staring at myself in the mirror. Face cold and red from the rain, pony tail knotted with the stray hairs clinging to my skin, my once bright grey eyes now dull and clouded, tears across my lip from biting and ripping the skin off of it. When had I become this person? I was always independent, happy, and didn’t take s**t from anyone. I never let anything get under my skin. No more dwelling though. Everything was about to change.                I took my hair down and ran my brush through it, taking my time. With a handful of my waist length hair, and my knife in the other, I chopped it to my shoulders. My stomach clenched as it fell to the ground. No going back now. I dried it and mixed the bleach together. I saturated my whole head and covered my head with a trash bag I had found under the sink. I peeked out into the store, seeing the clerk gone I snuck over and grabbed a bottle of shampoo and conditioner. For the next 45 minutes I drifted in and out of sleep on the toilet. Not one of my finer moments. I snapped straight up after drifting off and hitting my head on the wall. I got up and rinsed my hair out; my once chestnut brown hair now bleach blond. It didn’t look bad and definitely popped against my tan. I gathered my things and put them back in my bag, and took the things I had grabbed from the store and slowly opened the door. “and then she went to the bathroom and hasn’t come out for an hour. I don’t know if I should call the cops or….” The clerk trailed off as I had gotten closer to the register. She scrunched her eyebrows up as she looked at me. Standing across from her was an older woman, I’d say late 60’s. The elderly woman stepped aside as I reached the register. “Excuse me ma’am” I looked down and placed my things on the counter. The clerk still staring at me like I grew two more heads and not ringing my items up. “Did you really just go give yourself a makeover in our bathroom?” she asked, still giving me the strangest look and not ringing up my items. She was really starting to aggravate me. Just ring up my s**t and let me be on my way. I looked up at her, finally meeting her eyes. “Can I also get a pack of camel Turkish golds, and this” I asked as I threw a lighter and my fake ID on the counter. Her face never changed, but finally rang up my items and put them in a sack. “Thank you ma’am” I told her as I grabbed the bag and turned to walk out. The older woman was standing there studying me. “Ma’am” I gave her a small smile and walked out the door. It was still pouring rain. I found a dry spot, packed my cigarettes and took one out. I lit it and took a long drag, letting the smoke swirl around in my lungs and slowly released it. I closed my eyes and took another drag and leaned my head against the brick wall. I continued like that for a couple minutes till I heard the door open and a voice say “long night?”. I looked towards the door and saw the old woman standing there looking at me with a smile and concern in her eyes. “Something like that.” I offered a smile and took another drag. “Do you have anywhere to stay tonight?” she glanced out at the relentless rain and back at me. “I’m just waiting for the rain to let up and then I’ll be on my way.” I told her as I took one last drag and put out the butt with my boot. “Non-sense. You can come and rest up at my place. The rain won’t be letting up any time soon. You can get dry and eat an actual meal. Your body looks like it could use one.” I sighed. I really could use some sleep and a meal, but I also need to keep moving. As if to convince her more and protest my denial, my stomach growled loud enough that I knew she heard it too. “okay.” I slowly got to my feet and started towards my Harley. “Don’t you even think about it. Not in this weather, and not down the road we’re going at night.” I opened my mouth to protest. “Ah ah ah. Nope, don’t even try. Grab some things and get in the truck. I won’t take no for an answer.” She raised her eyebrows at me, taunting me to try and talk back to her. But I’m from the south, I know better than to try and argue with a grandma. “You’ll bring me back to it tomorrow? And are you even sure I can leave it here? What if someone tries to take it or it gets stolen?” I tried reasoning with her. But of course she already knew what I was trying to do. “Tessa is here all night. It will be fine and I’ll bring you to pick it up in the morning. Now get your stuff and get in the truck.” I put my bought goods in my saddle packs and took out one of my vacuum storage bags out and carried it to the truck.                We had been driving for about 10 minutes in the woods before turning on another secluded road. Just more trees on each side of the road. “You’re not bringing me out here to kill me, are you?” I finally looked at her. She gave a little chuckle, “no sweetie. I just live out of town. I like being secluded.” I let out a breath of relief. Leave it to me to take a gesture of a sweet old woman and turn it into a possible threat. “Why are you helping me? You don’t even know me.” I quietly asked and turned my head to look out my window once more. “Sweetie, I know a runner when I see one. I won’t ask you what, or who, you’re running from. But by the looks of you, you need somewhere to sleep and something to eat.”