She sat on her bed listening to her roommates argue for the hundredth time this week. She was angry and fed up with the nonsense. She jumped from her bed and walked out to the balcony.
“Will you just shut up!” She yelled. “Why are you living together if you can’t get along.”
Silence greeted her outburst, and the argument resumed more heated than before. Each laying the blame on the other.
She rolled her eyes, let out a shrill whistle, and stopped the argument once more.
“That’s it, I’m done,” she said. “Find another roommate to referee your sparring matches!”
She dashed into her room, hastily packed a bag, grabbed her most important belongings, through her bag in the car, and peeled out of the driveway. She couldn’t care less what happened to her now former roommates. They deserved to be unhappy together, and she was happy to be free.
An hour later she was sitting at her mother’s kitchen table and remembered exactly why she’d left home in the first place. Instead of congratulating her for her decisive action her mother was now berating her for every poor choice she’d made in her life.
“Who cares if they fought?” She asked. “You left them stranded. I hope they come after you in court. You need a severe dose of reality.”
She stood up squared her shoulders and looked her mom dead in the eye. She wasn’t done standing up for herself today. “The only mistake I made today,” she said, “was coming back here!”
She made a second hasty exit, and her mother was too shocked to respond. She began driving. But as soon the adrenaline cooled, she felt lost and confused. She now had nowhere to go and no one to go to. But she kept driving. What choice did she have?
A few miles down the road she noticed a weathered and cracked sign she’d never noticed before. It was a sign for Horizon: population 650.
She drove on curious. Hopefully there was a cafe or eatery where she could get something to eat and figure out her next steps.
The town seemed nearly deserted, but there were lights on at the cafe, and a few people were milling around. She shrugged, grabbed her purse, and walked into the cafe.
The hostess smiled warmly and ushered for her to sit at the counter.
“Welcome to Horizon,” she said. “You’ll like it here.”
She nodded her attention on the menu, but a moment later she looked up startled. “Excuse me?” She asked. “I’m just passing through.”
The hostess laughed and pointed to a population counter on the wall. It read 651.
“You only think you’re passing through,” she said. “Horizon has other plans. What can I get you, Honey? You’re going to need it.”
The pit dropped out of her stomach at the falsely sweet smile of the hostess. Fear crawled down her spine. She’d driven from bad to worse, and there was no way out.
Scribble City: Write Now