Two In The Dark

The heavy downpour beat down on the black SUV as it made its way down the Pennsylvania highway. The five college boys inside the vehicle weren't exactly happy with the sudden rain. Aidan, a young California man with short brown hair and green eyes, had a tight grip on the steering wheel. Lucas, an exchange student from Sydney, Australia with short spiky black hair, freckles across his nose and blue eyes, sat in the passenger seat as he cursed up a storm. And in the backseat were the triplets from Idaho, Jason, Mason and Kason. They had similar names, but Jason’s personality was completely different. Jason had long black hair rather than the spiky blond hair Mason and Kason had. Jason also preferred to dress like a hippie while Mason and Kason dressed like regular Idaho cowboys.

“Aidan,” Lucas began, clearly not happy with the rain. “Why couldn't we have flown to Pennsylvania? Driving from California was unnecessary.”

Aidan, already annoyed, kept his eyes on the road. “Because, I wasn't going to spend a lot of money on five plane tickets. How was I supposed to know our summer break was going to get ruined by a downpour?”

“Can you two stop?” Jason called from the back.

This trip was supposed to be a way for the five of them to bond. Problems had begun rising between them, but so far, the trip wasn't working. None of them wanted to bring up the problems, they knew it would just make things worse. Through the rain covered windshield, Aidan spotted a diner.

“Alright,” he said. “Why don't we stop for a bite to eat?”.

He pulled into the parking lot. The flickering neon sign read Richie's Diner. The inside of the diner was warm, cozy and smelled of late night coffee and hot grease. The diner wasn't packed, there were only ten other people. The friends didn't pay attention to any of them, hardly, not wanting to start conversations with people they didn't know. However, they did take full notice of a couple in a corner booth, not because of what they looked like, but the age gap. The man looked rugged, and was dressed in all black which gave an eerie look to his hazel eyes when he looked up at them, like he’d already decided something about them. The woman looked younger, more energetic and she was also dressed in all black, however, it gave a mysterious look to her brown eyes, bright with a kind of restless excitement.

The meal went by in a flash. Nothing fancy, just turkey sandwiches and chips with lemonade. The friends looked out at the darkness, the rain was still coming down.

“My gosh,” Lucas sighed. “I should have stayed in Sydney for college.”

“Oh, stop complaining.” Kason said, already wanting to go home.

The sudden sound of the young lady's voice made them jump.

“Babe,” she said, her voice soft and affectionate. “I'm going out to the truck to get a tip for the waitress.”

She raced out into the rain, her shoulder length brown hair getting soaked instantly. She ran to the side of the building.

“Dang,” Aidan said. “She could be in the Olympics! She's a fast runner.”

A sudden deep, raspy voice rang out.

“Yes she is.”

It was the older gentleman. The friends turned to him, as he was sliding out of the booth, running a hand through his spiky brown hair.

“She did track and field in high school,” he said, his hazel eyes scanning the five friends. “I call her my little firecracker. She's feisty.”

The young lady came back in, rushing to the counter and handed the waitress a ten dollar tip. She looked at the older man and raised an eyebrow.

“Daniel Jenkins!” she exclaimed. “Don't bore these young men with stories. Now come on, we have one more errand to run before we go home.”

She grabbed his hand and pulled him out the door. The friends decided to wait out the rain for a little bit longer.

They were unaware that they would be tossed into the worst nightmare of their lives.