The Girl At The Last

Chapter 34

Elaine

"How far?"

"Eighty-Six miles"

"What?" the brewing yawn freezes at his nonchalant utterance.

Eighty-Six miles away from home?I am so dead today, please let Diana be in a good mood when I arrive home late.

I sat up straight and frantically scan around, it was already getting dark. The sun bidding it's farewell, leaving behind the last trail of orange streak.

"And you thought it was better to let me sleep even after we reached the destination an hour ago?" I asked touching the side of my lips for any possible drool intervention. Thank god I was clean.

"You needed it" he says while leaning his back cozily on the seat, folding his hands across his chest, and watching me intently. Similar to the attentive way I do when I watch any geographical documentary with Benedict Cumberbatch as it's commentator.

Comparisons apart, his gaze was making me uncomfortable so I did the next best thing. I sneezed.

"Bless you"

I tried glaring at him, but my eyes burned, I squinted as another sneeze made It's presence felt.

"Bless you, once again" his calm voice was contrast to the amusement glimmering in his blue orbs. The car was bathed in the most beautiful radiant glow of orange-yellow sunset, making the golden spec across his iris appear more cordial. Which he is anything but, I reminded myself bitterly.

"Here" I stared at the tissue that he grabbed from the glove compartment, now in his outstretched hands. I took it since a running nose is not a pleasant feeling to be or be seen with it.

I blow my nose and blow a little more not even caring that I had an audience. It's not like he hasn't done it anyways. I was fine when I slept, what happen in an hour or so for so much mucous to make itself home inside me?.

"Ugh, I hate cold" I mutter, as I saw him shift on side, I saw him shrug his black jacket, probably designer off his shoulders. He peeled it off himself and offered it to me.

"Here"

"No thanks, I am fine" I croaked and sneezed again. Fate? Are you in hysterics? Am I being of your entertainment service? Glad I could be of help.

He rolled his eyes and wrapped the jacket around me from behind, fidgeting on my seat I let him. Afraid that i'll make more fool out of myself than I already had.

"Where are we?" I asked my eyes looking through the window towards a large black gate with a big fancy E written in cursive silver. Two guards wearing blue uniforms on either side, and high walls hiding the view behind with fences stretching longer and larger than the average life of a turtle, which is a lot.

"You can stop pressing your nose to the windows, we are going in there anyways" immediately I pulled away, I watched the smirk on his face and imagined a large ape mascot slapping it off him. but it was all in my head.

He drove towards the small booth like structure and handed the person inside who also wore a uniform, a card. With a curt nod he swiped it in some machine and handed it back. When we rolled down to the entrance the gate slowly yet dramatically slides on either side disappearing behind the stone walls, I had no time to admire the technical allurement as Alex sped past it in to a long driveway.

In an ample vicinity I could see the silhouette of a large building with multiple guards surrounding it comes to view, it was completely dark now and the large fields across either side of the drive way blinked the night lights on. The building itself illuminated and stood as a proud monument of pride.