And Then She Was Gone

Small Town Vibes

Her day started with her usual routine of walking and feeding Shelby, and then utilizing the public restrooms to quickly shower and dress. Leaving the facility a different person in a white v-neck shirt, skinny jeans, some cute black boots and her strawberry blonde hair fixed in a tight french braid. Upon her return to the cabin, she waved her goodbye to the dog within and grabbed a light gray jacket and her purse before hopping in the SUV in pursuit of the small town she saw last night.

In the short drive to the sleepy little town she saw last night upon her arrival in Montana, she used the scan feature on her radio to locate her set station for the remainder of her stay in Montana, 94.3 XUZ. The music playing was a mix of current pop hits, every now and then being accentuated by a classic almost everyone could sing due to its inherently catchy nature combined with its unbridled popularity. She was beaming with energy, as she wore her chopper glasses channeling her inner southern cop persona, belting out loudly and quite un-remorsefully about how she doesn't want any scrubs and how they were just guys that couldn't get any love from her, complete with finger snaps and head whips for extra added flair.

Anonymity proved to be a very freeing thing, and her usually reserved and timid persona was washed away with each day, giving her an entirely different public persona then what would be garnered at home. Windows down, volume up, she gave no fucks rolling up to this quiet sleepy town to make her presence known. She was in the middle of getting down to "Can't touch this" with elaborate hand moves and gestures following in suite, when she pulled up directly next to a minivan chock full of little children wildly raving in the back over god knows what. All of them suddenly stopping and turning to stare at her in confusion as she was mid Madonna vogue pose, their parents doing the same with a more amused look, most likely recalling their younger days with fond memories.

Welp, that was fun while it lasted. She was just going to slam on the gas, crash into a building and burn in a fiery death now.

The minivan proved to be an imminent warning to her, that this town was not the same as it was last night. It was bustling full of people, and seemed to be living and breathing with buzzing energy. One of the first stores on the strip was a barber shop which had its stereotypical populous of old men sitting out front in lawn chairs most likely arguing about politics while simultaneously talking about the "good old days" and smoking cigars with large plumes of smog polluting the surrounding air.
Families strolled up and down the sidewalks on either side, some happily stopping in front of thrift shops, some angrily dragging kicking and screaming children away from confectionery store fronts. Young lovers were scattered among the crowds, holding hands with their nauseating sweet nothings permeating the air ensuring that everyone knew how much they loved each other this week, however as always with young love, next week maybe another case.
Men dressed in suits walked with determination,  briefcases in hand to an unknown destination, constantly running a few minutes behind and wearing angry expressions.
Women cackled in groups, undoubtedly complaining about their lazy husbands and terrible children using it as a well placed excuse to drink chardonnay at 11am before spending the afternoon shopping and racking up credit card debt.
The parking strips were chock full of vehicles, not a spot in site. Among the many cars, several vans could be seen unloading various items from bulk baking supplies to large surpluses of flowers.

As she continued to drive down the strip, a sudden realization donning on her with an explanation of the towns liveliness hit her as she saw two city workers on either end of the road at the top of ladders, struggling to hang a large banner citing their summer festival which was to occur that night and throughout the weekend.

More and more signs popped out to her in various bright colors tacked onto anything that could withstand a staple or nail, as the SUV slowly pushed forward at its slow 25 mph speed through the town, each one of them citing something different "Live crabs from maine! Market price.", "Fresh pastries at Belles! BOGO!", "Live bands at Harleys Fri, Sat, Sun starting at 7pm. 1/2 off draft beer.", and "Want bigger boobs? Ask me how, 888-555-8008", wait what?