I had a sneaky suspicion that the pests outnumbered the locals.

Kill me! 

As my eyes combed over the landscape, my heart spewed of disappointment. Listening to Sara’s nonstop babble the whole way here made me want to barf. Seriously! Despite her constant pitch, I had a hunch that this dump might be the worst idea Sara had yet.

We rolled into town right before dawn. The first hotel we saw, Sara pulled into the parking lot. We were nearly out of gas, and nothing was open. It was either this or we’d be sleeping in the car. Sara turned to me. “We can stay here tonight. It ain’t that bad.” She made a weak attempt at a smile.

I grimaced at my side window, hiding my sour face from Sara. “Whatever,” I mumbled darkly.

There wasn’t much to say about the place other than it was rundown and on the outskirts of town. The neon lights shined brightly above our heads, barely hanging on its hinges. One light sizzled, blinking off and on while another one was busted. Broken glass pooled around the light-post. The sign read, “Welcome to Claude’s Inn.” Anything with a bed sounded good to me. After riding scrunched up in an old 1975, Volkswagen all night, I would’ve slept on rocks.

Sara went in and paid for a room. Shortly she returned with a key dangling from her hand. We pulled up to our room, number, ninety-three. Sara slid from the car and slammed her door shut, and I followed directly after. I paused, stretching my stiff limbs, and yawned. It felt good to stand erect. Stopping for a quick piss was a luxury with Sara. The last time we braked was in Longview Texas.

Like always, Sara ordered me to bring in our personal items and like a good little slave, I obeyed. After dragging in the last suitcase, it’d no sooner hit the floor that I collapsed on the bed. I felt under me      a little lumpy. Eh! I’d slept on worse. Besides no point in complaining. I didn’t have the energy anyway.

Stretched out across the bed, my mind drifted.