This is Not My Home

Chapter Eleven

Years After

Ollie woke up slowly and rather reluctantly. She was comfortable, as if she'd been wrapped in a blanket, and was nice and warm. Something strong was wound around her and keeping her swaddled.

She yawned and opened her eyes. She didn't see much, for a moment, but lifted her head and glimpsed the car's interior, right where it should've been. She was still in the backseat, and Tyler was too.

In fact, he was hugging her, and was in his lap somehow.

I must've fallen asleep, she thought to herself, resting her head back on his chest.

"Good morning," Tyler said, his morning voice rumbly and low.

"Hi," she said tiredly.

"Sorry I fell asleep holding you," he said, pulling his arms away. "I didn't mean to be weird."

"I get it," Ollie said, sitting up slowly and rubbing her eyes.

"It won't happen again," Tyler said, fixing his clothing and the goggles still perched on his skull.

"Right." She fixed her shirt and tank top and wondered what'd prompted him to cuddle her. Hopefully he'd just been tired.

Tyler climbed to the front seat. "We're going to go to my place and pick up some supplies. Then we'll be on our way."

Ollie climbed into the passenger seat and hugged her blanket. "Okay. What kind of things are we going to get?"

"Erm... Snacks, water, food... clothing... other stuff," Tyler said, starting the engine and pulling onto the road.

Uneasiness rolled in her gut like a sour bit of food. She watched the landscape fly by and started to wonder what she'd gotten herself into.

Tyler glanced over at her for a moment, then reached over and grabbed her seatbelt. He glanced at the road for a moment, then back at her and clipped her seatbelt on.

"Thanks," Ollie said, tightening it until it was snug.

"No problem, kid."

They drove for a little while, and soon Tyler parked at an apartment complex. He got out and led her to his apartment.

The apartment complex was small and a bit cramped, with some clutter haphazardly stacked on different surfaces. An old television was accompanied by a little couch and coffee table, and a little hallway leading to the rooms was just around the corner.

Tyler went over to his fridge and peeked inside. Ollie heard him sigh and start to rummage through it.

She wandered around, looking at the few things that he had. There were some pictures of who she assumed to be his siblings, and maybe a plant.

Ollie crept over to the bedroom area and peeked inside a room. A bed, a dresser, some clothes on the ground made up the bedroom.

She glanced behind herself for a moment. Tyler's going to be doing that for a while.

It's weird to intrude on someone's space like this.

I'm just taking a tiny look.

Ollie stepped inside the room and examined it. The bed wasn't made, the blinds were drawn, and some clothing laid on the ground. She found a pack of cigarettes and a lighter on the nightstand, and out of curiosity, she picked them up.

"Don't touch those."

Ollie shrieked and whirled around quickly. He'd snuck up on her!

Tyler snatched the box from her hand and took the lighter. He went around and opened his closet, then put them up high where she couldn't reach them. She could sense the gentle frustration and a tinge of fear that seemed to radiate from him.

"You shouldn't be in here," he said, shutting the closet door.

"I'm sorry," she said, trying to keep her voice from stuttering.

"It's alright, kid," he said with a sigh, starting to pick his room up. Ollie watched him curiously and noted that he seemed to dump whatever was bothering him in his closet.

"You shouldn't do that," she blurted.

Tyler bended down to pick up a shirt. "Shouldn't do what?"

"Lock your problems away where no one can see them," she said.

He paused, intrigued by what the little girl had to say.

"It all looks perfect on the outside," she said, gesturing to his room, "but only you know where your demons are."

Tyler was quiet for a few seconds, then just kind of nodded nervously and hid the shirt anyway. "We're going to go shopping since I don't have a lot of food or anything here."

"Okay," Ollie said, sitting on his bed and swinging her legs. 

He pulled out a backpack and started to stuff clothing and such inside. "How do you feel about staying at motels?"

"Creepy men," she said.

"No creepy men are going to come anywhere near you," Tyler said, a note of protectiveness lingering in his tone. "I promise."

Ollie looked over at him curiously. "Promise?"

He smiled at her. "I promise."

She smiled back and fidgeted with her shirt as Tyler packed. She could almost hear his thoughts aloud; Am I doing the right thing? Maybe a motel is a bad idea. What if we run into trouble on the way? Does she have anything else except for the clothes on her back?

"No," she said. "I don't have anything else with me."

Tyler stopped completely and slowly looked up at her. 

A lie immediately came to mind. "I was just... er... stating that."

He nodded, appearing unconvinced but taking the excuse nonetheless. Did she read my mind?

Ollie got up and peered around, walking on her tippy toes. She peered out the window at the busy street below, then turned to Tyler.

"Alright," he said, slinging the backpack over his shoulder. "We'll go to the store, get some stuff, and be on our merry way."

"Yay!" Ollie ran out of the room and stood next to the front door, bouncing, unable to contain her excitement. Finally! They were going!

Tyler followed more slowly, grabbing a small bag of items. He opened the door for her and watched her skip out and down the hallway.

He locked the door to his apartment and hurried after her. He wondered how someone with such short legs could be so fast. She could almost outpace him.

"Slow down, kiddo," he said with a smile as they headed out of the building and to his car. 

Ollie skipped along happily, unawares of much around her, when Tyler suddenly grabbed her and dragged her to his car. He quickly bundled her into the trunk and shut the door.

She squirmed and tried to scream. Tyler quickly shushed her, and the fear on his face quieted her completely.

Ollie and Tyler laid there for a few agonizing moments before he let her up.

"Police car," he explained. "I didn't want them finding you."

"Wouldn't they just pull you over anyway because of your plate number?" she asked.

"They would've caught us long ago if they had it," he said, climbing over the seats. Ollie followed after him and made sure to put on her seatbelt.

"Away we go," he said, smiling as he pulled out of the parking lot.

Ollie turned up the radio. She sang, 

"So bye-bye, Miss American Pie,

drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry,

them good ol' boys were drinking whiskey and rye,

singing, 'This'll be the day that I die,'

this will be the day that I die."