The Girl & The Hound | Winter Soldier

TWENTY

❝WE ARE ALL IN THE SAME HELL, JUST DEALING WITH DIFFERENT DEVILS.❞

Sawyer held the wheel firmly as Gunner sat beside her in the passenger seat, her eyes intricately studying the road as his head was peeked out of the quarterly-opened window, allowing a gush of breezed air to lapse into the car as his tongue dangled from his mouth blissfully. The snow sketched country roads were slowly opening to the clear highway much to Gunner's delight, the abundance of cars an evident acknowledgment as were the broadly hung highway signs that indicated countless destinations.

With the growing number of accompanying cars on the road, Gunner grew more curious and contorted to stare at each passing car, urging a small smile on Sawyer's face at his inquisitiveness. With the radio gently humming a folk song, one Sawyer had never heard before, the drive was surprisingly refreshing and not at all as daunting as she had first presumed. She was en route to Washington, accepting a Mitsubishi Outlander - graciously lended by Clint - as a means to drive to her designated destination and so far, things were looking weirdly but fortunately okay.

Without a shadow of a doubt, she was beyond bewildered but almost ecstatic at her momentarily given freedom, allowing her both space from the peculiar Maverick and personal time to ponder as to why she, a useless fighter and self-proclaimed waste of space, was urgently required. She was somewhat of a blatant contradiction, or so she had concluded, but that blatant contradiction was currently needed urgently in Washington and without hesitation she intended to discover why- well, perhaps with the smallest slither of hesitation.

Gunner seemingly enjoyed riding in the passenger seat, a promotion of their growing friendship as he continued to stare out of the window, placing a front leg out the window to relax as he adored the wind ruffling through his fur. Sawyer kept her attention prominently on the road ahead as the welcome sign of Washington was hung from a sign, obliviously ignoring the consistent ambulances and police sirens as the calamity was broken, accompanied by a traffic jam of countless cars which caused her to quickly check on her curious Gunner before returning her attention to the road before then quickly retaking.

"Gunner, be careful," she cautiously warned the dog, casting a few glances across to him before her eyes profoundly widened to acknowledge his two front legs were out of the window. Her mind had already skipped to a bloody aftermath if he was to jump out, which of course being Gunner he was bound to, and so instinctively she began to slow down as she cringed at the thought. With a few moments grace to spare as the traffic drew to a stop, she helplessly began to reach across the seat to his collar to gently pull him back in and roll down his manual window all whilst trying to drive.

Groaning at the uncomfortable position, she stretched across to him as a car suddenly honked behind her, alerting her that the traffic was again swiftly moving, "Gunner please, we're literally in Washington, you can get out in five minutes," she pleaded, tugging as painlessly as she could on his collar but completely useless in her tactics with being endorsed to pay attention to the road as the driver behind her seemed to then frantically honk the horn which causing her to rattle with embarrassment, "what the hell?" she muttered confused at the sudden hysteria, almost in a panic herself as she detained an underlying urge to flip them the finger for hopelessly stressing her out.

Huffing and careless to the impatient car behind, she stretched out further but her eyes having widened even more so as Gunner seemingly began to push himself out of the window excitedly with all the frantic car horns, his stomach peeling through the gap as she yelled, "Gunner- Stop!" in complete terror, slowing the car down by retrieving force from her foot. She then hopelessly attempted to steer distantly with her outstretched left arm, her right managing to merely grasp his back left leg before he completely squirmed out of the window, Sawyer immediately retracting in horror as he slipped from her grasp, her slow speed fortunately detaining any injuries as he landed on the ground.