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[ 1985. November ]
THE ROAD HOME IS LONG. Mary-Jane can't quite recall why they decided to drive all the way to and from California. Train would've been faster and probably more comfortable, but she finds it rather calming; sitting in a car with their favorite music playing on the stereo, casual and sweet smalltalk interrupting the silence every so often. There's something rather soothing about looking out the window and looking at something new, something beautiful.
As the sky grows darker and the time moves slowly towards the little hours, they pull up outside a cheap-looking motel with a 7-Eleven on the other side of the street, brightly announcing it's presence with a huge sign lit up on the side of the building. It's the only place they've seen for miles, lord knows when they'll see another motel so they decide this will have to do.
The bell rings loudly as they swing the door open to the reception. A tired clerk perks up on the other side of the desk, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. Mary-Jane and Steve exchange a quick look. "We'd like to book a room for the night. Just tonight." Steve says and steps up to the desk.
"Double bed?" The clerk asks, voice low and monotonous.
Mary-Jane nods swiftly. "Yes please."
"That'll be fifteen dollars." the clerk says, tapping away on the register. Mary-Jane hands him a twenty, watching as he grabs a key from the wall behind him and some change. "104. It's just up the stairs. First room on your right."
"Thank you." MJ replies and grabs the key, shoving the change into her pocket. She's swift in her movements, sort of desperately just want to get out of the lobby because the place is strange to say the least, and the clerk too. She doesn't exactly appreciate the vibes he's giving off.
"What do you say we pop into that 7-Eleven across the street?" Steve asks when they're back outside, having located the stairs that lead up to their room as well as a vending machine that probably hasn't been updated with new drinks during the last decade, its light blinking frenetically, a pool of water has gathered around the bottom of the machine. Mary-Jane can swear she hears flies.
She nods, taking her eyes off of the gross vending machine. "Yeah I'm quite hungry."
The gas station is even more desolate, a woman behind the counter is reading a magazine with seemingly little interest, chewing loudly on some bright pink gum. She briefly looks their way as they walk in snide before returning to her pages. Steve and MJ ignore her and start searching the isles for something to eat. All they really have to offer are a variety of different drinks, two isles filled with different candies.
"Are we feeling some Reese's pieces?" Steve holds up the bag. Mary-Jane looks at him from her side of the shelf, taking a second to think about it.
