On a life-changing road-trip, your broke self meets a charismatic, alluring and highly unnerving stranger at a gas-stop in the middle of nowhere.

The ancient gas pump ticked up quickly, exchanging my three dollars for a gallon and a quarter of gas in only a few seconds. When it stopped dispensing, I shook the nozzle around for just a little bit to make sure I got every last drop. I felt like a neurotic man at a urinal. I came around the car and crouched in front of the mirror. I primped my hair and pulled the front of my shirt down just a little to be more interesting. This stunt works best if I seem both helpless and interesting*.* I walked into the gas station, which was easily a hundred years old and probably had some of its original Slim Jims in stock from opening day. It was dirty and unkempt–doors hanging off hinges; lights flickering overhead. In the corner there was a newer-looking slot machine and an old, slumped addict dropping coin after coin into it. I grabbed some water from the fridge and some Cliff Bars from the shelves. Here we go. “Hello,” I smiled to the large man on the other side of the counter. “Howdy,” he responded in his gruff, indifferent tone. He scanned the items and punched something into his register. “$6.54.” I smiled and reached into my purse. I dug around for several minutes before I looked on the floor. “Oh no,” I cooed. Tears welled in my eyes. “Umm… I think my debit card was lost…” The man wasn’t buying it. He pulled the food closer to himself. “Sorry to hear that,” he said. I started crying, making it look like I was trying not to. “I don’t know what I’m going to do. I haven’t eaten since this morning. Do you have anything in the back–“ “No.” He was done listening. “Buy something or leave.” Clearly I was not the first to try something like this. I shot the large gas station troll dagger eyes and turned to leave. I found myself inches from a man’s chest, dressed in a stylish button-up and tie. “I’ll take care of it,” he sang. He was… a really good-looking guy. Perfectly-manicured stubble, fresh haircut, tall… His skin was flawless–tanned and smooth. Like wax. He slid a blank debit card across the counter to the cranky man. “$50 at pump 6 as well, please,” he said. His smile was blindingly white. Each tooth looked like one of those minty gum candies. In a city he would have looked special. Here he looked obscene. “Thaaaaaaanks,” I said, hesitantly. I grabbed my food from the counter and moved past him and back out to my car. I didn’t remember seeing another car at the pumps with me and I looked for pump 6 to see what the guy was driving. Pump 6 was my pump. Probably a mistake, right? Except there were still no other cars out here. Just mine. Where did he come from? I opened my door and threw the snacks into the passenger seat before walking around. I didn’t ask for the gas, but I wasn’t in a position to argue with it either. I put the nozzle into my gas tank and started pumping. “Hello.” It came from right behind me and I lurched forward in surprise. “Jesus Christ, you scared the shit out of me,” I told him. He smiled that perfect white smile. “So sorry.” We were quiet for a bit before I broke the weird silence. “Thanks for the gas. And the food…” “My pleasure. It’s hard being stranded in the desert. So sorry to hear about you losing your debit card.” “Thanks.” I didn’t know what else to say. Why is it taking so long to fill my tank? “Where are you from?” He asked. “America,” I responded. He laughed a deep, rehearsed belly laugh. When he straightened up again he was still smiling, but one of his eyes–perfectly blue–began to laze to the side ever so slightly. “Of course you are. May I ask where in America you’re from?” I noticed he was taking micro-steps toward me. Every gesture he made with his hands was accompanied by an ever-so-slight scoot forward. “Not far,” I lied. His smile turned into a playful frown. “I would have imagined fifty-six dollars and fifty-four cents would have been enough to buy at least that answer.” “And here I was thinking it was altruism.” His smile returned. “There’s no such thing.” How did he get so close to me? I felt something wet touch the side of my shoe. A puddle was collecting on the ground from underneath my car. I smelled it all at once: gasoline. “Oh shit.” I took the nozzle out and looked under the car. My tank had sprung a leak. “Oh dear,” the guy said, suddenly on the other side of my car, looking back at me from underneath. There was nothing around–no body shop or even a town to speak of. It was all desert and tumbleweeds. And chicklet teeth over here. “Well, if you’re not going anywhere, you’re going to need a place to rest your…head…” His teeth opened wide and closed quickly with a loud click. What in the world was that? “I have AAA,” I lied. “I’ll just be giving them a call. But… thanks?” I reached into my purse to pull out my phone. I searched past the old receipts and several vials of lip balm. It wasn’t there. I looked in my car, and it wasn’t there either. I’d need to go inside and ask to use the phone. I turned away from suit guy to get into the gas station and he was suddenly in my path. “I have a warm bed and plenty of food,” he said to me, expressionless except for his wide smile. “I’m not that kind of girl,” I told him. “You’re really starting to creep me out.” He extended his bottom lip in a faux-pout. “A nice guy can’t catch a break, huh?” “Jesus,” I said as I moved quickly past him and into the gas station. “Hey, mister!” I called the troll. “Can I use a phone? And can you help me make sure Mr. prom date over here doesn’t murder me?” The suited man was inside the gas station and I didn’t even hear him come in behind me. “Hey! Mister!” The troll was sitting in a stool with his back to me and he wasn’t moving. I looked up at the old CRT security TV in the corner. It flickered the way old video tapes do, but I watched the suited guy moving behind me. My skin went cold. When I wasn’t looking directly at him his movements were wild and jerky–moving way too quickly and flailing about unnaturally. His mouth opened wide and closed over and over. The troll fell from his stool with a thud and it caused me to jump. I looked over the counter and screamed at what I saw. I looked back at the security monitor to see the suited man almost on top of me. Then everything went dark.