The Pact - Chapter Three

THREE
We just passed through Philadelphia and I cannot stand it any longer. My bladder is about to burst. I am pulling off into a rest area that has a restaurant and a gas station. Morgan is beginning to stir now as I park the car. I leap from the car as he opens his eyes and I make a mad dash for the restaurant. I exit the restroom feeling more comfortable as Morgan comes out of the men’s room. Our stomachs rumble at the smell of food. I suggest we do some walking first.
We exit the restaurant and begin to walk around the enormous parking lot. The walk feels good against my sore muscles. I am use to running four miles a day and I did not get to do that today. I will not be able to run for a few days and I am going to miss it. Morgan is quietly walking beside me but I get the feeling he has something on his mind. On our second lap around the parking lot Morgan opens up.
“Jay?”
“What?”
“Are we gonna be as close as we are now?” Morgan worried.
“Of course we will be. We will be even closer.”
“How?” Morgan wonders.
“It’s us now, just you and me. We need to be close to get through this. It is the only way this will work.” I say.
“We aren’t going to drift apart?”
“We will in certain areas but that is normal Morgan. Don’t worry so much. Really. Things are going to be great.”
“Great how?” Morgan wonders.
“We will salvage what we have left of our youth. We are free now from the psychotic duo and we do not have to live in constant fear.” I reply with a smile.
Morgan nods as we pause in front of the restaurant. Our stomachs are rumbling even more and sending out hunger pains. Neither of us has eaten a thing since breakfast and the both of us have high metabolisms. We silently agree to go in and get something to eat.
We wait to be seated. An older woman, probably in her sixties, approaches us. The woman sits us by a window overlooking the parking lot. She gives us menus and takes our drink orders. Morgan and I are quiet as we look over the menu. I decide on a Philly cheese steak sub with steak fries and a salad. Morgan decides on a steak, mashed potatoes, fries, and a salad. I shake my head. My brother never liked vegetables.
We place our orders and we sip on our soda. I am feeling more relaxed now. There are more than several hours between us and South Boston. Our door is still locked. It will be weeks before Victor realizes that we are gone. We used that fire escape a lot and Victor knew it. It was the only way we could avoid Victor but there were times that our paths had to cross and when they did we would hurt for days.
As we eat our dinner I sense that Morgan is less worried and anxious which is good. I was starting to worry about my brother but now I can see that he is fine. Morgan needed some fears to be put to bed is all and our talks have done that. We have cleaned our plates and the waitress wonders if we want anything else. Of course Morgan orders apple pie and I do the same since he is having some.