My Hockey Alpha

The attendant scanned our items slowly, never breaking eye contact with us. The intense smell of cigarettes was definitely coming from her. It was so strong now that it almost made me gag, and I felt my eyes begin to water.

"Seventeen-fifty," she said, her voice hoarse and gravelly. Enzo handed her a twenty dollar bill. "You want a bag?"All rights © NôvelDrama.Org.

"Yes, please," Enzo replied, trying to sound casual. The attendant made a bit of a face, but retrieved a plastic bag from beneath the counter and began shoving our things in it. Enzo cleared his throat. "Erm... You happen to know if there's a bus stop or anything around here?"

The woman paused, her eyes slowly sliding up to look at Enzo. She let out a sharp snort. "Ain't no buses out here."

"W-What about a place to rent a car?" I asked sheepishly.

The woman then turned to glare at me. She looked me up and down, chewing a bit of tobacco in her mouth, and made another face. "Where are you from?"

I opened my mouth to answer, but before I could, Enzo interrupted. "Listen," he said, somewhat sternly, "we really need a ride. We'll pay for gas and for their time. We just need to hurry."

There were several moments of silence. The woman seemed put off by Enzo's sudden demand, and looked him up and down in the same way that she looked at me. She looked like she was about to tell us to fuck off, but then a gruff voice suddenly spoke up from behind us.

"Where ya headed?"

Enzo and I whipped around. My eyes widened as I realized that the man standing in front of us now was the same old man who had just been staring out his window at us. He was wearing a thick flannel coat, a beat-up pair of jeans and an even more beat-up pair of work boots. He was thin, a little too thin for someone that age, but I could see from the leathery and sinewy look of his wrists that poked out from his rolled-up sleeves that he must have worked really hard his entire life. His face was dark from days spent working in the sun, and he had deep lines all around his eyes from squinting. But his eyes... His eyes were a bright yellow peering out at us from beneath his trucker hat.

"We're..." Enzo paused, seemingly appraising the old man, and for some reason he seemed to trust him enough to tell him exactly where we needed to go. "We're going to the Alpha King's mansion."

There was a long silence.

Then, suddenly, the old man snorted - much like the attendant behind the counter, but much louder and more abrasive. The attendant also let out a low, condescending chuckle.

"Why're a couple'a kids like you headed to the Alpha King's mansion, hm?" the old man chortled.

Enzo opened his mouth to speak, but before he could, I stepped forward and swallowed my fear.

"Listen, mister," I said, trying to sound tougher than I really felt, "it's important. If you take us, we'll pay you whatever you want."

The old man stared at me for a long time, his yellow eyes searching my face. Then, finally, he shrugged and jerked his head toward the door.

"C'mon. I got my truck out front."