COUNTRY ROAD

Gus and Sant bumped along through the black abyss that was the unpaved country road. Time to time a bug would dart across the cracked windshield like a shooting star in a void galaxy. The radio cut in and out, the reception unable to reach this far off the grid.

“You see any movies?” Gus asked as his blood soaked hands removed the cigarette from his cracked lips as it burnt down to it’s filter.

“Yeah I seen one last weekend.” Sant answered, pushing the words out through a labored exhale as he undid his front button.

“Well what was it called?” 

“Can’t remember the name.” Sant exhaled again while cracking the tab on a tall can, pressing his mouth to contain the overflowing liquid.

“Was about a kid in a village. He’s doing alright, good kid. Loves his mom.”

“That’s nice.”

“Yeah, but he’s picked on because he can’t chop wood or whatever. So they’re hanging out and this, I can’t remember what. I think they’re space bugs?”

“Space bugs?” Gus barked as he checked his dash board mirror nervously.

“Yeah these space fucking dudes show up and murder everyone.”

“Jesus. They kill everyone?”

“Yeah. Even the kids' mom.”

A quietness fell over the front of the car as the two men stared ahead at the road as rock and bits of gravel nauseatingly passed under the car. A low hum from the motor could be slightly heard over the loud sounds of thumping. 

“I think he’s kicking back there.” Sant whispered.

“Nah. It’s just the road. So what happens next? What does the kid do?”

“Huh? Oh right. The kids pissed so he visits this tree outside the village and gets an axe that was lodged in it.”

“The fuck?” Gus said in confusion as he once again checked the rear view mirror.

“Yeah it was a cartoon.” Sant added as he wiped his wet beard that dripped from the remains of his now empty tall can and threw it into a collection growing in the back seat.

“So the kid gets this axe and begins going through the woods cause the Space Bugs live on the other side of it. The woods are scary and he finds a.. Are you even listening?”

“Yeah, yeah. Just didn’t know it was a cartoon is all. How many more miles til we get there?” Gus groaned, scratching the black and gray stubble along his neck.

“Just a little further. Almost there. So yeah, the kid finds a talking bear that teaches him how to use the axe to fight because he didn’t know how to and there’s also this bird thing that can talk. It’s sorta funny, cracks a few good jokes. So they fight a bunch of skeletons and find where the space bugs are and the kids' mom is there too.”

“You said he killed the mom?”

“No she’s there.”

“No you said she died at the beginning of the fucking thing?”

“Well I forget why but she’s there too and… No… It was the sister. She looked like the mom, that's why I said that. So they get the girl back but the bear dies and the axe breaks.”

Gus sighed painfully. “That’s a shame.”

Sant shook his head agreeingly, then nervously looked out the window.

“Just a few more miles?” Gus asked as he clumsily dropped another cigarette from his mouth while failing to light it.

“Just a few more.”

“So the bears dead?”

“Right.” Sant replied sharply while scratching his balded scalp. “The bear’s dead and the axe is broken and the kid brings the girl into the forest but she turns into a skeleton, and the fucking thing is… is that all the skeleton’s from before were actually the dead people in the village and… and-” Sant began to furrow his forehead in frustration. “FUCK!” he shouted as he angrily hit the dash board with his open palm.

“Easy there, big guy.” Gus cautioned while finally dragging into his now countless cigarette of the night. “Easy.” He repeated while inhaling.

“I can’t remember how it ends! He does the thing and it brings them all back.”

“The bear comes back?”

“Yeah. I think. No… Why can’t I remember this movie? I know he kills the aliens or demons. They looked like bugs and were all black. He kills them and the skeleton villagers return but he can’t go back.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know. It was a dumb movie and I suck at tellin stories. You know that!  Why’d you even ask me about it?”

“Cause I want to get my mind off of what’s back there!” Gus gestured to the trunk of the car. 

“You know you didn't have to do all that you did to him? Right? I mean, Jesus, man-.” Gus relented, not making eye contact towards Sant.

“Keep it up and you’ll be joinin’ him.” Sant growled back.

“I wish you would try, I really do Sant. It’d be an honest to god fucking relief to finally have an excuse for puttin’ you down like the sick dog you are.” Gus spoke through clenched teeth. 

As the car made its way to the end of the dirt road and onto an overgrowth of grass, the kicking could be heard loudly and distinctly from the trunk’s roof.

“Alright.” Sant exhaled as he rolled with his whole body, using the motion to lumber out the door of the now parked car.

“So what happens at the end of that movie?” Gus asked as he stepped from the other side.

“The dead come back to life.” Sant called out as he pulled a pistol from his front inner coat pocket.

“Hope they don’t.” Gus said as a shot rang out in the cold, lonely night air. The glass window of the passenger side broke as Sant groaned painfully. He fired back, the bullet passed through the same window and into Gus’s bicep. They both fell onto the soft, dewy wet grass.  

“Fuckareyoudoing?” Sant asked, seething in pain as he squeezed at the burning wet bullet hole in his ribs.

“You were going to shoot me!” Gus shouted through his clenched teeth before letting out a painful, whimpering moan.

“You’ve always been so damn jumpy! I took out the gun cause of him!” Sant called as the trunk door violently and loudly kicked open and a bloodied, naked, blindfolded man emerged from it.

“Shit! Shoot him!”

The naked man rose to his feet and began running down the long, dark country road. The two men lifted their pistols and shot blindly as his pale white and red stained frame became lost in the endless stretch of night.

“Did we get him?” Gus asked weakly as he steadied himself to his feet, leaning his weight against the car before opening the door to the driver's seat.

“Only one way to find out.” Sant moaned as he labored himself into the passengers side.

Gus put the car in reverse, and they rolled backwards off the grass and back onto the unpaved country road.