Untitled Story: Ch. 2

We drove through the town and I saw many small-town-like things, giving me a comfortable small-town-like feeling. I looked out the window and saw many people doing just the sort of thing one would expect people in a small town to be doing. It was all very comforting and I felt safe and calm.

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Chad stopped the SUV at a gas station, where he said he was going to get some gas. I stepped out of the car and told Chad I’d be right back. I needed to use the toilet, but when I entered the store, I didn’t see a sign for a restroom. I asked the cashier if she had a restroom. She said it was on the outside of the building in the back.

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She handed me a red block of wood that said “Men” in black print. It had a hole drilled through one end and a thin chain passed through it. The chain had a key on it. I walked out the door and looked at Chad, who was still pumping gas. I held up the red block of wood with the key dangling from it and Chad saw me and nodded his head.

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I went towards the back of the building, noticing, as I glimpsed the darkening sky, that it was dusk. I prayed the bathroom had a working light. No telling how clean it would be or what it could be infested with. These outside-type restrooms weren’t usually the best, in my experience.

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I unlocked the door and pushed the door open. I reached in and felt the wall for a light switch. I found it and flipped the switch, feeling a sense of relief when the light bulb, over the mirror above the sink, came on. I looked down at the toilet to see a daddy long legs crawling across a spider web inside the toilet seat.

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I decided I would just stand up and pee, holding the rest for later. I finished, washed my hands and dried them off with a paper towel from the holder on the wall next to the mirror. I locked the door, returned the key to the cashier with a simple “Thank you,” and headed back to Chad’s SUV.

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Chad had the motor running and was busy tuning in to some music on the radio. I got in, and he said, “That was quick.” I nodded and replied, “Not the cleanest place. I’ll wait til we get to your place to sit down on the toilet.” “Okay,” was all he said, and he pulled out of the parking lot and back onto the road.

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