World In Flames

Mary let out a long exhausted sigh, just as the dusty old clock read 11:01. It was finally time to lock up and go home. She was far past ready to leave, having been there since 7 o'clock that morning, as always. Ever since her husband, Peter, had passed away, she had had no help at the store at all. Her days were long, and her body grew increasingly tired as time dragged on. She was tired of running the old general store, she hated it actually, but it was necessary. At her ripe age of 68, she was far past the age of being hired anywhere else. As tiresome as it was, the old general store was the only thing she had left of her husband. By purchasing it several years ago, he had made sure that no matter what happened to him, she would always have financial independence. Peter had hated the very thought of having to rely on the government for help, so no wife of his was going to be forced to do so, just because of his absence. It was his way of taking care of her from beyond the grave.

Mary turned off all the lights, and stepped out into the cool, crisp February air, prepared to lock the door behind her when a large black SUV pulled into the gravel parking lot. A young man, probably half her age, stepped out of the drivers side, closing the door behind him. He had long, unruly brown curls that stuck out from the bottom of his hat. He was rather tall, and was dressed in ripped blue jeans, and a black t-shirt with a hoodie over top. The sleeves were pushed up to his elbows, and even from where she stood, she could tell his arms were covered with tattoos.

He looked dangerous.

Mary opened the door up, planning to discreetly go call the police. She hated to do so, because the young man hadn't done anything to harm her.. yet. She looked over her shoulder just as she was about to step inside, and seen that the man was walking toward her. She quickly scrambled inside.

"Ma'am? Ma'am, wait a second, can I-"

She closed and locked the door before he could finish, and turned around to get a better look at him, if he did decide to rob the place, she wanted to be able to identify him, granted he left her alive..

He was right at the door when she turned around, the only thing separating them being a piece of glass. He spoke again, it was muffled, and with her heart pounding in her ears, she was unable to understand him.

Just as she was about to go behind the counter to use get the phone, a woman got out of the passenger side and began walking toward the man. He turned around at the sound of the car door shutting, and opened his arms for her to walk into. She seemed to have just woken up; she was rubbing at her eyes and stretching her limbs as she walked toward him.

Mary felt herself relax at the sight of the woman. Suddenly the man didn't seem so intimidating. Especially not when he smiled, deep dimples adorned his cheeks as he showed off his pearly whites. The young woman and man stood there hugging for a long moment, before he placed a finger under her chin tilting her head up so he could place a hot kiss on her lips.

This reminded her of the way Peter used to kiss her when they were young.

She fought back tears, and decided to go see what the couple might need. Unlocking the door, she cautiously stuck her head out, and asked them what the needed, interrupting them in the process.

The woman turned toward her and smiled before heading back to the SUV. She was pretty, long curly brown hair, and a dimpled smile. Just like the man she was just kissing..

The man approached her with his hand out, it took her a moment to realize he was talking, and trying to shake her hand.

"Excuse me?" She asked, trying to regain her composure.

"I'm sorry to scare you ma'am, but my daught-girlfriend and I haven't eaten in hours, and this was the first store I had seen in miles. My name is Matt, and the girl is Kiera," he said holding his hand out for her to shake. This time she accepted and introduced herself as well, allowing him to come inside to get what he needed so she could go home.

"So where are you headed?" She asked, trying to make small talk and get the attention away from her nerves.

"Las Vegas," he said with a grin.

"Oh, isn't she a little young to be gambling?"

"Well, yes, but that's not exactly why were going.." he answered slowly. Almost as though he was suddenly uncomfortable.

She didn't ask anymore questions, simply eager to get the encounter over with.

The man was in and out in just a few minutes and she was soon on her way home. She was pretty shaken up from the experience, and she couldn't help but wonder why the couple had looked so much alike. Not only that, but the man had almost called her his daughter, or so Mary thought. She tossed it up to today's society and decided to just forget about the whole experience, suddenly more keen on the chocolate ice cream sitting in her freezer.

Notes

You guys asked for it, so here it is! :) I went about writing this in a totally new way, I hope you guys like it, even though the story progression is kinda slow. Let me know what you guys think! Love you! :)