Chapter Text
Moving slowly, he tried to sit up higher and look out of the window.
They’re driving by a dense forest on a slope somewhere on the way to Baltimore. Checking one leg after the other for damage control, he decides to take everything up a step further once again risk his life – this time by trying to open the door. Lifting both of his hands, to avoid the chain of the handcuffs rustle, he sits the his pair of hand on the door handle before quickly glancing to the siblings in the front to check if he’s clear.
After taking in a deep breath he roughly pulls on the handle and throws himself against the car, effectively making him fall out of the moving car.
The last thing he hears is Lola's surprised shout before he hits the pavement and immense pain spreads through his entire body while he tries to somehow come to a stop.
But just like Neil's luck always predicts it, he cannot stop his body from rolling down the slope through the dense forest. At least hitting one or two trees was better than going back up the street to reunite with his lovely companionship.
Rolling down the slope probably only took a minute, but it felt like an eternity and even when he finds himself hitting solid and straight ground his head continues to spin.
Carefully looking up he sees that he apparently now is in an almost empty parking lot.
Emphasis on almost.
“Well, now would be a great time for the whole 'did it hurt when you fell down from the sky?' pick-up line but I assume that it hurts.”
Startled by the sudden conversation he turns around to look for the owner of the deep voice and finds a gruff blond man standing about 16 feet away from him. To his displeasure the man kept watching him and his every move instead of just minding his own damn business. Behind the man there is a sleek black motorbike which could probably bring him fast and far away from this point. So, in all means, that was exactly what he needs right now.
Clenching his teeth and fist together he tries to raise himself up from the concrete parking lot.
“What a surprise,” the man said before he paused to take a drag on his cigarette. “It can stand. Can it talk too?”
Neil's legs trembled hard, but he is somehow able to remain on his feet and stumble towards motorbike. The man continues watching him unfazed and does not even stop him from touching his bike.
“I wouldn't try to do what you want to do in your condition.” The man grunts while looking unimpressed at the bloody heap that Neil is at the moment.
Neil sighs. “And what would you do?” He turns his head to look the man dead in the eyes. He is around his age but probably a year or two older than him but maybe a bit shorter. Not that Neil could tell, both he and the man were slouched against the motorbike and Neil's pain was also weighing him down.
“So, it does talk.”, The man states with false amazement. “for starters, what about calling an ambulance?”
“No hospitals.” Going to a hospital meant having to fill out papers and being easier to track, nobody who is currently on the run would be insane enough to risk getting found over a few scratches. Even his mother always made sure to make him remember not to go to hospitals and instead learn how to treat his own wounds. But his mother would also scream at his for talking to a stranger right now so he should not give her too much credit.
“Have fun while bleeding out then.”
“I'm not going to bleed out from this,” Neil argues “I just need to borrow your motorbike.” He knows how hilarious that must sound but there is no way in hell he could fight someone in his shape, let alone run away. He has also lost too much time already; the siblings will start scouting for him any minute now and he has to hurry the fuck up.
“Even If you were able to get the machine started, you wouldn't be able to drive it plus it would hurt like shit to even try.”
Well, he has not really thought about that has he. Neil was, in theory, able to drive a car but he never even sat on a motorbike before, so he really had no clue how to drive it.
Clenching his teeth once again, he tries to think with a new solution, but the slow vanishing of adrenaline starts to make him feel heavy and tired.
“I'll take you away from here and you tell me what the fuck happened to you; do we have a deal?”
Looking back at the man Neil realizes that he has not stopped watching him. Neil holds eye contact for a moment but then decides to take his invitation.
Staying behind in the parking lot would mean certain death, and after all, there’s nothing worse than death that could happen to him right now.