AverREI again. Chapter 1 and 2 were just updated as of 8/19/15

Back, and happily here with a new chapter for you all.

Read and review please? :3

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Streets, deserted.

Stores, devoid of people.

Cars, all still in their nightly parking spots, not a single one moved.

The now freezing seventeen year-old was silenced, and baffled, her mouth was clamped shut in a firm line as her eyes swept over her town.

There was no one. There was no animals, no dogs barking at the non-existent birds, and no cats out on the prowl to receive extra love from pedestrians walking to their jobs, school, or to the empty stores in the small town.

Raylen was literally so frightened, it wasn't her soaked pajama pants or the middle of her t-shirt that was making her shake.

At first, when she entered the town from the freezing river water, and past the crumbling cement path, she was as quiet as she was now, watching for signs of a knife carrying mystery man and a group of snarling other mystery people.

The teenager sat behind a car for a moment, looking around her to see if she might have been watched, fingers only barely tracing over something scratched into the side of the car, something that made her freeze, and to quickly run from that car to go behind another.

After several minutes of sneaking behind the parked cars, closed stores, and cleared streets, she gave up on the silent act. Walking into the middle of the street, and on the inside hoping, no, praying for a car to race by her to signal a human being, she parted her lips, and screamed.

For people.

For animals.

For something, anything living.

"HELLO? ANYONE?" She paused, helpful to hear a response. "ANYONE?"

Her throat quickly felt scratched, and she stopped, resuming her silence all over again.

Raylen's walk to her home was full of confusion, shivering limbs, and fear that she might have been watched. Walking up the porch steps, the front door was still wide open, her father's chair was still tipped over, and the knitting needles with the yarn were still spilled onto the carpet.

"So it all… really did happen." She murmured, somberly taking in the scene.

Carefully, quietly, and slowly, the girl stepped into her home, closing the door behind her softly.

In some part of her mind, Raylen wanted to believe this was just some weird acid-like trip from eating the Dave Diner's 'world famous' Extra, Extra, Extra Cheesy, Cheeseburger cold and three hours old from her fridge, but she knew for a fact it wasn't.

The brunette sat the armchair upright, picked up the knitting needles, and watched as sunlight finally filtered through the beige curtains. From her years of living in this house, and having been bored enough to spend half her summer timing the sunlight hitting her home, Raylen knew it was probably seven twenty-six, seven thirty or just something like that.

She should have been getting ready for school. To be arguing with her mom about taking a lunch to school than to eat the food there, to be kissing her dad's cheek and running out the door to catch the school bus in fifteen minutes.

But she was not going to school.

She was going to walk up the stairs, and change her clothing. She would pack a few bags, grab her mother's credit card having memorized the number from having to use it many times to buy merchandise or buy groceries, slip on her father's green plaid hunting jacket while fishing out the Skylarks keys, and walk out her front door.

Her face was still somber. Eyes devoid of emotion, mouth thin with tension. Raylen slowly set three bags beside the Skylark, opened the trunk, and stuffed the biggest bag and smallest bag inside. She closed the lid, took her shoulder bag and slipped into her new car, putting the bag in the passenger side seat, and slammed the car door shut.

The car locked with a satisfyingly sharp sound, and she turned the key, the engine roaring to life before lowering itself to a nice purr.

Raylen pulled out, taking a sharp right, heading towards the Hunters pass that she knew led to a fork which she could take out of the town.

Only her and the oldest of the town knew of this fork, and she let a flicker of fire rise to her eyes as she found the 'secret' exit cleared, flooring it to speed off from her town.

Raylen only made it a few seconds past the town's limits when a crack split through the air, her car gaining air as a clump of trees slammed down on the road behind her.

"What the-" She slowed slightly, looking back at the trees blocking the only way back into her town. She starred, the trees growing smaller with her separation, until finally she turned back around, message received while she took a turn out of that road, heading towards another town, or better yet for her, another state.

The message stung the back of her mind as she tried to focus on driving. Itching. Scratching. Pricking her inner thoughts.

Don't come back.

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"What can I get you, dear?"

Raylen pursed her lips at the menu, but shrugged and looked up to the dimpled, chubby, and happily true to her graying haired waitress, smiling at her.

"A coffee, cream please, and your special of the morning, please."

Nodding, the waitress walked off with her order. Happily, the brunette glanced from her to the window pane beside her shoulder bag.

Four days after leaving her town, and Raylen had made it to Minnesota. How that was an accomplishment, sadly, she had no idea- because it only took the Skylark four days to realize she wasn't in the best shape interior wise, and to happily decide to stop itself two miles out of a nice and quaint mom and pop shop covered town named Windom.

Though bumming a ride from a passerby tow truck was most likely the greatest thing to have happened to Raylen in the last four days, the price of her Skylarks oil change and battery exchange shaved that greatness right off the chart and landed her with six-hundred dollars for her to pay. In the end, she did, but the fact her car just had to stop working so soon annoyed her at the time.

Raylen glowered at her shining beauty, inwardly picturing smashing in the windshield in the parking lot, but let it go as soon as her coffee arrived.

"You're food'll be right with you." The waitress smiled again, Raylen sharing the smile and she went to go take other orders and such.

Seconds after Raylen sipped her coffee, a boy slid out from his chair behind her, and tripped, just in time for Raylen to reach out and arm, and steady him.

After a murmur from each of them of 'I'm sorry' and 'It's okay' they locked eyes.

The boy was older, probably a college kid or something with blonde hair and grey-blue eyes. For a moment, Raylen was reminded of David, but that thought left her as soon as it came.

"You okay?" Raylen drew her hands back and the boy nodded.

"Yeah," He pushed his chair in, turning back to Raylen. "I'm fine, thanks. I saw you pull up in the Skylark. Cool car."

Raylen nodded. "It was my dads. Now it's mine, but it broke down and i got it fixed here. anyhow, you're welcome." Raylen offered a smile and the boy offered her in return giving a short wave as he strode out.

Glancing around, she tried to see if anyone had now begun to stare at her…

No one was.

Inwardly, Raylen marked down Cousin Oliver's Hilltop Café as one of the places she'd visit again someday for a good morning special, the people inside didn't seem to mind her at all, everyone looking mildly interested in her or just not at all.

It was a nice change of pace from the other five diners she had been inside…Everyone was curious as to why she was young and alone.

The food was set down; she gave a small thanks, and began eating.

Four days ago, Raylen had been in her town, wandering about only to find it empty of… everything, but now, she sat with a bite of sausage and egg in her mouth, chewing slowly, and trying not the think of her rationalization of her town's situation.

Her idea behind the whole Empty-Town scenario was complete and utter bull, that much she knew. But, it was the only idea she could come up with after looking around other towns 'close' to hers, not seeing a thing wrong with them.

Thing only link she had between missing people, animals, and a destroyed exit, was exactly what she had seen etched into the side of that car she had hidden behind.

Croatoan.

Her eyes drifted down to her shoulder bag, and at the paper back over glinting back at her. She swallowed her food, glancing away from the Supernatural book, shaking her head.

Bull, Bullcrap. It was all Bullcrap. The Croatoan virus was just something out of a book series.

Something out of a book series she was sure had happened to her town- especially since the car had the word scratched into it, and she knew no one in her town read Supernatural, and that no one paid enough attention in history to know about the lost colony.

Slightly agitated, Raylen took a few more bites of her food, and pushed it away, taking to drinking her coffee instead.

"… Freaking Supernatural." She stuffed her book in her shoulder bag, and gulped down her coffee with a new purpose to drive out of Windom and to floor it somewhere else, just to get away from that ridiculous thought.

Raylen stood, slammed down a twenty, sure it was enough for a tip and her meal, and quickly weaved between people to get out of the café.

Supernatural couldn't be real. It was a book series. She had t-shirts for it for gods sake, and even a coffee mug!

It was fake.

Demons aren't real.

Shape shifters are nothing but fantasy.

Werewolves are only Tween heartthrobs and aging legends.

Out the door, and already making a beeline to her Skylark, Raylen was pulling out her keys when from behind the car, a sandy brown head popped up, blue-grey eyes taking in her car as the teen walked around it, about to touch the light blue paint of her engines top when Raylen scowled, stomped over to him and smacked his hand hard enough to make the teen yelp and jump away.

"Hey I was just-"

"Hands, off the car." She pressed, and the boy looked her over for a moment before raising his hands, and stepping away.

"I was just going to check under the hood-"

"Why?" Raylen snapped, crossing her arms, her keys tinkling.

"I was getting to that," He countered. "I noticed when I was in the diner that your Skylark has something leaking from underneath the hood, I was going to check but if you-"

Again, Raylen interrupted him. "I can handle it."

The boy paused, dropping one hand and held it towards her. "Adam Milligan, and I'm not sure you know what you're doing if you've been driving this thing around with your car fluid leaking." He gave her a smile when her eyes widened and she frowned, taking his hand.

"Seriously? They guys at the auto-shop I was at-"

It was Adam's turn to interrupt. "If it's the auto shop i think you're talking about then you got scammed. I'll help you, and then, you can be on your way, and me mine. Deal?"

Raylen only had to wonder for a second why he was being nice to her, but when she muttered a 'Deal' and Adam's eyes locked onto the car, searching under the hood and fixing what needed fixing, she knew why.

It was because he had been the one she had helped from the floor of the café after he fell.

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That was the second chapter of 'Joy riding the Big Plan' :3

And YES, finally, Adam. We needed him, desperately. Though, my ending and tying him in wasn't the best, admittedly, I hope I got him pretty well… even if I myself feel like he was too nice… Eh, whatever.

Thank you so much for reading till this point!

I loved the comments, thank you for your support so far.

Read and review?