“There’s gotta be something you can do, I mean isn’t there some sort of airport or bus or something?” I turned looking around the deserted train station for any sign of a solution.

The man behind the desk shrugged, “That’s one of the short comings of small towns. There’s not another train coming through until late tomorrow.” He slid the ticket across the counter.

I sighed but resigned to taking the ticket sliding it between the pages of the book jutting out of my bag.

“Is there somewhere I can spend the night?”

He popped off the stool he’d been on giving away how short he really was and waddled around the desk making his way towards the door. He pushed open the door and pointed down the road.

“There’s a bed and breakfast about a mile down the road”

“A mile?”

He shrugged, “Maybe a little more.”

I groaned as he waddled back to his stool. Stooping to pick up my bag, I threw it over my shoulder.

“Thanks…”

He grumbled or burped, I couldn’t tell which, and I stepped out into the dark peering down the road. The air was cooling off as fall had begun to ascend. I could barely see the road beneath the leaves and the last few firefly’s of summer glowed intermittently. My phone rang and I pulled it out still walking.

My mother.

“Hey, I’m stuck in this little town tonight and I’ll arrive really late tomorrow night or early the day after.”

“What happened? I tried calling you hours ago.”

“I fell asleep and missed my stop.”

“Honey, what’s going on? Finnick won’t stop calling… he’s really worried about you and…”

“Well I’m not his problem anymore so tell him to mind his own.”

“Just because you walked out doesn’t mean he just stops caring.”

“I didn’t walk out I… I don’t know what I did really, but it’s fine I’ll be there and I’ll call you.”

“Wait-“

I hung up suppressing the sting behind my eyes and pressure in my throat. If I let it come crashing down on me now, I’d be sleeping on the side of the road. Finnick was still in California, he wasn’t important right now. I just needed to find this persons house and sleep. I focused on my breathing, on the sound of grasshoppers, on the stars peaking through the trees. I focused on anything outside of myself because inside I was already gone.

The house was exactly what anyone would expect. Eclectic and Victorian, a grandmas house from the most cliche corners of society’s mind. I stepped inside and the foyer smelled like old books.

“Just a minute!” The voice was young and melodic. A teenage girl traipsed down the stairs smiling.

“You need a room?”

I nodded confused. She took my bag and led me upstairs babbling about how they rarely got any guests and her mother and grandmother had gone out leaving her to watch the house.

“Granny thinks we charge 20 a night but momma says it’s 50 and she always asks guests not to mention it. Granny never understood inflation so momma stepped in to make sure no one took advantage of her.”

She let me in a room at the top of the stairs and set my bag on the bed. It was small but clean and most importantly the first space I’d seen free of figurines.

“Just yell if you need anything.”

She smiled and left closing the door behind her. I grabbed my book dropping onto the bed and kicked my shoes off. I drifted off before I’d even finished a chapter.