Driving through a snowstorm to the big city from afar was already a difficult task to accomplish as it is. But when one drives on top of the snow and ice with only a beat up old truck that barely works anymore, then it becomes more dangerous than it looks. Driving this white ford truck along the icy roadways without any concern of crashing into anything was definitely not wise, but I do not care about such things now as all I want to do is get to my destination as soon as possible before something happens.
Even though it was mourning, the snowstorm had yet to stop even if the sun had set hours ago, leaving us in almost complete darkness as we drove down the supposed highway. The only thing that could be seen was our headlights that lit up the way ahead of us and a few small patches of land far away from each other on both sides of the road due to always having been covered by the hick blanket of white powdery substance; snow.
The wind howled outside, causing me to feel pressure from the cold air inside the cab. Eve looked over at me with concerned eyes, “are you okay?” she asked with worry and concern in her voice, making my heart ache for a moment before answering, “yeah, why wouldn’t I be?
Actually, I do not think so. Driving vehicles during snowstorms and blizzards is always a bad idea in any given situation. But I did not know this would happen, it was all fine and dandy when I started driving this thing into the road before the sudden arrival of a snowstorm made everything a nightmare.
I just want to get to my destination quickly, but I should not go to fast since it is snowing hard out here. The snow was coming down too much that I could barely see anything, the windshield wipers themselves could not maintain and the snow was blocking the view entirely.
It would be a miracle if we survived this, drivers usually have a sixty or eighty percent chance of having a car accident when driving in these kinds of weather, especially on icy roads like what I am currently driving on. Higher chance of it transpiring since I am driving a truck while being unfamiliar with such terrain and vehicle.
She looked over at me again as I continued to drive forward through the snowstorm without any concern, “are you sure?” she asks once more, but her voice had lost its usual uncaring tone and instead sounded worried about me.
I took a quick glance at her, surprised by the thought of her being worried about someone else other than herself, before replying, “of course.” I answered with confidence even though I was not completely certain myself.
Her face softened a bit after hearing my response, “you were hyperventilating earlier,” she pointed out and added, “but you appear okay now.”
“That’s because it was the stress that has been causing it,” I replied simply, keeping our conversation lighthearted and casual. I did not notice that I was, probably when I were contemplating about the driving situation or something along those lines that perhaps made me breath heavily than before.
Eve nodded in agreement, “yeah, I think so too. You don’t look like you are stressed out anymore, but rather, your expression is much calmer than before.” She explained further, her eyes still watching the road ahead as we drove through the stormy weather, “if you want, I can drive for a while if you are feeling tired.”
My eyes widened upon hearing her offer. Eve had offered to take control of the wheel from me, making my heart skip a beat. Her offer came out of nowhere and caught me off guard, but simultaneously, I felt relief seeing that she is willing to help me out in this stressful situation. Also surprised that she, of all places, would do something like this instead of doing her robot behavior, which only consisted of nothing more than looking bored.
I smiled back to her, “thank you, but the city ahead is only less than ten minutes from now, so there should not be any problem.” I reassured her and added, “the truck should be able to handle these kinds of roads well enough.”
“Okay,” she said in reply, “if you say so,” Eve sounded doubtful about my statement. But, nevertheless, she remained silent as I kept driving. We kept silent after that, continued driving through the snowstorm. The silence was comfortable for both of us, but simultaneously, it made me realize how much I missed being with someone else beside myself.
I glanced over to Eve once again, wondering what she was thinking. Her face looked calm and composed as usual, but her eyes appeared focused on something, staring into some distant point in space. Maybe she is just daydreaming or lost in thought, whatever the case, I wanted to know if she would share her thoughts with me. However, her gaze never shifted away from the road ahead of us, which I understood because I am currently not capable of sharing my own personal thoughts with anyone, let alone another person that I hardly knew.
We were silent for quite a while until finally, we arrived at our destination without incident, where buildings and skyscrapers all around us were visibly covered in thick layer of snow. The cold weather was intense even though the sun was slightly shining brightly above us through the thick fog and snowflakes falling down from the sky.
I took a deep breath, both relieved and happy of being back in New York City despite the circumstances that surrounded us. I looked up to see the tall building from the corner of my eyes, which housed several floors of office spaces and other facilities. It appeared to be one of the tallest structures in the city, standing out against the backdrop of the snowstorm with its towering height.
None of that mattered now, what is important is that we need to head back to the police station before anything happens. The sooner the better, I thought. I carefully turned the steering wheel, making sure that I do not hit any cars or pedestrians along the way. After a few minutes of driving through heavy traffic, I finally reached the end of the road. After we passed by a street sign indicating the name of a place, I felt a sense of relief as the last obstacle of my journey was cleared away. We were finally home, safe and sound!
I pulled over to the side of the public road with hazard lights flashing, parked and shut off the engine. I stepped outside the car to stretch my legs while Eve remained inside to keep warm. There was not much sunlight today because of the heavy snowstorm that is currently happening. Nevertheless, it was still visible enough to see through the foggy snowflakes flying in the air, but soon, the visibility would get better I hope.
Now I needed to get Eve out of her seat, she is always a weird and strange woman when left alone for too long, so I walked towards the passenger’s door and opened the handle. She turned around with a questioning look on her face, probably wondering why I was opening the door for her.
“Are you going to keep staring into nothing or are you going to come outside with me?” I asked with a smile, “It will be cold without a jacket.” Eve nodded slowly and got up from the passenger seat. She looked like an ice sculpture of herself, her white catholic robe waved from the harsh wind after exiting the vehicle. Her blue eyes were filled with nothing while being unbothered under the freezing temperature.
My eyebrows raised from noticing her lack of emotion in such cold weather like this, usually people would take note of how cold it gotten or atleast react to the sudden change of climate. But then again, Eve has been raised to be an assassin and weapon for her superiors, perhaps she is accustomed to the extreme climates.
“Ready to go?” I asked, but Eve did not answer me instead, she just simply stared back into my eyes with a curious gaze as if she wanted to ask something. I continued, “is there something you want to ask me?” Taking notice of her curious gaze, I waited patiently for a response. After a few seconds passed by, she opened her mouth to speak.
“What will we do with the stolen truck?” She was more intrigued in what I would say than the actual question itself. I smiled slightly, “You do not have to worry about that, just leave it and have someone else be its problem,” I said calmly, which made her furrowed brows appear even deeper.
Eve’s eyes widened from hearing those words, she was surprised that I had no concern about returning the vehicle and taking responsibility for my actions as well, “I thought you would…” she looked down for a moment before staring back at me with confusion, “forget what I had said,” Eve shook her head.
“That is not true.” I replied bluntly while making sure not to show any signs of guilt or regret towards my decision. She sighed out heavily, “you were so nice to me but, what you did now was a bad thing,” She muttered under her breath.
Oh, I know where this is going.
I sigh as well, thinking back on my past mistakes. I am not the man who does things without reason, especially when it comes to important decisions like these, “listen Eve,” placing my hands on her shoulders to gain her attention, “you had expected me to be a good person after helping you get up your feet. But you must know that I was never perfect and righteous, nor did I have any intention of trying to act as one, right?”
Eve’s face suddenly turned into an emotionless mask, she nodded silently as I continued, “and I do not intend on being the hero or villain in this story. I never wanted to do good or evil, so what I did is bad. Yes, stealing is against the law but I had reason for it, albeit selfishly. And I hope you do not follow what I did back there,” I said while giving her a reassuring smile, “but I think we both understand each other now don’t we? We are all human beings living in this world, no matter how hard or cruel it can be. So be who you are, question my faults and try to improve them in your own terms. Do not follow someone’s dreams, instead try to believe in yourself.”
“Thank you, Adam,” Eve said with gratitude, “I…I will try to be more who I wanted to be and not anyone else…” Her voice was soft and gentle, almost like that of a clueless person rather than the young woman I met earlier. She then gave me another question, “have you also done other selfish things?”
I let go of her shoulders, giving a sad smile, “yes, many times before, even to this day and the future behind us. Even if I regret it, I still continue to make mistakes because I am too stubborn to change myself. So if you wish to follow me this road, I want to let you know that there would be a substantial amount of bumps along the way, but at least you are not alone on this journey. You have me and your growing humanity as well.”
She nodded once again, “thank you, Adam. I think you are still a good man in my eyes and I hope you are aware of that.” It is true that I cannot say that I am a perfect man, but I do try to do what is right for everyone involved. I just need some time to reflect on my past and learn from it.
Eve extended her hand to me, resulting me to widen my eyes from her sudden gesture, “let me guide you to where you wanted to be, I would like to have the first time in being someone’s helper,” she said with an amused tone while smiling brightly.
I took her hand gently before returning the smile, “that would be lovely Eve."
