Just three minutes into the drive, Lawrence found himself asking a very,
very important question: was his research really worth sacrificing his long-term physical comfort? Really, the thought of spending even a second longer in this sardine tin of an automobile was already the stuff of nightmaresâŠ
âWeâre almost there, Caine. Get a hold of yourself,â he thought, rubbing thumb and forefinger across his brow. Thank goodness heâd at least grabbed a window seat or he might have already gone mad.
âComfortable back there?â He was spared the task of conjuring a civil answer when several other members of this âInvestigation Teamâ protested in his stead. He could only give a wry smile before leaning against the window. The cold glass cooled his temper some⊠right, he didnât want to cause trouble. There was no point in getting complaining when it would only beget more irritation. With that, he glanced around the cramped space â everyone in the back seats were in the same boat, anyway. Well, they certainly couldnât be happy with him, the extra, taking up room and all.
âReady to see some ghosts?â âYes, about as ready as you are to give up the front seatâŠââWell,â cut in one of the other girls from beside him,
âwhen you do, and you need, you know, to jump into someoneâs arms,â cue the cheesy grin,
âIâm your girl.âPff. It was almost amusing, how serious this group was about âparanormal investigationâ. Well, at least theyâd give him the data he needed for his report.
âJust a group of ghostbuster fanatics⊠how stupid.â Right. Avoiding conflict. That was a thing he was trying to do, wasnât it. âIâll keep that in mind,â Lawrence finally replied, managing a polite smile. Although it was clear he was still unconvinced, at least it wasnât as outright condemning as his thoughts.
Sudden movement from someone on the other side of the vehicle caught his attention. Oh, it was the kid â name, what was the name... he was going to have to learn these names quickly â she was passing around the tech for the day, it seemed.
âOh, earphones and safety alarms. I feel oh so very safe, nowâŠâ His first reflex was to just take one, but his more rational side stopped him. Seeing as he was an unexpected visitor, it made more sense that he wait to see if there were any headsets and bracelets left over.
⊠but then the cupcakes came around.
âThank you. Donât mind if I do,â he nodded to the other girl, name escaping him⊠McGreg⊠no⊠Gregory, Madeline Gregory, before taking one of the delightful little treats for himself. Hell, who cared if there were extras or not â he would have to be mad to pass up a sweet, especially when his own sugar stash was trapped under a rather random arrangement of legs. Just one bite, and he could feel energy beginning to build again. Oh, these were fantastic. If there were any extras left, he was certainly claiming one.
But as soon as he was done with his snack, the impatience returned in full force. Lawrence shifted, trying to find a more comfortable position. All he managed to do was knock his cap into his eyes. Readjusting it, his inner child finally won out, and he started the telltale question, âExcuse me, but are we there y â â
A sudden bout of singing cut him off, and the psychologist literally had to stop mid-facepalm, reminding himself why he was where he was. Only after the radio was set (onto a rather annoyingly catchy tune at that) did he affirm once more, at the risk of sounding like a petulant child, âHow much farther do we have to go?â
So,
was his research worth the cramped spaces, talkative group, a dearth of lollipops, and having pop music imprinted onto his mind for the next week and a half? So far, the answer was leaning dangerously close to ânoâ⊠but hey. Too late to turn back.