Getting To Know Each Other

 Al had planned to drive the full twelve hours without taking any breaks.

Al didn't fully trust Cesar. He had known him for less than a day. However, the more he thought about their destination, the more he couldn't shake off the image of Mark's ripped face.

Experiencing Cesar's fighting skills gave Al some confidence.

Throughout the journey, Cesar occasionally asked what he was supposed to see or feel when he successfully unlocked the medallion. Al tried to explain it as best he could and then inquired a little more about Cesar's personal life. Eventually, after nine hours, Cesar gave up on the medallion and fell asleep.

Al couldn't believe how trusting Cesar was, especially considering they had just met. In a few hours, Al learned most of Cesar's life story, and it surprised him that Cesar felt comfortable enough to sleep beside him—a level of trust Al couldn't imagine having himself.

They were approximately half an hour away from the Mt. Rainier National Park entrance when Cesar suddenly screamed, "Look out!" Al instinctively opened his eyes and swerved, narrowly avoiding a collision with a tree.

The car screeched to a halt. It was nearly midnight. Cesar got out in the darkness and surveyed their surroundings.

They were next to a creek, its gurgling sounds filling the air, with a dense, pitch-black forest on the other side. "You almost killed us!" shouted Cesar in a worried voice.

Al ignored him. He was tired, he had expected to arrive around this time and had made a single reservation for a night at the nearest inn, which was still 30 minutes away.

Al returned to the car and shouted at Cesar, "Come on, let's go. We'll be able to rest soon." Cesar stopped and turned to Al, saying, "Let me drive. Come on, you almost crashed!"

He was clearly exhausted, but they were just 30 minutes away. Al started the car and shouted at Cesar, "Hurry and get in. Don't worry about me." He finished in a weary whisper, "You're going to be guarding my baby, after all."

After getting back in the car, sleep was the last thing on Cesar's mind as he immediately fastened his seatbelt. On the other hand, sleep was all Al could think about. He glanced at the GPS and drove promptly, slightly exceeding the speed limit.

Having gotten to know Cesar more, Al knew the best way to avoid being bombarded by questions was to give him a thorough explanation. So, one step ahead of him, Al said, "You're going to stay in the car overnight to guard it. The place I'm staying in only has one bed, and I can't let you sleep on the ground like some animal. Also, it's a very cheap place, and I need someone to look after my car."

Upon hearing this, Cesar quickly pleaded, "I don't mind sleeping on the ground, really." Al smiled, "Haha, please don't be ridiculous. You'll sleep a lot better in the car anyway, and that's that."

They drove the rest of the way in silence. Cesar knew he was basically at Al's mercy, and he was starting to regret his decision. Al finally arrived and parked before leaving Cesar inside his car. Al warned, "If you need anything, just beep, and I'll come out. But if you honk for no reason, you can sleep outside in the parking lot, and I'll lock my car."

Al left with his bags, walking through the Inn's parking lot. Cesar watched from inside the car as Al quickly walked over to his room, dropped everything, and locked the door.

Al didn't even go over the plan in his head. He threw himself onto the bed and quickly fell into a deep sleep.

***

"Knock, knock, knock."

Al jolted out of bed, gasping for air. He had been trapped in a never-ending nightmare until the knocking sound snapped him out of it. Sunlight streamed through the window, and he checked his phone before rubbing his tired eyes. "Great, I slept for 12 hours and still feel exhausted. Wait, I'm forgetting something. Shit! Cesar!"

He hurriedly scrambled to get dressed, his mind racing. "I left him inside my car. If he dies, I'll never get the smell out."

Al opened the door to find an elderly lady with a cleaning cart, wearing a smile. Al quickly brushed past her. "I'm sorry, but there might be a dead body inside my car," he quickly explained. The lady dropped her cleaning spray bottle in shock.

Al swiftly made his way towards the parking lot. There it was—his Plymouth Road Runner. He ran toward it, but Cesar was nowhere to be seen inside. A sense of panic began to well up inside him. "I only left him here for less than a day. Where the hell could he have gone?"

Al began pacing back and forth in the parking lot. He was torn between reporting Cesar missing or waiting a little longer. Just then, a familiar figure walked towards him.

It was Cesar. He was shirtless and had a string of fish hanging from his back. This was the first time Al was truly shocked by Cesar for the first time. He stuttered as he asked, "Wh-when did you? How did you do it? Where did you go?"

Al had never met someone so resourceful. Looking around, Cesar didn't seem to have anything particularly special besides a string with what appeared to be a modified hook.

Cesar stopped, dropped the fish as soon as he saw Al, and ran towards him. "Hey, please tell me I can eat some of that food I smelled earlier! I was starting to think you left me here to die, so I went down to the stream, caught some crickets, and used them as bait to catch these, but, uh..."

Cesar turned to look as a wild hawk swooped down, snatching one of the freshly caught fish, only to take all three as they were tied.

Al smiled, then burst into laughter before saying, "Sure, but after we finish eating, we'll hide my car and head out. So, fill up since it might be the last time we enjoy a good meal like this."

Cesar smirked and said, "Last good meal? Come on, we'll be just fine."

They started walking towards the Inn when Al replied, "I'm an optimist, too, but sometimes optimism borders on naivety."

Cesar laughed, saying, "See, there you go again, souring the good mood. You have to learn how to trust better and stop overthinking."

"Let's just eat. I'm sure you're starving," Al said.

Cesar gave him a big smile and exclaimed, "Now you're talking! I'll eat anything as long as it has eggs in it."

Al waved his hand wryly and said, "Yeah, yeah, now put your shirt on. You're scaring people. It's like your body is eating itself. You really need to put some weight on."

After Cesar put his shirt on, he playfully shoved Al and got into a fighting stance. "I might be skinny, but I'll bruise you up real good."

They both entered the lobby, pretending to fight and drawing all eyes towards them. Cesar wasn't particularly rugged-looking. He was just really skinny, and his tall frame made him appear somewhat lanky. On the other hand, Al had long, wavy dark hair and would often be mistaken for a girl.

A man in a suit approached them, interrupting their playful fighting. He shouted at Cesar, "Hey! Hey, kid, I don't care if she's your girlfriend. You never put your hands on a girl. Didn't anyone ever teach you that?"

Al's face immediately turned red, and he lashed out at the older man. "Girl! Who are you calling a girl? you stupid old man! Didn't anyone ever teach you not to be nosy? I should slap you for that. As a matter of fact, you know what." Al raised his arm toward the man.

Amid the escalating tension, Cesar, who had been laughing, suddenly stopped and grabbed Al's wrist.

"Dude, relax. What are you doing? It's not that serious." Cesar exclaimed. The man in the suit walked away, muttering to himself, "Kids these days have no manners, none."

Al took a deep breath and returned his hand from Cesar's grip. Softly, Al spoke, "Let's go eat. I hope I didn't ruin your appetite," and continued to walk as if nothing had happened. After staring at him momentarily, Cesar hurriedly caught up to him.

Around two hours later, the two left the Inn with their stomachs full. After hiding Al's car as best they could, they found themselves walking through the forest.

Cesar held a physical map of the area in his hand, while Al could clearly see a more precise map in his mind. Al held the medallion Godfrey had given him. Cesar had returned it, resigning himself to being unable to see its contents.

As they walked among the pine trees, following a small trail, they realized they were on the wrong side of the mountain from where they were supposed to be. Al had marked the inner structure and its entrances, including the inner and outer routes, on the physical map.

Cesar looked at the map and said, "Man, I don't know if I'm reading this right, but if I am, we still have a long way to go."

Suddenly, Cesar bumped into Al, who had stopped walking. "Hey, watch where you're going, stupid! You made me bite my tongue," Cesar complained.

Al slowly turned around to face Cesar, feeling a wave of nausea and coldness washing over him. He was drenched in sweat. Recognizing this sensation, a thousand thoughts raced through his mind, but he focused on one, "Keep Cesar close."

He tightened his grip on a small survival knife in his right pocket and whispered to himself, "I'll have to make the most out of this little thing."

Meanwhile, Cesar stuck out his tongue in pain, unaware of the danger. Al abruptly pulled Cesar behind him and, in a low voice, said, "Stay right next to me and be on guard for anything."

The ominous feeling was coming from their front, so Al had positioned himself before Cesar.

Al's eyes were almost bloodshot from the adrenaline pumping through his veins. He tried to calm his racing mind. "Damn it, I still can't see where the danger is. Am I losing it?"

About 15 meters away, behind a tree, a bearded man peered out, staring at the two of them. Al turned slowly to whisper to Cesar, "Do you see the darker pine tree, a little bigger than the rest? There's a man with a beard right there, just staring at us. Tell me you see him."

Cesar's heart started racing as well. He didn't know if this was a prank or they were being set up, but his senses were on high alert. He focused intently on the spot Al mentioned and quickly replied, "I don't see any bearded face! Are you sure you know what you saw?"

As soon as Cesar spoke those words, the head Al had been staring at vanished. He saw a blur shooting towards Cesar at incredible speed. Al instinctively turned to push Cesar out of the way, but before he could react, Cesar shoved him first, sending him flying away.