<div style="text-align: center">"Sure. I'd love to cover Saturday night's game. It's not like there are real, actual things that need to be reported on - Right?" January complained, as she swung open the door to her candy red mustang and started to get into the driver's seat. She left the door open, a warm, unpleasant breeze causing her limp curls to shift underneath her RedHornet's baseball cap. She tossed her notepad off into the center console, and retrieved her cellphone from her jacket. A quick glance at the battery showed that she had used over half of her battery recording highlights from the night's football game. Surely there was enough juice left to stream some music on the way home, she thought, as she clicked play on the clip she had recorded of the first touch down.<br/>
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"Miss Silverbottom! Miss Silverbottom!" A voice could be heard from not too far away. January lifted her gaze without moving her head, green eyes peeking out from underneath her large, cat eye sunglasses as the cheers rang out from her cellphone. <i>Oh. Sh- </i>One of the PTA Moms was hauling it across the parking lot, no doubt eager to make sure there was at least one reference to her son in the paper this time. January casually shut her door, her left leg pulled in just fast enough not to get slammed between the heavy metal. She turned the key in the car, her blue tooth and GPS automatically connecting. January focused on the rear view mirror as she reversed out of the parking lot, just barely missing the overzealous mother who had been trying so desperately to track her down.<br/>
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"Good to see you, Marg!" January waved out of her slightly ajar window at the woman, a fake smile plastered on January's glistening face as the out of breath woman started to silently curse her out. Her eyes return to the road ahead of her, and only briefly does she glance at the rear view mirror to see the stadium fading off into the distance.<br/>
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The sun was setting, casting a deep orange glow on the bland, desert surroundings. The temperature had dropped considerably since she started driving about half an hour ago, and the sky was a calming, deep, shade of blue. The stars were clearly visible out in the wastelands, and for a moment, January was mesmerized by the sight.<br/>
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"In 900 feet, take-" The GPS voice cut out suddenly into a mess of static and nightmarish robotic voices. The screen flickered on and off, and January exhaled sharply through her teeth. "Oh. Come on, Carmin! Not right now, you piece of crap!" The brunette looked at the GPS hopefully, but the screen stayed off and the big green signs appeared closer than they were, as if threatening her to quickly make a decision. There were only a few cars on the road, and January panicked internally as she veered the car off to the left and took the next exit into some town with a stupid name that she was too angry to say.<br/>
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Not surprisingly, there was no town in sight, just a long, unending road. The sky was dark now, with only the stars in the sky and her headlights guiding the way. She looked at the time and saw that it was nearing 2 am, eyes wide with shock as she wondered where the time had gone. It felt like the same song had been on repeat, but apparently three hours had passed since then. January closed her eyes for a second, and found some relief in just resting her eyes, if not any more clarity about where she was heading.<br/>
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"Now driving through Johnson's fields. Please return to the road." January jumped in her seat as the GPS powered on and loudly exclaimed she was not on a road, when she clearly was. "Please return to the road." It went on again, and then once more, before January unplugged the piece of junk and tossed it into the passenger's side. "Stupid freakin'...technology." January said, her heart pounding in her chest.<br/>
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January leans closer to the steering wheel and turns the AC up as cold as it would go. After another ten minutes or so, a small building becomes visible in the distance, and she felt her lips curving into a smile. "Finally, civilization." As her car approaches, she sees that all of the lights are turned off and the parking lot is empty. Her phone screen flickers briefly, but nothing that worried her too much. She wanted to remain optimistic.<br/>
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Without a second thought, January turned into the parking lot and parked closest to the front doors. She turned off the car, taking her keys and cellphone with her as she walked up to the doors. They were chained on the front, but she could clearly see through the glass. There wasn't a single soul around, no movement or sounds. Just the wind howling against the building.<br/>
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"Hello?" January tried at the chains with more strength than one would expect. The door didn't budge, but she kept trying, creating a loud metallic sound that made her paranoid of the night. She looked over her shoulder, then carefully moved over to the windows. "And just what are ya gonna do if you see someone in there, Jan? Huh?" January questioned herself, and her shoulders slumped in defeat. She pulled up her phone and walked back to her vehicle, the car lights shutting off as she closed the door.<br/>
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"No service. No nothing." January quietly said, noting her battery was at less than twenty percent now. She licked her dry lips, then ran her fingers through her hair, holding a bundle of her hair over her neck. Her forehead leaned against the steering wheel lightly, and she thought of what to do. <i>This isn't the end of the world, girl. You've still got a little less than a half a tank of glass, and there has to be another town nearby. First thing tomorrow morning, You've got this. </i>​</div>