Author's note: I HOPE YOU ALL ARE READY?!

Tell me where you guys are reading from! I'm super curious :)

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I hated the sweltering Georgian heat. I was glad I had cut my hair short before we started our road trip. Alyssa struggled to keep her thick hair tied up on the top of her head. Beads of sweat were rolling down our necks.

I was in the backseat of the van with a novel open in my hands. My friends had complained that I was missing the view, but we were now on a dirt road and surrounded by trees. Alyssa and I sat in the back while our boyfriends, Finn and Wyatt, were in the front. Finn was driving while Wyatt was trying to get cell service on his phone.

"I told you we should have brought a map," Finn said.

"I wasn't planning on us getting lost," Wyatt said.

"No one plans on getting lost," Alyssa said.

Finn let out a deep breath and raked his fingers through his dark hair. The van started to shake as the road grew rougher underneath them.

"Maybe we should pull over?" Alyssa suggested.

"What would that accomplish?" Wyatt asked.

"We could ask someone for directions," she said. "They may know how to get onto a highway or something?"

"And who do you plan on asking?" he asked. "We're in the middle of freaking nowhere if you haven't noticed."

Alyssa let go a huff of breath. She crossed her arms over her chest and sunk into her seat. She stuck out her bottom lip in a pout.

"You don't have to be so rude to me," she said. "I'm just trying to come up with an idea."

Wyatt rolled his eyes and turned to look at Alyssa. I glanced up from my book for a second before continuing to read.

"Babe, I'm not being rude," he said. "I'm just frustrated. We've been lost for over an hour."

"I told you that you should have listened to the GPS," Alyssa said.

"It's more adventurous not to."

Wyatt winked at her before turning in his seat.

"If we keep heading straight we should make it back onto the main road," Finn said.

I closed my book on my lap. I leaned forward and put my hands on Finn's shoulders and them down his chest. I could feel how tense he was despite how calm he was acting.

"I like this adventure," I said. "It's something we will always remember."

Finn smiled. He took one hand off of the steering wheel and placed it over mine.

"Thanks for being positive," he said. "This would have been a lot better if we had a map though."

I moved past the headrest and kissed Finn's cheek.

"I trust you," I said. "I always will."

"Alright," Wyatt said. "If we are done with being annoyingly sweet can we get back to our problem?"

I rolled her eyes before leaning back in the seat. Wyatt was holding his phone up as high as he could, desperate to get a connection.

"You might as well put your phone away," Finn said. "You're just wasting the battery now."

Wyatt lowered the phone and shook his head. Alyssa's eyes widened. She slapped Wyatt's shoulder as she leaned forward and pointed ahead. Wyatt rubbed his shoulder.

"Do you see that?" she asked.

Wyatt squinted as he tried to make out the little white figure beyond the trees.

"How the hell did you see that from back there?" he asked.

"I have the best 20/20 vision around," Alyssa joked.

As we drove closer, the building came into view. It was a large farmhouse with faded white paint that was flaking off. A wooden porch was wrapped around the house. Two rusted trucks sat on the gravel driveway.

"We should stop here," I said. "They must know how to get back to town."

"I don't know, Linds," Finn said. "It looks abandoned."

"Abandoned, haunted or a house full of murderers," Wyatt said. "Take your choice."

"This is not a horror movie," I said.

Finn's grip on the steering wheel tightened as they came closer to the house. Alyssa sighed and wiped the sweat off of her forehead.

"I say we stop," she said. "They may have that map that Finn so desperately wants."

Wyatt ran his hand along his jaw. I bit on my lip and tapped her feet. I waited for the boys to make up their minds.

"Fine," Wyatt said. "But if we get killed, I'm using you girls as a shield."

Alyssa and I looked at each other and laughed. The stones crunched under the weight of the tires as Finn pulled the van up to the house.

I was the first one to hop out of the car. I stretched her arms up over my head and it relaxed my stiff muscles. Finn grabbed my waist and pulled me close to him. I giggled before I got up on my toes and kissed him. He was smiling when I pulled away, and he kissed my cheek.

"You should stay in the van," he said.

"I need to stretch my legs," I said.

"You know you wouldn't be so stiff if you weren't bent over reading all day."

I chuckled and kissed him again. My fingers went into his sweaty locks. I had not looked in the mirror but I was sure that my eyeliner had melted and smudged and my hair was a matted mess. Finn still looked at me with adoration and it made me feel beautiful.

"I love you," I said.

"I love you too, angel," he said before leaning down for another kiss.

"Get a room!" Wyatt yelled out.

I giggled and took a step back. Finn slapped my bum and winked at me before I was out of reach.

The four of us stood in front of the van and stared up at the house. It was intimidating in size. They were surrounded by a deafening silence. I stepped forward.

"Linds, come back," Finn said.

"It's going to be dark soon," I said. "I don't want to be lost out here at night. I am not sleeping in the van again."

The porch creaked as I climbed the steps. There was a ripped screen door that was falling off. I was afraid to knock on it because I was afraid I would break it. The door squeaked as I opened the screen door. I tapped on the wooden door.

I looked over my shoulder to see the others watching me. I shifted my weight from foot to foot. There was no answer so I banged on the door harder.

A few seconds went by before I could hear the lock click. The door opened to reveal a man around my age. He was tall and towering over me. His clothes were splattered with dirt. His dark eyes scanned my body and his lips lifted into a smile. I gave him an awkward smile back.

"Hey," I said. "My friends and I are a little lost. We were wondering if you knew how to get back to town."

"You're really lost if you're trying to get to town," he said.

"How far away are we?"

The man looked past me and at my friends. I looked over my shoulder to see Finn walking up the creaky steps. He came up behind me and slid his arm around my waist. The man was staring at Finn's arm. He tightened his hold on the door and his knuckles were turning white.

"We were having dinner," the man said. "Why don't you come in and join us?"

"We didn't mean to interrupt," I said.

"Do you have a map?" Finn asked. "We will buy it off of you."

The man raised an eyebrow. My heart was pounding in my chest as an uneasiness set in.

"Why don't you come on in?" the man asked.

He opened the door wider. The man smiled and took a step to the side. Finn curled his fingers into my waist and let out a shaky breath. He was managing to keep calm like usual.

"I don't think-" Finn started to say.

"We have maps," the man said. "You and your friends can have them for free."

"Um-"

I put my hand on Finn's shoulder. The man's smile disappeared as he watched me touch my boyfriend.

"Let's just go in quick," I said.

We were being too paranoid. We were strangers that showed up at someone's door, and they were willing to help. They would not try to hurt us anyways, Alyssa and Wyatt were waiting in front of the porch. I turned to face them.

"We'll just be a minute," I told Alyssa and Wyatt. "They're going to give us a map."

Wyatt opened his mouth to make a sarcastic remark. Alyssa knew what he was going to do so she punched him in the arm. Wyatt closed his mouth and rubbed his shoulder.

"Woman, you need to stop hitting me!" he said.

The man cleared his throat and I turned back around. He cocked his head to the side to motion for us to enter the house.

"Come in," he said. "My name is Gabe."

"I'm Lindsay and this is Finn," I introduced us.

"Nice to meet you, Lindsay."

I stepped into the house, but Finn forced himself in front of me. He used himself as a shield as we walked into the farmhouse.

I had no idea that my life was about to change forever.