The Gnawing Hunger Part Three

Once in town, Bo tried to not think about what he saw. As it probably wasn't real. After all, how could a creature like that even exist? It must have been a part of his overactive imagination. And that he was just super tired from the trip up. That was it and nothing more.

He was just too tired...he took a deep breath to relax himself. Reminding himself that it wasn't real. That he had been seeing things. And that he shouldn't linger on it. Nor should he really think about it for even a minute longer. With that, Bo walked to the frozen foods aisle. Xander walking after him with the shopping cart. And Arthur following up on them with his phone. Typing something into it, probably a list. Xander asked,"You think we should get some soda, snacks, and other stuff?"

"I don't think the cabin has enough food for everyone.",he added. Now that he thought about it, Bo didn't either. And it probably would be wise to get more stuff for it. It also definitely would be a good idea to check the pantry when they got back. Just to be sure there wasn't expired food that had been left behind. And he figured it was better to get some more stuff. Then toss out what looks to be super old. Even if it was a little bit old. As Bo didn't trust that it wouldn't make someone sick. Also, his Mom probably wouldn't eat what was in the pantry.

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea. We can toss out the expired stuff after.",Bo agreed. With that, the trio hurried to get more stuff for the cabin. Arthur having written a list of stuff that they needed. Such as bread, deli meat, and cheeses to make sandwiches. Whenever they weren't feeling like cooking a meal. He suggested that they grab three different pizzas for dinner. That way everyone got what they wanted for tonight's dinner. Arthur asked,"Would splitting the food cost be a good idea, too?"

"I mean it kind of seems easier if we all pay for some stuff.",he added. Bo and Xander didn't see anything wrong with that. And it probably would be cheaper for everyone. So, they agreed to Arthur's idea of splitting things three ways. With this, they walked over to the frozen pizzas. Getting three of them for that night. One was cheese with a cheese crust. A pepperoni pizza. And then there was the pineapple pizza. That was Bo's favorite. Especially, when he got to put macadamia nuts on top of it. Something that everyone normally would make fun of him for.

As they all said it was pretty gross. Even Arthur thought it was disgusting. And the dude ate pumpkin spice anything. Including pumpkin spice spam.

Other folks in his life thought it was funny. Well, his Mom thought him liking that combination was funny.

But he didn't really give a damn if they did or not. To him it was the best way to enjoy that pizza. Though he was a little surprised when Arthur got the macadamias for him. Neither of his friends saying a word about it. Any other time they would make some snide remark.

This time, they seemed to be fine with the whole thing. Or they were deciding to be nice to him during this birthday week. After the whole way his Mom and Grandpa had been fighting. They probably wanted to not give him a hard time. When he was already stressed the Hell out. It was probably another reason why Xander suggested they grocery shop while there. To give him an excuse to stay out of the cabin and away from the tension.

And he was grateful for that. Along without the jokes about the pizza he liked.

Soon as they put the pizzas into the cart, they headed to the chip aisle. Getting what Arthur had put on his list of chips. Some tortilla chips, nacho, and some normal chips to go with sandwiches. Even in sandwiches if they felt like it. Xander grabbed a few things of pretzels for normal snacking. A big container's worth that would hopefully last them the weekend if they didn't mindlessly snack on it. Along with a brand of popcorn that Bo really liked. They also grabbed some sodas that were nearby. Three one liters of Mountain Dews, a one liter of Dr. Pepper, and a twelve pack of diet Pepsis for his Mom. Despite her telling him that she didn't drink soda anymore, he knew she did. Just not as much as she used to when he was a kid.

After that, they hurried to get some cans of soup. Mostly chicken noodle and tomato. They grabbed a box of angel hair pasta for spaghetti.

Then they headed towards the deli aisle for other stuff they needed. Which was different types of sliced meat that they liked. Turkey, ham, and roast beef. Along with chicken to appease Bo's Mom. As she really liked eating chicken sandwiches with Swiss cheese. Which they got along with other types of cheese. And they got a pound of ground beef for the spaghetti. Then they headed to the dairy aisle. Feeling they needed milk and butter. Mostly wanting the butter to make grilled cheese sandwiches. And milk for just breakfast if they got up in time for it. Or if they were just feeling cereal for lunch.

The trio also picked up some eggs in case they wanted pancakes. Maybe even having some waffles, too. Arthur hurriedly got a family sized box of corn pops. For a moment, they thought they had too much food for a week's trip. But it was better than having too little in Xander's opinion. He stated,"The less trips into town the better."

"We don't know how the weather is going to be like.",Xander reminded. Which was true. They didn't know if it would snow this week or not. And sure, Bo had a weather app. It was rarely ever accurate and it could easily turn rotten anytime. Though, he hoped that it wouldn't. As snow removal at the cabin wasn't good. The plowing company rarely ever went that far up. And they always took forever to get to them when they bothered. With that, they hurried to get the rest of Arthur's list. Getting pasta sauce along with some pizza sauce. That way they could make lazy pizzas when they felt like it. It wasn't long before the cart was almost full. Bo asked,"Is that everything, Arthur? Or is there anything else we should grab while out?"

"Maybe toilet paper and paper towels?",Arthur suggested. It definitely sounded good. Just in case there wasn't enough of either in the cabin. And they'd rather not make an awkward run into town for toilet paper. Though they could live without paper towels. All three of them headed towards the aisle for it. Picking up two big packages of toilet paper and one thing of paper towels. With that, they headed to the check outs. Deciding to use self check out as they felt it was much easier. And it was much quicker than going through a lane. They split up what they grabbed into even piles on the nearby self check outs. Along with the reusable bags that Xander brought. All of them helping the other pack their bags. That way they wouldn't need to pay for any at the self check out. Soon as they were done, they put them back into the cart. And hurried for Bo's car.

Opening the trunk, Xander and Bo carefully loaded it up. Once they were done, Xander shut the trunk of the car. Both of them getting into Bo's car while Arthur took the cart back. Bo decided that his best friend got to have the front seat this time. Sitting in the spot that Arthur had taken the trip up. And Arthur didn't seem to mind this as he got into the front seat. They drove back the way that they had come. Bo watching the scenery once again as they drove along. A faint smile coming to his face as they drove along. It was such a beautiful view and this was relaxing for him. The snow covered mountains were wonderful to see. And a part of him could see why his Mom wanted to hike. Even if it wasn't wise to really go out in this kind of weather.

Then his mind brought up the thing that happened earlier. About the strange pale creature that he had seen not that long ago. How that strange creature had stare straight at him. Though he tried his best to ignore the thought. After all, it wasn't real. Just something that was his tired imagination. As he hadn't seen the thing again once they passed the spot from before. There was no sign that the strange creature had been there. Or that it even existed in the first place. His body relaxed as they continued down the road. Feeling a little silly that he had let his imagination get to him. And vowing to go to bed early tonight. Thinking that maybe a decent night's sleep was all he would need.

For a moment, Bo had thought that's all it was. And that's he had merely been seeing things. That there was really nothing for him to be worried about. Right until he saw some movement in the corner of his eye. Along with a flash of extremely pale skin and he saw it. It was so much closer than it had been last time. Yet, it was sort of hidden from the road. His eyes went wide as it stared straight at him again. Those creepy pale blue eyes boring into his. Almost as if the creature were challenging him or something.

Maybe it was, maybe it wasn't.

Either way, he couldn't tear his gaze away from it. It tilted it head to the side as it stared at him. Nearly reminding him of a puppy. Sharp toothed grin growing wider as it stared at him. The tattered remains that hung on its thin frame were easier to see. And they were indeed remnants of clothes. Which looked to be from a different era then now. Though he wasn't sure from what time they were. As they were much too torn for Bo to recognize.

Bo stared at the stick thin creature in utter awe. It took a few steps forward and into the light. Showing more of its stick thin body. How dirty and pale it was. Like the thing hadn't bathed in years or something like that. Its head tilted back upright as it grinned even wider at him. An action that probably would've hurt a normal human being. Though this creature didn't seem to be in any form of pain. Then it lifted its hand once again. Giving another little wave to him as they passed it. It looked like it was mouthing something to him. But, from this distance it was difficult to understand what it was trying to say. He looked ahead as he reached into his pocket for his phone. Soon as he pulled it out, he unlocked it to record the creature for later. By the time that Bo did that though, the creature was gone.