(No worries xD)
Oscar quickly discovered that the task wouldn't be as easy as he'd first thought. Even though the insects continued to fly up in great abundance as they passed, they seemed to have no trouble dodging Oscar's attempts to grab them. He pursed his lips in frustration and kept trying, with no luck. Finally, he glanced over to make sure Honor wasn't paying attention, then quickly narrowed his eyes until they were completely black.
"I caught one!" he exclaimed a second later, and brought his hand back inside to show Honor the grasshopper he'd snagged out of the air. "Wow, it's bigger than I thought. You sure you don't want to try some?"
(I love that Oscar checks that Honor isn't looking lol reminds me of when a kid checks that an adult isn't around before doing something they're not supposed to XD)
"Nice job! I'll have to pass again though," She replied, smiling and sparing a glance at the creature in Oscar's hand, "One thing though, please don't let that thing loose in the truck if you decide not to eat it. Make sure you toss it back outside." Honor hummed as she drove, keeping her focus on the road as she waited to see his reaction to eating a grasshopper.
(lol yeah he's still got a mischievous streak >w<)
"I'm going to eat it," Oscar announced, and popped it in his mouth. Less than a minute later, his face screwed up with disgust and he scrambled to spit the bug back out the window. "Agh, it tastes horrible!" His eyes were watering by the time he faced forward again, and he lapsed into a coughing fit. "Ew. Ew ew ew. Do we have any water up front with us?"
Honor couldn't help but laugh at Oscar's reaction to the bug, pointing quickly to the single bottle sitting between them on the counsel of the truck. "Not a fan?" She asked, or tried to between laughing and trying to focus on driving. From childhood experience, she knew grasshoppers tasted nasty, but it was funny to watch someone else find that out.
"I am not a fan." Oscar wasn't quite sure what the phrase meant in this context, but he could still confidently say that he was not an electric fan. He snatched the water and quickly took a drink, trying to get the horribly sour taste out of his mouth. "No more grasshoppers. Oh…. I see a sign up ahead."
Sure enough, as they reached the river, they also came to a place where the road a split into a T. To the right was another set of fields, and to the left was a slightly wider road with a sign next to it, indicating that they were close to a highway and a town called Freeson. Oscar stared around curiously, trying to take his mind off his recent snack. "Which way should we go?"
"I'm thinking we head towards wherever Freeson is?" She suggested, already flicking her turn signal on and only waiting a minute to see if Oscar was going to object. Driving down more boring roads didn't sound fun at all, and she would much rather get onto a highway or at least head towards a town. Honor drummed her fingers on the wheel and hummed softly, already planning to ask if Oscar wanted to switch to driving when they reached the town.
"Okay," Oscar agreed. "I guess there's probably food in Freeson. Plus Ernie said to head southwest, right? I think the town's closer to the right direction than if we turned the other way."
Honor nodded, turning on the radio as she turned onto the wider road, looking for the highway as she started to sing along to the country song that played through the truck. Heading towards the level five as quickly as possible sounded like a plan, even if they had to stop for food. The only thing that worried her at this point was Goldenrod and if they were going to be followed.
Oscar quickly began to sing along with her, doing his best to learn the lyrics and melody on the fly. Music was something he found increasingly enjoyable as time went on. He decided to try and learn as many songs as he could, so that he could sing even when the radio wasn't on.
As they followed the road, it slowly curved to run alongside the river until after a few miles it reached a dusty highway. Only now did they start to encounter other people, and that was still limited to a few cars passing by now and then. Another sign told them that Freeson wasn't far and that, at the very least, it had gas and a restaurant or two. Oscar hoped Freeson was very far from whatever town they'd met Ernie in.
Her fingers drummed against the side of the steering wheel as she sang, a faint smile on her face. It was actually a nice drive, even with the worry of Goldenrod in the back of her mind. The small number of cars made it even better, giving enough traffic to show that they were heading towards something but not too many cars that she had to deal with slow-moving traffic. "I'm quite ready to eat something," Honor said when she saw the sign that displayed what there was to eat in the town, "Especially if we get to eat some restaurant food that I don't have to make."
"I read about restaurants," Oscar remarked. "I read a story about a restaurant that was a front for something called a cartel, and all the servers carried guns and the detective had to hide in the walk-in freezer and he almost died but one of the lady servers rescued him and then kissed him for some reason and then they ran off together. I hope we're not going to one of those restaurants."
Honor laughed and shrugged, "As far as I know that's something that only happens in books and movies but who knows, maybe our restaurant will be like that. Either way, I don't think that'll happen to us." She saw the exit for Freeson and turned onto it as they talked, a smile on her face.
Oscar looked relieved. "Good. As long as it has food, I don't really care, but it would be nice if something was easy for once. Also, do I have to know how to speak French to order my food? I can learn, I think, but it'll take me a little while."
Her eyes held a spark of amusement as she laughed, shaking her head again, “No, you don’t have to order in French. If we did then I would be going hungry. I don’t know a lick of French.” Honor looked around as they entered Freeson, looking for the restaurants that were advertised on the sign next to the highway.
After a minute, a row of diners, motels, and convenience stores came into view. It wasn't much, but most places were open for business and decently reputable-looking. Oscar gazed out the car window at the different signs, trying to figure out what kind of food they offered. "I'll go to whatever one you like, I guess."
"Are you craving any certain type of food right now? I'm liking the idea of Mexican food if not somewhere that serves breakfast, but it's up to you," She asked, her eyes wandering over the different signs and businesses. Anything that she could eat seemed good, as long as she didn't have to eat fish or seafood.
(I have to work this weekend so I won't be on much)
Oscar tilted his head curiously. "What's Mexican food like? Is it good?" He'd read a few books about Mexican culture and several Mexican cookbooks at the library, but in his opinion the knowledge was nothing compared to actually tasting a new food.
(Ok!)
Honor nodded, "I think it's good, and as for what it's like, it has a lot of flavors, to say the least. I think having you try it will be the best way to explain it." She drove through the town slowly, smiling when she saw a sign advertising Mexican food, as well as a parking space on the street right outside of the restaurant.
(thanks for waiting!)
"Okay. I'd like to try it then." Oscar's mouth was already watering at the thought of a square meal, even though breakfast hadn't been that long ago. "Look, the sign says kids get free coloring books. Do you think we could pretend I was a kid?"
(No problem!)
"I don't think they would fall for you being a kid, but I'm sure if we ask they would most likely give you one anyway," She admitted, shutting off the truck and hopping out happily. Her stomach growled loudly, sounding more like a wild animal than her stomach. "The only way to find out is to ask though, and that means we should probably head inside." Honor patted her pocket instinctively, checking that she had her wallet as she walked to the door and held it open for Oscar.
Oscar stepped inside, glancing around at the half-full, half-empty booths and the sign by the door asking people to wait to be seated. The lady at the counter gave them a smile and cheerfully told them she'd be with them in just one minute.
"This place looks nice," Oscar said quietly to Honor. "I like it way better than that other stupid town already."
She nodded in agreement, looking around and studying the inside of the building. It looked like a nice place, something that she liked, plus it looked like they would be able to get a good solid meal in for the first time in forever. "This place really does look nice, I hope their food is good too," Honor added, waiting patiently for the lady to get back to seat them.
After a minute she walked over to greet them, smiling brightly and not batting an eye at Oscar's bandaged head. "Hello, welcome! Will it just be the two of you today?"
Oscar nodded, and she whisked them over to a smaller booth by the window. "Can I get you guys anything to drink?" she asked as she gave them both a menu.
"I'll have a lemonade, please," Honor started, smiling at the waitress as she took the menu and started to scan over the different things they served. Everything looked amazing, or at least good, even the food on the kid's menu. It would definitely be difficult to decide on just one thing.
"Sure! Anything for you, sir?"
"Um….could I have a lemonade too?" Oscar hesitated, then blurted, "And a coloring book? Please?"
The waitress looked surprised for a minute, but nodded. "Yeah, if you want one! I'll be back in just a second." She bustled off, humming.
"What's lemonade?" Oscar asked in a hushed voice once she was gone.
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