Aisling and Roy headed north along the highway together. Before long, a seaside resort town emerged at the far end of the road.
Pointing at the town in the distance, Roy spoke excitedly to Aisling beside him.
"Hey, looks like we won't have to sleep out in the wilderness tonight."
Aisling kept her head lowered and ignored Roy's excitement. After a moment, she suddenly asked him a question.
"Where do we go next? Will anyone still come to save us?"
"They will."
Roy's answer was firm. Aisling looked up at Roy beside her, seeing the determination in his eyes.
"Even if we have to swim, we'll swim home."
The two exchanged a look. Though he was injured, Roy's clear-headedness still gave Aisling a powerful sense of faith.
"I can't swim."
Aisling chuckled softly, withdrew her gaze, and continued onward.
"By the time we swim back, we'll know how."
Roy smiled and caught up with Aisling. Together, they slowly made their way toward the distant town.
As they drew closer, exquisitely built seaside vacation cottages began appearing on the beaches alongside the road, lined up in neat rows.
It was not yet vacation season, and most of the cottages by the sea were sitting unused.
Pointing at the beautiful cottages along the beach below, Roy spoke to Aisling with excitement.
"Hey, how about we skip the motel and rent one of those empty cottages? We could get some proper rest for a couple of days."
Aisling looked at Roy's excited face with some annoyance.
"What are you thinking? We didn't come here on vacation. And even if I wanted a vacation, I definitely wouldn't come here. Everything about America reeks of something that makes me sick."
Seeing that Aisling strongly disagreed with him, Roy kept walking while pleading with her in