Back to 1956 Ch. 04

AN: Keep in mind people that everything I've written up to this point serves as a first draft of my story so the writing can seem sketch in some points. If I had time to hire an editor or had time to properly edit everything myself, I would. But for the time being I'm just posting you guys my first draft- maybe in the future Ill revise, re-edit, and re-post. I'm usually a much better writer :)

Ps. I hope this chapter is long enough, positive and negative feedback are always welcome.

IV: The Hard Way

July 19, 2018???(July 19, 1956)

"Please, please help me sir- me and my husband were in a car accident and we need help," Evelyn pleaded, almost stumbling over her own two feet as she ran to the truck that had just pulled over a few yards from her. In the past hour, only 3 cars had passed her. Though Evelyn tried frantically to get the attention of the drivers, they all speed hastily pass her as if they didn't see her at all. Finally, after what felt like an hour of walking someone had finally stopped to help her.

Her rescuer was a small statured much older African American man with a graying beard and shiny bald head. And from the looks of his age and physique, Evelyn was sure that there was no way that this fragile old man would be able to pull James from the car.

"Child, don't you know that a young woman such as yourself shouldn't being walking down the side of the street by yourself??? Especially dressed in that manner???"

Evelyn glanced down at her attire to notice a more-than-noticeable rip in her dress around her chest area as well as little vertical rips from the bottom of the dress up to her leg. If she hadn't been so distressed she probably would have felt embarrassed, but there were far more pressing issues on her mind.

"My husband and I were in a car accident-"

"Where's your husband? He wouldn't walk with you????"

"No sir," Evelyn replied, trying to be as hasty and as patient as possible, "You see, my husband was unconscious so I had to leave the car to get help for us-"

"Well he still should have walked with you. What kind of man lets his woman walk by herself- You could have waited for him to wake up. It's dangerous for a young woman to be walking alone down the road.- It would be dangerous for me to walk alone down the road!!!", he further chastised her, "Child, you better thank God I was the first to find ya."

"Well......thank you."

"Well I don't know where you're from, no telling from that fancy accent of yours, but down here it aint safe for any of us to be walking down the side of the road alone. Day or night, and that's the truth."

Evelyn stood their speechless, she wasn't sure of what to say without further upsetting the grumpy old man, so she decided to change the subject.

"Do you have a cell phone I could use by any chance sir?"

"A what?"

"A cell phone. I lost my cell phone somewhere in-between the accident."

"You want me to take you to the jailhouse??"

"No sir," Evelyn said, "Do you have a telephone I could use?"

"Yea, at home."

Evelyn rubbed her temples, beginning to feel frustrated again.

"Well how far is that??? Is there hospital anywhere in the vicinity?"

"No ma'am. The nearest hospital is in the city," Mr. Johnson said, "Now if you want, I can drive you to Dover to see if you can get help."

"That would be great. Thank you sir."

Evelyn quickly climbed into the older mans truck before shutting the door behind her.

A few minutes into the ride, the two had fallen into a comfortable silence until suddenly Evelyn felt a peculiar flipping sensation in her stomach and felt immediately sick. Impulsively, Evelyn clutched her stomach.

"I'm sorry, I not feeling quite too well and I was wondering if you could stop at the nearest station so that I can use the bathroom."

"Oh I dunno child..... The next place down is Charlestown," the man said, "You can use the bathroom down there but you better make it quick."

Evelyn sensed that she had missed something important from the urgency in his voice but had decided to absent-mindedly shrug it off. At this point, she had been under so much emotional and physical stress that the last thing she was worried about was trying to find some hidden meaning from his statement.

By the time they had reached the diner, the odd flipping sensation in her stomach had temporarily ceased. While the sensation had ceased, she had a few moments to take in the new surroundings. Evelyn couldn't quite put her finger on it but something about the little town of Charlestown seemed peculiarly......antique. Everything in the city looked as if it had come from a time before modern technology, it looked as if the people of the town had not upgraded to the standards of modern architecture. However, that wasn't even the strangest part of her observations, what was most strange was the way people were dressed. Evelyn noticed teenage girls in long straight skirts with their hair pulled back in a ponytail and boys in polo, varsity sports and black leather jackets. The adults were a little more conservatively dressed, most women she saw were in either a suit-skirt set or a long one-pieced dress; and a majority, if not all of the older men Evelyn spotted, wore suits. If Evelyn had to guess, she would put that the fashion of the people in the town 1950s or 1960s.

As they pulled up to a place called "Rocky's Diner", Evelyn began to wonder how this town, in the middle of nowhere in Alabama, had managed to keep everything from the 1950s and 1960s so preserved and good-looking. And furthermore, Evelyn began to ponder why this town had gone unnoticed by herself, considering the fact that she had lived in Alabama for most of her life.

"I appreciate this Mr...."

"Johnson. The names Mr. Johnson, now hurry up child, I don't want no trouble coming," the old man told her. Again, Evelyn sensed a bit of urgency in his tone so she quickly nodded before getting out of the vehicle and heading towards Rocky's Diner.

As she opened the door, the greeting bell rang and as if on cue, everyone in the diner turned their heads towards the entry of the diner and at her.

As Evelyn made her way towards the bathrooms, she couldn't help but to feel a little anxious. Why was everyone staring at her as if she was ghost? Granted her attire alone would probably raise eyebrows, considering she had just stepped into the diner with a semi-ripped up and certainly-now-indecent cocktail dress, but the stares she was receiving felt different, they felt more sinister than curious. Evelyn didn't feel like they were staring at her dress, but that they were staring at HER.

'Wow, do I really look that much of a mess,' Evelyn thought to herself as she watched the people from her peripheral vision and pushed the door open to the bathroom that she saw a women leave from.

Once inside the restroom, Evelyn went quickly to the sinks and ran some cold water. She turned to look up into the mirror and halfway grimaced at her reflection. She thought she looked pathetic. Her dress was ripped, her hair looked messy and her make-up had smudged all over her face. No wonder people had been staring at her.

Two women entered the bathroom while Evelyn began to splash water on her face and attempt to straighten out her hair and her dress.

Evelyn watched in the mirror as the two women that entered the bathroom suddenly approached her. Glaring daggers in her direction.

"And what exactly do you think you're doing girl??"

"Excuse me?" Evelyn said bemused, turning to face the two women.

"Don't you forget Barbara, niggers cant read," the brunette laughed.

Evelyn froze in her place, completely shocked by the woman's nonchalant use of the "n" word. Then, Evelyn finally understood the urgency in Mr. Johnson's voice when he had told her to hurry up.

"Yes, I guess I did forget how dumb niggers can be," the blonde woman said, "Maybe we should teach her lesson."

In a panic, Evelyn quickly pushed past the brunette, but the brunette managed to grab a handful of her black dress. Evelyn struggled under her grip for a few moments before a piece of her dress tore away, freeing Evelyn from the woman's grasp.

Evelyn rushed from the door, looking back briefly to see if the women were immediately behind her. There, she saw the most shocking and terrifying thing she had ever seen in her entire life. On the front of the bathroom door was a sign that read "WHITES ONLY" in big bold black letters.

"This can't be real," Evelyn thought to herself, completely awestruck. Even though she was shocked beyond words she still kept her feet moving forward, making a rush for the entrance of the diner.

Evelyn was only a few feet from the door when she felt someone grab her wrist and yank her backwards.

"You're a long way away from home girl," her captor said, mischievously smirking.

Evelyn watched his cold blue eyes travel from her legs up to her chest, and the mischievous look he had on his face and his eyes made her shiver.

"Get that nigger!!!!," someone yelled, of a feminine voice.

For a split second Evelyn noticed the man's attention had shifted from the sudden outburst and she took the opportunity to tear her wrist from the man's grip and make a beeline out the front door.

Evelyn sprinted as fast as she could towards the truck, not looking back. Suddenly Evelyn felt a rock collide with her injured shoulder, making her stumble as she continued hastily towards the truck. Evelyn's heart began to race further as she could hear quick foot steps behind her.

Evelyn quickly closed the door, and Mr. Johnson put the petal to the metal. Evelyn screamed as rocks began to burst out the windows of Mr. Johnson's truck and shards of glass rained down on them.

"Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god," Evelyn whispered frantically to herself. She could feel fear and adrenaline building. She felt sick. Evelyn hesitantly glanced behind her shoulder to see if they were within a distance to where no more rocks could make contact with the car. When she was sure the distance was safe enough she stuck her head out the window and puked.

"I knew goddamn well I shouldn't have stopped in Charlestown. Are you okay child?"

To be continued.............