"Rest Stop" is a short story by the American writer
Stephen King, originally published in the December 2003 issue of ''
Esquire'' and collected in King's 2008 collection ''
Just After Sunset
''Just After Sunset'' is the fifth collection of short stories by Stephen King. It was released in hardcover by Scribner on November 11, 2008, and features a holographic dust jacket. On February 6, 2008, the author's official website revealed t ...
''. In 2004, "Rest Stop" won the
National Magazine Award for Fiction.
Plot synopsis
Author John Dykstra, who writes under the
pen name Rick Hardin, has had too much beer to drink at his mystery writer's group meeting and desperately needs to find a rest stop on his return from
Jacksonville
Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...
to
Sarasota
Sarasota () is a city in Sarasota County on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The area is renowned for its cultural and environmental amenities, beaches, resorts, and the Sarasota School of Architecture. The city is located in the sou ...
. There is only one other car at the rest stop, and he overhears its occupants in the ladies' bathroom. He hears a woman's and a man's voice coming from the bathroom, and the sounds of domestic abuse.
Dykstra is too timid and frightened to act, but he assumes the mentality of his alter-ego, Hardin, and attacks the man with a
tire iron
A tire iron (also tire lever or tire spoon) is a specialized metal tool used in working with tires. Tire irons have not been in common use for automobile tires since the shift to the use of tubeless tires in the late 1950s.
Bicycle tire irons ...
. Hardin calls the police and orders the woman to leave the scene in the car, and much to her protest, Hardin smashes the man's glasses to ensure the man doesn't follow him on the road in retaliation.
After some time, Hardin mentally reverts to Dykstra, who begins to vomit out the side of his vehicle when the
adrenaline rush of the incident wears off. He stops at a gas station and thoroughly searches to make sure the man has not followed him. Upon returning home, Dykstra locks his doors and activates his burglar alarm system.
Adaptation
In April 2019, it was announced that
Legendary Entertainment
Legendary Pictures Productions, LLC ( doing business as Legendary Entertainment or simply Legendary) is an American film production and mass media company based in Burbank, California, founded by Thomas Tull in 2000. The company has collaborated ...
would develop a film adaptation of the short story, with
Alex Ross Perry
Alex Ross Perry (born July 14, 1984) is an American filmmaker and actor.
Early life
Perry was born to a Jewish family in 1984 and raised in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, where he worked on a local television news program during high school.Renninger, ...
set to write and direct.
See also
*
Short fiction by Stephen King
This is a list of short fiction by Stephen King (b. 1947). This includes short stories, novelettes, and novellas, as well as poems. It is arranged chronologically by first publication. Major revisions of previously published pieces are also noted. ...
References
External links
*
{{Stephen King
2003 short stories
Short stories by Stephen King
Works originally published in Esquire (magazine)