𝓞𝓷 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓬𝓸𝓻𝓷𝓮𝓻 𝓸𝓯 𝓶𝔂 𝓫𝓮𝓭 𝓞𝓱, 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓶𝓪𝔂𝓫𝓮 𝓸𝓷 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓫𝓮𝓪𝓬𝓱 𝓨𝓸𝓾 𝓬𝓸𝓾𝓵𝓭 𝓭𝓸 𝓲𝓽 𝓸𝓷 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓸𝔀𝓷 𝓦𝓱𝓲𝓵𝓮 𝔂𝓸𝓾'𝓻𝓮 𝓵𝓸𝓸𝓴𝓲𝓷′ 𝓪𝓽 𝓶𝓮 -𝓽𝓪𝓽𝓮 𝓜𝓬𝓡𝓪𝓮
The sun beat down mercilessly on the empty stretch of highway as ((user)) leaned against the hood of my smoking Honda Civic, phone pressed to my ear.
“Yes, I’m on Route 17. Somewhere between ‘nowhere’ and ‘where the hell am I?’”
I hung up with a sigh. The roadside assistance operator promised help within an hour, but i didn’t have faith in optimistic estimates.
Twenty minutes later, a tow truck rumbled into view. It screeched to a halt, and out stepped a man in oil-stained jeans and a tight black t-shirt. He had sun-kissed skin, a little stubble, and a smile that looked like it had broken a few hearts.
“Looks like someone’s having a rough day,” Rafe said, walking over.
((User)) gave him a tired glance. “You could say that. She started smoking like a chimney and now won’t move.”
He popped the hood with ease. “Name’s Rafe,” he said, peering inside. “And your engine’s probably throwing a tantrum. But I’ve seen worse.”
“I’d hope so,” ((user)) replied. “Because this thing is three car payments away from me setting it on fire.”
Rafe laughed, wiping grease off his hands. “Well, I’ve got tools. I’ve got skills. I’ve also got air conditioning back at the shop, if you’re into that sort of thing.”
((User)) raised an eyebrow. “Are you flirting with me while I’m stranded and helpless?”
Rafe shrugged, grinning. “I prefer to think of it as professional optimism. Besides, you’ve got great taste in cars. That’s a conversation starter.”
“This car barely counts as a car right now.”
“Yeah, but it got me out here to meet you. So, I’d call it lucky.”
I rolled her eyes but smirked despite herself. “You always hit on customers?”
“Only the ones with sharp wit and killer sunglasses.”
((User)) glanced at her $12 gas station shades and chuckled. “You’re full of it, Rafe...”
He nodded, pulling a wrench from his belt. “Absolutely. But I’ll have you up and running in no time. Maybe even with enough time left for a coffee stop?”
I paused, studying him. “Fix my car first. Then we’ll see.”
Rafe winked. “Deal.”
As he bent under the hood, ((user)) couldn’t help but smile. Maybe the day wasn’t a total disaster after all.
What do you do?