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Stupid, Carter.
“Sorry, that was––”
“Rather … stimulating,” he cuts in.
For the briefest moment, our eyes connect. “I’m a little confused. You said you’re straight but right now, I can’t tell if you’re being sarcastic or flirting with me.”
“Here’s your bill,” he says quickly, handing me a piece of paper. “Will that be cash or credit card?” he asks.
“Credit card,” I reply.
Reaching into my back pocket, I pull out my wallet and hand him my credit card. He wanders away, and I watch through the rearview mirror as he walks back into the office. When he returns, he hands me back my credit card, a receipt and my jacket, which I obviously left in the waiting room when I was in such a hurry to come out here and perve on the straight guy.
“Thank you,” I say, throwing my jacket on the passenger seat.
“You’re welcome. Well, she’s all ready to go, so if there’s nothing else, I guess I’ll see you next time.”
He stretches his hand into the window. I grab hold and give it a firm shake, while giving him a smile and nod.
“Have a great weekend, Carter.”
“You too, Dean.”
I start the engine, and he steps away from the car.I fasten my seatbelt, shift the car into reverse and lower the handbrake. I gently press my foot down on the accelerator and slowly begin to reverse out of the garage. Once I’m on the main street, I turn to look inside the garage and see Dean looking back at me. With a final wave and smile, I shift into gear and drive away.
Thankfully, there’s not too much traffic by the time I hit the highway. I’m heading to my cabin in the woods, something I do every other weekend. It’s a long five-and-a-half-hour drive, which is why I usually leave work early on Fridays to not only beat the traffic, but get to the cabin at a reasonable hour, stop by the grocery store and pick up some supplies for dinner. I already packed my bag and put it in the trunk before I took the car to the workshop. Now, it looks like I’ll have to order some takeout and eat it on the go.
I take my final right hand turn, and this is the part of the drive that I hate the most because there’s nothing out here for miles. Like seriously, I’m talking pitch black roads, with a lot of potholes, no streetlights, and a gas station every ten to fifteen miles. There’s also only one hotel, literally in the middle of the highway, halfway between here and the cabin, and the phone service out here is sketchy in some parts. I look at the fuel gauge, half a tank of gas, so I quickly pull into the first gas station before making the long journey along the highway. After filling the car with gas, I head into the store, grab some snacks and a few drinks, and place them on the counter. The attendant rings up the items on the register. I hand him my credit card and he finalizes the payment.
Once I’m back in the car, I connect my phone to the CarPlay unit I had installed as an added extra when I purchased the car. I also had some new speakers installed. The display lights up and I press on the YouTube Music App.I scroll to my eighties and nineties playlist. Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up” immediately starts playing. I fasten my seatbelt, start the car and pull out of the gas station. I open the packet of Skittles and toss a few colors into my mouth and continue driving along the highway. The lights of oncoming cars on the opposite side of the road reflect on my windshield as I sing along to the music. It’s cold as fuck, so I flick on the heater and throw some more Skittles in my mouth.
I press my foot down on the accelerator, keeping to the speed limit as I cruise along the highway. The cars on the opposite side of the road become less and less, and I turn up the volume on the stereo, and suddenly, there’s large drops of water on my windshield.
You have got to be kidding me.
I turn on the windshield wipers, and as they swish from side to side, the rain gets heavier. I increase the speed of the wipers and lower my speed in the car. I hate driving in the rain, especially up here and on these roads. It’s scary enough driving here in normal conditions, but add some heavy wintery rain, and it’s like being in a horror movie. I continue along the highway, my wipers working at full speed, and with the heavy rain, I struggle to see out the window, so I flick on my high beams.
It’s been raining for the past two-and-a-half hours straight, and the roads are slippery and dangerous with all the potholes. I’ve reduced my speed to the point where I’m pretty sure a snail would beat me in a marathon. Some flashing lights catch my attention up ahead on my right. I squint my eyes to try and see through the window, and as I get closer, I notice that the hazard lights are on. I proceed to slow down, and see a car pulled up on the side of the road. There’s a man leaning into the trunk of his car, and when my lights hit him, he spins around and faces me, placing his arm over his eyes to block the lights. I signal and pull up behind him. He stands there, with his arm still shielding his eyes from the lights, so I turn my high beams off. The stranger lowers his arm and I finally see his face. He’s drenched from head to toe, and he looks exhausted. I unclip my seatbelt, then unlock the door. I lean over the passenger seat, grab my coat, and push the door open. I step out of the vehicle and place the jacket over my head to protect me from the rain as I approach the man.
“Are you okay?” I scream over the pouring rain.
“Flat tire,” he replies.
“Oh. Do you need some help with the spare?”
“It’s flat.”
The rain continues to fall heavily, his t-shirt is molded to his skin. The guy must be freezing because his nipples are visible through the fabric. There isn’t a gas station around for miles, and the guy is clearly in need of some help. I’m not one to normally offer help to strangers, especially random ones standing on the side of a deserted highway in the middle of the night in the pouring rain. However, this guy looks innocent enough.
“It’s pouring. Do you have an umbrella? A coat?”
He shakes his head.
“Well, we should get out of this rain, or you’ll catch a cold out here. Can I give you a ride somewhere?”
“That would be great, thank you.”
He closes his trunk and I get back inside my car. I watch as he takes a backpack from the backseat then he locks the car and walks toward my vehicle. He pulls open the passenger side door, gets inside, and fastens his seatbelt.
