id: 432
name: [WIP] the Childhood Friend Nerdwan
author: TwFctr
date: 7th July 2021
text len: 59311
views: 88

>November, 2010
>the sun was just starting to set
>the hum of burning neon filled the air, interrupted from time to time only by the chiptune jingles of the cabinets
>I’m sure we were the only kids below 12 years old in the arcade at the time
>everybody else seemed to be sad 20 something-year-olds trying to relive memories
>I walked around, clutching a plastic baggie of quarters in my hands, looking for something new to play
>I turned around when a familiar sound called my attention
>“MISSION 1: START!”
>yep, she did just as I had expected
>“seriously? Metal Slug 3 again? It’s like 10 years old by now…”
>“yes, and? it’s a timeless classic”
>“it’s also on the xbox live arcade you know? so you can play it at home?”
>“wait is it really?!”
>“yeah… that’s why we come to the arcade, to play stuff that isn’t on the xbox”
>“oh… well… I’m not wasting this quarter”
>“figures, in that case…”
>I walked over and nudged her aside a little
>“what are you doing?”
>I bent down and fed one of my quarters into the second coin slot
>“…you’re not playing without me”
>I pushed the second player start on the console…

>…

>…she wasn’t much like her mother or sisters…
>I mean… she looked mostly like a hellhound
>she had skin made of ash and she had canine ears on the top of her head
>though she didn’t have claws for hands, she didn’t have a fuzzy tail nor did her eyes spew fire constantly
>the biggest differences, however, were in her mentality…

>…

>August, 2015
>“check it out! pretty sick right?”
>I asked as I slightly revved the engine on my new car
>it was a Toyota Chaser from 1993
>I had put all of my life savings just to pay the half of it
>my dad had agreed to help me paid for it if I passed with mostly A’s on that semester
>I think that’s the most effort I have ever put into studying in my life
>“I can’t believe your dad allowed you to have it”
>“I know right! probably because he thinks it's just like any old boring sedan from the 90’s”
>“what engine does it have?”
>“I got the one with the 2JZ-GE, manual transmission too!”
>“oh… wow… c-can I drive it?”
>“uh… you can ride shotgun with me”
>“aw Anon…”
>“oh alright, I’ll let you have a turn, just somewhere with uh… with not many things to crash into”
>“hah! well, that’s good enough for me”
>she threw her purse into the back seats through my window and then walked around the car
>she got on the passenger seat and clicked on her seatbelt
>“how about the abandoned mall parking lot? no one goes there, because it’s abandoned”
>“sure, just let me tell my dad and uh… you do have a license, right?”
>“don’t worry about it, we’re not going to be on public roads anyways”
>I smiled and then chucked the stick into reverse

>…

>…her sisters were always chasing boys and doing everything to be the popular girls at school
>she, on the other hand, only seemed to care about having a good time with her friends
>and I respected that
>she looked happiest with me
>and I liked that…
>…granted, there were not many people that she considered true friends
>so it’s not like I had someone to compete with… for… her… attention…

>…

>April, 2018
>“w-what do you mean?”
>“I’m sorry Anon… I’m going to college…”
>“oh… I-I see… w-when are you leaving?”
>“next month, I’m moving two states in”
>“…”
>“…”
>“will you come back?”
>“I… I don’t know… I’ll try”
>“w-well, we still have a month, right?”
>“I guess… want to go to the arcade?”
>“y-yeah… how about we get some p-pizza afterwards?”
>“that sounds nice Anon”

>…

>…
>…man…
>I already knew I liked her for a long time by then…
>why did I never ask her out?
>it’s not like I already had a girlfriend
>all those years and I didn’t…
>why did I…
>…
>I miss her…

>…what was her name again?

>present day

>beep
>“mmmh…”
>beeeeeep!
>“augh…”
>*BEEEEEE-
>I slammed my fist down on my alarm clock, shutting it up immediately
>my eyes felt like they had been glued shut
>regardless, I sat up on my bed
>and immediately felt something in my back crack
>the pain made me flinch my eyes open
>“ah shit… god fucking ugh…”
>I rubbed my temples
>my body felt like it was running on fumes
>and I had literally just woken up
>I threw my covers to the side and got up from my bed
>I stood completely still in my dark room for a few seconds
>the only cover on my body were my tighty whities
>the dust on the floor was so thick I could feel it seeping into the soles of my feet
>I looked around and made a self-analysis of my situation
>and the results were thus:
>room: a fucking mess
>body: in agony
>mind: regretful
>conclusion:
>yep, it’s one of those Saturday
>fucking hell…
>at least I get the late shift today
>I looked over to my clock to see how many alarms I had missed before waking up only to realize I had smacked the thing broken
>the clocked displayed only 6’s and the date was set to December 47th, 1239
>“how the fuck did I… eh I’ll fix it later”
>I threw on the same shorts I had been using for the last 4 days and the first t-shirt I saw in the pile of clothes in the corner of my room
>I took some sandal into my bathroom
>that way I could put them on immediately after washing the caked layer of dust off my feet
>when I was done, I left my room, grabbing my phone from my bedside stand and accidentally kicking a bottle of stella artois on the way out
>my mornings are not always this shit, if you were wondering
>it only seems to happen some Saturdays
>don’t know why, learned to stop questioning it a few months ago
>I got to my kitchen where I served myself a bowl of corn pops for breakfast
>halfway through the bowl, my mind started to get hazy
>I was spacing out, only to be brought back to earth by my phone ringing
>it was my mom calling me, I picked up immediately
>“he-hello? mom?”
>“hi honey~ just woken up?”

>“y-yeah… how’d you know?”
>“I can hear it in your voice”
>“oh, figures”
>“anyway, how have you been darling?”
>“me? fine, great even… h-how have you been? How’s dad?”
>“oh we’re fine too honey, your father is busy packing our luggage in the car”
>“ah”
>“yeah, it’s only a couple of days before we get back home, and I just wanted to check up on you… you haven’t burned the house down, have you?”
>“pffft no…?”
>“…alright… we’ll be seeing you soon darling, take care of yourself”
>“yeah, see you soon mom, byeee love ya~”
>“by-
>I hung up and put my phone aside
>the low battery alert rang off
>god fucking shit
>I finished my corn pops
>threw the bowl on the sink along with the rest of the unwashed plates and cutlery
>the first thing I did after that was go back into my room
>plug my phone to the charger and then…
>…I fell asleep another few minutes
>in my defense, I had nothing better to do
>my job didn’t start until the evening
>and I wasn’t gonna clean the house or anything like that
>not on Saturday
>not specially on one of THOSE Saturdays
>this is Sunday's work
>I fell into a deep sleep and woke back up around noon
>my mind was full of static
>I hadn’t dreamed of anything during my nap
>didn’t matter
>now it was time to get presentable
>I checked my phone
>it was fully charged now
>I connected it to the bargain bin Bluetooth speakers in my bathroom and jumped into the shower
>after a thorough cleaning and vibing to Daft Punk, l shaved my 5 o’clock shade and fixed my hair
>since I was going to work soon, I needed some less shitty clothes
>in this case, some light jeans and a t-shirt that doesn’t smell like humid attic
>thin and fresh stuff
>I was gonna wear an overall most of the shift anyway
>and so, I waited some more until the clock hit 1:45 in the evening
>it was time to go
>I grabbed my keys, phone, and wallet
>locked my home and left for work on my chaser
>I zoomed down the tight streets of my small neighborhood

>the streets eventually opened up as I reached the center of the city
>the ride was unremarkable
>the only thing different about today is that the cars illegally parked over the curbs were owned by tourists rather than locals
>yep, it’s the start of the summer season
>beach side cities on the eastern coast are a fucking mess during this time of year
>it’s high season for drunk retards on the road crashing into shit
>which means more work that usual
>great…
>…at least it’s not California
>I had finally made it to the shop
>I parked my car outside and walked in through a big garage door on the front of the building
>there inside was my boss Jace, an auto enthusiast in his mid-30’s
>he was standing between two of my co-workers
>Abigail, a centauress who helps moving stuff around the shop, we nicknamed her BG, short for Big girl
>and Marin, a scylla who works on intensive repairs, she likes to be called Cups, because suction cups
>they were standing around a car, but I couldn’t make the model with them on the way
>I whistled to get their attention as I walked up to them
>they all turned around and waved
>“hey Anon, come look at this!”
>Jace exclaimed as he moved aside to reveal a rundown red Toyota
>the hood was shaped like a wedge, but the corners were soft
>it had pop-up headlights and the seat was in the right side of the cabin
>it looked like a combination of an AE86 and a Celica GT-S
>it would have probably looked better if it weren’t for the dents, the rust spots and the suspension being so shitty that it was nonexistent
>“what is that thing?”
>“this is the new shop project, a Toyota JZA70… also known as a Supra Mark III”
>“what the f… where you get this?!”
>“sketchy Japanese businessman, he was desperate to get rid of the darn thing, so I bought it for like uh… 2k?”
>“2K FOR AN IMPORT?!”
>“I know right? wanna help us make this thing drive-able again? we're gonna need you superb problem finding skills because oh man does this thing have problems”
>“BOY DO I!”

>“great, BG will handle the logistics and cups will take care the whole dismantling the darn thing”
>“what will you do Jace?”
>I said sarcastically
>“well, I’m the guy putting in the parts and the money”
>“fair enough, what will you do with it?”
>Jace was about to answer when cups interrupted
>“aw come on Anon, we all know he gonna keep it, saying it’s the shop’s project is how he justifies paying less than a normal costumer”
>“No…?!”
>Jace’s kneejerk reactions put a smile in our faces
>“well, it will certainly cost a lot less, but not because I’m paying you less, I’m just not gonna mark up the prices of parts for THE SHOP’s car…”
>“you were about to say ‘my car’ instead of the shop’s, weren’t you?”
>BG remarked
>“maybe, but I didn’t”
>“so it’s just gonna be the four of us on this?”
>“well, not everyone in the evening shift has arrived so I haven’t asked them, obviously, and everyone in the morning shift said they were too busy”
>BG snorted and clapped a hoof on the floor
>“I say everyone in the morning shift is an idiot”
>“…doesn’t your brother work here in the morning shift though?”
>“yeah”
>“…alright then”
>just then, a couple of engines outside announced the arrival of more staff
>five more people arrived, but they didn’t have interesting personalities or nicknames
>“welp, looks like we have enough people to open up the shift, I’ll tell you guys when we can gather to work on the supra… cups, get the lifts ready”
>“righto”
>“Anon, you get one of the tow trucks today, keys are in the office wall”
>“yessir”
>“BG, help me push this wreck out of the work space”
>“sure”
>“right, hop to it”
>Marin walked off
>Abi stayed besides Jace as he welcomed the workers that had just arrived
>I went into the little room that makes the offices
>on a wall was mounted a calendar with little hooks for keys at the bottom
>I grabbed one of the keys that was labeled ‘1’ and then went outside
>on the back of the shop were three flatbed trucks labeled 1, 2 and 53
>yeah I don’t know why either, Jace refuses to tell me

>I got up to the matching truck and opened it with the key
>I checked the cabin, making sure everything was normal
>then I went around to the side controls and tested them
>the bed slanted fine, and the winch moved smoothly
>everything seemed to be in order
>now I just needed to get my overall on or Jace would scold me
>I locked the truck and went around the shop and back to my own car
>I opened the trunk and crawled in, closing it once I was inside
>there in the darkness, I pulled my pants off and slid my overall over my trousers and t-shirt
>I zipped it up and then pulled on the internal trunk release cord I had modified into my chaser a couple of years back
>dressed and ready for the job, I went back to the truck to heat up the engine
>as soon as I sat in the cabin, my phone vibrated
>I pulled it out of my overall pocket and checked the notifications
>it was a message from Jace
>It read ‘first one of the day, nice and early’ and had a hyperlinked address attached
>‘got it’ I replied
>I clicked on the address
>my GPS app automatically opened with the route marked
>“fucking hell, this is all the way to West End… those are rich people streets”
>I muttered to myself
>the drive if gonna be a pain but at least we’ll maybe be able to squeeze some extra cash out of it
>I fired up the truck and slowly I went, picking up the pace as the engine warmed up
>it was around a 25-minute drive, slightly hindered by traffic
>I knew I had made it to West End when the streets got narrower
>the houses around where compact but fancy looking
>classical styling, vibrantly colored with more muted trims
>I stopped in front of a red house with beige roof and porch
>there was a detached garage next to it painted the same scheme
>the numbers next to the door matched the one in the address
>this was the place
>I grabbed my notebook and pen, and walked to the door
>“hello? tow truck services”
>I said aloud as I knocked the door
>“coming~”
>replied a sultry voice
>one I found oddly familiar
>a few more seconds passed

>I started making notes on my notebook to kill time
>when the door finally opened, I put my book aside and tried greeting whoever had opened
>“he-
>my salutations were interrupted by a shocked gasp
>before I could look up to the resident of the house, I felt the sides of my head get squished by two big crushing fur covered muscles
>“oh my lucky stars… look who it is!”
>I tried to protest but all that came out of my mouth were mumbles and wheezes
>my cheeks being smushed against my own eye sockets meant I couldn’t see either
>“BAILEY, MECHANIC’S HERE! AND YOU WON’T BELIEVE WHO IT IS~”
>shouted my assailant
>that name…
>when the fuzzy menaced finally let go of my head, I took in deep breaths
>I looked up to whoever had just temped against my life
>only to see a very tall, beast of a woman
>literally
>hey skin was gray like ash and her physique could make body builders from the 70’s blush
>she was wearing skin tight gym clothes and a visor
>she had two soft claws where her hands should be, and her eyes emitted an intense flame from the outer corner of her eyes
>that was all my brain needed to understand
>she was a hellhound
>my mind began to dig up old memories I thought were lost
>I began to get nervous
>my knees felt weak
>a name I had long forgotten popped into my mind
>“m-Mrs. DeGarm?”
>I uttered experimentally, hoping I didn’t get her name wrong
>“oh yes Anon, I’m surprised you even remember my name, specially with how low the attention span of you youngsters seems to be”
>“excuse me?”
>“oh I’m just messing with you honey, I knew you would never forget us”
>“I-
>my heartbeat was as consistent as a rollercoaster
>“oh I still remember those days when my baby Bailey would ask sheepishly if she could go hang out with you”
>memories spewed forth and spiraled around inside my head, leaving contrails of conflicted feelings
>I remember everything now
>“Bailey… wait…she’s here?!”
>“oh yes, she just arrived this morning actually, oh speaking of which…”
>Mrs. DeGarm moved out of the doorway
>behind her, coming down the stairs, came her
>she looked nothing like I remembered her
>her skin was more of a light tan rather than ash
>the sclera of her eyes was no longer pitch black, yet her irises still shined in orange and yellow
>like amber melting on a fire
>she was wearing a yellow crop top flannel shirt and tight jeans
>her complexion was no longer scrawny
>her assets had grown significantly
>though her abdomen and limbs remained lean, her muscles were well defined on her skin
>she stopped when she looked at me
>her cheeks became red
>and I’m quite sure mine were as well

>Bailey raised her hand in a stiff and awkward wave
>I replied with my own stiff and awkward wave
>Bailey’s mom stood between us, looking at us like she was expecting more to happen
>“so uh… you two haven’t seen each other in a while, huh?”
>“y-yeah, we haven’t”
>she replied
>unlike her body, Bailey's voice hadn’t changed a bit in the last 3 years
>Mrs. DeGarm took out a small towel from one of her pockets and wiped her forehead
>“well, I’m sure you two will have some to get up to speed with each other, I have a bench press to get back to, have fun kids~”
>and with that, she walked off to another room
>Bailey walked up to me, trying not to make eye contact
>her cheeks were burning red
>she closed the front door behind her
>I tried to say something but she cupped her hand over my mouth and whispered into my ear
>“shhhh… she’s still listening”
>that comment scared me a little
>Bailey then grabbed me by the hand and guided me around the front porch
>she led me to the side of the house and behind a hedge next to the garage
>there, after looking around for a bit, she turned to face me
>I was about to speak but I was once again interrupted
>not by her hands around my mouth
>but by her lunging at me
>she wrapped her arms around my waist and buried her face on my chest
>I felt like if the hairs on my nape started to crawl
>my cheeks were definitely red this time
>I slowly wrapped my arms around her chest too
>“you have… no idea… how glad I am… to see you”
>she said in between a sort of worried laughter
>“I’m… still quite shocked… to be honest”
>I started to chuckle nervously
>Bailey let go of me and leaned against the garage door to catch her breath
>she took a deep breath and then mushed her forehead against the wall
>“I feel so bad now… I can’t believe I didn’t figure to call you right when I got here”
>I placed my hand on her shoulder
>“don’t worry about it, I mean… it’s not like I could have answered anyway”
>“what do you mean?”
>“I had to change my number a few months ago, dropped my phone into a sewer drain by accident and lost my SIM card”
>“oh…”
>“but I mean… that just makes this reunion even more amazing!”
>“ha… I guess it does…”

>we stared into each other’s eyes for a few seconds
>the world disappeared around us
>this beautiful moment was delightfully ruined by my phone vibrating loudly through my overall pocket
>“oh sorry”
>I checked the locks screen to see what the notification was about
>it was a message from Jace
>I unlocked my home screen and quickly glanced at the message
>‘everything good over there?’
>“oh crap… hey sorry for breaking kayfabe, but I’m on payroll right now”
>“oh- s-sorry”
>“it’s ok, we can talk on the way to the shop”
>“r-right”
>Bailey kneeled down to undo the lock on the garage door
>I quickly answered Jace’s message
>‘everything good, gonna take a little longer than usual tho’
>he immediately replied with a thumbs-up emoji
>Bailey pulled the garage door up and went in
>I followed after her
>inside was a small red roadster with soft curves, a cloth roof and big round pop-up headlights
>I smiled as I instantly recognized it
>it’s a first-generation Mazda Miata
>they are fun cars to work on
>too bad I’d be stuck working the truck this day
>“so, what’s wrong with it?”
>“uh… I tried going to the store and it wouldn’t start”
>“hmmm, do the lights work?”
>“huh? I mean yes, they do”
>“does the ignition crank?”
>“uh… that’s when you twist the key all the way and it does those weird sounds before the engine starts, right?
>“yes”
>“it does”
>“ok, the problem doesn’t seem to be electrical… and the ignition works…”
>I muttered to myself, tapping my chin as I reasoned out the problem
>“wait here for a sec”
>I told bailey as I ran down the driveway to the truck
>I opened the cabin and started digging around behind the bench seat
>“come on… I know you’re around here somewhere… AHA!”
>I exclaimed as I pulled out a spray can of starting fluid
>there's this guy in the shop called Steve, he likes to have a can this stuff handy whenever he's on the job
>he figured, why not put a spare in the shop's trucks? just in case
>thank you Steve, I'll buy you a beer if I can be bothered to remember you again
>I closed the truck and ran back to the garage
>“alright, I’m gonna need you to sit on the driver seat and put the key in the ignition”
>“oh ok… like if I was gonna drive it normally”
>“yes but don’t turn the key yet”
>“right…”
>Bailey carefully sat down on the cabin
>still, the entire body of the car swayed like if she had dropped a sack of bricks on it
>oof… that suspension is probably busted too…
>I made a mental note of that…
>“ok now pop the hood open please”
>“uh… oh there’s the latch”
>the hood unlocked with a little k-chunk
>I lifted it up and looked inside the engine bay
>the entire thing was covered in a thick layer of grime and oily residue
>clearly, this car had been neglected for a while now

>I wasted time no more!
>the culprit behind this engine’s failure to start was hidden in the maze of hoses on this bay
>I started by my going after my biggest suspect
>a faulty fuel system
>which is why I had brought the can of starting liquid over
>I decoupled the air intake hose from the air box and sprayed a little starter inside
>“ok now try to start it”
>Bailey twisted the key
>the starter began to crank
>the engine shook awake
>I immediately sprayed more starter in shorts burst to keep the engine from starving
>“AHAHA I KNEW IT!”
>I shouted over the engine’s rumbling
>I waved at Bailey to shut the engine off
>she did
>I walked over with glee stamped all over my face
>my biggest suspicion was correct
>the problem was with the fuel system
>I wished I had more tools to narrow down the problem even further
>“the engine itself is working fine, it’s just that fuel is not reaching it”
>I told her
>“oh, how bad is that?”
>“it’s nothing that serious… worst case scenario, we have to install new fuel lines… it’s a bit expensive and it takes a while, but it shouldn’t give any more problems for a long time after”
>“I see…”
>“ok, I’ll back the flatbed into the driveway, can you push the car out for me?”
>“sure!”
>and so, I ran off back to the truck
>this time I started it up and slid the rear end into the driveway with one fell swing of the wheel
>I got out, grabbed the winch hook, and pulled it over to the Miata
>Bailey stood aside as I bent down looking somewhere to tug the car from without ripping anything off
>I focused around the front vent
>there was barely able to spot an aftermarket tow hook hidden in the back of the opening
>huh, that’s weird…
>a Miata with a tow hook but no performance parts…
>hmmm
>previous owner must have been a trackday bro wannabe or something like that
>I attached the winch head to it and went back to the bed controls on the side of the truck
>I made some small chat with Bailey as I lowered the bed to pull the car over smoothly
>“so, are there any other problems with it?”
>“uh… I guess you could say so, one of the headlight bulbs doesn’t work…”
>“well, that’s an easy fix”
>“I feel like it bounces too much going over road patches or speedbumps…”
>“sounds like the suspension has gotten loose, that’s gonna cost a bit”
>“when I turn a corner, it feels like the whole thing is gonna tip over…”
>“does the car make a repeating clunking noise when you do that too?”
>“yes! how did you know?”
>“the sway bars links must have gotten disconnected, or they straight up snapped… anything else?”
>“um… the brakes feel spongy and uh… the gauges in the dashboard stopped working yesterday”
>I raised an eyebrow at that last detail
>“what were you doing when that happened?”
>“I was driving…?”
>“driving how?”
>“um… I guess you could say I was overdoing it a little…”
>“ooooh ok I gotcha… you went too hard on the gas, your dashboard fuse must have crapped out, that’s a known issue with these older model Miatas”
>“wow… um…”
>Bailey began fidgeting with her own fingers
>beads of sweat formed on her forehead
>“h-how much do you think it would cost t-to fix all that?”
>oh boy…

>“well… to be perfectly honest, it’s gonna be a lot if you want everything fixed at once… it’s also probably gonna take a few days, and that is if we even have the parts”
>“oh… maybe I could afford it but then I’d… hmph…”
>“look, I’m not allowed to say this to costumers, but our service fees are really marked up… if you have the mechanical knowhow, buying the parts and then installing them yourself would probably save you around 60% of the price”
>“why are you telling me this? shouldn’t you be helping the people who pay you get more money?”
>“yes, I should, if you were a random person I would definitely toss around a spiel about how ‘we are a business and we need to make money so our employees can live happy and blah blah blah we’re totally not overcharging you like the rest of the mechanic shops in the country do because honor and blah blah blah’ but you are not a random person, you are my friend Bailey…”
>I took a moment to regain my breath
>silence fell between us for a few seconds
>Bailey looked at me with worried eyes
>I finished pulling the Miata onto the flatbed
>“sorry, I-I got a bit intense at the end there”
>“it’s… ok… I appreciate your honesty”
>“y-yeah, thanks… so what will you do?”
>“I think I’ll follow your advice and get someone cheaper to help me out, though I do want to get the fuel situation fixed right away”
>I nodded and then pulled out my notebook and pen
>“I’m going to write up the diagnosis as possibly a busted fuel pump and a blown gauge cluster fuse, those are the essential, the things that need to get fix right now”
>“ok, how much do you think that would cost?”
>“I don’t know, the minimum we charge for a fuel pump replacement is $220”
>“I think I can afford that right now”
>“nice… let’s go get ‘er fixed then”
>“right”
>I made sure the car was secured to the bed and then hopped into the cabin
>I pushed a bunch of garbage and loose dust off the passenger sit
>Bailey climbed in and kicked up even more dust into the air when she sat down

>I apologized about the sorry condition of the cabin
>cough cough even though it’s not my fault nor my responsibility cough cough
>fuck you Steve, you were supposed to clean the trucks last time
>the engine started, and we were shortly off
>now that we were on the road, I could get up to speed with her
>“so uh… where did you go to college?”
>“hmmm?”
>“yeah… when you left, you didn’t exactly tell me where you went, you just said it was two states away”
>“oh, I went to Massachusetts”
>“really? I know there are a lot of cool schools over there, which one did you go to?”
>“um… MIT”
>the surprise was such that it made me choke with my own breath
>“whahahat? you went to the MIT?!”
>“uh yeah…? got into computer science and engineering, got my bachelor’s and then decided to come back home for a rest”
>“I… wow I never imagined that you-hey wait a minute… doesn’t it take four years to get a bachelor’s degree over there? you only left 3 years ago”
>“yeah, the bachelor’s takes four… if you do the courses normally… I got into a bunch of extra classes and courses over the summers and holydays brakes and got enough points to get it a year earlier”
>I just sat there in silence, completely stunned, mouth slightly agape
>Bailey began to blush harder than ever
>“oh d-don’t give me too much credit Anon, I-I’ve seen people do it only in two years!”
>“that… that doesn’t take away from it…”
>Bailey’s cheeks burned brighter
>sweat began to boil into steam from surface of her cheeks
>her ears went flat on top of her head out of shyness
>I couldn’t help but to smile
>shortly after, I changed the subject for Bailey’s sake
>we talked about my side of the story
>what I had been doing since she left
>and honestly, that made me uncomfortable as well
>the conversation was normal, but internally I felt ashamed of myself
>not in a ‘shy-about-my-successes’ kind of way
>the legit kind
>compared to her, I had done nothing
>achieved nothing and gone nowhere…
>it wasn’t long before we arrived at the sop
>I gave Bailey some advice as I swung the back of the truck into the garage
>“don’t say I told you about the fee markups, insists you just want the fuel and fuse sorted out, if they press you to get more things fixed, tell them it’s a project car and that you want to fix it yourself and you just need help with this, they should get off your case with that”
>“got it, thanks Anon”
>“hey no problem and uh… pretend you don’t know me… just in case”

>“sure… but uh… quick, give me your phone for a sec”
>“huh? uh sure, what for?”
>she takes it and uses the locked screen camera to take a picture of her own phone
>“it’s my number…”
>“oh… nice”
>Bailey chuckles
>I think this is the first time a woman has given me her phone number unprompted
>let’s just hope it’s also the first time it isn’t a false one
>I park the truck just outside of the garage
>several of my coworkers come running out to the truck, amongst which BG stands out
>one of them gets on the side controls
>the others go to help the car off the bed
>he slants the table and starts letting the winch drop slowly
>BG and the rest grab the car by the rear bumper and guide it off gently
>in a matter of seconds, they have the car on the ground and the bed of the truck flat
>the guy who got the side controls walks up to the cabin and signals me the all clear
>I hand him the diagnosis note I made
>“gauge cluster fuse is borked and fuel isn’t getting to the engine, I suspect a faulty pump”
>I tell him
>“gotcha”
>he says in return
>I take the truck to its spot and get out
>my intention was gonna be that I pretend I’m gonna help just to make sure she wasn’t getting overcharged
>what happened instead is that as soon as I walked inside, the crew was already halfway through replacing the pump
>I wondered for a second how the fuck they had managed that so quickly
>until I saw Cups standing besides Bailey, holding an impact driver in each odd tentacle
>ah…
>still, I walked over and blended in with the rest of the crew who were poking around in the Miata
>I quickly glanced over and realized Bailey had walked to me and was pretending to see me pretending to work on her car
>she didn’t say a word to me
>“hey guys… come look at this…”
>one of my coworkers called out
>oh god…
>it was steve…
>“one of the sway bars has snapped, thing is dangling from beneath the car”
>fucking steve…
>some other of my coworkers swarm to look beneath the car
>they look around at each other and start talking
>I hear one of them say “I’ll get the jacks”
>and another shouts “BG, BRING A TOOLBOX OVER”
>“n-no guys wait!”
>I blurt out
>everyone stops in their tracks and looks at me concerned
>“um… t-the owner says we uh… can’t fix that”
>their concern turns into confusion as they turn towards Bailey
>thick beads of sweat begin forming on her forehead
>hmmm
>I feel I probably could have gone about this in a different, less weird way

>“um… I mean… yeah I… I want to fix it my-myself… yah know? it’s um… my project car”
>everybody looked around at each other for a couple of seconds
>the men had mixed reactions
>the women gave mischievous smiles
>um… ok…?
>“aight…”
>one of my coworkers said, with an unsurprised look on his face
>everyone left the car alone almost instantly
>fuck yeah, I knew it would work
>suddenly, the door to the storage rooms is kicked open
>it’s Jace, he has the fuel assembly with the new pump for the car
>wow, he actually went to get the part himself.
>that’s oddly proactive of him
>he walks over to Marin and hands it to her
>then he walks out to his air-conditioned office
>ah, that’s more like him
>Marin takes no time in installing the new pump
>she pulls back the carpet behind the seats and shoves the thing right into the gas tank
>a cacophony of electric whirs rings out, making Bailey jump in surprise
>with a flick of her tentacles, Marin has secured the fuel pump assembly, reconnected the wires and reaccommodated everything inside the cabin
>the only evidence left of the car being tampered with is the smell of gasoline in the air
>“there, let’s see if it runs”
>she says confidently, juggling one of her impact drivers
>Bailey walks up and carefully sits down on the driver seat
>again, the body of the car rocks excessively
>Marin visibly cringes at the sight
>Bailey twists the key in the ignition
>the starter chugs a little before the engine finally revives
>the gauges jump alive and then set to their correct measurements
>“AHAHA! It works, thank you guys so much! How much do I owe you?”
>“that would be $303 for the pump and the fuse”
>Marin answers
>“right”
>Bailey pulls out her wallet and pays with cash and exactly
>“and that would be everything, do you know your way back?”
>“yeah, don’t worry I’m not a tourist”
>“right, have a good evening then, and look out for drunk drivers”
>“thanks for everything~”
>Bailey waves at us as she leaves the shop, suspension still creaking

>I wipe off the sweat that had undeservedly formed on my forehead
>“who is she?”
>“mmm?”
>“whos's that girl?”
>“um… a costumeEH!”
>a tentacle suddenly wrapped around my shoulder and spun me around
>I was left face to face with Marin
>“don’t bullshit me Anon… firstly, I know you put those words in her mouth, I was standing right beside her”
>she had a gleeful tone about her
>a bit creepy, not gonna lie
>“oh well, you see…”
>Marin had a smug smile across her face
>“second, and most importantly… I was the one who taught you that ‘it’s a project car’ shit”
>“oh… right…”
>“it’s all right, everybody in the shop knows it’s code for ‘this person is a friend, let’s not rip them off’ so don’t be so afraid to use it in the future”
>“what?!”
>“I mean, if nobody knew then it wouldn’t really work, would it?”
>“I… didn't even know it was code”
>“it’s just our way of getting people we like off the hook without Jace getting pissed… so don’t tell him, right?”
>“righ-OOF!”
>one of Marin’s tentacles shot forwards and jabbed me in the abdomen
>“so fess up, what is she to you?”
>I was easy going with her antics so far, but that legitimately made me mad
>“god dammit Cups fuck off! she’s just a longtime friend, ok?! why do you want to know anyway?”
>“geez sorry… you’ve been working here for a few years now and this is the first time you use that trick, so I wanted to know… also I wanted to see if it was something worth the other girl’s gossiping about…”
>oh so that’s what those mischievous smiles were for…
>hmmm…
>I didn’t have much time to dwell on that thought as one of Marin’s tentacles grabbed me by the waist and spun me around again
>this time giving me a slight smack in the ass as it let go off me
>“AH! WHAT THE-”
>“back to work Anon, time is money~”
>she chimed as she scurried off to work on another car in the shop
>she’s always been curious and heavy handed with her mannerism, but this is the first time she’s been intrusive with her questions
>I still respect her but god damn…

>I went back to my post and the rest of the day went by
>nothing much happened
>I only had a few more pickups throughout the shift
>once the clock hit 20:30 everyone in the shop said their goodbyes as we closed for the night
>Jace walked besides me to the employee parking spots
>he taps on my shoulder to get my attention
>“hey Anon, look I asked around and not many people were interested in the project car… and by not many I mean it’s still the four of us…”
>“well, I mean… not gonna lie, work hours here are pretty intense, so I imagine people want to use their free time for something other than fixing cars they may never even get to drive”
>“…”
>“…”
>“…anyway, it’s still the four of us here but I got an idea to get some extra hands on the project”
>“you’re gonna get someone who doesn’t work here?”
>“yep, little somebodies I know may be interested”
>“cool but when are we starting with this?”
>“got tomorrow free?”
>my mind flashed to Bailey
>we haven’t even arranged anything yet
>still, I feel like maybe tomorrow maybe I’ll get to hang out with her…
>without my job getting in the way, that is…
>“I’m not sure, probably not”
>“yeah I figured… I’ll have to look over everyone’s schedule to get a good time”
>“maybe we can deal with it during work hours, you know, while we wait for other cars to arrive”
>“that… actually does sound like a good idea, I’ll talk about it with the rest later, take care Anon”
>“later Jace”
>we parted ways
>Jace, ironically enough, walked to the bus stop nearby
>I climbed into the trunk of my car once again to change back to my normal clothes
>then I climbed out and drove home
>I carelessly parked my car on the driveway
>I locked up the brakes to not slam into the garage door and I’m pretty sure I heard my tires squeal a bit
>didn’t matter
>home is home, no matter how you get there
>I locked my car and went inside
>the first thing I did after that was throw myself onto the living room sofa and pull out my phone
>I quickly opened my gallery to look at the picture Bailey had taken of her own phone
>I shot a quick message to that number which said ‘hey is this bailey?’
>and then… nothing…
>minutes passed
>I began to get anxious
>I abandoned my phone and began doing other things around the house
>sweat formed on my face every time I looked back at my phone sitting on the sofa’s armrest
>I was somewhat relieved that at least I know where she lives now
>though just strolling to her door and asking to hang out is not something 20-year-olds do
>plus, her mother would probably take too kindly to that
>hmmm…
>it was in those moments of doubt when I heard my phone vibrate
>I practically flew back onto the sofa and checked it
>it was a reply
>‘no’
>…
>‘just kidding it is me Anon’
>oh thank god

>my chest immediately felt several pounds lighter
>what a relief
>we had a little conversation and then started planning right after that
>I invited her to come over tomorrow under the pretext that I wanted to examine her car further
>honestly, I just wanted any excuse to hang out with her like the old times
>I just hope she does as well…
>ending the conversation after that was a bit awkward, but we eventually said our goodbyes for the night
>she agreed to come over to my house at around 13:00 on her car
>I felt triumphant as I pocketed my phone and went to my room
>my foot slipped as I stepped in, taking me out of my bliss
>I looked down at the smear of dust I left on the floor and was immediately reminded of the sorry state of the house
>it dawned on me that having someone I appreciated so much stay in these conditions was unacceptable
>so, I swallowed my pride and went against the statement I myself made this morning
>I am cleaning this house on one of THESE Saturdays…
>starting with this fucking mess of a room…
>I rolled up my sleeves and cuffed my pants before getting to work
>the first thing to do was put everything in order
>dusting off the shelves, putting everything where it belongs and folding the big pile of clothes in the corner before putting away the clean garments and tossing the dusty ones into the laundry basket
>once that was done, I went to the garage to get the vacuum cleaner and broom
>ironically enough, I had to dust it off it before using it to clean dust
>I armed myself and tackle the difficult challenge of basic household maintenance
>it took an eternity (2 and a half hours), I would have mourned for the lost time if I had anything better to do
>but after so much hassle it was done
>I had completely cleaned my room, I swept the hallways, washed the dishes, de-abominated the bathrooms and pretty much everything that Bailey may notice when she comes over
>everything else like my parent’s room, the attic and all the other places I don’t go to in the house can fuck themselves
>I didn’t mess them up, I ain’t cleaning them
>I stood on the living room, wiping the sweat of my brow
>I was completely tired, and it was close to 11 in the night
>a bath is all I need to before going to bed
>I admired my handywork as I headed to the shower
>not to toot my own horn but I think this is the cleanest the house has been with me alone in it
>after a nice cold shower, I did naught but dry myself and jump into bed
>my mind started to drift as the physical work of today took its toll
>before I lost the reigns of my brain to sleep, I reflected on my day one last time
>I woke up feeling like shit, living on a home I myself left to filth over the course of a few days…
>my time at work was not remarkable, yet it allowed me to reconnect with somebody I held close to my heart and had long forgotten, I even got her number without having to ask…
>the prospect of her presence lit a fire under my ass to get to work and make my place actually livable
>hell, the extra work may mean this is going to be one of the best sleeps I’ve had in a while
>hmmm…
>for one of THOSE Saturdays, it wasn’t really that bad…
>and with that hopeful thought, I drifted off to sleep

>my slumber became roily
>in my mind, I saw nothing but numbers, tools and electrical connection
>it would seem like my job had followed me into my dreams
>something which is a nightmare for most
>but then things changed
>I also saw angles, vibrant colors, and configuration
>all of that in the middle of a dark void
>a picture of a car was forming in my head
>a compact yet comfortable mid-engine roadster
>like a fiero… or an MR2
>this wasn't an eternal 9-to-5 nightmare
>it was an engineering revelation
>a drowsy eureka moment
>the comfortable feeling of different fabrics surged from my memories
>I saw an interior composed of smooth arcs
>one where the everything was angled towards the driver
>it felt right
>it felt complete
>the darkness was replaced by a windy mountainside road
>I saw myself on it
>driving on that very same road with the roof down
>I focused on the road ahead
>I thought I was alone, until I felt someone touch my leg
>I looked to the only other seat and saw Bailey sitting beside me
>she was wearing denim shorts, a white tank top and a big sun hat
>she moved her hand from my leg and around my chest
>I felt immobilized
>the road before us didn’t matter anymore
>she pulled me closer and perked her lips
>as our mouths made contact, a white light took over my vision
>it was around 7:40 in the morning, I had just woken up
>the night had passed in a flash
>there was no fatigue
>there was no regret
>I did really have one of the best sleeps I’ve had in a while
>I sat on my bed and stretched my arms
>there was an uncomfortable feeling of pressure all around my hips
>I threw my bedsheets aside and looked down
>there, before me, inside my own underpants, was the most intense erection I’ve ever had
>I was in awe at the size of my own lad
>damn… guess I really missed her…
>he… hehe…
>uh…
>I’m just gonna… move on with my morning…
>…
>I grabbed my phone and opened the personal notes app where I wrote
>‘must not forget: incredible mid-engine car concept, see dreams for more info.’
>after that, I got out of bed and dressed myself
>completely brushing aside that second half of the dream
>and its… ahem… consequences

>I dressed lightly
>some khaki shorts, a tank top, and sandals
>I had planned to get my tools ready right before Bailey arrived
>they were all stashed among boxes in my garage
>getting them all out was going to be a bit of a workout and I didn’t want to be a sweat-swamped monster when Bailey arrived
>I grabbed some more normal clothes which I would change into when I was done with the tools
>I caught a glimpse of myself on a mirror as I was leaving my room
>Jesus Christ…
>I look like me dad now
>fuck it
>it’s not like I’m staying like this for the whole day
>I walked downstairs and set the spare clothes on the sofa
>walked into the kitchen and reached for the corn pops
>I stopped myself and thought
>“god damn, I’ve been eating this shit for breakfast for like two weeks straight… I need to eat some real food in the morning for once”
>and so, I opened the fridge and pulled out some eggs and bacon
>I chopped the bacon into bits and threw it on a pan
>the bacon crisped up and released its grease
>perfect
>I cracked the eggs on the bacon and scrambled them
>what came out was one of the tastiest things I had ever cooked
>I ate my scrambled eggs straight on the pan with some microwave re-heated biscuits and a big juicy apple
>I washed it all down with a big glass of cold water and cleaned the kitchen
>damn…
>…
>…why do I feel so alive today?
>anyway
>to the garage!
>I exited my house and looked around
>it was a nice sunny day
>the morning breeze was still blowing
>there wasn’t a soul in the street
>unusual for this neighborhood but whatever
>they are the ones missing out, not me
>I got into my car and parked it next to the curb
>that way I’d have the driveway free
>then I opened the garage and went straight to the corner
>in there was a dusty air compressor
>this baby is going to help me out a ton for what I want to do
>so, I dusted it off and turned it on
>the incorporated air tank would take some time to fill
>in the meantime, I began pulling out more tools and gadgets
>torque, socket and impact wrenches, some cloths, a flashlight, thread locker, a bucking bar (just in case), the whole show
>I cleaned everything and set it all neatly on a table
>granted, I wouldn't need ALL of these things
>BUT…
>…I do want to look like I know what I’m doing
>that's important as well

>a few er… hours…(?) later, everything was set up
>the tools where in place, the compressor was ready, the useless boxes were out of the way
>the whole place just looked beautiful
>I looked at the hour and realized it was almost time
>I close the garage and went back inside the house
>at first, I wanted to just simply switch into my non-dad clothes
>but then I felt how my own skin was caked in a mixture of filth and sweat and no
>just the clothes wouldn’t do
>eugh…
>I grabbed my stuff and got to my bathroom
>there, I showered
>as usual, I had Digital Love playing in the background
>this time however, I scrubbed and cleaned every inch of my body as best I could
>once I got out, I washed my teeth, applied deodorant, and got dressed in my fanciest outfit
>which was… uh… a white t-shirt with a graphic of a cool triangle on it…
>…and the same type of jeans I wear every day
>hmmm…
>I should probably switch it up a bit
>but all the clothes I have look like this…
>…
>…I did my hair and went downstairs
>I sat on the living room sofa and waited for a couple of minutes
>then I received a call
>I answered without checking who it was
>“hello?”
>“Anon?”
>oh
>it’s Bailey’s mom
>I checked my phone
>the number she was calling me from wasn’t registered on my contacts
>wait…
>what?
>“um… Miss D’Garm?”
>“yes sweetie, my baby Bailey just left without telling me where she was going, you don’t happen to know what she’s up to do you?”
>she sounds oddly enthusiastic
>“um… h-how did you get my number?”
>“oh I grabbed her phone in the middle of the night and unlocked it with her fingerprint while she slept, there I found your number and decided to save it on my phone too! now answer the question”
>a shiver crawled up my spine
>I remembered how Bailey wanted to limit how much her mom heard from us yesterday
>I decided to keep up with that
>“uh… no I have no clue m-Miss, she-I mean… I asked if she wanted to uh hang out today but she uh told m-me she was busy so uh… yeah…”
>“but you don’t know where she is?”
>“yes”
>“you do?!”
>“yes! I mean no! I meant yes as in ‘yes, I do not know where she is or is going’… yeah”
>“…”
>“…”
>“…alright, if you find out, please tell me”
>she hanged up before I could reply
>I sagged down on the couch
>phew
>Bailey’s mom…
>she uh…
>she isn’t malicious, but from what I can remember, she gets a bit exited whenever one of her daughters gets a new boyfriend
>guess she’s suspicious of Bailey and me
>…
>wait…
>why did I say that like we are already dating?

>ah never mind that
>I put my feet up on the coffee table and turn on the TV
>it tunes in to a show about the daily life of chronically obese people
>I immediately remember why I no longer watch the TV
>the presenter mentioned the hardships of bathing while being 500+ pounds and that’s when I got scared
>enough TV for today
>my phone rings again
>I check the caller ID and this time it IS Bailey
>great
>I answer immediately
>“hello?”
>“oh, hello Bailey, how you doing?”
>“um… you said you still live in the same place, right?”
>“yeah, did you get lost?”
>“oh, on the contrary”
>“aha… what?”
>she hangs up
>then I hear a car’s horn coming from outside
>oh shit
>I open my front door and there she is
>Bailey, on the street right in front of my house
>she waves at me when she sees me
>I walk up to the curb and tell her to put her car on my driveway
>she obliges me, slowly bringing her Miata up to my garage door
>the car shakes as she gets out
>I walk around the car to say hi properly
>“hey Bail-OH!”
>she jumps at me, wrapping her arms around my torso in a hug
>her bust presses on my diaphragm, tapping a little air out of my lungs
>“hi Anon~”
>she's rather chipper today
>not complaining though
>I tap her back affectionately
>“hey Bailey”
>“you won’t believe what happened yesterday!”
>“uh what?”
>“guess!”
>“um… you got a great deal in parts for your car?”
>she recoils back and stares at me with an eyebrow up
>“did… did I guess right?”
>“yeah holy shit”
>“nice, what did you get?”
>“come look!”
>she pulls me by the hand towards the back of the Miata
>then she pops the trunk open and shows me a pretty nice-looking set of sway bars
>they are beefy and even came with adjustable end links
>“oooh! where did you get these?”
>“right after I left the mechanics yesterday, I started looking online for parts, turns our there was this guy near my house with a spare set of performance sway bars”
>“really? how much did they cost you?” 
>“around $400, though the guy said he bought them for 500 a few months ago”
>I raise an eyebrow
>“why would he give them away from $100 less?”
>“he planned to buy a Miata himself, he even bought some parts before getting the car, but then something bad happened between him and his bank and now he could not only not afford the car, but he also needed money fast”
>“so you bought them from him”
>“correct”
>“great! I mean uh… great for us, but damn… poor guy”
>“yeah…”
>“…”
>“…”
>“…he didn’t happen to have some other parts we could use?”
>“nah, these were the last things to go”
>“oh well, hope things go better for him, let’s install these babies!”
>“heh… alright”

>with the help of Bailey, we put her car on stands
>I put on my gloves and laid down a rag beneath my car
>it was time to work
>I crawled underneath and the first thing that became apparent was the snapped sway bars hanging beneath the chassis
>well, I already knew those were broken
>what’s new to me however, was the fact that the braces were loose, almost coming off in fact
>I guess that explains how the snapped ends hanged so low
>they were holding on for dear life just by the end links
>good thing I got my hands around the problem before they fell off
>most new sway bar kits don’t come with new braces and getting new ones would have been a pain in the ass
>“ok Bailey, could you please pass me the impact wrench and its set of bits?”
>“um… how do they look like”
>“it’s the thing that looks like one of those electric drills, it has a cable on the bottom of it, it should be on a table inside the garage”
>“ok, I see it”
>“you see a big plastic container next to it?”
>“yeah”
>“bring me those too”
>“a-alright”
>I took another look at those braces
>fortunately, it seems that the bolts have only rattled loose instead of shearing off their threads
>nothing a bit of more torque and thread-locker can’t fix
>I guess this is going to be easier than I thought
>“are these it?”
>I looked to my side where Bailey had put the tools
>“yep, those are it, thanks… though I think I don’t need them yet…”
>I started unscrewing the bolts by hand
>then I heard grunts coming from my left
>I turned my head to look and got poked in the eyes for my trouble
>“ouch!”
>I heard Bailey gasp right beside me
>and that’s when I understood what happened
>I rubbed my eye while carefully looking again
>yep
>Bailey had accidentally poked me with one of her fuzzy ears
>“are you ok?”
>“yeah, it was just a little poke”
>“sorry!”
>I began to chuckle
>her disproportionate concern was adorable to me
>“it’s fine, what are you doing down here?”
>“um… I wanted to see… that’s not a problem, is it?”
>“no, not at all, just hold on”
>I shimmied slightly to give Bailey some room
>in exchange, she flattened her ears to avoid poking me again
>then I started explaining to her what the problem was
>what I was going to do
>and how it’s gonna make her car feel better to drive
>and although I couldn’t turn to see her much, I could tell that she was listening carefully

>after pulling the braces and links off, the bar came off
>I took a closer look at the point where it broke
>there was rust damage on the surface and into the crack that eventually snapped
>“hey Bailey, look at this”
>“what is it?”
>“see how it’s rusted all over? seems like the car may have gotten hit from below, probably by a piece of road debris”
>“that’s what let the rust set in the first place, isn’t it?”
>“yeah… smart girl…”
>“hmmm”
>“alright, let’s slide out”
>I shimmied from under the car, end links in my hand
>I took the new adjustable links and compared them to the original ones
>“it’s important to make sure your end links are the same length as the OEM ones, that way you make sure your sway bars don’t hit when we install them”
>“oh… what does OEM mean?”
>“Original Equipment Manufacture… basically it means stock parts”
>“oh”
>“now pass me the impact wrench, let’s put the new ones in”
>a few minutes later, I emerged from under the car one last time
>the new bars were in
>I adjusted them to their stiffest setting for the time being
>Bailey helped me pack all my shit back into the garage
>I grabbed the broken bars and headed to the trash can
>“WAIT!”
>Bailey shouted as she ran up to me
>“what’s up?”
>“I… I need those…”
>her ears flattened, and her cheeks became slightly pink
>“what for? these are junk”
>“yeah but… I-I want to do something with them…”
>“um… ok”
>she took them from my hand and then she stored them away in the trunk of her car
>just what was she planning?
>“so, uh… Anon… want to go out on a d… a D… a d-test drive?”
>“sure, let’s see how the car feels now”
>“g-great!”
>she picked her keys and started her car while I went and locked the house
>the poor miata still trembled when I climbed in
>what could have even happened to those shocks?
>they are awful
>“where to?”
>“um… I don’t know… why don’t we just drive around for a bit?”
>“sounds good to me”
>Bailey reversed out of the driveway, and we were off
>driving towards the center in her plucky little car
>I turned the radio on
>the CD player was on and it played a nice light tune
https://youtu.be/XvDw0LXZCNI
>it went well with our drive out of my quiet neighborhood

>“I feel the difference already…”
>“do you?”
>“it doesn’t wobble as much as it did before…”
>“I mean… it shouldn’t wobble in a straight line at all”
>“I know… b-but it’s an improvement”
>I remained silent for a few seconds
>“maybe… maybe we can get better shocks for it sometime in the future”
>“maybe…”
>I cringed internally
>I didn’t want to make it sound like she has to spend money on this car
>well… yeah she needs to, there’s definitely not fixing that suspension for cheap but still…
>it makes me feel slimy
>eugh…
>“hey Anon, do you mind if…”
>“what’s the matter?”
>“I’m going to drive more… ah… eh?”
>before I could question what that meant, Bailey started pushing the car more
>stepping harder on the gas, shifting later
>the car lurched a bit every time she changed gears
>the street split into a T a few blocks in front of us but Bailey wasn’t slowing down
>“uh…”
>she moved close to the center of the road and put her right blinker on
>“Bailey?”
>“I know”
>“…ₒₖ”
>just a few yards away from the intersection, she lays down hard on the brakes
>we car dips on its left side as we bend through the corner
>someone is probably calling the cops right about now
>“it feels… hmmm…”
>“Bailey, I don’t think you should drive like that in these part of town”
>she eases of the throttle and starts driving normally again
>“I just wanted to test it on a hard turn once, I-I won’t h-hit anything!”
>“no, I mean… I just don’t want to bother the neighbors, they get pissy about loud cars around here… I know from experience”
>“oh…”
>Bailey’s cheeks began to flush
>she took a deep breath and then turned to me slightly as to not take her eyes off the road
>“h-hey Anon… do you want t-to get something to e-e-eat?”
>“sure, it’s right about lunch time and I hadn’t planned anything to eat… where do you want to go?”
>“I… I want to go to the uh… to the pizza arcade… place…”
>“yeah? I mean… yeah! yeah let’s go there!”
>“o-OK”
>Bailey picked up the pace again
>a quivery smile formed on her face

>we drove for several more minutes
>doing small talk in the meantime
>it was pleasant for the most part
>if a bit awkward at times
>bit it didn’t matter as long as it let time fly as we neared the place of our childhood
>however…
>as we parked next to the entrance, we made a terrible discovery
>the pizza joint was still there
>but the arcade section was all sealed up
>the windows were boarded
>there wasn’t a sound coming from there
>it wasn’t even painted like the rest of the restaurant anymore
>did…
>did they close it?
>there’s no way they close i-WHY WOULD THEY CLOSE IT?!?!?!?
>I looked over at Bailey
>she too stared in disbelief
>her ears had flattened back
>she turned to me with an insecure, almost fake smile
>“m-maybe they are just… they are just remodeling th-the place”
>“yeah… hopefully”
>we made out way in and sat down in a booth right in the middle of the restaurant
>there were very few other people at the restaurant sitting far away from each other
>from our perspective it almost seemed like the place was empty
>I looked around and called over a waitress
>Bailey seemed to be lost in thought
>her ears were still flat, and she was staring off
>I followed her gaze and realized that she was looking at the doors that divided the restaurant bit and the arcade bit
>they were sealed by a big piece of plywood
>oh no…
>the waitress came over with a couple of menus under her arm
>“hello, how can I serve you today?”
>she greeted us as she set the menus on the table
>I grabbed one and started looking through
>“h-how about a medium pizza? f-for the t-two of us I mean” Bailey suggested
>“yeah that sounds good, what kind of pizza though?”
>I slid the spare menu towards her
>instead, she looked straight at the waitress and said
>“a medium pizza please, half supreme and half meat lovers”
>without even glazing over the menu
>the waitress noted it down and left
>“wait… that’s…”
>“y-eah, you always… I mean… I remembered you-I remembered that’s how you like pizza”
>“aw Bailey…”

~to be continued sometime~