#ofmdweek2023

He pulled his car into a parking spot and turned it off, adjusting his floral bow tie—a light blue with hints of cream and pink in the flowers—before he got out and went inside the repair shop. It was hardly busy with only one person standing at the front desk chatting to a large worker with dreadlocks and a black-and-white striped shirt. Stede stood a couple feet back, starting a line.

Stede waited there for a few minutes, watching as other workers came out from the back to walk into an office to Stede’s right. The placard on the wall said “Edward Teach, Owner” which made sense. The place was called “Ed’s Car Repair and Detailing Services” after all, so this Ed guy was clearly in charge. From his point of view, he couldn’t see inside the office beyond a sliver of wall. Stede wondered what the owner looked like. Surely he would be at least as beefy as the workers that milled about, right?

As one of the workers came out of the office, he caught Stede’s gaze. This guy was much shorter but definitely not any less built, and he wore an all black mechanic’s jumpsuit. He looked Stede up and down before he grimaced, giving Stede a glare and heading out the back door again. Stede looked down at himself, wondering what had the man giving him such a look. Was it the wrinkles in his shirt? Aside from them, he thought he looked quite stylish.

The customer at the desk finished up and walked out, and Stede walked up to the desk with a smile. “Hello! I’m Stede Bonnet. I have an appointment to get my car inspected.”

The worker—his name tag read Ivan—said nothing as he typed into his computer. After a long moment, he looked at Stede and asked, “are you having any issues or do you just want it looked over?”

“Yes, there’s an issue,” Stede began. “When I try to clean the windshield, nothing happens. The cleaning liquid stopped coming out.”

Ivan blinked at Stede for a long few seconds. “Okay.” He turned back to the computer and typed some more. “We’re a bit backed up at the moment, so it will be a while before we get to your vehicle.”

Stede looked around the room. No one else was there. He turned back to Ivan. “How long do you think?"

Ivan sighed. He grabbed the mouse and clicked a few times. "Looks like we might be able to get to it tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" Stede's brows rose. "Well, you see, online it said that you would be able to see it right away, and it's a small issue. Will it really take that long? I have this important work event, you see. I need my car back by tomorrow morning."

Ivan blinked at him.

Stede let out a breath. "What if I paid extra? Is there a fee for rush service? I would gladly pay it."

Ivan did not seem to register this offer, as his expression did not change in the slightest.

"Please," Stede began to beg. "It's incredibly important that I make this event. Is there..." He looked around helplessly. "There must be something I can do..." His eyes stopped on the door to the owner's office. "May I speak to the owner? Perhaps he would understand my predicament."

Ivan sighed as he backed away from the desk and walked over to the office. "Sir," he said, opening the door slightly but not going inside, "a customer wants to speak to you."

Stede watched curiously as the door opened and a man walked out. He looked about Stede's age and had long black hair pulled back into a ponytail and a thick black beard, both graying in spots, making him look distinguished. He wore a plain black t-shirt and dark, loose pants, and his tan arms had many tattoos. As he stepped out of the office, his large brown eyes fell onto Stede, and Stede found himself unable to breathe for a moment. He hadn't expected such a beautiful man to own a repair shop.

Ed came over to the desk. He read over the document on the computer for a moment, each blink showing off how long his dark lashes were. He furrowed his brows and looked st Stede. "What seems to be the issue, exactly?"

Stede smiled apologetically. He hadn't meant to bother this nice man. "Well, I was hoping I could have my car fixed before tomorrow. I have an important event in the morning."

Ed's eyes lingered on Stede for a moment, falling slowly over his torso. He cleared his throat. "I, uh...I like your bow tie," he said, his voice a tad softer than Stede had expected.

Stede's smile brightened. "Oh! Thank you." He patted it gently with a hand. "You have excellent taste."

The corner of Ed's lips upturned just slightly before his eyes fell back onto the screen. "Well, it seems a shame to waste your time for such an easy fix. I'll grab some wiper fluid and meet you by your car."

Stede nodded. "Yes, thank you! Thank you so much."

Ed nodded and went to the back door, taking one more look at Stede before he went through it. Stede smiled to himself as he turned and went out the front door, going to stand beside his car. The owner was going to fix his car. How nice, he thought, that he would offer such a thing. Stede was beginning to worry that he would have to leave and bring his car back another day.

A moment later, Ed came out the front door and turned to look at Stede's car. He whistled. "Oh, she's a beauty."

Stede turned to smile at him. "Isn't she?" He looked at his car, a bright turquoise Ferrari. Freshly washed, not a scratch on her.

"What's her horsepower?" Ed asked. "Is she modded?"

Stede stared uncomprehending at Ed. He didn't know what any of that meant. "Uh...I don't know."

Ed looked back at Stede for a moment. "Oh," he said.

They stayed there for a moment, just looking at one another. Stede couldn't deny that Ed was an attractive man, but he was a car man, and Stede knew nothing about cars. He just thought they were pretty, and looking good was very important for Stede's job as the owner of a country club (which he hated). He wished, often, that he could just be around cars all the time. He loved looking at them and hearing them and driving them and cleaning them. He did his own detailing, and he took great pride in that, but now he wished that he had taken the time to learn more about how they worked. Now, he looked like an idiot in front of Ed.

"First, we need to pop the hood," Ed said, setting the container of orange liquid down on the sidewalk in front of the car. He looked at Stede. "Do you know how to do that?"

Stede nodded, unlocking the car and opening the front door to pull the latch that popped the hood. He closed the door and stood there, waiting for Ed to fix the car.

Ed lifted the hood and moved the rod to prop it open. His dark eyes looked up at Stede and used one finger to make a "come here" motion at him. Stede's cheeks heated but he complied, going to stand beside Ed.

Ed pointed to a bright blue cap at the front left side that read Wiper Fluid. "See this?" He pulled the cap off. "This is where the wiper fluid goes." He picked up the container he brought. "You can buy a container like this at any car shop. Shouldn't be more than a few bucks for a gallon like this." He pointed at some words on the container. "You want to make sure that you get one that won't freeze in the winter. Here, you need one that goes to -20 degrees Fahrenheit. This one also helps repel water, which will help keep your windshield looking nice even when it rains." He opened the container and began to pour it in. "Try not to spill." When about half the container was gone, he stopped and recapped it. "There. That should do it."

Stede smiled. "Wow! That was so easy." His smiled faded as he turned to look at Ed. "Oh. I suppose I didn't need to bring it in to be fixed."

Ed smiled back at him. "It's alright. I'm glad I got to see your fancy car." He returned the cap to Stede's car and closed the hood. "I'd love to take a ride in something like this one day."

Stede's heart leaped. "Are you free now?"

Ed looked at Stede, startled. "What?"

"If you're free, we can go for a ride right now," Stede said with his goofy smile. "Otherwise, I can come back some other time. It's only fair since you took the time to teach me to fix the problem with the wiper fluid."

Ed scoffed and looked back towards the car. "I couldn't. I've got a business to run. They might fall apart without me there."

Stede looked back to the repair shop. "It doesn't look all that busy to me. And you deserve a break. It must be hard running a business on your own."

Ed let out a slow breath. "I don't know..."

"It would be quick," Stede said. "Five minutes. Of course, I won't twist your arm about it. Just thought that if you would like it, I would offer."

Ed turned to look at Stede, a smile growing on his face. "Alright. Let's go.”

Stede went over to the driver's side, his hand hesitating as he reached for the door handle. He turned to look up at Ed already at the passenger's side. "Actually...would you like to switch?"

Ed's eyes widened. "You'd let me drive?"

"I figure you must be a good driver, working with car's and all," Stede said. "Go ahead." He tossed Ed the keys.

They switched sides and got into the car. Ed put the key into the ignition and started the engine, excitement blooming on his face as it roared to life. "Oh yeah. She purrs."

Ed backed up and took them out of the parking lot, speeding up as he got onto the road. Their heartbeats quickened and adrenaline rushed in as Ed went faster and faster. Then, they reached a red light, and he slammed on the brakes. Ed breathed heavy, catching his breath. He looked over at Stede, worried that he would be mad, but Stede wore a large grin.

"That was incredible," Stede said with a laugh. He met Ed's gaze. "You drive fine cars well."

They stared at one another for a long moment as their hearts raced. Then, the light turned green and Ed had to look away to drive. He took them back to the repair shop, parking in the same spot Stede had earlier. They both got out, and Ed handed Stede his keys.

“Thanks,” Ed said. “That was fun.”

”Of course,” Stede said.

Ed went to turn and head back into the shop but hesitated. “If you ever need anything else…for the car, I mean, let me know.” He pulled a business card out of his pocket and handed it to Stede. “Repairs. Detailing. Anything. I’ll personally see to it.”

Stede looked at the card, beaming. “Wonderful! And what do I owe you for the wiper fluid?”

Ed smiled. “Consider it complimentary.”

”Oh, I couldn’t possibly,” Stede said. “Please, let me pay you.”

Ed looked at Stede for a long moment. “How about dinner?”

”Dinner?” Stede gave a lopsided smile. “That sounds lovely.”

“You have my number,” Ed said before he turned and went back into the shop.