Advent Day 3
Prompt: Car trouble
Fandom: Original fiction
Rating: G
Length: ~1000 words
Shit.
Shit.
Eloise kicked the rear wheel of her car in frustration. Already over an hour late for mom and dad's annual Christmas party and now her car wouldn't start. She was too far out of town to call and ask for someone to pick her up, culminated with the fact that her old, decrepit cell phone was dangerously close to the end of its battery.
"Shit," she said out loud, tucking her chilled fingers beneath her arms. The air outside was frigid, the biting wind making the sub-zero temperatures that much worse.
It wasn't even clear what was wrong. She'd been driving along just fine, and then suddenly the dashboard lights had flickered and gone out, barely giving her enough to time pull safely onto the shoulder before she caused an accident. Beside her, cars whizzed passed in their rush to get to their own destinations on time, likely to loved ones who were just as eager to receive them. One car, driving too close to the shoulder line, leaned hard on the horn as they swerved passed, just barely avoiding hitting the tail of Eloise's car and dragging her along underneath.
"Learn to drive, asshole!" Eloise shouted, stepping away and throwing her middle finger into the air. Heaving a sigh, she opened the door and slid into the driver's seat. "Please, please..." she whispered, pressing her foot gingerly against the accelerator and turning the ignition. The transmission clicked a few times, making a valiant effort to turn over. She stopped, sucked in another deep breath; it wouldn't do to have a panic attack all alone on the side of the highway. Several long minutes passed. "Come on, please," she wheedled, turning the key and pressing her foot on the gas.
The engine coughed, sputtered, but thankfully turned over. Eloise crowed in triumph. She let the car sit and idle for a while, listening to the occasional cough-sputter work its way out. She pressed gently down on the accelerator a few times and was pleased to hear the car rev eagerly, ready to go.
Buckling her seatbelt, she crossed her fingers on her right hand, the way she always had since she was seven years old, and shifted into drive, turning on her signal, and merging back into the frantic holiday traffic.
Despite how late she was, Eloise refused to rush. All she needed was for the car to break down again somewhere else. She wasn't prepared to test her luck that it would start for her again. Eloise retrieved her phone, which had been turned off for the better part of five miles, and turned it on. The power-down had gained her an extra bar on her battery life, and as she sat at a red light, she punched in her parent's phone number and listened to the steady ring in her ear.
"Hello? Eloise?"
"Hi, mom."
"Sweetheart, where are you? We were expecting you hours ago."
Eloise smiled tiredly. "I know. I had some car trouble, but I should be there in half an hour or so."
"Why didn't you call? Someone would have come to help."
"It was too far. I didn't want to impose."
"Eloise, no one would feel it as an imposition to help you when you need it."
"But it's the holidays."
"So what, it's the holidays. You think that's any excuse to leave you sitting on the side of the highway, abandoned?"
"Mom, I didn't call for a lecture. I just wanted you to know that I am on my way and that I'll be there soon."
"As soon as you arrive you get your father to take a look. I don't want you leaving here unless I know that you'll be able to get home safely."
"Okay, mom. I'm driving, so I have to go. I'll see you shortly."
A red car honked impatiently behind her, the light having turned green. Eloise raised a hand to indicate her going, passing through the intersection and taking the first exit into town. It was strange being back in her hometown. The sidewalks were heaped with freshly plowed snow; the once fluffy white flakes now a hard-packed piled stained dark with gravel and sand. It was one of the less attractive parts of the holiday season.
Eloise took the long route to her parents' house, driving slowly down the street where her high school was located, smiling fondly at the athletic field filled with snowmen in various states of construction. Some kids had built a fairly decent snow fort in one corner, climbing up and over the fence and connecting to the plowed snow pile on the other side. She passed the park where she'd lost her virginity to her senior boyfriend Chuck when she was seventeen. The memory of that evening, long past, put something of a damper on her trip down memory lane. A few blocks later was the childhood home of her best friend, Samantha, who had died tragically of a rare cancer when she was twenty-three.
Not a lot in the city made Eloise feel particularly festive. There was a reason she'd left and not come back. Taking a left onto Main Street, she took the most direct route to mom and dad's. Her dad was waiting on the front porch when she pulled into the drive way. He hugged her tight, eyes going wide at the swell of her belly. "Well isn't this a surprise."
"Can we talk about it later?" Eloise said. "I could use some eggnog and a good sit on a soft chair."
"Mom says I have to look at the car before it gets too dark."
"It can wait."
"Everyone's eager to see you."
"Is Brendan here yet?"
"Got in last night."
"It's good to see you, dad."
"It's good to see you, too, kiddo."
Fandom: Original fiction
Rating: G
Length: ~1000 words
Shit.
Shit.
Eloise kicked the rear wheel of her car in frustration. Already over an hour late for mom and dad's annual Christmas party and now her car wouldn't start. She was too far out of town to call and ask for someone to pick her up, culminated with the fact that her old, decrepit cell phone was dangerously close to the end of its battery.
"Shit," she said out loud, tucking her chilled fingers beneath her arms. The air outside was frigid, the biting wind making the sub-zero temperatures that much worse.
It wasn't even clear what was wrong. She'd been driving along just fine, and then suddenly the dashboard lights had flickered and gone out, barely giving her enough to time pull safely onto the shoulder before she caused an accident. Beside her, cars whizzed passed in their rush to get to their own destinations on time, likely to loved ones who were just as eager to receive them. One car, driving too close to the shoulder line, leaned hard on the horn as they swerved passed, just barely avoiding hitting the tail of Eloise's car and dragging her along underneath.
"Learn to drive, asshole!" Eloise shouted, stepping away and throwing her middle finger into the air. Heaving a sigh, she opened the door and slid into the driver's seat. "Please, please..." she whispered, pressing her foot gingerly against the accelerator and turning the ignition. The transmission clicked a few times, making a valiant effort to turn over. She stopped, sucked in another deep breath; it wouldn't do to have a panic attack all alone on the side of the highway. Several long minutes passed. "Come on, please," she wheedled, turning the key and pressing her foot on the gas.
The engine coughed, sputtered, but thankfully turned over. Eloise crowed in triumph. She let the car sit and idle for a while, listening to the occasional cough-sputter work its way out. She pressed gently down on the accelerator a few times and was pleased to hear the car rev eagerly, ready to go.
Buckling her seatbelt, she crossed her fingers on her right hand, the way she always had since she was seven years old, and shifted into drive, turning on her signal, and merging back into the frantic holiday traffic.
Despite how late she was, Eloise refused to rush. All she needed was for the car to break down again somewhere else. She wasn't prepared to test her luck that it would start for her again. Eloise retrieved her phone, which had been turned off for the better part of five miles, and turned it on. The power-down had gained her an extra bar on her battery life, and as she sat at a red light, she punched in her parent's phone number and listened to the steady ring in her ear.
"Hello? Eloise?"
"Hi, mom."
"Sweetheart, where are you? We were expecting you hours ago."
Eloise smiled tiredly. "I know. I had some car trouble, but I should be there in half an hour or so."
"Why didn't you call? Someone would have come to help."
"It was too far. I didn't want to impose."
"Eloise, no one would feel it as an imposition to help you when you need it."
"But it's the holidays."
"So what, it's the holidays. You think that's any excuse to leave you sitting on the side of the highway, abandoned?"
"Mom, I didn't call for a lecture. I just wanted you to know that I am on my way and that I'll be there soon."
"As soon as you arrive you get your father to take a look. I don't want you leaving here unless I know that you'll be able to get home safely."
"Okay, mom. I'm driving, so I have to go. I'll see you shortly."
A red car honked impatiently behind her, the light having turned green. Eloise raised a hand to indicate her going, passing through the intersection and taking the first exit into town. It was strange being back in her hometown. The sidewalks were heaped with freshly plowed snow; the once fluffy white flakes now a hard-packed piled stained dark with gravel and sand. It was one of the less attractive parts of the holiday season.
Eloise took the long route to her parents' house, driving slowly down the street where her high school was located, smiling fondly at the athletic field filled with snowmen in various states of construction. Some kids had built a fairly decent snow fort in one corner, climbing up and over the fence and connecting to the plowed snow pile on the other side. She passed the park where she'd lost her virginity to her senior boyfriend Chuck when she was seventeen. The memory of that evening, long past, put something of a damper on her trip down memory lane. A few blocks later was the childhood home of her best friend, Samantha, who had died tragically of a rare cancer when she was twenty-three.
Not a lot in the city made Eloise feel particularly festive. There was a reason she'd left and not come back. Taking a left onto Main Street, she took the most direct route to mom and dad's. Her dad was waiting on the front porch when she pulled into the drive way. He hugged her tight, eyes going wide at the swell of her belly. "Well isn't this a surprise."
"Can we talk about it later?" Eloise said. "I could use some eggnog and a good sit on a soft chair."
"Mom says I have to look at the car before it gets too dark."
"It can wait."
"Everyone's eager to see you."
"Is Brendan here yet?"
"Got in last night."
"It's good to see you, dad."
"It's good to see you, too, kiddo."