Thunder echoed through the car. The windshield wipers moved with the rhythm of the song playing on the radio. Rain fell hard on the windshield causing the visibility to not even be five feet in front of the car. Bosco fidgeted with the radio as static filled the speakers. The car swerved to the side, causing him to hydroplane slightly.

"Dammit." He quickly jerked the wheel and corrected. He loved storms but not when he had to drive in them.

Bosco hated two lane highways. Especially ones that looked straight out of horror movies. He looked sideways into the dense forest, the fog looking creepier than ever. He spoke aloud, "Come on Boz, you are acting like a chicken shit."

This weekend was quite interesting for him. He had decided to drive north of New York City to visit his brother Mikey in a rehab clinic. He really didn't want to but hell, Mikey deserved to see him. Bosco decided to give him the time of day since he did in fact take the initiative to go and get straightened out. Bosco admired him for it.

But now here he was, driving down a small, two-lane highway in heavy rain and thick lightning. Too bad he couldn't see this coming or he would've just stayed and called in sick for work the next day. As soon as one section of the storm would die down it would pick up and be worse than before.

There were so many truckers on this road. He seemed to be the only regular car out there. He turned the knob for the defroster to come on and listened as the fan turned. The car seemed to be making funny noises, like something rattling under the hood. Bosco tried to ignore it, hoping it was just his imagination but the car began to decrease in speed, even though he kept his foot down hard on the accelerator.

He pushed down hard again with his right foot, and floored the petal but the car still did not speed up. It just slowly died. Luckily he had enough momentum left to get the car to the side of the road and out of the way of the incoming traffic. He put the emergency brake on and hit the steering wheel with his fists.

"Dammit! What is wrong with you now?" He leaned his head forward and watched as the rain continued to fall heavy and the lightning bolts lit up the sky. What a perfect time for this to be happening now. He grabbed his cell phone out of his shirt pocket and looked at the signal.

There was none but he tried to dial a number anyway, there was no harm in that. He listened as the static entered his ears and a small recording came on. "We are sorry, but your number can not be completed as dialed. You may be out of your area, or the signal may be cut off. Try back again later."

He mashed the end button and threw the phone down into the floorboard. "Fuck!" He didn't have later. It was already getting late and he had to work the next day. He decided to brave the rain and take a look at the car. He opened the hood up and felt the rain drench his hair and clothes. Too bad he didn't have a raincoat.

He looked over the dead car, but really didn't see anything. He ran his hands over the hot engine and smelt burning oil. "Shit, I blew out the engine." He rolled his eyes. He knew he was stuck out here now unless his cell phone found a signal. He leaned against the car and watched as more storm clouds moved over him.



Semi's would pass by, one splashing him, soaking him worse than he was. He had the urge to just hitch hike but really didn't trust it. He watched down the road as a red, Target truck drove up, slowing down as it approached him. He was somewhat thankful but in a way not really wanting it to.

Out of the truck stepped a woman who looked about 35, with long, brown hair. She was quite skinny and somewhat attractive. Not really someone Bosco would consider dating but oh well, now wasn't the time to think about that.

"You having some car trouble?" Her southern accent was thick as she crossed the street, a rain poncho covering her jeans and western shirt.

Bosco looked at her and studied her. He then glanced back down at his Mustang and nodded. "Yeah, just died on me. I think the engine went out on me." He opened the hood for her to see.

A loud thunderclap crackled over their heads, causing both of them to look up at the sky. "Yeah, you lost your engine. Looks like you ran out of oil."

Bosco looked at her through the corner of his eye and closed the hood of the car. "Yeah, great." Water dripped off of him like he was in a swimming pool.

More lightning struck, causing the ground to vibrate underneath them. "Say, where you headed? I'd be more than happy to escort you there unless you have help on the way or something."

Bosco looked down the road, not really sure he wanted to go with her but what other choice did he have? He was down in a valley and his phone wouldn't work. His car was pretty much dead for good. "New York City."

"Okay, hop in the rig. I'm headed down south so that is on my way."

~~

Faith dialed Bosco's number at 8:15 that night, worried because he wasn't home yet. He was supposed to be home by now. Fred looked at her from the living room.

"What are you doing Faith?"

Faith put the phone back in the cradled and stared at him. "Trying to call Bosco but I'm not getting an answer."

Fred shrugged. "Don't worry about it. Maybe he just went out."

She shook her head no and sat beside him on the couch. "It's his cell phone. He always answers his cell phone."

Fred just scoffed. "I don't know why you worry about that guy. He's an adult. Maybe he just turned it off or something. Maybe he had a hot date and he didn't want to be disturbed if ya know what I'm saying." Fred winked and gave a deep, husky laugh.

Faith slugged him in the arm. "Would you shut up?" She had to admit, that comment did make her smile though. He was right; she needed to stop worrying so much. She wasn't his mother. She had her own kids to worry about.

~~

Bosco had never really been up in a big rig before and it was quite amazing. Such a big ride and you could see many more things than from a car. The rain had somewhat slowed down but the roads were flooded. The only sounds that could be heard were voices from the CB, the raindrops that continued to fall, and the wipers that slapped back and forth before them. He was freezing cold from being soaked but he didn't let the lady know.

"So, what's your name stranger?" The lady glanced at him and then back at the road as they approached a sharp curve. He watched as she down shifted.

"Bosco."

She nodded and gave a raspy laugh. "Bosco? That's a new one."

He gave her a dirty look. "It's a nickname. I've had it all my life."

"Do you mind me asking where they got Bosco from?" She ran her hands over the windshield, trying to get some of the condensation off.

He took in a deep breath. Why was she so interested anyway, all he wanted was a damn ride back to the city where he could hitch a ride with a cab, a nice quiet cab that didn't have the curiosity of a cat. "It's just a nickname." He didn't want to tell her anything too personal; he had only known her for about 10 minutes. Bosco was enough information.

"I'm Jackie Thorndale. I was born and raised in Lubbock, TX. You ever heard of it?"

Bosco nodded. "Yeah, I have. Texas Tech is located there right?"

"Oh yeah, huge Red Raider land." She smiled, happy that he was familiar with things.

Bosco sniffed. "That's a good sports school. They've got good basketball and football. You go to school there?"

She gave a sarcastic laugh that died out slowly. He knew he had made a mistake asking her that, she didn't look like the college going type. She licked her lips and began to speak. "No, I didn't go to school there. Too high tech for me."

Bosco nodded, wishing she would just drive a little faster. He hated this situation and he wanted it to be over soon.

~~

Faith decided to go to bed early for the night. It was only 9:45 but it seemed so much later, she had been so exhausted from the days before. She lay in bed and listened to some rain as it pattered against her window. She dialed Bosco's number one more time and still got no answer.

"Dammit, where in the hell could he be?"

Fred overheard her and walked in the room. "I told you not to worry about it Faith. He's not Charlie ya know." He sat down on the bed beside where she was laying and rubbed her back. "You can be the biggest worry wart sometimes, ya know that?"

She turned and faced him, her sense of humor wearing thin. "What the hell is that supposed to mean Fred?"

He shrugged. "Nothing Faith, just drop it okay? He's fine, your fine, let's just shut up while we are ahead." He flopped down hard on the bed and grumbled as he turned the light off and slowly fell asleep.

~~

Bosco glanced at his watch as they continued to drive down the same highway he had been on for God knows how long. It was 10:15; surely they'd be getting close to the city by now. He shifted his weight in his seat and sighed as he watched the road lines pass before him.

"You not much of a traveler?" Jackie ran her hands over the smooth steering wheel and grinned.

Bosco cocked his head to one side. "I don't mind it, but this drive is taking longer than I thought it would."

She blew a bubble with her gum and slowed the truck down some, "You gotta remember though Bosco, this is a big rig. We can't drive as fast as you boys do in your sporty little cars. Why are you in such a hurry to get back anyway? Getting away from city life can be a gift when you think about it."

"I've gotta work tomorrow." Bosco knew what her next question would be, and he wasn't sure if he wanted to answer it or not.

She crackled her gum between her teeth and nodded. "Oh yeah? What is your job?"

He glared at her. He just knew she would ask that and here she did. He ran his hands over his now dry hair and then stared out the window. "I work for the city." He figured that was a good enough explanation to his job, after all he wasn't lying to her. He really did work for the city.

"City work, eh? I guess you and me could relate then." She took her gum out of her mouth and placed it in an ashtray in front of him.

"You have no idea."

~~