Binky the Hero

theme 30-car wreck
-theme from darkangelsnapelover's infinite theme list challenge. if you're interested, pm her and she'll doc-x you the list

Binky was at work. He was a delivery guy in Elwood City. He was 24 and content with life. He still wasn't married and didn't have a girlfriend either. But he was happy to be employed and he loved his job.

Today he was making deliveries to the Sugar Bowl. The crates felt heavy; Binky figured they must have ice cream in them. He carried them inside and helped the aging owner open the crates. Binky was right. There were drums of ice cream kept cold by dry ice. The owner gave Binky a pair of special gloves. He pulled out the dry ice before putting the tubs in the industrial freezer.

This was more than Binky was supposed to do but he was a nice guy. He'd cut corners later, maybe skip lunch or something. He got the Sugar Bowl owner's signature and headed back out to his truck.

A loud crash shook the morning. Binky looked up. A bus hit a car in an intersection. The light was green for the car; the bus ran the light. Either way, the car was now a mangled mess. The bus barely had a scratch. The driver, who looked foreign, tried to drive away. Bystanders gathered. The bus driver stopped and got out. He looked in the car.

Binky could hear the screaming. He walked up and saw Bitzi Baxter bleeding. The air bag had broken her nose. The car was mangled and she was trapped. Binky looked at the wreckage and noticed fluids on the ground. They were collecting in a large puddle. Fumes were there too. Binky recognized the smell as gasoline.

"It might blow. We need to get her out of there," a bystander said. A bunch of people were on cell phones but no emergency personnel were there yet. Binky looked at Bitzi. She heard them mention the fire. She looked worried.

"I've got some bolt cutters in my truck. Does anyone have anything else?" Binky asked. A bystander produced a hack saw. Binky nodded, "Help me get through this framing. We've got to get her out." The bystander stepped back, "I've got a wife and kids, man. You do it." Binky sighed, "Then you get the bolt cutters. They're behind the seat." He gave the bystander his keys and accepted the hack saw. He started to cut until the guy got back.

Binky was determined. Police arrived and told him to step away. He pointed to the puddle of gasoline. They nodded, but no one tried to help Binky. They all had too much to lose to care about Bitzi. Binky thought it was sad. Bitzi was editor in chief at the paper. Everyone knew her work. A lot of people knew Buster too; he owned a joke shop downtown that all the kids hung out at. They were such good people, yet only Binky was willing to help.

He got through the framing as someone noticed a fire behind him. Binky moved quickly and peeled back the metal. He cut his hand but didn't care. He helped Bitzi removed her seatbelt and pulled her out of the car. She was weak and bleeding from other places. Binky noticed her arm and leg on her left side were broken. She needed help, and with the fire getting bigger, Binky moved quickly.

As soon as he was ten steps away from the car, it blew. Wreckage littered the street. Bitzi cried, very aware of her mortality. Firemen arrived with a paramedic and they tended to her. Binky was pulled to the side by cops and questioned. Then, he left the scene and got back to work as if it were a typical day.

Binky stepped into the joke shop. Buster was in the back. Binky stepped behind the counter and called to him. Buster appeared wearing joke glasses. He laughed, "Hey, Binky, I've got a package for you. A guy in New York wanted a hundred batches of fake poop. What's he going to do with all that?" Buster laughed. He led Binky to the boxes. "I also have a message from my mom. She's at her office downtown and wants to see you tonight. She's really thankful for what you did."

"It was nothing," Binky shrugged. "Like hell it wasn't," Buster scoffed, lowering his voice, "She texted me and said she was dying. I was terrified, then she told me you were there trying to save her. She said no one else even bothered. And when she asked people your name to make sure it was you, no one even knew! It was pathetic! You deserve better for what you did. You saved my mom's life." "It was just me being me, Buster, but I'll stop by. I want to make sure she's okay." "See, no one else even bothered for a while. Then the story got picked up and now everyone wants to know about her and about you. It's ridiculous! She decided not to share your name. She noticed you were busy."

"Well, I'm glad. I've got work to do. See ya," Binky said. He got to work making deliveries. It was 7 before he finished. He drove in his own car to the newspaper office. A light was still on upstairs. Binky let himself inside. He went up some stairs and found the open office. Bitzi was there. Her arm was in a cast but her leg was fine. Binky waved to her. Bitzi stood and hugged him tightly. "I'll never forget what you did for me. Please, I need to give you something." "Mrs. Baxter, please-" "Call me Bitzi," she smiled. She handed him a small package.

Binky opened it. Inside was a key. Binky looked up with a perplexed look. "I won a car a few weeks ago. Buster has a good car, brand new, but I see yours is older. Judging by the sound, it could use some major repairs. That car is new, it has a lifetime warranty and free tune-ups. You won't have to pay for anything except insurance and gas," Bitzi smiled. Binky was shocked. She was right; his little truck had over 300,000 miles and ran poorly. It needed a new everything and sounded like it too. A new car with no payment, no maintence, no nothing was a blessing.

"Binky, I don't need it. My son doesn't need it. The only other person in my life that's special is you. You deserve this. Please, take it," Bitzi pleaded. "I feel like it's too much. I'm sorry-" "Binky Barnes, you saved my life. What more could you give me?" Bitzi asked sternly. "Well, when you put it like that. Are you sure?" he asked. She nodded. She hugged him again. "If you ever need anything, you call me or Buster. You're our family now for what you did, and you always will be."

Binky nodded. Bitzi walked him outside and showed him the car. It was an Audi. Binky knew they were foreign and expensive. He almost gave the keys back, then he took a seat inside. He smiled. Bitzi nodded happily. She waved. Binky looked at his old truck. He got his work clothes out and his keys. He plucked off the rearview mirror as a memento. Then he called his buddy at the junkyard and told him what happened. They picked it up the next morning. And Binky drove away in a beautiful red Audi and a new family.
-end