Chapter 2 already? A mere hour after posting?! well.. to be fair i did type half of the second chapter before posting the 1st one. Don't get used to updates happening so quickly though, but i'll try to maintain the story with reasonable updates.
fair warning: this chapter gets a little tiny bit technical with car terms, so if you get confused have google ready.
"See honey? Everything's going to be fine" Richard said with a smile, pleased at the perfect timing of the arrival of the stranger. He quickly rolled the window down.
"h-hitchhike?" said a meek, raspy sounding voice. The stranger's face, now fully light up by the moon, had a hopeful expression on his face.
"Huh?" asked Nicole, not quite hearing the stranger from the other side of the car.
"h-hitchhike" repeated the stranger with a bit more volume to his voice. "I-I saw car s-top. Th-th-thought y-you could take m-me" he stammered.
Nicole stared at the stranger for a minute. He looked like he'd been through hell. He wore a long, dark brown overcoat with a long tear down the left arm. A tattered pair of tan cargo short and some rough worn looking boots adorned his lower half. There were remnants of an orange shirt under the coat, but they looked more like random bits of fabric than a shirt. His coat was burned in places, almost as though he'd been through a fire. Something about him seemed… almost innocent. Nicole couldn't quite put her finger on it, but something inside her was telling her that this stranger wasn't a threat. Regardless, she decided to take the more cautious path and turned the stranger away, following common sense rather than her gut instinct.
"Even if we were offering you a ride – which we're not – we can't go anywhere "Nicole said sternly, "Our car broke down and I can't seem to get any cellphone signal to call for help" she continued, looking the stranger dead in the eye. She wasn't about to let some random dirty bum into her car, especially at night. He could be some psychotic killer for all she knew.
"O-h… s-sorry for b-b-bothering." the stranger said as he sadly turned away. He started to walk back into the darkness with a noticeable limp in his left foot. The town was roughly 12 miles away, and with a limp like that it'd take him well into the morning to get there.
"Wait!" said Nicole, feeling a bit ashamed to brush the man off so quickly after seeing his foot. The stranger turned his head back towards the car and shuffled back up to the window. "Look… if you can help us get moving again… we'll give you a ride to the next bus station". She doubted the stranger could find them a mechanic or tow truck, especially at this hour, but he was probably the only other person around for miles and their only source of assistance.
The stranger's eyes lit up a little. "Th-thank y-ou ma'am" he said. "I d-don't know a-a-any m-mechanics near, B-but I can f-fix c-car m-maybe?" he offered, looking at the hood of the car.
"Really?" Nicole said, not really believing that some random, seemingly homeless man on the side of a road could fix something as complex as an engine. But it was worth a shot. After all, the car wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. "Well... give it a try I guess" she said hesitantly.
"p-pop the hood" stuttered the stranger, nodding his head towards the front of the car. Nicole obliged, and reached down for the lever next to her foot. The hood opened with a dull 'clunk' as the stranger put his hand underneath it to pull it up.
The dim moonlight was just enough to allow the stranger to see what he was doing. He scanned the engine bay, looking for anything obvious. Not seeing anything immediately, he craned his neck around the open hood, looking at Nicole.
'Well... I don't see anything obvious. Maybe there's an issue with the alternator?' the stranger thought to himself.
"s-start c-ar again p-p-please" he said. Nicole turned the key again and again the engine weakly revved but refused to start. With the hood open, a loud squeaking could be heard as she turned the key. The alternator – the thing that both starts the car and keeps the battery charged – was slipping on a lose drive belt. Without a solid connection to the belt, the alternator can't keep the battery charged up. It's a pretty simple fix to adjust the belt's tensioner with a set of pliers or a wrench.
"L-loose b-belt" the man informed Nicole and Richard. The pair gave a blank look to the stranger, not really knowing what he was referring to. Out of his pocket, he pulled a small silver multi-tool. With a snap of the wrist, he opened up a small wrench and placed it on a nut. With a few stiff turns of the tool, he began to adjust the alternator's belt tensioner. With a pleased look on his face, he raised his arms up and pulled the hood down with a loud slam.
"Fixed already?" asked Richard, shocked that he could fix their car in such a short amount of time. Nicole had a similar look of surprise on her face.
"N-not quite" the stranger answered "g-g-gotta bump s-start". He received another blank stare from the couple. With a deep sigh, he began to explain. "T-the a-a-alternator b-b-belt's l-loose. I-It Slipped." The stranger paused to gather his thoughts. It was clearly a struggle for him to speak. "B-battery drained."
"Wait… the battery's dead?!" exclaimed Nicole. She didn't know much about cars, but she did know a dead battery meant they weren't going anywhere. "And… what's a 'bump-start' exactly?"
"N-n-not dead, j-just l-low" clarified the stranger "a-and b-bump s-s-s-start is r-rolling car to t-t-turn e-engine" he continued.
"Like… rolling the car down this hill?" asked Richard, a bit skeptical of the whole idea. The stranger nodded his head.
"G-g-gotta t-turn k-key when r-rolling" stated the stranger. 'I really hope this works' thought the stranger to himself.
"That's it? Seems pretty simple" Nicole said, pleased that the apparent fix was so quick. The stranger grinned, happy that he could help.
"J-just s-s-shift to re-re-reverse. R-roll down h-h-ill" instructed the stranger to Nicole. She wasn't sure if it would work, but what other option was there?
"Alright… let's do this" Nicole said, with a hint of doubt in her voice. She grabbed the gear lever, and pushed it to 'R'. Slowly, she released the parking break as she turned the key. The old station wagon slowly crept back down the hill. The engine revved weakly once again, still with no signs of starting. As the car picked up speed, the revving got a little louder and livelier. A loud sputter came from the engine. It was clearly trying to come back to life, but it needed a bit more push to finally get started.
"Nicole, I think… I think it's working!" Richard said with a grin, looking at his wife. She returned his smile with a look of hope.
As the car gained more speed, the sputtering got louder and more frequent. It was only a matter of time until the old engine would roar back into the world of the living. Its six little pistons pumping vigorously now as the car passed 20mph. With a final belch from the engine, it croaked to life. A loud, celebratory whistle came from the stranger further up the hill. He was ecstatic that, not only was he able to get the car running, but that he'd also get a ride back to civilization.
Nicole shifted the car back into drive. Not wanting to cause another belt slip, she cautiously hit the accelerator with her big toe. There was still a slight squealing noise coming from the engine, as the belt still slipped a little bit, but it was turning enough to keep the engine running. As the car chugged triumphantly up the hill, Nicole stopped next to the stranger and motioned for him to hop in the back seat.
With a firm 'thump' from the rear door closing, the stranger looked at both Richard and Nicole with a smile. "T-thank y-you" he stuttered. He really was relived to be out of that damn rain, and even more happy that he could rest his weary, injured leg.
With a smile, Richard spoke up. "Thank YOU Mister! You really saved our bacon back there!" he said with glee. A look of ecstasy suddenly overtook Richards face as he stared off into nothingness. "mmmmm… bacon..." he said absentmindedly, thinking of thick cuts of yummy, juicy pig belly. The stranger simply smiled back at the rabbit.
Nicole glanced in the rear-view mirror, looking at the new passenger. He'd fallen asleep, not even 30 seconds after getting in the warm, dry car. No doubt he'd been walking for hours before they picked him up. She smiled to herself. "Yeah... It was pretty lucky we found him" she said turning towards Richard. He agreed with a vigorous nod, after snapping out of his bacon-induced trance.
Nicole looked back at the stranger, a hint of melancholy washing over her. Something about this strange man seemed… almost childlike and vulnerable. A feeling that she needed to care for this stranger was beginning to fill her heart, though she had no idea why. She'd never even seen this person until about 10 minutes ago. Was it motherly instinct? Was it simply the right thing to do? She really didn't know. All she knew is that he needed help.