LD mutters something, her head engulfed in the hood of the car she is working on.
Lucy laughs. «We could totally hear you, don't worry»
She emerges, more grease on her than what was in the whole world.
«Can you pass me that?» She points at a nondescript tool.
Lucy complies, trying not to actually touch any part of that dirty mess.
Erica puffs and snorts. «When are you going to be done with that?»
LD looks at the engine puzzled for a moment. «Should work now, I think»
A though pops up in Heather's mind. «Have you ever tried to disassemble a car? All of it»
She doesn't know much about cars, but that seems like a good experiment to do on a boring Saturday morning like that.
Mr Delacorte left the autoshop to LD because he's at some conference all weekend. Apparently mechanics have to attend conferences. Jeff is arriving in the afternoon, but there's work in the morning too, so they're stuck there.
LD turns leaning against the car, looking like the kind of illustration French books would have to make you guess the meaning of the word mécanicien. She's truly in her element around here in the garage.
«I helped my dad take apart some wreck we couldn't fix to learn once. It takes a lot though»
«I'm sorry, but I'm not spending any time in here more than I have to» Lucy says with mock contempt.
LD gets closer to her. «Really?»
She hugs her, the grease all over her moving to the other girl.
«I need a shower now!» Lucy half cries half laughs.
LD boops Lucy on the nose, making that dirty too. «Sorry»
The they started going out, at the beginning of the summer, it was awkward for everyone. But now, they have been together for months, and their friend-group hangs are pretty much like normal.
«I do need to shower, where's the house keys?» Lucy gently pushes LD off of her.
«Wait, we need to test if the engine works» LD says running to the car and grabbing the keys.
«Who wants to go?» She asks, dangling the keys like some sort of price.
«Can I?» Erica squeaks.
«You just have to start it, not drive to Peru and back» Heather retorts.
She doesn't understand why her sister is so thrilled. It's a little glimpse in their futures, when they're older and free to do whatever they want, but it's too little to bask in it. It's mocking almost. A couple months from sixteen and all they're doing is getting happy that they are allowed in the general proximity of some rando's car keys.
«It's a start. First this, then our licenses, then the world. I'm thinking Guatemala?» Erica explains as she takes the keys.
She carefully sits in the driver's seat and even more carefully puts the keys in. It's like she's afraid one bad move will turn it into Christine the murderous car.
She turns the key, slowly. Nothing happens and Lucy sighs, but then Erica turns it a bit more and the engine rumbles content.
«It works» LD exclaims. It's the first time she worked on a car on her own, no Jeff or Dad around to tell her what to do, and the fact she managed not to mess up makes her cheery.
Lucy puts her arm on her shoulder, her clothes be damned. «It works» she whispers.
«Now what?» Erica ask, turning the car back off.
Lucy laughs. «Now, you get out of there, I get a shower, and then we all get ice cream»
«Doesn't Jeff's shift start in hours? LD's stuck here» Heather reminds everyone. It's nice that LD's father trusts her so much, but sadly responsibilities come with time constraint. Someone has to be in the shop while it's open, and it's supposed to be open all morning.
«Can we brainstorm the rest of the day when I don't smell of garage, please?» Lucy asks letting LD go.
LD moves closer to the shop's door and takes her house keys from the drawer of the desk. She drops them in Lucy's hand. «First admit you love being here»
«I enjoy your time, and seeing you at work, there's a difference. And you need to at least change» Lucy says and drags LD out.
«Don't break the car!» She screams as they leave.
Erica is pacing the car, like it's a puzzle to be solved. «Can you believe I started the engine?»
She was so close to driving, even just for one moment. It felt like everything was possible. Leave home, and the beginning of the year behind, start anew, as a grown up, who's made grown-up choices, and can drive.
Their mom would flip if she found out Erica was in a car alone, imagine knowing she had the keys and turned them. The closest they can get with her is looking at a car, and it'll probably be this way until they're twenty-five.
«This couple months until we're sixteen are going to be longer than our lives combined» Heather complains. Last year they longed for a real high school, but now that they're there, they're basically children compared to everyone else. It's not fair. And some of their friends are already sixteen, like Joey Jeremiah who's only in grade nine because he was held back, which doesn't help the feeling of hopelessness.
«I bet LD has already drove. Not far, but she must have» Erica sighs sitting back inside of the car.
«We're not stealing the car!»
«Something we have to do!»
«We don't even know whose car it is»
«You're right. We'll sit here and rot» Erica sighs dramatically.
Heather opens the passenger side car door and sits there.
«There must be something we can do in here»
«Well there isn't»
They stay in the car like that for long enough for the other two to get back there.
When Lucy arrives, it's clear she's hugging some kind of oblong, green tinted thing.
«Look what we found in the Delacorte kitchen!» Lucy finally announces brandishing the bottle when she's close enough to the Farrells. It's liquor, extra dry it reads.
«In the morning?» Erica says confused.
«We have to spend time somehow!» Lucy says as she gets in the back seat of the car. LD soon follows her.
They may not actually steal it, but they surely are going to use it. There's several ways of feeling grown up, and while driving is one, drinking is definitely in the top of the list.
«What about the ice cream?» Heather says, half convinced, as if ice cream would be better.
«Go grab some, we'll be waiting here. Bottle closed until you're back.» Lucy suggests.
«Always eat while drinking» LD tries to sound like a generic parent.
Heather sights getting up. «Okay, where is the nearest shop?»
«You'll find it» LD says.
«What do you want?» Heather asks, although she knows what they'll say.
«Smurf!» Erica exclaims. It doesn't taste really good, but it's fun and leaves a bit of a blue tint.
«Smurf it is» Heather says, leaving.
When she gets back, Lucy is staring intensely at the bottle. It's still sealed as they promised. «And now…» she gets ready to open it.
«No! Wait» Heather says, leaving the ice cream on the passenger's seat and grabbing the keys from the dashboard.
She runs to the back of the car and opens the trunk. She gets in it and fiddles with the back seats. Soon enough the shoulder rest came undone. She pushed it towards the two girls sitting in front of it.
«Ouch?» Lucy jokes.
«Put it instead of your feet so that we can all sit in the back» Heather tries to explain her vision.
«Put it where?» LD teases her.
Lucy gets out of the car and grabs the shoulder rest. «I don't think you wanna hear her next suggestion»
LD imitates her and soon enough they're all sitting in the back, all of the doors closed.
They drink and eat and laugh and gossip for what seems like forever and just two minutes. Whatever extra dry might mean liquor-wise, it works really well.
«Are we sure the car's not going to crash against the wall or something?» Lucy wonders between what's now basically sips of the ice cream.
«We should check the engine» LD proposes.
Erica tries to pass in front of LD to get to the driver's seat. «You got to do it earlier, it's my turn!» Heather cries a little too loud due to the alcohol.
«Go!» Erica replies trying to smush herself to the side. She ends up falling on LD the now liquid smurf on her shirt. Great, blue and black go together so well.
Heather, after some fiddling, manages to get to the driver's seat. She finds the keys in her pocket and starts the engine.
For whatever reason instead of going smooth and content, the car sputters a little and throws itself forward a bit, just enough for the hood to fall closed.
«A ghost» Lucy screams.
A voice from outside the car calls. «Lorraine?»
«There really is a ghost, and it knows your name!» Erica exclaims, almost scared.
«It was nice knowing you» Heather laughs.
The person knocks on the driver's door and opens it.
Lucy quickly tries and fails to hide the bottle from his sight.
«Jeff!» LD recognises him, then starts laughing. The rest of the girls join her laugh.