Kai found himself in front of the mechanic shop that Cress had talked about later that day. He had decided it wouldn't hurt to poke around and get an estimate.
A bell rang as he pushed open the door into the waiting area. A girl with dyed blue hair was sitting at the counter blowing bubblegum and reading a fashion magazine. She didn't look up until Kai stood right in front of her and then her eyes went big and the chewing stopped.
"I'm sorry but I'm looking for the mechanic Linh?" The girl just stared at him for a moment before getting out of the chair and opening the door into the workshop.
"Cin-der! There's a hot guy here for you!" Kai felt his ears grow warm, but decided to ignore the comment. He heard shuffling and a metal clunk and then a shout.
"I told you, asshole, to text me before you drove up here again! A fair warning would have been nice..." The words died on her lips as the voice came through the doors and spotted Kai. Whatever he had been expecting, she wasn't it.
The mechanic, which he had unconsciously assumed to be a buff jock, was a cute girl with her hair messily tied back into a ponytail and dirty work gloves. She looked a little bit younger than Kai, and with significantly less polish. But he had seen enough polish in his young life. This grease stained girl instead looked like she had never wasted thoughts on her hair or her clothes or her figure. It was rather endearing.
"You aren't Thorne," she said bluntly, settling her hands on the thin strip of flesh between the bottom of her tank top and the cargo pants that hung off her hips.
"No I'm not. My name is Kai Huángdì." The girl pulled off her gloves and shoved them in her back pocket.
"I'm Cinder Linh. Nice to meet you." They shook hands and Kai noticed that her hands were calloused and marred by years of hard work. He had never felt hands like that before and his fingers automatically lingered against her skin.
"I'm Iko," said the girl from the desk. "And you're gorgeous." Kai forced a laugh to disguise his discomfort.
"Here, let's chat outside so she can't harass you." Cinder went to the front door and opened it for him. She sat down on the curb of the street and took a water bottle out of one of her bulging pockets.
"How can I help you?" Kai sat down carefully next to her.
"My car broke down on 21st and Commerce. I couldn't get it to restart." Cinder nodded understandingly.
"What model?"
"An Audi Coupe." Cinders eyes went wide.
"I knew you were from money but really?"
"Hey I'm not - wait 'you knew'? Have we met before?" Kai didn't think he would have forgotten this girl.
She just shook her head. "But I still know who you are. Practically every person on our fifty thousand student campus knows who you are." Kai's ears went red - he knew he was a good humored, extroverted, easy to like kind of guy. But he had never really thought of himself as popular, much less that the entire school would know who he was. He wasn't sure if he liked the idea either.
"I hope the reputation that precedes me isn't too negative." Cinder shrugged.
"But it is surprising to see someone like you in a dumpy old shop like this."
"A friend said you come highly recommended."
"Gotta pay for school somehow." Kai pressed his lips, deciding not to mention that his parents had completely covered his tuition. The two simply sat for a moment watching the cars buzz past them. "I can take a look at it." Kai was momentarily confused before he realized she was talking about his car.
"Oh, yeah. That'd be great."
"Just get a tow truck to bring it by tomorrow morning." Kai nodded.
"How long do you think it'll take? I was planning on driving home for fall break."
"I should be able to have it done by then, but without examining it first hand that might be just wishful thinking." Cinder stood up, brushed herself off and adjusted her ponytail. "I've gotta get back to work now." She nodded to him, still on the ground and turned and went back into the building.
Kai simply sat there for a moment, running his encounter with the mechanic over and over again in his head.