''Are you sure you wanna' do this?'', Stan asked as he and his girlfriend of nearly nine years, Wendy Testaburger, walked out of her house and started to make their way towards his car that was parked in the driveway. He shoved his hands inside the pockets of his coat in an attempt to warm himself up, squinting slightly as the cold winter sun peeked through the trees lining the residential street.
Wendy walked right beside her boyfriend, holding her learner's permit in one hand and waving it in front of his face enthusiastically, practically begging him to take her seriously.
''Well yeah! I've had my learner's permit for a while, so I really want to work on my driving skills a bit more before I get to take that driving test in a couple of weeks.'', the teenage girl replied, her voice tinged with slight exasperation. ''Also, you're always saying how good you are at driving, so why not put that to the test and teach me something?''
As the teenage couple made their way to his car, Stan scratched the back of his neck in slight nervousness, unsure of how to respond to the noirette's statement. While he definitely had had no issues with passing his driving test on his first attempt (he was silently thankful for all the underage driving experience he had achieved prior to that), teaching Wendy how to drive felt like a completely different challenge altogether.
However, he then remembered how nervous he had felt before taking the driving test despite having some prior driving experience, so he at least wanted to make Wendy feel less nervous about going through the exact same thing and be really supportive of her.
''Alright…'', he said finally, with a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips. ''Let's do it then.''
Stan's trusty dark blue Hyundai was a rather simple one, nothing too flashy—a hand-me-down from his older sister that she had left for him before she had left for college. It had first been used for him to practice driving, and then later became his own beloved metallic baby. While it was his pride and joy, the thought of someone inexperienced driving it definitely terrified him, but he was still willing to let it slide for Wendy because he knew that she was at least responsible enough and would do her best to not crash her boyfriend's car.
''You can take the wheel, Wends.'', Stan said, jingling the car keys in his hand before tossing them over to Wendy.
The ravenette easily caught them, her brown eyes sparkling with excitement. She then hopped into the driver's seat with a bit too much enthusiasm, which caused the car to bounce slightly. Stan chuckled to himself as he slid into the passenger seat, glancing over at his girlfriend.
''Okay, first thing's first: seatbelt.'', he began.
Wendy rolled her eyes teasingly, but obediently clicked her seatbelt into place. ''I know that, Stan. I've been practicing with my parents as well, and they've really hammered this into my head, you know?''
''Yeah yeah, whatever you say.'', Stan replied, waving his hand dismissively. ''I just gotta' make sure. Alright, adjust the mirrors and your seat as well.''
Wendy adjusted the rearview mirror, side mirrors and finally shifted her seat until she was sitting comfortably, although her hands gripped the steering wheel like her life depended on it at the ideal ten-and-two position. Stan then gave her a nod of approval, his nervousness slowly starting to ease.
''Okay, so we're just gonna' start off by driving around the neighborhood for a little bit. Nothing too crazy, just enough for you to feel the car and relax.'', Stan instructed, trying to sound both confident and calm.
''Got it.'', the teenage girl whispered, albeit more to herself than to Stan. She took a deep breath, inserted the key and switched on the ignition. The engine roared to life, and she smiled to herself at the loud sound. She placed her hand on the gearbox and shifted into first gear and slowly lifted her foot off the brake.
The car began to move forward, slowly leaving the Testaburger family's driveway. Wendy carefully drove out, flicking on the right turn indicator and making sure it was safe for her to make a turn before she would inch down the quiet suburban street and make her way towards South Park's main (and only) road.
Stan glanced over at Wendy, watching her closely as she navigated his car through the neighborhood. She seemed to be confident, her eyes flicking between the road ahead and the rearview mirror as she checked her surroundings and looked out for any possible obstacles, but her grip on the steering wheel was tight—well, maybe even a little too tight.
''You're doing great.'', Stan commented, trying to keep his tone light and encouraging. ''Just remember to relax your grip a little bit. You really don't have to strange the poor wheel, you know?''
Wendy let out an amusing chuckle in response, following Stan's advice and loosening the grip she had on the steering wheel just slightly. ''Yeah sorry, it's just that I really want to do this right.'', she explained. ''Driving stick shift is so different from driving my parents' cars since they are both automatic. I wanna' try out both and see which one I feel most comfortable with, since they aren't really the same.''
''I get it.'', the quarterback replied, nodding. ''But don't really stress about it. You've got this.''
As they drove around the neighborhood, Stan continued to give Wendy small pointers—how to properly stop her car and not allow it to accidentally turn off, how to check the blind spots, how to shift gears properly etc. She was doing well, and he was honestly surprised with how much she had improved ever since the last time they had talked about her driving.
After about twenty minutes of slow cruising around, Wendy pulled up to a stop sign at the edge of her neighborhood. She noticed that they were now at the intersection with South Park's main road, which made her feel slightly more nervous, so she looked over at Stan and hoped he would give her an honest opinion and tell her whether she was actually ready to finally hit the road or not.
''So, do you think I'm ready to go on the main road?'', she asked, biting her lip.
Stan wasn't really sure how to respond to her question—on one hand, he really wanted Wendy to hit the road and drive some more so that she could feel more confident in herself and her driving skills, but he also didn't want the two of them to potentially get into trouble because going out on the main road meant more traffic, faster speeds and more chances for something to go wrong.
However, South Park's main road was literally just one big road passing through the small podunk mountain town with only a handful of intersections that were operated by traffic lights. Most of the time, the town wasn't that difficult to navigate and most of its roads didn't seem to be in the most pristine of conditions anyway, so it wasn't like Wendy was about to go all out and hit the gas—moreover, she had been driving well enough, so Stan could tell that she was eager to take the next step (despite looking slightly nervous about the whole thing).
''Yeah.'', he responded. ''I think you're ready, but just remember to stay calm, take it slow and pay attention to everything around you. There's no need to rush things, alright?''
Wendy nodded her head, her expression full of determination and earnestness. She took in a deep breath and checked both ways before releasing the clutch and pressing the gas pedal, eventually pulling the car out onto the main road. She tried her best to keep the car steady and had her eyes laser-focused on the road ahead.
Stan sat right beside her and had his hands resting on his knees, feeling ready to spring into action if necessary, but also trying not to hover too much. He glanced over at her with a reassuring smile. ''You're doing great! Just remember to keep it steady and —''
Suddenly, a car came barreling out of a side street, effectively cutting them off without a warning and just continuing to speed down the road. Wendy gasped and gripped the steering wheel as tight as she possibly could as she slammed on the brakes. The car came to a screeching halt as both her and Stan were thrown forward against their seatbelts.
''Holy shit!'', Wendy shouted, her heart pounding against her ribcage as she practically glared daggers at the car that had nearly hit them. ''What the fuck was that?!''
Stan's heart was racing as well, although he forced himself to remain calm and collected. ''It's okay, it's okay…'', he said, trying to keep himself composed despite the adrenaline coursing through his body. ''Some people are just inconsiderate fucking idiots who can't notice the stop sign right in front of them. The most important thing is that you handled all of this really well and stopped just in time. Plus, you didn't panic, and that's frankly the most important thing.''
''I honestly thought this idiot was going to crash into us!'', the noirette let out a shaky breath as her hands gripped the steering wheel tightly again. ''Thank goodness I noticed him right on time!''
''Well, you did.'', Stan pointed out, placing his hand on top of Wendy's and rubbing it comfortingly with his thumb. He then gave her a reassuring smile. ''And that's exactly what you were supposed to do, and you also managed to stay in control. Unfortunately, these situations will be something you'll have to deal with on a daily basis, but they will also help you become a better driver.''
Wendy, though still a little shaken over the whole ordeal, seemed to relax a bit at Stan's words, which made him smile internally and hope that his words of encouragement would be enough to lift her spirits up. She took a deep breath before releasing the brake and slowly starting to drive again.
For the next half an hour, the two lovebirds drove some more through South Park, driving through many of its streets and roads that were on the outskirts of the town, making turns and even stopping at the parking lot in front of South Park Mall so that Stan could teach Wendy how to park properly and get out of the parking spot as well. She was getting much more comfortable the more time she spent behind the wheel, which in turn made him feel much more relaxed, with his earlier anxious thoughts fading away as he watched her improve.
After some time, they finally pulled into a parking lot of Willy's Chilly Ice Cream Parlor (which had been their favorite date night spot for years now) Wendy put the car in park, leaning back in her seat with a big sigh of relief.
''I can't believe I actually did that.'', she began. ''You know, driving around for such a long time and actually managing to do it just fine? Well, except for when that fucking idiot cut us off and scared me shitless.''
''Well, you did great regardless.'', the dark haired teenage boy replied, smiling sweetly at her. ''I'm really proud of you.''
Wendy turned to look at her boyfriend, her expression softening as she returned the smile. ''Thanks for doing this, Stan. I know it hasn't been easy for you, but I'm just so, so glad you've had enough patience for me and that you've been willing to teach me more about driving.''
Stan felt his cheeks flushing up, feeling a little bit embarrassed by the compliment. ''Hey, don't mention it. Considering what you do for me, it's only fair of me to return the favor and help you out in any which way I can. And besides, I like spending time with you, so that's only one more reason for me to do all of this for you.''
Wendy's cheeks blushed a faint shade of red as well, but her smile widened. She reached over and intertwined her fingers with Stan's, giving them a little squeeze. They sat there for a moment, just enjoying each other's company as the hum of the car's engine filled the silence between them.
''So…'', Wendy was the first one to speak up after a while, keeping her tone playful. ''What's next, Mr. Marsh? Are we gonna' practice parallel parking or what?''
Stan groaned dramatically, although he couldn't help himself but laugh. ''Ugh, parallel parking: the bane of my fucking existence. Do you know I still haven't figured out how to properly parallel park, even though it's been almost six months since I got my license?''
''Oh come on, it can't be that bad.''
''Well, that's easy for you to say, since you haven't tried it yet.''
Wendy stuck out her tongue at Stan. ''Okay, maybe you can show me how it's done then. You know, since you're such a pro and all.''
Stan rolled his eyes, but he knew he just couldn't resist the ravenette's teasing. ''Maybe some other day. We don't really have to rush things, y'know?''
Giggling in response, she leaned over and kissed him sweetly on the cheek, her lips lingering for a moment before she pulled back. "Yeah yeah, I guess you're right about that.''
BECAUSE DRIVING AN AUTOMATIC IS FOR PUSSIES AND AMERICANS ONLY!
So, an idea for this particular oneshot was born mostly out of my own woes with getting a driver's license, which is one of my main goals for 2025, and I'm sure it will be a year in which I'll FINALLY get my driver's license and won't have to be a passenger princess at all times anymore! 💕