. . . TBA

I remember that day like it was yesterday. It was freezing, outside, and I was fumbling with my keys, trying to lock the door. I was already running late, and with my fingers numb, I kept dropping the key ring. "FUCK!" I shouted, when I dropped them again. I finally got it, and made my way down the stairs and to my car. I was shocked that we hadn't gotten any snow the night before. I couldn't remember the last time it was that cold. I climbed in my car, and threw my bag on the passenger seat. My car was a mess, as always, and I made another mental note to clean it out. I looked at my watch, and it was 5:00 a.m. I had an hour drive to get to work. I just might make it on time. I thought to myself. I turned the key to start the engine, but it just made a grinding noise, and didn't start. "SHIT! SHIT SHIT SHIT!" I shouted, and hit the steering wheel. The horn honked, and scared me, making me jump. I sighed and tried to start the car again. Still nothing. I couldn't be late to work again. I got out of my car, and lifted the hood up. I had no idea what I was doing.
"Need some help?" I heard someone ask.
"Um, Yes, actually." I said, and looked up. It was one of the maintenance guys that worked at the complex. I had noticed him around before. He was pretty cute, and had to be about my age.
"What seems to be the problem?" He asked, walking over and looking at the engine.
"I honestly have no idea. All I know is I'm running really late, and it wont start." I said.
He laughed and looked around the engine. I didn't bother to pay attention to what he was doing. "It's the radiator." He said.
"And what does that mean?" I asked.
"It means you're not going to get to work today." He said.
"Damnit!" I shouted. I felt like I was going to burst into tears. I took a deep breath.
"Wow you really need to get to work." He said laughing. "I can drop you off and have this fixed when you get back home today."
"Oh my gosh you are a life saver. Thank you so much." I said.
"Hey, anything to help a pretty lady out." He said.
"I work kind of far away." I told him.
"Don't worry about it, really. Come on." He said. I grabbed my bag off the passenger seat and followed him to his old pick up. "Nothing fancy, but it runs. AND it has heat." He said, and opened the passenger door for me.
"Thank you so much. You have no idea how much this means to me." I told him.
"I think I have an idea." He said, and walked around to his side of the truck and climbed in. He started the car and Johnny Cash started singing Ring of Fire.
"Johnny Cash fan?" I asked.
"Yeah. My dad and brothers always listened to him. I picked it up from them." He said.
"That's cool. My ex husband used to listen to a lot of Cash. " I told him.
"Ex?" He said.
"Yeah. I'm divorced. 2 years now." I explained.
"Ah. So where am I taking you?" He asked.
"Oh! I'm sorry. I work in Murphysboro." I told him.
"Wow, you do work far." He said.
"Sorry."
"Hey, I'm just teasing."
He pulled out of the complex and we started the drive to where I worked. We were quiet for a few minutes. "So, What happened with your ex? If you don't mind my asking." He said.
"I got pregnant. Freaked him out, and he left." I said.
"Oh, Sorry to hear that." He said.
"Hey, honestly, we're better off without him."
"How old is your kid?" He asked.
"Two and a half. Her name is Molly."
"Molly? Sounds cute. I have a son, Peter. He stays with his mom though in Jamistown, east of here."
"Yeah, I know where that is. My mom lives there." I told him.
"You grow up there?" He asked.
"Nope. We grew up in Oakland, California actually." I said. "Moved here when I was eight years old."
"Wow a California girl." He said. "Been here my whole life. Never even been anywhere else."
"Oh I love Cali. I wish I could move back, but it's expensive to live there." I said.
"I bet." He said.
"So, are you married?" I asked.
"Nope. Sasha was my high school girlfriend, we never married. She's great though. We're still good friends, which is good since we have a child together." He said.
"That's good. I only hear from my ex a few times a year. He comes around for Molly's birthday and Christmas." I explained. "But, he's a busy guy. We're hoping once she's in school, she can go visit him in the summers."
"Do you get along with him?" He asked.
"We get along good enough. We don't talk much when we actually talk." I said. "But, I do think it is important for him to be in her life."
"So who watches her during the day?" He asked.
"My next door neighbor, Sasha. She has two kids of her own and runs a little day care out of her apartment. She usually watches about 5 or 6 kids at a time." I told him.
"Hey, this may sound as way to direct, but can I maybe take you out for dinner or something sometime?" He asked.
"Really?" I asked. I blushed when I realized how silly I sounded.
"Yeah. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked." He said.
"NO! I would really like that. I'm sorry, I'm just not used to being asked out or anything." I told him.
"Great!" He said. "How old are you, anyway?" He asked.
"I'm 23. 24 in two months." I told him.
"Me too. Well, I'll be 24 in a few weeks." He said. When he dropped me off we exchanged phone numbers. I told him I'd give him a call if I needed a ride home. I ran into my office, and was 10 minutes late. I snuck to my desk, and hoped my boss didn't see me.
"Ah. Miss Archer. Late again?" I heard Mr. McCalister say behind me. He was a middle aged, bald, slimy shell of a little man.
"I'm sorry, sir. My car wouldn't start, and-"
"No excuses. I told you no more tardiness." He said. I hated how he always spoke like I was in school. Tardiness. I wanted to just kick him.
"It wont happen again, sir. I promise." I told him.
"Well, seeing as how you said that yesterday, I can't help but get the feeling your promises mean nothing." He said, and rubbed is pitiful tiny mustache. "I'm afraid this is your third strike." He said.
"No! PLEASE! I promise, this time. Really!" I said.
"Look, I'm sorry. But rules are rules." He said. I tried really hard not to start crying.
"I need this job! There is no work anywhere else right now! I have to pay rent, and Molly is-"
"I'm sorry." He said, and walked away. I sighed, picked my bag back up, and followed him to HR. I didn't have anything personal on my desk,so I had nothing to take home. I was trying to think of anything to be able to get my job back. We lived in such a small area that it was nearly impossible to find a descent paying job. Especially one with benefits.
"Wait." I said. "I will do anything. Please just give me one more chance."
"OH MY GOD!" We hard someone shout. We turned around. It was a younger guy from my department, Reed. He ran over to me and hugged me. I was so confused. "I just had to say, I am so sorry to hear about your sister. You and your family will always be in my prayers." He said. I just stared at him. "Does cancer run in your family?" He asked me with big eyes.
I nodded and continued staring at him. I hadn't talked to Reed much. He was very attractive. He had dark hair and blue eyes. I always saw him as too young for me though. "Your sister has cancer?" Mr. McCalister asked me. I looked at Reed and he nodded. I took a deep breath. "Yes." I said staring at the ground. I was very good at fake crying, so I decided to use it for my benefit. I started crying. "Oh dear." Mr. McCalister said. "I had no idea. Look, we'll go ahead and give you another shot, okay?"
"Thank you SO much Mr. McCalister." I said, continuing to cry.
"Oh please. If there is anything else I can do, just let me know." He said, and patted me on my shoulder. He left, and Reed walked me back to my desk.
"Oh my god! You completely saved me back there!" I told him. "I don't even have a sister."
"Hey, I heard you were about to get fired. I can't stand Mr. McCalister. He makes me want to just tare his puny little mustache off and pee on it!" He said, and I started laughing.
"Sorry, that was gross." He said.
"Gross, but still funny. How can I ever pay you back for that?" I asked him.
"Well, you could let me take you out to dinner tonight." He said smiling.
"How old are you?" I asked.
"I knew you were going to ask me that." He said.
"Well?" I asked.
"Eighteen."
"Wow." I said. "I'm almost twenty-four and I have a daughter."
"It's just dinner. I'm not asking you to marry me." He said.
I smiled. "I know that."
"So?"
"Yeah." I said smiling. I explained to him what happen this morning with my car and he said he would take me home after dinner. I called the babysitter on my lunch break and she was fine with watching Molly later today.
They day flew by so fast. I made sure I got as much work done as possible. I really wanted to make Mr. McCalister see that I wanted the job. I hadn't even noticed the time, until Reed walked up and knocked on the corner of my desk.
"Are you ready?" He asked.
"Yeah. One second!" I said, and finished shutting down my computer. "I just have to drop these off." I said, holding up a stack of files. He walked with me over to accounting where I left the files, and then we walked out to the parking lot.
"You wait in the lobby. I'll pull the car around. It still looks pretty cold out." He said. I just smiled, and he left. I saw a black Honda Accord pull up, and he waved at me. I waved back, and walked out to the car. He got out and opened the passenger side door for me.
"Thank you!" I said.
He shut the door, and got back in on his side.
"Are you cool with Lucy's Diner?" He asked.
"That would be fine." I said smiling.
"Wow, does it bother you that much?" He asked.
"What?"
"My age." He said laughing.
"Oh. No, not really. . ." I said. "I guess I just havn't dated much."
"Really?" He asked surprised.
I laughed. "Why is everyone so surprised by that?"
"Well, you're a cute single lady." He said.
I smiled. "Thanks."
We pulled up at the diner and walked quickly inside. It was so cold out!
We sat down in a booth in the corner. I could feel the heat blowing on us, and it felt so good. A waitress walked up to us.
"Coffee." I said.
"I'll have the same." Reed said. She handed us both menus, and walked away.
"So, how did you come up with my phantom sister with cancer?" I asked him.
"I thought of it on my way down. Trish said she heard Mr. McJackassiter at our desk, and that he was walking you to HR. So I ran down and thought of that." He said.
"Wow. That is crazy! You did that just for me?" I asked.
"Yeah. Why wouldn't I?" He asked. I shrugged my shoulders.
"I don't know. Thanks though. You saved my butt today....big time." I told him.
"You're welcome." He said smiling.
"So, what do you like to do?" I asked.
"I go snowboarding a lot in the winter. You should come with me some time." He said.
"Oh gosh. I would be horrible." I said.
"Nah, you'd have fun." He said.
"I don't know about that. . ." I said.
He sighed. "Oh stop. It's a blast."
I giggled. "Maybe."
"You would. It doesn't matter how good you are at it." He said. "I don't do anything crazy, you'd be safe."
I smiled. "It would be nice to get out some time. . ."
"Come with me Saturday." He said. "You can stay at the lodge with me too."
"Overnight?" I asked.
"Yeah. . ." He said. "Is that not a good idea? Each room ussually has two twin beds."
"Oh, um. Sure, I guess. This is so crazy. I really havn't dated since my daughter was born. Maybe my mom would watch her this weekend." I told him.
"Awesome! You'll have a blast, I swear!" He said.
"I hope I don't make a fool of myself."
"Stop! You wont. If anyone is a fool, it will be me." He said. I just laughed at him. The waitress walked over to us, and just stood there.
"Oh, um. Cheeseburger and fries with a side of ranch and BBQ sauce." I told her.
"I'll have the roastbeef sub and a side of onion rings." Reed said.
"Yup. Coming right up." The woman said, and walked away.
"Okay...." Reed said, and rolled his eyes. It made me giggle.
"So what do you do for fun?" He asked me.
"Oh, gosh. Not much I guess! Work and my daughter take up most of my time. I used to really big on music, but to be honest, I havn't even heard anything new lately." I said.
"Aw. Well that is a shame! I'll see if I can fix that." He said.
"This is so weird! You really have made my day! I mean, first you save my ass at work, then you take me out. I'm so flattered." I told him.
"Hey, I've kind of had a little crush on you for a while. I was too afraid to ask you out since I'm younger." He said.
"Well, that's very sweet." I said.
He just smiled.
"What kind of music were you into?" He asked.
"A little of everything. I don't think there's a single genre that I don't like a little of." I said.
"Cool." He said.
I nodded. "I collect records, so I have a lot of those. I have over a hundred now."
"Oh wow. That's awesome." He said.
"I guess so." I said.
"It is! You are so shy." He said.
"I can't help it. I'm out with an attractive guy." I said.
"You think I'm attractive?" He asked. I smiled, and blushed. I didn't know why I said that.
"Well, I think you are attractive." He said. We talked for a little while, and then the waitress brought out our food. It smelled delicious!