Broken

Chapter 4: I'm In Love With You

It's been 2 days since their first date. Ever since then, Eddie and Sophia have been keeping in touch with each other. Constant communication between the two was a given, with Eddie checking in on Sophia at night, making sure she was doing well and discussing her teaching job. In turn, Sophia would inquire about Eddie's day and how he was doing.

Recently Eddie has been hanging around Mr. Brooks' auto shop, as he had nothing to do. Eddie would help Mr. Brooks repair some customer's vehicles and talk to some of them. Sometimes Mr. Brooks' friends would come to the shop and they would talk a lot over a drink, and Eddie would join in for a bit. Although Eddie felt out of place at times, he still enjoyed the conversations, particularly those with his dad's old friends.

Eddie was currently repairing a customer's bike. The customer was a long-time friend of Mr. Brooks. The customer, a long-time friend of Mr. Brooks, watched Eddie intently, impressed with his work. Upon completing the repair, the customer stood up and gave Eddie a pat on his back as Eddie also stood up from the small chair he used.

"You did good," the customer simply said as he patted Eddie on the back and walked away to find Mr. Brooks. Eddie took a well-deserved break, pouring himself a refreshing glass of water, as he savored the break he's getting for a while.

After the customer left with his now-repaired bike, Mr. Brooks walked out from his office with a chair in his right hand and a cigar in his left hand. Setting the chair next to Eddie, he began to light his cigar and smoke, as Eddie just looked out of the auto shop, watching every car come and go.

"Eddie, if I may," Mr. Brooks began the conversation by asking Eddie a question, "now that you're not serving anymore, what are your plans for the future?"

Feeling a bit uncomfortable with questions about his unclear future, Eddie shifted in his seat as he drank his glass.

"I uh... I am not so sure, Mr. Brooks. I haven't been here long. And I haven't figured out what I am going to do. So I guess till that time comes, I'll stick around here for a while."

"Well I am not opposed to that idea, kid", Mr. Brooks stood up as he walked to the table on the back, grabbed himself a mug and poured coffee inside it, "but you know sooner or later you're not gonna just stick around here."

After pouring his mug full of black coffee, he returned back to his seat with the mug on his right hand, "You know... I used to hear from your father that you loved to write stories, a short one. I don't know if that's true, but maybe you could try that."

Hearing that made Eddie's mind stroll down memory lane. He remembered that he once participated in a short story competition, but he ended up getting 3rd place. Eddie chuckled remembering how he was quite pissed with the result, but he had to accept the fact that the person who got 1st and 2nd place wrote a better story than him. Although, that doesn't stop him from writing stories... even though he had been neglecting it for like... more than 2 decades.

"Ahhh yeah," Eddie just chuckled, "Well, I'd consider trying to write. But no guarantee, Mr. Brooks."

Mr. Brooks just nodded, as he stood up and walked to his office, drinking his coffee while Eddie leaned back to his chair, putting his head to rest. Right at that moment, a car pulled inside the auto shop's garage. The driver's car door opened, revealing a bearded old man in his 60s, wearing a gray T-shirt with a picture of Jeff Beck on it. He spotted Eddie sitting on his chair as the old man greeted him.

"Eddie my boy!"

Eddie just smiled, "Hey Mr. Dawson."

The old man approached Eddie with a laugh, "How many times, Eddie? It's Uncle Dawson. Ha! Just kidding, Eddie my boy. Call me whatever you like."