Written With Love

Chapter 2: An Unlikely Union

[flashback, 6 years ago]

It was a dark stormy night as Wyatt drove home from his job at a meta cafe a few miles down the road from school. It was heavy rain and gusty winds which made everyone who could get home hurried on home. By now most of the roads were empty and it was a good thing since many were flooding and fast. Noticing this, he decided to look carefully and take his time but as he headed up the dimly lit road, something caught his attention and it was this thing which saved him from the same predicament. There was a car with its Hazard lights on in the middle of the road and as Wyatt approached it, the reflection warned him of the flooded road where the car had come to rest.

He turned on his high beams, looking to see if he could go around it and not waste time and in doing so, he happened to notice a relatively young, red-haired woman who appeared to be trying to push the car's front wheels out of something. He sighed and began to turn around, but before he fully completed the U-turn he moved his car to the shoulder and unbuckled his seat belt. Normally he would be wary of helping a stranger on a dark stormy night with no witnesses around but she genuinely looked to be struggling all while she was soaking wet with a tank top and leggings on, in cold rain".

He sighed as he opened his door, popped his trunk, grabbed a disposable poncho, closed his car doors, and locked them in case she was a psycho. He gently tapped the woman's shoulders which startled her, before extending his hand and saying"Please put this on, it'll keep you dry". She took it and put it on as he opened her car door and looked into the cabin and saw it had gotten wet. He looked her in the face and said"Your car's engine is gone".She looked at him confused and said"We just gotta get it out of the water, jump it and it'll start".

Wyatt said, "Your car's cabin is soaked which means the water was high enough to penetrate some of the air intakes to your engine, It's hydro-locked and some parts are probably wet...which means combustion can't happen and there is a high risk of electrocution". Kimberly crossed her arms in disbelief which prompted Wyatt to pop the hood and look. As he shined his phone light and looked, he noticed the engine was soaked and partially submerged by a few inches so he closed it up. He helped her push her car to the shoulder and got in with her to escape the rain. She sighed and said "So what do we do now Mr. stranger?" and he said"Hey! The name is Wyatt and well since your car is junked how bout' I give you a ride home?" She said, "Hmm I don't know, I think I'll just catch an Uber...you are a stranger after all".

Wyatt smacked his head into the palm of his hand and said"What's the difference...an Uber is just you paying a stranger to take you home".She smiled and said"True but I have his ID and can report him if he attempts any funny shit, besides why are you so bent on giving me a lift home? Are you planning to use this as a way to try to get a date with me? is this how you normally pick up chicks? or are you one of those perverts with a hero complex?" Wyatt rolled his eyes and thought to himself"Wow she sure is cocky about her looks".He sighed and said, "Look I'm trying to be nice and not leave you stranded in a severe thunderstorm that could potentially kill you, I'm a simple high school student on his way back from work at that meta cafe down the road".

"I'm tired from school and work and I just wanna go home, I don't have time to be accused of every crime under the sun, in fact, I could care less if you're a model right now, I saw you needed help and I'm being a good Samaritan and helping you so if you wanna do this all night you can do it alone!". She looked down and said"show me your school ID if you're really telling the truth".He opened his wallet and pulled it out and showed her, which clicked a light bulb in her head. She chuckled and said"oh my god,I know you, you're book nerd guy".Wyatt frowned at her and said"w-wait! you go to Mendoza High School too?" She smiled and said, "Yeah, the name is Kimberly Reiss...but wow you look sexy when you're not wearing glasses and glaring down into your notebook with that weird look on your face".

He frowned and said, "Yep I'm getting back in my car, goodnight ma'am, I wish you a safe travel back home". He got out of the car and darted back to his with Kimberly following him. He unlocked his car and got in along with Kimberly which earned a sigh from him. He rolled his eyes and said, "What do you want, I thought you didn't trust me". She giggled and said, "It's fine, a book nerd like you couldn't possibly have the guts to talk to a girl like me". He sarcastically chuckled and said, "You're totally right, I would never approach an obnoxious, rude, and super cocky woman like you now hush and enter your address into the GPS already".

After entering her address, Wyatt headed back the way he came and took an alternate road to bypass the flooded one. A few minutes later, Kimberly broke the silence and said"Do you hate me that much Wyatt?" and he sighed and said, "No I don't, I just hate the obnoxious behavior and the entire world I was born into...I literally write as a coping method for my social anxiety and I'm given hell for it". He continued and said, "No one understands me so I keep myself Isolated and my mind busy". Kimberly felt bad for the guy but couldn't bring herself to say anything...she was just an outsider looking in and she didn't want to offend him any more than she already had.