A Day in the Life of...

Perfect Strangers Part 1- William Byron

"That doesn't sound good." Jazz said to herself as she heard what she could only describe as a flat tire. "Can this get any worse?" She muttered as she slowed her car down before pulling it to the side of the road. Jazz turned on her hazards before grabbing the flashlight from under her passenger's seat. It was the middle of the night, maybe 2 am, so she was definitely going to need it. Jazz got put of her car and started to check her tires. Two. Two flat tires. "Shit." Jazz ran her fingers through her hair. Two flats and only one spare. She headed to the back where her spare tire was kept. She opened the compartment only to find... "What the hell?" The spare was gone. "I'm going to kill that son of a bitch." Jazz got back into the car to see if she could find a local 24-hour tow service.
"Benson Garage. This is Chip, how can I help you?"
"Hi, I...uh...need a tow. Then I need two new tires."
"Where do you need a tow from?" Jazz bit her lip.
"I'm not exactly sure where I am." Jazz quickly looked at the map on her phone. She gave him the road name.
"I know where that is. I can have someone out there in about 45 minutes. Just leave the keys under the front seat."
"Oh, okay." Jazz said as a set of headlights flashed in her rear view mirror. Jazz hung up as someone knocked on her window. She screamed. "Please don't kill me!"
"Are you okay?" She heard the muffled voice of the figure outside her car.
"Depends. Are you a serial killer?" She asked. He laughed. Who laughs when someone asked them that question?
"Depends, are you?"
"No. I can barely kill a bug without crying."
"I tear up watching Bambi." It was Jazz's turn to laugh. She opened her car door before getting out. "Do you need any help?"
"I think I'm good. The tow truck is coming."
"Okay. How long until it gets here?"
"Uh...45 minutes."
"Do you want me to take you anywhere? Home?"
"You'd be driving for a while."
"Not from around here?"
"Definitely not."
"How about a hotel?"
"I guess. Let me grab some stuff."
"I'll be in my truck." Jazz just nodded before grabbing her suitcase, bag, and phone. She stuffed the keys under the driver's seat before making her way to his truck. Jazz stuffed her suitcase in the backseat before climbing up front. "What's your name?"
"Jasmine. But everyone calls me Jazz."
"Nice to meet you, Jazz. I'm William." Jazz took his outstretched hand.
"Nice to meet you too." William put the truck in drive before heading down the road, leaving Jazz's car alone on the side of the road. Jazz searched for a cheap hotel as William drove.
"What are you doing out here by yourself?"
"Driving. I could ask you the same thing." She said as she checked into her room. Of course, she couldn't check in for two hours.
"Couldn't sleep. Decided to take a drive. Lucky for you."
"Lucky me."
"Which hotel am I taking you too?"
"I can't check in until 4." William looked at the clock in the truck. 2:23.
"I know a diner with some pretty good food and coffee. How about I take you there?"
"Sure."
"Great." The rest of the drive to the diner was silent, William wanting to save the conversation for the diner. William finally pulled up into the diner's  tiny parking lot.
"Thanks for the ride." Jazz said.
"Let's go get some food."
"You're not staying, are you? You should be getting home and getting back to bed."
"It's not a big deal. I could go from some food and coffee." They both got out of the truck before heading inside.
"William! What are you doing here?"
"Morning, Fiona. Can I get my usual booth?"
"Of course! I'll be right over with menus and coffee."
"Thanks, Fiona."
"Come here often?" Jazz asked with a laugh.
"Little bit." William answered with a smile. They slid into the booth on opposite sides. Fiona came over a minute later with menus and coffee.
"The usual, William?" Fiona asked as she filled the two coffee mugs in front of them. Jazz looked over at William.
"What's the usual?"
"Garden omelet with bacon and hashbrowns on the side."
"That actually sounds great." William smiled.
"Two usuals then. I'll have Benny cook that up right away."
"Thanks." William turned to Jazz. "What brings you to this neck of the woods? Where are you from?"
"I'm from Oregon."
"You drove all the way here from Oregon?"
"I drove from Rhode Island. That's where I've been living for the last two years with my now ex-boyfriend." William watched the change in Jazz's face.
"Where are you going?"
"Haven't decided. I just packed all of my belongs into my car and left. I honestly felt stuck. Stuck in my job, stuck in my relationship, just stuck."
"Fresh start."
"Exactly."
"Do you have an idea of where you want to go?"
"Somewhere where it's warm all the time. Some place I can just bury my feet into the sand. Blue skies."
"Sounds amazing."
"It does."
"What made you move from Oregon to Rhode Island?"
"You have a lot of questions for someone you just met."
"Just trying to pass the time."
"Levi. My ex-boyfriend. He got this crazy idea and convinced me to move."
"What about your family?"
"I have no family. I never really knew my parents, so I was in system my entire childhood."
"Oh."
"It wasn't so bad. I had mostly good foster families." Jazz took a sip of her coffee.
"You like your coffee black?" William asked as he added cream and sugar.
"Like my soul." She said with a smirk. "I never liked the taste of cream and sugar, so just coffee." Jazz took another drink. "What do you do?"
"What do you mean?" William asked, taking a drink.
"What's your job?"
"I...uh...work with cars."
"Car salesman." William laughed. "Mechanic."
"Let's leave it at cars."
"Okay." Fiona came back with their food. They ate in silence with an occasional question from William. After they finished eating, they sat there for a long time just asking each other anything that they could think of. "Okay, who is your biggest inspiration?"
"What do you mean?" William asked as Fiona came over to fill their mugs for the fourth time.
"Who has been the biggest inspiration in your life?"
"Probably my dad. What about you?"
"Bridget Hennessy." She said with a laugh. William joined her.
"What?"
"My foster mom used to watch of 8 Simple Rules every day. I wanted to look like Bridget Hennessy so badly. Obviously, that wasn't going to happen." William looked at Jazz. She was definitely not like Kaley Cuoco. Her dark corkscrew curls were all over the place and her olive skin glowed under the fluorescent lights of the diner which were a stark contrast to the bright green eyes he had been staring at for the last two hours.
"Who needs to look like that." Jazz's phone chimed, signaling that her room was ready.
"My room is ready for me to check in."
"I can give you a ride there?"
"Are you sure? You just spent a lot of time with me already."
"What's 15 more minutes?"
"Let me pay for my food first."
"I paid the bill an hour ago. When you went to the bathroom."
"How much do I owe you?"
"Nothing."
"William."
"Jazz, it's okay. You don't owe me anything." Jazz chewed on her bottom lip before giving him a nod. She followed William out of the diner back to the truck. The 15-minute drive to the hotel was quiet, neither of them knowing what to say. They knew their time together was coming to an end. When they got to the hotel, Jazz didn't get out right away. "Who towed your car?"
"Benson Garage."
"Those guys are pretty cool. They'll take good care of your car."
"Thanks. For saving me. Breakfast. The rides. I appreciate it."
"Not a problem."
"I guess this is it."
"I guess so."
"Thanks again." Jazz got out of the truck, suitcase in hand. She gave him a wave before heading inside to check into her hotel.