Game On

Chapter 2

Chapter 2

America

He approached the nearest car and asked the driver if he knew of a good place to buy a pick up truck , the cabbie smiled at his British accent and made some joke about disguising himself as a Texan , John got into the cab and off they went , after about twenty minutes they turned into a road that was entirely populated by car dealerships , there had to thirty of them at least , the cabbie noticed the look of surprise on Johns face and laughed out loud " quite a sight ain't it "? he said "if you can't find what you want here , then it doesn't exist"

John was still wide eyed and speechless as they drove along the seemingly unending road of dealers , everywhere he turned there were names he knew , Porsche , Ferrari , Mercedes , Jaguar , Cadillac , they were all there and more , he felt like a kid in a sweetshop . then they turned off the main street and onto a side road where suddenly all the vehicles were pick ups , they drove along to the cabbies litany of who was who and who not to trust and eventually the pulled onto a forecourt .

"this place is my brother in laws business and let me tell you that he will sort you out in no time at all and he won't fleece non too bad neither " he laughed at his own humour " just tell him Hank sent ya and you'll be fine " John paid the cabbie and watched it disappear back the way they had come , he heard a voice behind him " Was that Hank ? damn I need to speak to him " .

Car salesmen are the same the world over , really they are it's true , the same  ill fitting suit, the same excessive Brylcreem addiction and the same slightly greasy persona . It was the nature of the beast and this specimen was no different , right down to that slightly unnerving crocodile smile . Before the man had even introduced himself John found himself wanting to punch him and not just once , in his head the punches would never stop . Here and now however we keep calm, we play nice and we buy a truck , nothing more than that.

       "Howdy partner " said the man " You lookin' for somethin' in particular or jus' lookin' "?

" Uh yes actually " replied John " I'm looking to buy a pick up truck"

"Holy shit an Englishman" exclaimed the man , that crocodile smile ever more apparent " well let me tell you this " he said in that polished , well rehearsed way " whatever your truck needs are I guarantee that here at Tucker's Trucks , we have what you need " and again with that smile . John played his role with equal fluidity as he eloquently explained to the man that " I'm over here on a 2 year work visa you see , not that I need to work you understand but I cannot stand too be idle , since my parents died and I sold off the family home I have more than enough to live off but no adventure in my life so I came over here to spend the next two years travelling and working as and when I feel the need to , and for this I am in need of a robust vehicle " nod , smile .

He could tell by the mans expression that all he had heard in that was "more than enough to live off" and could almost see the dollar signs in the mans eyes .

"Well if you're fixing to travel then your gonna need comfort , and if you need comfort I have just the vehicle for you , come right this way sir " he took John by the arm and led him through the substantial showroom until eventually stooping and saying " here we are The H2 Hummer ! , if you're doing a lot of traveling then this is what you need , this baby will eat up the miles all day long and you remain cool and comfortable and arrive at your destination feeling fully refreshed , and she's a snip at forty seven thousand dollars especially when you take into account she was $150,000 new and this one is only 3 years old .

John took a moment to collect his thoughts and to absorb the moment then he spoke , slowly and quietly "I said I want a pick up , a Dodge, a Ford , a Chevy , really I don't mind , but I specifically stated pick up at the beginning of the conversation". the salesman faltered , John pressed his advantage "At no point did I ask to see a bright yellow house on wheels , did I ? "

" haha house on wheels , that's a good one yes sir " he said but the humour was absent from the eyes and he realised he wasn't getting the big sale today , they browsed a few more vehicles and the salesman tried to get him to at least consider the hummer but eventually they settled on a two year old nondescript red ford pick up for the princely sum of $17,500 he had half heartedly faked haggling but ultimately paid the asking price , Two hours later he was driving in a south westerly direction towards his new home , the leasing agent had said it was about two hours out of Dallas so he figured it to be around a hundred miles. He had also purchased a sat-nav from the salesman and its cheery American voice was directing him out of the city and towards his new home .