Girl Mechanic

2: Helping Hand

Girl Mechanic by JellOfAllTrades
Chapter 2

"Hey miss?" A hand reached out to grab Suzie's arm and helped her stand up from her humiliating pavement faceplant.

"Thanks." Suzie kept her head down to avoid showing her helper her face. After what happened she's not going to drive by this part of the subdivision ever again.

The stranger helped her dust off. "You okay? I heard you screaming from our garage."

Yep. Definitely not gonna pass by here anymore.

"I'm okay."

"Are you sure? You're crying." The stranger put a tender hand on her chin and lifted her face up.

Suzie gulped after seeing those piercing grey eyes. Those eyes that shows concern for a girl she doesn't know. A girl who's having the worst day of her life.

"You want to sit down?" The stranger guided her to sit down by the gutter next to her car.

Suzie can't help staring at the stranger. She's probably a few inches taller than her. Her face is framed by her black hair that the front part is too short to go with her loose ponytail at the back. She's biting her lip as she dusted Suzie's cheeks.

"Do  you want to talk about it?" The girl asked, her thick eyebrows scrunched up and Suzie wondered how she could possibly care for a stranger like her.

"My car broke down." Suzie managed to say.

The girl took notice of the smoking car, "I'll check it for you, okay? So please stop crying."

Suzie watched as the girl fanned the smoke and took a quick peek inside the car's engine. She heard her mutter a few things before she knelt in front of her again and smiled. "Your car overheated. When's the last time you put coolant in your cooling system?"

"I don't know."

"When's the last time you had it serviced?"

"Been a while."

"I see. Don't worry, I think I can fix it for you."

Suzie wondered how a girl who seems to be around her age could possibly know anything about cars and even know how to fix it. She nodded at the girl, unsure what to say and afraid that if she talks, her voice would crack. She's been humiliated too many times now today.

"Okay, I'm gonna grab some stuff inside and get you a glass of water. Don't move and please, stop crying. Things will get better."

Suzie watched as the girl ran to her house like an athlete. Well, based on the girl's lean stature, she may be an athlete. And her height must be of great advantage too.

"Things will get better." Suzie sighed, repeating what the girl said. She wiped her tears away, remembering the girl's grey eyes on her earlier. She seemed so concerned for her, going out of her way to help her car problem.

"Here." A glass of water appeared beside her head. Suzie reluctantly accepted it, "thanks"

The girl placed her toolbox beside Suzie's car and took out a few tools. "So tell me, what did your car do to deserve being shouted and kicked?"

"You saw that?" Suzie asked, flustered.

"Well, it's kinda hard not to hear you from inside." The girl turned to show Suzie a toothy grin. "I looked out to see what was wrong and saw you kicking the tires."

"Sorry," Suzie muttered. Staring down at the dirt on her shoes.

"It's all right. Rough day, huh?"

Suzie looked up at the girl who is busy fixing her car, wondering still how she'd come to know what she's doing.

"I've had a rough day too." The girl said, not looking at her. "I've had my friend accidentally pour his slushy on my shirt while I was running late for class. I had no choice but to go to the CR and wash it off or risk feeling sticky through class."

Suzie didn't respond, not knowing what to say. Instead, she watched as the girl reach into the car's engine and turned knobs and gears or whatever it is she's tinkering with in there.

"It took me a while to get the slushie off and I was wet in the front by then. Anyways, when I finished, I got a call from my classmate telling me that our professor isn't coming and we're free to have the afternoon off." The girl turned to give Suzie another toothy grin. "Things got better."

Suzie smiled back, feeling grateful.

"It's done." The girl announced.

"Really?"

"Yeah. I even adjusted the---nevermind, I sound geeky talking about those kind of stuff." She shook her head like she's been told about that a lot of times now. "Anyways, it's done and you can drive home now."

"Thank you." Suzie beamed, "gosh, I'm not sure how much I'll pay you."

"It's all right."

"No wait, I insist." Suzie took out her wallet but the girl pushed her hands down.

"It's all right, you don't need to pay me."

Suzie almost lost herself at the sigh of the girl's intensely grey eyes. She shook herself awake. "No, I insist. How else am I supposed to pay you?"

"You're just a person in need of help and I happen to be the one to help you. No need to pay me for that."

"But--"

"Okay, fine." The girl sighed. "If you want to pay me then why don't you just tell me your name?"

Suzie felt herself blush for being asked at such a way. The girl felt embarrassed that she looked away and scratched the back of her head.

"Suzie." She muttered, looking down at her hands. "Suzanne Martinez but my friends call me Suzie."

"Nice name, Suzie. You're paid now." The girl turned to the car and closed the hood shut. She picked up her toolbox and set it aside the pavement, away from the car's path. Suzie knew this was her cue to get on the car and drive away but she lingered by the door, looking at the girl.

"Thanks again."

"No problem." The girl smiled her toothy smile and raised her hands like it was no big deal but saw that it was full of grease, quickly wiped it away on her shorts.

Suzie got in and started the car. It sputtered to life before roaring smoothly. She looked out to see the girl, still on the pavement, smiling and watching her. Suzie can't help but smile back.

She was about to drive away before she remembered something. She opened the door and stood out.

"Everything okay?" The girl asked, worried again.

"I..." Suzie didn't know how to say it." "I..."

"You?"

"I didn't get your name." Suzie managed to say it without her tongue twisting. She tried to calm herself down to avoid blushing.

The girl smiled her toothy grin and Suzie swear she saw those grey eyes twinkle.

"Levi...Levi Mariano."