Automative Repairs ((TFP ULTRA MAGNUS X OC))

1

Ailani Dunne danced around happily whilst she indulged in her favorite past time.

Bon Jovi blared from the nearby radio propped on the workbench nearest the Corolla she currently had her hands in, tinkering absently with its busted engine as she swayed from side to side. The perfect nighttime weather filtered into the workshop through the opened garage door, making Ailani's Saturday night almost perfect.

Almost because one, she was entirely alone and two, lived on the cusp of Jasper, Nevada; where virtually nothing eventful ever happened.

Her days were repetitive and dull and usually consisted of repairing and redecorating cars — inside and out. She was pretty damn good at what she did for being a twenty-three year old, and everyone in Jasper knew it.

Her mechanics shop seemed to be the number one place the residents of that sleepy town went to get their rides pimped up. She had seen a couple interesting finds since starting up three years ago, and her most frequent customer turned out to be a teenage boy named Vincent.

She didn't particularly like his flirtatious attitude nor his cockiness, but he payed well and left as soon as she was done with his car's repairs or whatever else he wanted done to it. It wasn't a secret that she rushed her work on his vehicle the most; one person can only take so much arrogance in one setting.

Other than that one boy's self-assertiveness, Ailani loved everything about her job. She loved the smell of gasoline and the satisfaction that came with successfully repairing an engine. She liked, despite the tediousness of it all, covering her workshop in plastic covering to apply paint jobs — especially flames and eccentric designs, Ailani had always loved a challenge — she adored the history her family had with mechanics and was happy to follow in her late father's footsteps, even if it wasn't what he initially wanted for her future. He was one of those men who didn't want their kid to feel obligated in doing what they did — but Ailani grew up surrounded by that line of work, and it just so happened to stick all the way into adulthood.

She didn't regret her decision one bit, and despite her father's hesitation, knew that he was proud of her — wherever he was. She kept him in mind every morning when she woke up, and every night when she went to sleep. It had been a hard year and a half without him, but Ailani was a strong girl and had managed to hold her own reasonably well for someone who had to live alone so suddenly.

That's what Ailani's father's death was to her — painfully sudden.

It felt like it was only yesterday when the authorities knocked on her door to tell her that he was killed in a car accident. The irony of it all was painful, and it almost made Ailani give up her dream altogether; but the Dunne Family never gave up, no matter the circumstance.

So, Ailani fixed her own broken heart and morale and continued to support her father's mechanics shop. She had a few fixes to the place done here and there, but was entirely reluctant to change it too much. It was the last thing she had of him, and to redesign it would be dishonoring him, no matter how robust the interior looked.

Ailani huffed out her nose and leaned out of the hood of the Corolla she had been fixing, wiping the sweat away from her forehead with the back of her arm. She stared down at the half-fixed engine with sleepy eyes, figuring right then that she'd finish her work first thing in the morning.

Bringing a hand up and slamming the hood closed, Ailani turned on her heel toward the workbench, where she turned up the radio with one hand and swiped up the can of IPA with the other. She turned again and leant her backside against the bench, shifting her gaze to the darkened street leading into Jasper.

She breathed out heavily and brought her beer can to her lips, realizing only then that it had to be at least eleven o'clock at night. Alani tapped the toe of her boot against the ground, frowning at the fact that she nearly spent all night trying to fix the busted Corolla.