Our Year Together - Book One

Chapter 5

Jacob drops me off at my house an hour later and I head straight for the garage. I'm surprised to find my dad in there, already working on the Mustang.

"Hey, I thought you'd be asleep by now," I said as I step into the garage.

My dad rolls himself out from under the car and looks at me with the same light brown eyes I inherited from him. His hair is greying and he looks twenty years older than his actual age thanks to the stress of our impending bills. Dark bags hang under his eyes and wrinkles line his forehead making my heart go out for my dad.

"I figured I'd take a look at the car. It's not every day we get a beauty like this."

I smile as I crouch down beside him.

"So, did you find anything? I haven't been able to find the problem."

My dad sits up and looks back at the car. His arms are covered in grease and his shirt is no longer just a light blue color. Dirt smudges his face and I'm taken back to how we were always covered in dirt when I was younger thanks to the countless cars we worked on.

"I'm not too sure, but I think it might have something to do with the spark plug. I picked one up earlier when I was thinking about it, I just haven't gotten around to trying it out." He nods to his toolbox and I walk over to it. The spark plug is still in its case and I tear into the cardboard, careful not to damage the piece.

"How was your night?"

I look over my shoulder at my dad who's back under the car no doubt loving every second of being under a Mustang. My smile tips up as I say,

"It was okay. I went out with Jacob so we could check out a party. There's a girl he's obsessed with right now and she was there."

"So you were the wingman?" My dad laughs. "How'd that go?"

"Hey," I start taking a small amount of offense. "I'm an amazing wingman. Also, I told him to give up. There's no way in hell he'll ever get with this girl. She's way out of his league and there's already someone else for her."

My dad comes back out from under the vehicle and sits up. Grabbing the cloth beside him, he starts cleaning his hands. His eyes meet mine as he asks,

"And what about you? Find a girl way out of your league."

I open my mouth to say no when an image of Claud filters through my thoughts, forcing my mouth closed. My dad chuckles at my response.

"I take that as a yes. So, are you going to take your own advice and give up?"

I cross my arms over my chest at that, momentarily forgetting about the spark plug and the Mustang.

"No, because I'm the only one for her."

"Geez," My dad starts as he stands up and tosses the rag on his workbench. "Where do you get all that cockiness? It must be from your mom. She was just like you back when we were in high school." He rolls his eyes as if in exasperation, but a smile finds it's way onto his face as he no doubt remembers a fond memory. He turns and faces me, then, hand outstretched. "Alright, let me see that spark plug so we can get this baby fixed."

I give him the little piece and we walk over to the vehicle. I pop the hood before joining him. My eyes follow his hands as he works, envy for how quick he is flooding within me. There's also admiration for my father mixed in with the envy since he's the man who taught me all about cars.

"So, have you told her yet?" He asked as he works.

"Told who, what?" I play stupid and I can envision my dad rolling his eyes as he says,

"The girl you like. Have you told her you like her?"

"No."

"Why not?"

I sigh and look down at my already dark stained hands. A small smile twitches onto my lips at the sight of it. Put me in a garage, any garage, and I'll manage to get dirty within seconds. My thoughts shift to Claud and how she always looks so perfect. So pristine and I curl my dirty hands into tight fists.

"Because she's not where I want her yet. When I ask her out she has to say yes and it's not that time yet. Right now, she'll just turn me down the moment I ask." My thoughts go back to earlier and how she'd chosen to kiss a girl for her dare rather than me. I was shocked when it happened and I'd seen the panicked look in her eyes at the initial dare. For a moment I was even going to call it off and be the good guy, but no.

Before I got a chance to show off she goes and kisses Victoria.

"Sometimes, there's not always going to be a right time, Noah." My dad said, drawing my attention back to him. He's still working on the Mustang, head under the hood and arms deep into the car. "There's rarely ever a moment that's 'just right'. Yeah, she might say no, but being rejected is a part of life." He grunts before pulling back from the car and looking at me with a wide grin. "A lot of your life will be filled with rejections and failure. There won't be moment's where you know 'yes, right here, right now, I'll completely succeed.' more often than not, there'll be moments that things just fall flat." He moves around to the driver's side door and slips into the car, grabbing the keys off of the dashboard where I'd tossed them earlier in anger.

"Yeah, but you don't know this girl like I do. It has to be right, if not it'll be impossible to get a yes."

My dad raises an eyebrow disbelief swimming in his eyes.

"If that's the case, Noah, then you've just got to do one thing." He puts the key in the ignition and turns it. The Mustang roars to life and he smiles up at me. "Make the time right yourself. Nothing's impossible, remember?"