Memories In Ink

Chapter Two: Ruby Red

The sun flooded my eyes as I rolled over to face my window. As I woke, the sudden feeling of dread and fear filled my chest, almost as if it were a ball weighing down my stomach and
making my heart accelerate rapidly.
I slowly got up. It was Saturday morning, and I was not feeling my usual Saturday morning routine of putting on country and enjoying the music. I was feeling more like hiding under my bed and never leaving it's warm solitude.
I stumbled over to my wardrobe and opened the doors to reveal my shirts. Not many choices, either a dark red and white striped flannel, or a plain white button up. I grabbed the red and white flannel and grabbed a pair of black slacks to go with it, "Might as well dress nice while I can!" I thought. I put on my attire and slipped out into the world as a free man, the freedom I was soon giving up.
I opened the door to my ford and climbed in it, cranking the motor. The car fired right up as it always did, emitting small clouds of blue smoke into the hot summer air. The gears ground as I kicked the car into reverse and backed out of the driveway. As I came to a halt at the end of the street I sat there, listening to the rumble of the flathead six. My mind was not where I was that day. In fact, if someone would have walked up to me and slapped me I probably wouldn't have even noticed.
A butterfly landed on my hood and began fluttering it's wings while walking around the big red platform of my hood. I zoned out, looking into the butterflies orange and black wings, admiring their beauty even though my mind was off in another place. I shook my head and grabbed the shifter and put it into first gear as I eased out onto the highway . The Ford's tires made a distinct roaring sound as my speed picked up along the highway. The big car eased its way down the road slowly making its way to Fifty Five miles per hour, her top speed only being sixty. As my car made its way down the highway, I saw Ernest Briggs, a well to do farmer on the side of the road, with the hood open on his model A pickup. I eased the car off the road and pulled up to him, my old drum brakes screeching as I came to a halt. Ernest quickly looked up and noticed the bright red sedan behind him.
Ernest was an older man, the kind of older man you'd expect to have lots of knowledge, an overflowing waterfall of thoughts and advice. The sun shined in his face, showing his true age as he walked toward me. "Hello Everett! Seems I'm always working on this old gal." I got out of my car and smiled shaking my head. "One day that old iron just wont start back you know." I said as I let out a chuckle. He pulled out a pouch of Redman chew, putting in a rather large portion of the tobacco into his bottom lip, making a mess and dropping half of it on the ground. "You know, a young man like you shouldn't be dogging such advanced technology." "I remember being only a boy and seeing my first automobile, and I didn't know what to think." I walked up to the model a truck to join him in conversation. The old, tired, green motor had quite the oil residue on the engine block, as well as congregations of pine needles and leaves on top of his intake. "You know this can start a fire old man." I said as I pointed to the nature gathering at its convenience under his hood. "Yeah I know boy." "Why ain't you in school today?" He asked while spitting a big wad of brownish black spit onto the ground beside him. "Today's Saturday, but that's not the only reason." Ernest looked at me puzzled, as if he didn't quite understand what I was saying. "You-you don't mean-" he trailed off as I interrupted him with the reply: "Yes." "I leave in three weeks."
Ernest's eyes got big as he looked at me with sympathy, more sympathy than I'd ever seen in that old mans face before. He eased down onto the front bumper of his truck and rested his legs. "War, it ain't easy son." "I remember my drafting into the military like it was yesterday." Once Archduke Franz Ferdinand was shot, that was the start of the world war." He coughed a bit as he continued to speak "The war to end all wars they said." He looked at the ground and squinted his eyes, as if trying to block out the echoes of gun fire in his mind. "But boy were they wrong." He continued to spit as he sat on the bumper, the heat from the engine block radiating into the air and onto the back of my neck. "Well," I sighed "I'd love to stay and help you, but I need to go fill up this old hog." I said as I pointed to my '38 Ford glistening in the sunlight. Before I could walk away, Ernest put his hand on my shoulder and sighed. "Son, you be careful, and please what ever you do, make sure your heart is right with Jesus." "He will help you through this." He wiped a tear from his eye as he patted my shoulder. I looked at him and smiled in a child-like way. He let go of my shoulder and nodded his head as I walked back to my car.
I turned the key and the flathead roared to life. The ride to the service station was somehow different than normal, almost as if I was taking it all in one last time before my freedom were to be plucked from my hands. As I eased off of the highway into the service station, a dark blue Chevrolet sedan zoomed past me, leaving a trail of leaves and bottles in its wake. The sound of the bells ringing outside of the station brought the clerk to attention.
Jim Madison, a middle aged man, eased out of the bright red door to the service station holding a rag in his hands. "Mornin' Everett." He said in a bright happy tone. I looked at him and smiled as I closed the door to the Ford. "Morning Jim, hows your little one?" I asked while lighting a cigarette and leaning against my front fender. Jim pulled the fuel nozzle out of the pump and inserted it into the fuel tank's neck. "Oh, just fine, learning how to walk." He said with joy. He looked around a second and then once more at me. "Need an oil change? Tires all holding air?" I looked at him and chuckled. "You can't kill this thing Jim, if I threw a handful of rocks into the carburetor it'd still run like a dream." Jim laughed as he continued to pump the gas into my car. "How about you Everett? You excited to graduate?" He asked. I took a long drag of my cigarette and stared at the ground. "Sure am Jim, and to tell you the truth, I'm sure nervous." Jim smiled back at me. "Now you can't be scared Everett, ain't like you're going off to war or anything." I chuckled and went along with him. "Yeah you're right." Jim pulled the nozzle out of the car and placed it back into the pump. "Come on in and I'll ring you up." He said as he walked into the station.
I eased the door open to reveal the smell of motor oil and freshly mopped floors. "Your total is one dollar and ten cents Everett." I pulled out my bill fold and handed him a two dollar bill. "Use that change and I'll take a carton of Marlboro Reds." I said as I coughed a bit into my sleeve. Jim looked up at me in that facial expression of : "you know better young man." Although he didn't say it, I could tell his mind sure did. Then he smiled and reached behind him to grab the carton. "You know these things will kill you Everett, and it's sad to see a young man burning them." I looked back at Jim and smiled. He handed me the carton and my change. "Everett, take care of yourself son." He looked at me then looked up to notice another customer pulling in behind me.
I grabbed my things and thanked him one last time before heading out of the door. The humidity stained the air as I opened up my cigarette window to fill the cabin with fresh air. I turned the chrome dial of my radio to the on position. No music, only a news report about the current struggles in the war. I quickly switched the radio back off, trying to keep the negativity from crossing my mind. As I made my way down the highway my stomach began to grumble. I needed to eat, and I knew just the spot.
A silhouette of dust followed behind my red sedan as I pulled into the parking spot of the local diner in town. I looked up at the large white and red sign that read: "Mary's Diner." As I reached for the door handle, the same dark blue Chevy came flying in, parking right next to me. As the dust settled I could see the big yellow grin of a fellow classmate, Gerry Heinz. Without waiting a second Gerry looked straight at me and shouted: "Well, well, if it ain't that no good sum bitch Everett!" He said as he laughed, revealing his teeth, yellow as a cob of corn. I chuckled and gave him a wink. "Oh just enjoying the day there Gerry, I see you are too." Gerry laughed as he slammed the door to his '35 Chevrolet 4 door sedan. I slowly got out of my Ford, closing the door behind me. Gerry walked up to the door and pulled it open, waiting for me. As I walked past him he patted my shoulder and let out a cackle. The instant smell of eggs and bacon filled the air, almost completely masking my mind of what was soon to come.
The bright lit diner was chock full of folks. Gerry and I walked to the very back of the diner and found a table next to the window. Gerry grunted as he sat down. I eased into the black worn out booth and tried to make myself comfortable. Gerry took a deep breath and looked up at me. "So hotshot, what are your plans now that you is a free man?" I looked at him and down at the table. "Well, I've been drafted." I said while letting out a sigh. Gerry's face turned from happy to even happier. "Well I'll be damned! So was I!" He giggled as he took a deep breath. "Got my letter in the mail yesterday. Glad to see that we'll be in it together!" Before I could say another word a young bright red haired woman came up to the table grinning from ear to ear. "Gerry smiled back at her, raising an eyebrow. "Now where did this pretty little thing come from?" He said as he snickered a bit, trying to be smooth. The woman looked at him with a sassy eye and placed her hand upon her hip. "Sir I'd really appreciate it if you could keep this food related. I snickered a bit myself, trying to hold it in. I gathered the courage to speak up. "Ma'am I'll have an order of fried eggs, sunny side up, and two pieces of bacon." She looked at me and smiled, giving me a cute look in her eyes. "Thank you hon." She turned back to Gerry, her smile slowly fading into an annoyed expression.
Gerry cleared his throat and stuttered a bit. "I-I'll take the same thing ma'am." She smiled back at me and wrote down on her note pad. "Alright y'all, I'll have it out in an jiffy!" She sped away, slinging her hips. I couldn't help but stare, until Gerry snapped me out of it. "Man! Always stealing my thunder ain't ya?" I laughed at Gerry as I lit another cigarette. "You know that I just have a more polite way with words now don't ya?" Gerry looked back down at the table. "Yeah I reckon so." He looked back up and focused on my jet black hair. "Guess that fancy hair of yours is gonna be gone next week." He said as he tapped on the table.
Another waitress with gray came back with a soda, placing it on the table. "This is on the house for you." The waitress said while looking at me. I looked at her in confusion. "Ma'am, who paid for it?" She grinned at me and pointed to the same red haired woman that took my order a few minutes ago. The red head looked up at me and noticed my gaze, she looked down and blushed as she continued taking orders from the bar. Gerry looked at me with a goofy grin on his face. He leaned forward and covered the side of his face. "I think ol' red Rhonda over there's got a thing for ya!" He eased back into his seat chuckling. Before I could get another word out the bright red waitress approached the table, setting down our plates of food. I thanked her as she walked off. Gerry grabbed the salt shaker, and began drowning his eggs with it.
I began to dig in myself until I noticed a note under my plate. I eased the plate up to reveal a small slip of paper with a the name "Sarah" written on it with two hearts. I flipped the slip over and it read: "thank you for being so sweet, I would love to grab supper sometime." My face got red hot as I put the letter aside. Gerry, too hungry to look up, didn't notice the note laying on the table. I finished up my breakfast and set my fork down on the table, while taking a big swig of soda. Gerry finished right behind me and set his fork down as well. While vigorously smacking he looked up at me and said "well I'd love to stay Everett, but I gots to get home and feed mommas chickens." I looked at him and smiled. "Good to see you Gerry." He turned to face me while slowly walking away. "See you in a few weeks!" He said as he stumbled a bit walking out of the door.
I looked down at my plate, then glanced back at the note the red haired woman had left me. As I flipped it over again to reveal her name, a shadow covered up the paper. I looked up to see her standing over me, smiling in a pleasant way. "Mind if I take a seat?" She asked. I swallowed suddenly as my throat went dry and began to stutter. "Y-yes ma'am." I said as I put the note back down. She slid in the booth across from me, her red lipstick glistening in the well lit room. "So." She said while twirling her red her with her finger. "I'm Sarah." She smiled like a child on Christmas morning. My face began to feel hot and I looked down at the table. "My names Everett ma'am, it's nice to meet you." As we began to talk, the sound of Gerry's car firing up shook the side of the building and rattled the windows. As I looked up all that was left of his car was a cloud of blue smoke.
The blue Chevy was high tailing it down the highway back towards the service station. Sarah and I talked for what seemed like hours. The way she held her head as she talked to me had me mesmerized, definitely something I had never felt about a woman before. Sure Playboys were one thing, but this felt different. "Well-" she sighed. "I really need to be heading home, got a long ride back." I looked at her in a puzzled manor. "Wait, how far do you live from town?" She replied while slowly standing up. "About 3 miles, but I ride my bicycle, mamma and papa don't let me drive the truck too often." She smiled one more time before she turned away to walk out of the door. I looked up at the clock. The hands of the clock read 3:30. I couldn't believe I'd been there talking since 10:00 that morning. I quickly jumped up and scurried to catch up with her outside.
The strong, humid air filled my lungs as I finally caught up to her. Sarah turned to face me, looking puzzled as to why I just ran out of the diner to say goodbye to her. She leaned against her bicycle and asked: "Are you alright Everett?" I was gasping for air before I could mutter the words out of my mouth. "Would you like a ride home?" I took another big breath to catch back up. "I could put your bike in your trunk and take you home, if that doesn't matter to you of course." She looked at me and smiled. "Why sure!" I walked over to the red sedans trunk and opened the lid. The hinges squeaked as the sharp afternoon sunlight revealed my spare tire and tire iron. She rolled her bike over to the car and I lifted it into the trunk and closed the lid. "I really like your car Everett." She said as she slowly caressed her hand down the rear quarter panel. I smiled back at her. "Yeah she's definitely something to me." She replied almost immediately. "It's Ruby, like me." I looked at her puzzled. "B-but you said your name was Sarah?" She laughed. "Yes silly, that's my name, but my friends in high school always called me Ruby Red." "Beautiful name for a beautiful woman." I replied with stained red cheeks. She grinned at me as I walked over and opened the door for her to get in. She eased into the seat as I slowly latched the door for her. I quickly made my way around the front of the sedan to accompany her in the drivers seat. As I shut the door I turned the key. The starter cranked and the reliant six roared to life. As I pushed the gear shift up into reverse she turned to me and said: "Thank you for the ride." I smiled and nodded. "You're quite welcome Sarah."
The red Ford eased into the highway and began to pick up speed. As we rode, the sounds of wind whipping past the cars structure was all that filled the void of awkward silence. Before I could mutter another word, she clicked on the radio. The radio's tubes hummed as it tuned into the nearby station. The song: "I Don't Want To Walk Without You." Softly came through the single speaker. As the drive went on, Sarah began to rest her head on my shoulder.
     The reflection of my chrome shined into the windows of her small, white, three window house. I eased the parking brake on and killed the sedan. We both stared down at our hands. You know, how most awkward teenagers in love usually do. Before I could say anything Sarah leaned in and gave my cheek a peck, leaving a smear of red lipstick on my face. My face got bright red as I turned back to face her. "Thank you." That was all I could say to her. The sunlight was now casting afternoon shadows on the ground. Sarah stared down at her hands for a brief moment. "Well, I should go. I've got chores to get done." She said as she reached for the door handle. "So tomorrow?" She asked while her red lipstick shined in the light. I nodded back to her. "Tomorrow is good." I said as she closed the door behind her. I got out of my sedan and popped the trunk lid to retrieve her bicycle. She walked over to me, giving me one final peck on the cheek. "Thank you Everett, it was mighty kind of you." I smiled back at her. "Just doing my job as a gentleman." She smiled and walked towards her house, her bike rolling at her side.
The door handle made a metallic clink as I opened the drivers side door. I sat down in the seat and cranked the flathead to life. I closed the door as I put the shifter into reverse and backed out of the driveway. As I drove down the highway all I could think about were the words: "Ruby Red."