Fate in a 65 Chevy

“I know what you’re going to say about it” he said keeping a steady arm as the car made the same puttering sound it did every day. Michel didn’t seem to react; reacting was something Jack tried to make him do from time to time. He knew that the few things they disagreed on could spark a lively talk. Sometimes, he just felt so bored with it that a good discussion would kill the dead air. Only Michel looked through his window as his thin reflection cut into the grey sky. “Fate , and all that stuff” Jack seemed to reply to himself. “Its not just stuff” muttered Michel pressing his head against the window. The 65 Chevy was Jack’s baby, in a few seconds Jack would tell him the story about his cousin Andy’s head going through a window in the back of his moms car and nearly bleeding out all over him. “Your right, it has to be real to be stuff” Jack retorted pushing onto the brakes and off of the clutch. “No Andy” thought Michel. “Oh and another thing, get your head off my window. Don’t want your head going through the damn thing. Just got the seats cleaned” Jack said forgetting about his story. “ How can you say that when you have this”; said Michel. Jack eased off the clutch and onto the gas as the light switched to green. He speed up to much, which was to be expected. Every time he got to the light he though the guy next to him was trying to race him. “You watch to many Fast and Furious movies”; said Michel finally pulling his head from the glass. “Do I look like some guy with a supped up Subaru? No, this is North American Craftsmanship at its finest age my friend” Jack spat at Michel. Michel ran his hands through his hair, someone told him it caused hair loss or something another. Though the guy that told him was bald as a babies butt so. “ You think they would have thought of airbags,” said Michel. “ Airbags shmerbags” he said. He barely took in a breath when he said “and I got this by working overtime” he said remembering Michel’s earlier comment. That was the problem with Jack, he had a fine memory. “I thought you said the dealership guy happened to like you” said Michel turning this time to look somewhat at Jack. Jack seemed to give the car a small amount after hearing this, maybe he though he saw a squirrel that was really a pile of snow blackened by mud. “Well that’s just my natural charm. I’m sure Jamie would agree with me” he said. Michel hadn’t thought about Jamie in awhile, and to be true full he didn’t care too. Jamie was somewhere else, with someone else, never to think about the two of them again. Never to think of what they did to her again. “ Man, it was eighteen years ago. I’m sure she has gotten past it by now” said Jack almost trying to convince himself of the fact. Michel turned slowly, the leather squeaked as he did so. “No one gets over something like that” uttered Michel with daggers sprouting from his heart. Michel looked back to his window, looked through time and saw what they did. Jack driving his dad’s old 1980 ford pinto. His father had been warned of the defect with the Pinto’s gas tank and had initially ignored it. The big gas tank problem had been in what 77? 78? They had left the dance early, Jamie and Marcie decided it was getting too loud and they needed some fresh air. Jack said the park would be quiet at this time of night, nearly falling over after the Jaeger shots he did with Keaton Mills in the parking lot. “We were all drunk”, said Michel. Jack twisted slightly, “what?” he said. Michel sighed and sank deeper into the leather. “On that night, we were all drunk. You wanted Marcie in the front seat with you. Jamie and I were in the back,” said Michel. “Michel get…”, “YOU KILLED HER!” Michel belted as the water sprung from his eyes. “You drove off the bridge, and she broke her neck” Michel spat into the window. His eyes to filled with sadness to look at him. Jack pulled into the lot next too the old steel mill that closed when they were in Kindergarten. All they had thought at the time was that the two blobs of smoke that rose every morning had just stopped. When the families started moving too Pittsburgh, or Cleveland they new something had changed. “You don’t think it hurt me Michel. You don’t think killing someone HURT ME IN THE SLIGHTEST?!” Jack yelled into the back of Michel’s head. The chasse shifted slightly as Michel turned to Jack. The leather crinkled as their eyes, equally red with the years of silence met. “ YOU JUST DIDN’T WANT TO GET CAUGHT! YOU MOVED HER BODY INTO THE DRIVERS SEAT SO YOU WOULDN’T GO TO PRISON! YEAH JACK! I WAS AWAKE, I SAW YOU DO IT. Jamie did too. We weren’t drunk enough not to remember who was driving. I guess Jamie just knew you were a coward. Knew a dead girl would feel no shame” . Jack turned the key and the engine began to turn over, “I can see your not ready to talk about this. I’ll take you home”. They pulled into the exit drive to the road and waited for a gap. “Fate…fate would have stopped that” Jack said as they pulled onto the road. The sixteen wheeler broke the divider as the concrete flew through the crocked air.

Airbags Shmerbags.