Roadside Encounter

ROADSIDE ENCOUNTER

         Nancy and Peggy were on the way home from a Saturday of church cleaning. They were a little tired but happy in the knowledge of good works well done. They were just coming north on the Yardville road when things went wrong. Peggy stopped the car. "Flat tire. Now what do I do?"

         "Do you know how to fix it?"

         "I know how but I haven't done it in years."

         She got out of the car. She looked around at the woods on either side of the road and shuddered a little. A fine place for two grandmothers to be stranded. The sun would be down in a short time and they would be alone in the woods. "Of all places for this to happen," she thought. "I should have taken the main road."

         She wondered if she remembered how to do this. She got the stuff out of the trunk so she could pull out the spare. "It's heavy," she thought. She couldn't ask Peggy to help her because Peggy had a bad back. She was tugging on it when she heard a loud sound. She looked up and saw three motorcycles coming toward them.

         One of them stopped right by her. The man riding it was a big fellow with a large beard and heavy gold chains on both wrists. His hair was in a long ponytail down his back. His friend pulled up beside him. The friend had no sleeves on his jacket and his arms were a gallery of blue tattoos. The third man stopped then, He was wearing big boots.

         The first man to arrive touched the front of his helmet. "What's the trouble?"

         Nancy didn't answer. He could see what the trouble was. He took off his helmet. "Here let me do that," he said and easily lifted out the spare. "Where's your jack?"

         She pointed. His friends turned their bikes to the headlights shone on where he was working and he set about the chore as if he was handling toys in his big hands. He took off the tire and said, "Hey looky here! You picked up some spike there!" He commented "This is some lonely stretch of road for you ladies to be out on."

         His friend, sitting astride his bike laughed. "Don't imagine anybody's gonna bother you with us here."

         Nancy was relaxing a little. These guys looked fierce but they were polite and they were helping. He got to his feet and stepped back. "There, that's done. You'll be fine now."

         He got back on his bike and picked up his helmet.

         "Thank you!" Nancy said. "I don't know how to thank you!"

         The man put on his helmet. "You're welcome. Glad to help."
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         "What can I do to thank you?" she asked again.

         He laughed and saluted her with two fingers on his helmet. And then the three of them were gone as the sun was setting.


490 words