Chapter Text
Life is uncertain.
Tomorrow isn’t promised or guaranteed.
And somebody is living their last day on Earth.
All phrases that I’ve heard thrown around. Phrases that I never truly thought about until recently. I’d lived life on the straight and narrow, my path paved out in front of me. Always the “good girl” who never disobeyed or failed at anything. I never wanted to cause problems or fight… because I’d shut down. I stuck with what I knew and enjoyed what I was privileged enough to have.
Until recently, I’d lived on the outer banks of New York City with my parents. For my first twenty-two years on this earth, my parents had been focused on their careers - never really paying attention to me. It didn’t take long to realize that I was an unfortunate accident. My grandparents were kind enough to take me in, and I grew up in their care. Every year in the summer, I’d travel down to Georgia with them and stay in their gorgeous, ranch-style summer home. I was out of my parents’ hair and was allowed to be a kid.
My grandparents filled that familial role I’d been missing, giving me the love and tender care I never would have known otherwise. During my sophomore year of college, something I’d been dreading happened.
My grandpa, an avid smoker since he was a teenager, passed away due to lung cancer.
Despite everything, my grandma managed to attend my college graduation two years later, then passed only a month after. I discovered shortly after that they’d agreed to leave me their Georgian summer home in their will and trust. My parents had tried to urge me to sell it, to avoid moving to some “scummy hick town”, but I grew a backbone that day and refused. How could I possibly sell the place I escaped to during all those lonely summers? It was mine now, and I intended on taking care of it while making a life for myself. I refused to live according to anyone else’s rules any longer.
Shortly after a bad breakup near my twenty second birthday, I packed up my stuff and took the twelve and a half hour drive down to Savannah, Georgia on my own.
It didn’t take long to find a job at the local bookstore downtown. During my first week living here I started committing to my art-ranging from water color paintings to even dabbling in digital art. I had dreamed one day to become a graphic designer. Maybe it was silly of me to move out of New York where all the jobs were, but I just had a good feeling about Georgia.
By the second week, I could practically hear the spirit of my grandpa telling me to drive my car into town to have it inspected. It was probably too far a drive for my little car to handle, but he’d always said that it was a good idea to take care of problems before they happened, and that it was wise to get to know your local blue collar workers.
Especially the mechanics… since your old car will always need maintenance.
“Okay, okay… I’m going.” I mumbled to myself, glancing at a picture of my grandparents I kept hanging in the hallway. I smiled, reaching up to straighten it before heading into the entry way to grab my purse and keys. My hand hovered over a light windbreaker jacket.
Back in New York, November was ice cold. But here, this time of year was in the low 70s during the day until it dropped to the 50s at night. I hesitated, only for a moment, before finally grabbing my jacket and tossing it over my shoulder.
Better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.
The drive to the local garage only took about twenty minutes with little traffic. This was another great thing about the simplicity of the south. I didn’t have to fight for my life on the road every single time I had to drive somewhere.
After pulling into the unfinished lot, I parked in an empty space near the garage. I could hear the various sounds of tools and chatter, and I looked around for anyone I could talk to, feeling unsure. There hadn’t been anyone to greet or direct me, so I forced myself to put on a confident air- one that I didn’t truly feel. I sucked in a small breath and stepped up to the large, open garage where the sounds were coming from.
“Hello?” I called out, hoping I wasn’t interrupting anyone.
“Hold on! I’ll be with ya in a second!” A muffled voice replied, coming from the hood of a nearby car being worked on.
I stood just outside the garage, not wanting to get in anyone’s way or have a wrench thrown at my head. There were a few clinks and grunts before the owner of the voice closed the hood of the car and spotted me.
I narrowed my eyes slightly, squinting, focusing on the man before me. He was about six feet tall, with bright blue eyes peeking out beneath a wave of light brunette hair under a sturdy cap, which he then removed to wipe his forehead. He pushed his flop of hair back before replacing his hat back on his head. My eyes traveled, without permission, down to the name patch on his coveralls reading “Ellis”.
Huh, what a cute name for a cute face…
When he finally made eye contact with me, he froze, eyes wide. Assuming something was behind me, I froze too and quickly turned around. Seeing nothing, I turned back, mild confusion marring my features. Unlike me for a brief second, he was fully recovered and coming over with a bright smile on his face.
“Well howdy! Sorry for the wait,” he said, tilting his cap towards me, “What can I do for ya? Havin’ car troubles or just here for a chat?”
His southern accent was thick, but I liked it. The New York accents I knew were so strong and a little intimidating if you weren’t used to them. The southern accent, however, was much more charming and welcoming.
Reply to the man! Quit staring and act like a human being!
I breathed a little easier now that I heard the friendliness in his voice, “Hi there, uh, Ellis,” I began, glancing down at the name on his coveralls again to make sure I got it right, “I was just hoping to drop my car off for a check up and oil change? I just did a long drive about two weeks ago and wanted to make sure everything was alright.”
He tilted his head, that friendly smile never leaving his face, “A check up and an oil change? Well, you’re in the perfect place for that! Lead the way to your car. How long of a drive are we talkin’ if you don’t mind me askin’?”
I offered him a small, shy smile back as we started towards the direction of my car, “A little over twelve hours.”
That was all I was able to get out before he stopped walking and spoke again.
“Twelve hours! Whoa! A lady on a mission. What was a girl like you doing all by your lonesome on the road for that long?” He asked, his eyes wide in what I assumed was surprise. He unfroze and jogged over to catch up to me.
“I mean, not that you wouldn’t be able to handle it or anything. You seem perfectly capable, trust me! Most folks would take the easy way out and go by plane. But where’s the fun in that? There’s nothing like a nice drive with the radio blastin’!” He paused again, rubbing the back of his neck, “I’m ramblin’ aren’t I? My apologies, ma’am.”
I couldn’t help but smile over his infectiously kind energy. He was a breath of fresh air in comparison to the snobby, arrogant guys I knew back in New York. They always thought they had something to prove, whether it was how tough they were or how much money their family had. It was so artificial. People here seemed very down to earth and just… real.
“You’re fine, Ellis. I actually just moved down here from New York. Packed up my car and took the long, long drive down. Now I’m living here permanently. I’m Adalyn by the way, but I prefer to go by Addie.” I replied as I held out a hand to him, not even thinking about the oil and grease most likely coating his skin from working on cars all day.
He went to reach his hand out, but paused when he realized it was covered in motor oil. He let out a nervous chuckle and pulled a rag out of his back pocket, “Sorry. One moment, Addie.”
Once he wiped off as much as he could, he gently took my hand and shook it. His hand was warm and calloused, likely from all the manual labor he’d done over the years. Anyone could easily see he was a hard worker, but I was easily able to tell he was a kind soul. I liked to think I was good at reading people, but my initial opinion of my ex boyfriend would prove that wrong. I suppressed a shudder at the mere memory of him.
After holding his hand for a beat too long, I pulled back and dropped my hand to my side awkwardly. I glanced up at him and smiled softly before remembering why I was here, “Oh yes! So here’s my car, the one that got me to Savannah in one piece.”
I gestured towards my little blue car, fidgeting with my keys in my other hand. Ellis stepped forward, immediately circling it to take a look as he spoke.
“Man, all the way from New York? That is quite the trek! What a long way from Savannah!” He paused, stuffing the dirty rag into his back pocket before continuing, “and a big change of scenery huh? I ain’t ever been to New York before, but I’ve seen pictures and videos of all the hustlin’ and bustlin’ that goes on up there. The skyscrapers, people chasing down yellow cabs, and crowds so full you could easily get lost in em!”
He shook his head, chuckling to himself as he circled back to me.
“Well, welcome to Savannah! Consider me your official welcome committee. If you need any cool places to go, I’m your guy! I’ve lived here my whole life, so I know all the hidden gems and places to be. I’m pretty much considered a local expert since I love to drive around and see what kind of trouble my buddies and I can get into. You’d totally fit right in!”
I admit, I was a bit taken back by how truly friendly he was. I knew there was such a thing as “southern hospitality”, but I didn’t think I’d witness it this quickly from someone I just met, let alone my mechanic.
“You’d… you’d do that for me? You’re probably too busy for a stranger though.” I replied back with a shy laugh, not wanting to trouble him in case he was just saying it to be nice.
Ellis waved his hand dismissively, “Too busy for a stranger? Now don’t go thinkin’ like that! Strangers are just friends you haven’t said hello to yet! There ain’t no such thing as ‘too busy’ when it comes to meeting someone as purty as you.”
I watched him catch his words a little too late as pink blush spread across his cheeks and he rubbed the back of his neck nervously again. But that kind smile never left his face the entire time. Plus, I had a feeling my cheeks were turning just as pink as his.
“Besides, makin’ friends as the new person in town is part of the fun! Though, I’m sure you probably don’t have any issues makin’ friends, Addie. You seem as sweet as a peach! Probably have a boyfriend back home waitin’ for you too, huh?” Ellis added, the blush spreading slightly to the tips of his ears.
I chewed my bottom lip and shrugged, feeling super lame with what I was about to admit, “Ah, nope… It’s just me. No friends here yet besides I guess my boss and coworkers. They’re pretty nice. I’m not completely new to the area though. I used to visit Savannah during the summer with my grandparents ever since I was six and up until I went to college. I actually live in their summer home now.”
Ellis’ eyes widened in surprise again, his head tilting to the side as he tried to figure me out, “No kiddin’? Well then, allow me to be your very first official friend! I can introduce you to some folks around here and show ya around to some of my favorite spots. Get ya reintroduced and caught up to anything you might’ve missed in the last few years! Now come on, let’s get your car all sorted out.”
“Thanks, I’d really like that.” I replied with a small smile of my own, stepping back so he could take a look at my car. Not wanting to get in his way, I waited nearby with my keys ready in hand.
He popped the hood with a small click and took a look inside, then paused and glanced back at me, “You don’t have’ta stand all the way over there, the car ain’t gonna bite ya!” he teased, gesturing for me to come closer, “Come here and get a closer look. You ever see an engine up close before? It’s good to know what’s makin’ your car run. I love it! It’s like a puzzle, a big complicated puzzle that’s oh so satisfyin’ once the pieces fit together.”
I tilted my head when he offered for me to come over and decided to take a few steps closer, “I’m uh, not really good with cars to be honest with you.”
“Well don’t you worry about that!” He replied cheerfully, his eyes crinkling at the corners, “Most folks don’t know what goes on inside their own cars, but that’s alright! That’s what us mechanics are for, right?”
Ellis spent the next few minutes patiently explaining everything he could to me. He probably had a million other things he could’ve been doing, but here he was teaching me about the inner workings of my car. And I took in every last word. I loved learning new things, especially when the teacher was so sweet and cute.
He eventually had to take my car into the garage to start the actual maintenance. I felt bad for distracting him, but he didn’t seem to mind at all.
When handing him my keys, our fingers touched a moment too long. I quickly dropped the keys into his hand and looked away, tucking my hair behind my ear. He took my keys and rubbed the back of his neck for the third time, clearly a shy habit… I found his shyness rather endearing.
“Why don’t ya get out of the sun and head inside? We have a little waiting area, and we’ve got some cold water and sodas in the mini fridge. I’ll work as fast as a lightning bolt, I promise!”
Ellis pointed towards the small waiting room, reception area connected to the garage through a narrow door. Inside the small room, there was a desk, some filing cabinets, the previously mentioned mini fridge, and a handful of chairs.
I gave him a small nod, looking back over my shoulder at him before pushing the door open.
“Thanks Ellis. Take your time, I’ll be here.”