UGR - A busy day at Joe's garage (507 hits)
Category: NoneRating: 1.57 on 27 reviews (Rate this item) (V)
Submitted by Fey (View user info) at 2009-04-12 16:21:26 EDT
The faded sign read "Joseph's Garage". Everybody knew it as Joe's though, and while he introduced himself, on the rare occasions when he met somebody new, as Joseph, he didn't seem to mind the familiar shortening of his given name.
Joseph didn't seem to get riled about anything much - his mild blue eyes seldom expressing anything other than a general amiability. There was speculation amongst the women of the town that deep in those blue eyes sadness lurked, but the men pished and pahed and scolded them for wasting their time on idle gossip. With his intriguing reserve and slightly worn good looks, Joseph was often the cause of idle gossip.
Joseph would have told you, if you'd asked, that yes, he was sad, but nobody asked him. Joseph would have been surprised, had you told him, that the people of the town had great respect for his apparent wish for privacy and that they would never ask.
He'd lived fifteen of his 36 years in this small town. The story went that a distant relative had left him the workshop (once "Fred's Mechanics"), and that he'd come to check it out before selling it and had instead decided to stay. But because nobody asked, and the woman who owned the diner Mavis' tales were not always reliable, nobody knew for sure.
What they did know is that he lived alone in the small flat over the 'shop, and that as far as anybody'd ever seen, he hadn't had a visitor in the fifteen years he'd been there. They didn't know about the weekly letter, written by Joseph, posted after everything in the town was closed, every Sunday without fail.
On this particular day, the spring sun is high in the sky, weakly but bravely shining on, driving the last of the winter on its way. Small trickles of the last snow, melting where it had gathered in a last-ditch attempt to keep its cool by gathering its forces, made their meandering way from the highs to the lows of the pavement outside Joseph's Garage.
A red car, an old beat-up Ford, pulls up to the curb and parks, and the driver kills the engine. A couple of minutes pass, the driver sitting very still. But inevitably a decision is reached and the driver grabs the papers off the passenger seat and is out of the car, on her way across the pavement before her nerve can fail her.
"Are you Joseph?" she aims her angry question past the startled young man, Andrew, who helps around the 'shop on occasion, hitting Joseph square in the chest with the force of it. Joseph, of the calm and the quiet, visibly struggles with his composure as his mild eyes turned hungry search her face intently. "Yes, I'm Joseph... Beth?" his voice is still warm and low, but uncertain.
"Yes. Yes, it's Beth. Your daughter." she blushes as she realises how unnecessary the last part of her statement is, and then gets angry at her embarassment. Her chin rises slightly and those blue eyes, so similar to his, shine angrily. "Can we go somewhere and talk?" She waves the papers she's holding, the letters, in an all-encompassing gesture to indicate that here, among the grease and parts, is perhaps not the place.
Joseph nods and turns to Andrew, "Hold the fort, okay?". Andrew nods, eyes wide with curiousity and surprise, watching as Joseph gestures Beth to lead the way out into the sunlight.
"You used to hit Ma. You hurt her bad, a couple of times." Bluntly, no bones about it, and Joseph flinches as he feels old wounds open. He turns away from his daughter, looking out over the river. They've walked to the small park that is about the only frivolity the town has allowed itself, and are seated on a bench by the riverside.
"I did that." he admits, breathing out slowly through the memories.
"How could you? And how'm I supposed to know you're not still like that?" She's tough, this girl, this young woman. He turns to face her, to study her, and is impressed by what he sees.
"I was young, Beth, barely more'n a kid myself. And I know it's no reason to go hurting somebody else, but I was scared, see? And your mamma... she never was, and somehow that made it harder for me."
Beth curls her lip and it's obvious that what he's said isn't enough, isn't good enough.
"I am real sorry, Beth. I really am. It's why I left, see? She asked me to go and to never come back and I felt like I had to, like I owed it to her to leave her alone."
This time it's Beth who turns away, fixes her gaze on something on the far side of the river, the muscles of her jaw clenched.
"Why'd you write me letters?" she asks, suddenly. "You said you owed it to Ma to leave us alone."
"I owed it to your mamma to leave her alone. But I love you, Beth. And I wanted you to know me, I wanted... I wanted to know you."
Beth stands up abruptly and is a few steps away before Joseph has had time to react. She turns side-on, not looking at him, and says quietly, "Maybe, Joseph. Maybe. But I've gotta go. I've got to think about this. I'll be in touch, maybe."
The afternoon passed swiftly, the fading light countered by the town lights coming alive. Joseph stayed where he was, waiting.
User Reviews
Submitted by drmwvr1974 (user info) at 2009-06-04 11:27:58 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Enjoyed the feel good short Fey...Thanks for your comment on "Events of a lost Mind". I wanted to capture the state of mind I was in...and believed that if I edited or corrected the text and punctuation it would lose its rawness. It was copied over as it was written... so to answer your question, I do have a grip on how to handle a keyboard..although capable of less words than most a minute, I 'm sure.
Submitted by rob_berg (user info) at 2009-05-01 16:41:19 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Your soul would be highly nourishing.
Submitted by Ballare (user info) at 2009-04-27 17:55:02 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
why didn't I ever read this! this is sad and short and pretty
Submitted by haikumikoo (user info) at 2009-04-23 01:22:08 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Despite it being entertaining.
Goober.
Submitted by haikumikoo (user info) at 2009-04-23 01:21:30 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
I read it, by the way, and not in a spontaneous, oh hullabaloo there's an orangutan story to read, way.
Ass.
Submitted by Fey (user info) at 2009-04-16 07:31:52 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Pfft. I'm always obnoxious.
Submitted by JonnyX (user info) at 2009-04-16 00:20:47 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
I LIKE YOU BETTER WHEN YOU ARE OBNOXIOUS
Submitted by sage104 (user info) at 2009-04-14 13:34:26 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
This was nice.
Submitted by rob_berg (user info) at 2009-04-14 13:28:32 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
This really did need to be longer.
Beautifully written.
You rock.
Submitted by haikumikoo (user info) at 2009-04-14 12:27:20 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Submitted by Fey (user info) at 2009-04-13 11:51:28 PDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Hello HaikuMikoo, my homely homeboy. You never even responded to my orangutan review. Do you have any idea how that smarts?
===
Bah! I saw that review and planned on reading it later, only to forget about it completely. I have to forget completely again so I can stumble upon it months from now and be pleased, I'm quite selfish so you have no say in the matter.
Submitted by SgtHartman (user info) at 2009-04-14 08:15:56 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
cause you're you!
Submitted by reginajacks (user info) at 2009-04-14 03:23:47 EDT (#)
Ranking: 1
i didn't care for the tense change but it seemed you had a reason and it was too short but i mostly liked it
i thought the mother was going to be dead or something so good for you not to go for the obvious and wrap it up neatly
Submitted by Judgement (user info) at 2009-04-13 16:16:20 EDT (#)
Ranking: 1
No Comment
Submitted by Brdn_Nkd (user info) at 2009-04-13 16:15:16 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by HurtByTheSun (user info) at 2009-04-13 15:00:38 EDT (#)
Ranking: -2
Re: http://www.ubersite.com/m/121407#2883949
I'm not here for love (just yer beer).
Submitted by HurtByTheSun (user info) at 2009-04-13 14:46:13 EDT (#)
Ranking: -2
Obligatory -2. Enjoy.
Submitted by EmissionImpossible (user info) at 2009-04-13 14:40:47 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
feys the winner in my heart!
Submitted by Ducky (user info) at 2009-04-13 11:56:22 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
I really like your writing.
Submitted by monkeyswithguns (user info) at 2009-04-13 10:32:15 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by Yozz (user info) at 2009-04-13 09:47:37 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by sicosemen (user info) at 2009-04-13 08:47:33 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Hear ye!
Submitted by Sphagnum (user info) at 2009-04-13 04:10:40 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Too short
Submitted by DonovanMD (user info) at 2009-04-12 23:24:18 EDT (#)
Ranking: 1
Pretty good.
Submitted by gonefiguring (user info) at 2009-04-12 22:15:40 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Better late than never.
Submitted by NintendoCzar (user info) at 2009-04-12 17:52:37 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
didn't read this, but i'm sure it's good. almost.
Submitted by Bubba2341 (user info) at 2009-04-12 16:27:26 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
rite rite
Submitted by Fey (user info) at 2009-04-12 16:23:01 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
I forfeited though, correct? I was out roadtripping, sorry about skipping out on the last round. I wrote a story anyway, though, because the point of the thing was to write, right?