3 Chapter 2
Tuesday September 21st, 2010. Mid-Late Evening:
Ride to Gas Station
Randy couldn't help but feel at home outdoors. He let the cool fall breeze blow through his hair; the sweet smell of flowers wafted from his mother's front yard garden making his mind feel at ease. They happened to own a house on top of a hill, which was nearby a bunch of other rich houses. The Rodriguez family owned over three acres of land, easily beating out the acreage of the nearby homes. The house itself was over 2,000 cubic feet and to the right, in the driveway, was his truck.
He loved this vehicle, despite the fact that it was over thirty years old. It was a Ford F-150, year 1975. The color was dark blue with neon green stripes that he painted and polished himself. His attention quickly averted to the house directly across from him. Coincidentally this building held a girl that he had a crush on for years. Ever since she moved to California and attended Borrego Springs High School, he was hooked. Her long, golden blond hair, perfect teeth, bright blue eyes and smooth tan skin was enough to snag any guy. But he was always too shy to go up and tell her how he really felt about her, since insecurities ran wild throughout him.
The exterior of her home was painted light blue; five windows rested out front. Three lined up on top and two on the bottom, on either side of the front door. An overhang protected all who entered and exited and Kolleen's room was the one on the top right floor, with the green curtains. Randy never peeked at her inappropriately nor treated her badly. It wasn't until he began working at a local gas station that he really started conversing with her. She just so happened to be employed at the same place, except she was funding a different dream. He got in his truck and backed it up into the Sparks' driveway. Every single night that they would go to work, he'd announce himself.
So he got out, just like any other day and combed his hair roughly before getting to the front door. Once he was there, his heart started to beat faster as his shaky hand reached for the bell. Clenching his fingers, Randy took a deep breath and pushed the button. Waiting outside the door, he started yanking at his collar to try and rid his nerves. The time it was taking for Kolleen to answer was beginning to concern him a bit. He figured maybe she wasn't coming to work that night so he turned back towards the truck. Just as his feet met the walkway a familiar, angelic voice called to him.
"Randy?" she asked. He turned and almost got blown away by how amazingly gorgeous she was. A tight white shirt hugged her upper half perfectly and her blue jean shorts ended three inches above the knee. All of this had been completed with a pair of her favorite jogging shoes. He was just sporting a blue t-shirt with black jeans and work boots. This girl never ceased to amaze him when it came to clothing. She could have a baggy pair of pants on and sweatshirt, and she'd still look attractive as all hell. "Shall we go to work then?" she asked. She was already exiting the doorway, and had a hair band in her mouth as she pulled her hair back into a ponytail. Randy waited for her to wrap it around and then opened her door, closing it behind her. When he walked around to his side, she had already opened his.
He looked in at her, which she returned with that smile that he always liked. Their eyes locked and for a split second, neither of his feet could move. It was like time stood still and he just couldn't place his finger on it. A sigh came out of him as the ignition was started. "So, tell me… What is it you're doing with this job? What are your goals?" She tried striking up a conversation like every night they worked. That gaze that she gave him each time continued to become harder to return, each time she did it as well. Randy coughed and cleared his throat then took off out of the driveway into the side street. This road was surrounded mostly by houses and trees, leading to the main highway. They stopped just at the edge of the side road at the stop sign before pulling to the left.
"Aren't you going to answer me?" Randy used his driving as an excuse to not reply for now. He was moving along, passing a huge amount of skyscrapers and office buildings. That's what his city consisted of for the most part, and he liked it that way. The majority of the people stayed busy rather than being close like the usual small towns. They stopped again, at a three way intersection. To the very left sat a gas station, which was the Hess building, (Randy and Kolleen worked for Sunoco). Beside this building were a few bars. Most of which closed early since it was a weeknight.
Directly ahead were two separate entrances to different expressways. The left one lead to the very heart of San Diego and the right went off towards the more suburban area. To the right of their current street sat apartment buildings, one crappy motel and at the very far end was a two way road split. Randy signaled the truck and took a right turn. In his rearview, he saw the Hess station beginning to close down. "That's why they're going out of business down here Kol. Do you know what I mean?" "Yes, but I'll humor you and say that I do not," she replied, giggling. Randy gulped loudly, pulling a bit on his collar again.
She saw the sweat pouring down his face, and pulled a small wad of paper towel from her lunch bag and handed it over to him, which he used. It was her laughter that really got him going. He couldn't get over how adorable her smile was, especially when it matched that giggle perfectly. They passed the crummy motel which had scattered bullet holes near the right side windows. "Jesus, this place is going to Hell fast," Randy said. "You still didn't answer me." He stopped at the end of the street, looking both left and right. The left led to a back street which held a numerous amount of small stores. The right path was a shortcut to their work place.
"The Hess station closes way to early Kol. I mean look at the time, it's only 7:30 and it's closing already. At least Sunoco stays open all night long. This is why we, the poor saps, get stuck pulling the graveyard shift." Kolleen nodded, staring out her window. "Is something on your mind?" She shook her head this time, shrugging her shoulders. The truck passed by a burning barrel with a few people standing around it. One had a bottle of whiskey in his hand, sipping it and sharing it with his friends. Kolleen held a hand to her shirt, tightening her grasp. "Are you okay?" Randy stole a quick glance over at her.
She swallowed hard this time, then breathed in as deep as possible. Randy watched as her chest heaved out and in with such a rhythm that he forgot he was near a stop sign. Slamming hard on the breaks, he just barely came to an abrupt halt. Shortly thereafter a couple of cop cars passed by them, luckily they were unable to catch him in his ignorance. "It's just, I started to think about all those times I saw you in high school and how you never went up and talked to me. Why now all of a sudden do you want to get so close to me?" She was looking at him now. Her saddened and pained eyes were too much for his heart to handle at the moment.
He looked away quickly, rubbing his eyes as hard as he could. "I'll tell you more when we get to work. We still need to change into our uniforms and clock in. According to the time, we have about ten minutes to get all that done. Can't believe you talked me into taking the 12 hour shifts. I still have to get back to my wrestling show tomorrow." The look he got from her concerned him. As they pulled out of the side road and back onto a main highway, he continued.
"Look, I promise I will talk to you more during work okay? Is that fine with you?" he took another quick glance towards the girl he liked so much. They pulled left, towards a bunch of small stores, consisting of a bakery, deli, the gas station and a few liquor stores. These all resided in the same general area, all of which were in walking distance. "Alright, if you say so." "I promise, I will," he said, driving the truck into the parking lot. When he stopped, he prepared for the seemingly endless night ahead. At least he had a beautiful girl to talk to, whether or not she liked him. It was completely fine that he could at least be with her for the twelve hours, and his heart was beating fast to this thought.
