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“Why not? I thought we had decided that—”

“Don’t you see?” he cried, his face in a vivid grimace. “Now more than ever, I have to be very careful for my family, Teal. I have to continue to set an example for my mother to follow. I know it should be the other way around, but it’s not, and that’s just the way it is.”

I closed my fist around the money and pulled my arm back.

“What about our plans?” I asked.

He shook his head and sipped his soda.

“I’m just trying to get by each day for now. Thinking about the future is a luxury.”

“Not to me,” I said sharply, and stood up. “I’m not going to hang around here forever. With or without you, I’m going to do something.”

“Don’t do anything stupid,” he warned. “You’ve kept out of trouble this long. Don’t mess up, Teal.”

“Thanks,” I said, and walked away. I heard him call after me, but I didn’t turn around.

He’s the one who’s doing something stupid, I told myself. He’ll see. He’ll be sorry. I was his best chance and the best chance for his little brother and sister. He’ll regret not taking the money, I muttered under my breath, but before I left the mall, my anger turned to sadness and depression. I felt my eyes well up with tears. Even though it was a bright day with the sky a deep, rich blue and the few clouds looking soft and cotton white, I felt a heavy dreariness.

Instead of going to a taxi stand, I just walked and walked. Every once in a while, I felt another tear trickling down my cheek and flicked it off. I wasn’t even thinking about direction, so it surprised me to find myself on a street corner near a gas station, at least a good mile or so from the mall.

A young mechanic, his dark brown hair looking as greasy as his hands, bounced a tire on the garage floor and then rolled it over to the side. When he looked up, he saw me standing nearby. He smiled, wiped his hands on a rag, and brushed back the strands of hair that lay over his forehead. I should have just turned and walked away, but I was in a reckless mood. I smiled back, and he strutted out.

“What, ya lost?” he asked, looking around and seeing I hadn’t driven up and wasn’t with anyone.

“Maybe,” I said, and he widened his smile.

In the bright sunlight, the skin on his cheeks looked like gauze because of tiny pock marks. He was dressed in faded gray overalls and was about six feet tall. He wasn’t handsome by any means. His nose was too thick and his mouth too wide, but he had nice brown eyes that were fixed with interest on me. I smiled at how easy it was to capture and hold his attention.

“This your garage?” I asked him.

“Might as well be. It belongs to Benny Dodge, but he’s away more than he’s here. Where are you going?”

“Nowhere,” I said.

“Well, you’re there,” he replied, and laughed. “Wanna soda?”

“Sure,” I said, and followed him back into the garage. He took a can of Coke out of an ice chest, pulled the tab, and handed it to me.

I took a sip. With his mouth slightly open, he stood there watching me as if I was doing something very special.

“It’s warmer than I thought,” I said, and undid the top button on my blouse. His eyes traced every move I made.

“How old are you?” he asked.

“Why?”

He shrugged.

“I don’t want nobody sayin‘ I corrupted a minor.”

“By giving me a Coke? Some corruption. Is that all you have to offer?” I challenged, and he laughed harder.

“Wow.” He shook his head. “What else did you have in mind?”

“I don’t know,” I said, and picked up the air hose. I pressed it and blew some dust around the floor. “What are you working on?”

“Rotating tires. Why? You wanna learn how to be a mechanic?” he teased.