I Can't Drive That!

Dave didn't nickname his friend, Mason, ‘the smart bastard’ for nothing. The young man was the son of a tech billionaire while his father was a high school teacher.

Whenever Mason had a new tech to show off, he would invite Dave for a drink. That day, he showed up with a new car worth more than Dave's family house. It was a gleaming silver supercar shaped like a Porsche.

Dave whistled, circling the car as Mason grinned with pride. “If this gem ever breaks down, don't look at me, man,” he said, stroking the roof.

Mason tapped the windshield and declared with pride, “Designed by yours truly.”

Eyes wide, Dave shook his friend's hand excitedly. “You smart bastard!” And they burst into laughter. Then Mason pressed the sleek key fob into his hand. “Let's go for a drive.”

“No way!” Dave blurted, chuckling nervously. “I can't drive that!”

“Come on, man. You have to test this baby for me. Now let's go.” With that, Mason slid into the passenger seat while Dave reluctantly opened the driver's door.

Minutes later, they were winding through a mountain road on top speed, Mason whooping and cheering his friend, when Dave slowed down.

Ahead of them was a delivery truck turned sideways in the middle of the road, its front clipping the guardrail. Crates burst from the truck and scattered across the highway. Dave parked the car and the men rushed out to view the other side of the truck. One of the crates had crashed through the windshield of a family van. A little girl was bleeding inside while her mother appeared disoriented.

Mason looked at Dave. “We've got to take them to the hospital now. You know emergency services might take a while to get here. Will you drive?”

Dave nodded and together they carried the girl and mother into the new car. He drove as fast as he could, the car lurching down the mountain road, scraping sparks along the way. Within minutes, they arrived at the hospital and the medical staff took over.

An hour later, Dave sat outside, sad, staring at the battered side of the new car. The scratch was terrible and the paint ruined. Mason spoke with the doctor and walked towards him with a smile. “Cheer up. Doc says mother and daughter will be fine.”

“That's great…but your car,” he said pointing at it.

Mason shrugged. “No worries, man. I'll fix it or probably upgrade it. I've got a few ideas.”

For a moment, Dave saw the difference between them as they calmly drove back. Mason had grown up believing problems could be solved while he had grown up believing mistakes were expensive.

I hope you enjoyed reading this short piece. It's inspired by the Freewrite #dailyprompt phrase "I can't drive that!".

Thank you for visiting my blog.

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