Unexpected Changes

Hanging on to the steering wheel, she slammed her forehead onto the center releasing a soft honk from the great heap. Rocking her head across the flat surface of the steering wheel, she whispered to herself, “fuck!”

She had only bought the 30-foot class-C motorhome five months ago. Assured that her purchase from a dealership would guarantee a solid working motor, this was the second time it had broken down on her. The first time her boyfriend had fixed it without a hitch. Now, 300 miles down the road after yet another terrifying argument with him, her plans to travel the United States writing about everything she experienced had been beset by a chain of problems.

Stranded on the side of the road with her toddler, dog and cat, she did everything her therapist had taught her to remain calm. Breathing deep she looked over to her son and smiled. Sitting in his five-point harness he beamed with enthusiasm “what’s next mommy?” Shaking her head she smiled through welling tears, “I don’t know baby.”

She looked ahead of her as cars whipped by. Having spent the better part of the day getting back to the main highway, cell reception was actually possible. The past five months had been mostly boondocking, and the entire experience had been far too much camping for her city girl personality. Leaving Jason behind in the woods after another threat of him doing the same to her, she was shocked at her own actions. The motor home broking down on the side of the highway however, made her question if she had made the right choice.

Only six months before she had a three-bedroom house, with a front and backyard, fully fenced. It was suburban paradise as far as she was concerned; it had been her home, her patch, her sanctuary. The foreclosure had been swift and definite. She had only been given eight weeks to leave her home of ten years. Now with everything given away, left behind or squirreled away in storage, the motor home and its few items were all she had left to call home.

Taking off her seat belt she nestled back into the driver’s seat, leaning her head back to let the tears fall from the corners of her eyes in streams towards her ears. Maybe dad could help, she thought. Wiping the tears from the sides of her face and snuffing up the quickly forming snot drip, she reached for her cell phone and said, “how about we call grandpa and see how he is doing?”

“Okay mommy, I love gan-pa” the small voice replied. Smiling to herself, she swiped the GPS off her screen and pressed her dad’s profile icon to call. The phone rang to voice mail before she hit the end button. Putting the phone down she leaned her head backwards and sighed as much as she could before a quick staggered inhale of trepidation released itself. Suddenly the phone began vibrating and chiming.

Her dad had made a habit of not picking up when she called initially. He instead would call back a few minutes later. She had become accustomed to this behavior, and answered immediately. “Sorry Val, I was getting my lunch and couldn’t get to the phone in time.” He started, with intentional regret in his voice. She was use to this exchange and quickly asked how he was doing. He satisfactorily replied, “Oh, okay, you know… So, what can I do you for?”

“My motorhome broke down again dad, and I am stranded on the side of the road,” she said flatly.

“Oh, that sucks!” Pausing a moment to stall time before continuing. “Well, can’t Jason fix it?” He knew where this conversation was going, and the exasperation showed through his tone more than he realized.

“Well, that’s the thing. It’s not really possible for him to fix it.” She confessed, tolerating this now customary dance.

“Okay, what’s wrong with it? Is it a major fix.” He asked inquisitively, trying to gage the damage that this fix would have on his wallet.

“I don’t know dad! For all I know it’s something minor.” She paused for a moment before blurting, “but Jason can’t fix it because… well… he’s two states away.”

“Two states away!?!” he echoed back to her. The sound of surprise and pride rang in his voice though he tried to hide it. “I don’t understand! What happened?”

“Well, we had another argument. And he got really loud in my face, calling me names right in front of little man again. Little man ended up pooping himself, which caused more arguments. He then decided to storm off and take a nap in his hammock while I cleaned little man up. And uh, I just can’t do it anymore! So, I left him while he napping.”

Smiling to herself, she continued, “but he wasn’t sleeping for long as he heard me driving away. I can still see him running after the RV yelling and cursing at me. At least for good reason this time.” She said chuckling at her last words. Bringing herself back into the moment her voice changed, “I just need a home dad. I just need to have some stability in my life.”

She looked at her son who was focused on watching the cars on the freeway go by. “Mommy, can I get down?” Unsure what to say she turned the key in the ignition to find the motor roar to life as if by magic. Only a mile from the nearest rest stop she looked at her son with the phone between her face and shoulder and replied. “No, not just yet honey…” Turning her attention to the phone she said, “Hey dad, let me call you back, it just started up. I’m going to try and get this thing to a Rest Stop.”

“Okay! You call me back as soon as it’s safe,” he replied unsure of what to expect.

“Alright, will do, thanks dad! Love you!” she replied, hitting the end button before sliding the phone back into the dashboard cubby. She pushed down on the gas getting the monster up to speed before merging back onto the road safely. Trying to coast primarily she maneuvered the rig to the Rest Stop and found a parking spot. She was safe for the next 12 hours before she had to make her next move.

Unbuckling her son, she helped him into his special spot above the cab. He quickly pulled out his action figures and started playing. “I love you little man,” she said beaming at her son.

“I love you too mommy!” his young voice chimed back. He was the sweet honey at the tip of her tongue that made every day worth living. She flipped on the TV next to the dinette and pushed play to the same DVD that had played for the past three months. It was little man’s favorite and made him happy. Who cared if it drove her insane at this point? She had enough on her plate in the moment, and the ability to have him easily occupied was worth it.

Her son now playing she grabbed her phone from the cab and headed to her princess suit, as Jason had coined it. Heading to the back of the vehicle, her chihuahua Brittney’s nails could be heard clanking faithfully behind her. Closing the sliding door, she turned and sat on her bed half holding her fur baby in her lap. Holding her phone, she redialed her dad who picked up immediately this time.

“Alright. At a Rest Stop, and good for the next 12 hours,” she said exhaling in relief. “I still have no idea what is wrong with the RV, or why is started all of a sudden. I’m not sure what to do about it, or if it will be okay to get me back. I just don’t know dad?” she rambled on for a few minutes before going completely silent.

Listening patiently her dad finally given the chance began. “Well, if you need a place to stay you are always welcome here. I know it wasn’t part of the plan, but I think that if I move somethings around, we could definitely make it work for you and Aaron to move in. I’m just sorry it’s under these conditions.”

Shaking her head in relief, “Thanks dad, I am on my way, as soon as I can figure out how to get us from here to there.”

“Well, do you know where you are? How much distance you have is going to help figure out the best choice.”

“Yeah, I am along I-95. We were headed to Cornwall when I stranded Jason along the way.”

“Well, if you can make it to Cornwall, I am sure you could find a mechanic. I can transfer the money easy enough.” Changing to a tone of cautionary tales he added, “but what they decide needs done may cost more than I have, you know how mechanics can be,” he added. “And you have out of state plates,” he finished with a condescending air.

“Yeah, I know,” she replied flatly, “and I don’t just have out of state plates, I have across the country plates. I might as well go in with a t-shirt that says, over charge me, I’m desperate!”

“Naw! More like a target that reads, Today’s Bullseye!” He playfully retorted.

Chuckling through her nose she said, “Yeah, whatever I wear, I just hope I can get over to the mechanic without having to get it towed.”

“Well, use the WIFI and do some research. You might even be able to schedule for the mechanic to come by, if you aren’t too far from the spot. Once you have a little about cost, I’ll transfer the money. Actually, I am transferring a little money now so you can book a hotel for you and Aaron. I don’t know what you can do about the cat and dog, but you are a smart girl.” He reassured her.

“Thanks dad. I will call you back soon. I love you!” She hung up the phone and tossed it lightly behind her onto the bed. Leaning back on both of her hands she let her head fall back, her hair gently wisping her bare arms. Staying like that for a moment she slowly allowed her arms to give way before fully laying back on the bed. Closing her eyes for a moment she breathed deep trying to regain control of the moment, keeping herself from being everywhere at once.

Opening her eyes she focused on the ceiling and the rivets in it. Suddenly a heavy ‘thunk’ slammed onto the middle of her torso out of nowhere. Pounced on by her hidden cat, sharp needle thin claws immediately began kneading into her skin through her shirt. Trying to remain still only a winded “ugh” came out. The dog unmoved by the commotion continued to groom itself as the cat tucked it’s paws under itself perched on top of its owner.

Laying there pulverized she relaxed a bit as she stroked the purring cat on her stomach while listening to the sound of the dog licking and scratching herself. Even with the oral medication, the poor dog was plagued with flees. Reaching her hand above her head she scratched the rump of the dog too. Smiling to herself, she was content in the moment and filled with tranquility. Even with so much going on and in need of figuring out, it was reassuring to have come this far and find peace in the most unexpected times.

Rising to a sitting position on the bed the cat jumped away to lay next to the dog. Sitting in the almost silence, she started thinking about the previous day and what had led to this point. Shaking her head as she stood up, it was too much to try and process right now.

Stepping into the main portion of the motorhome she sat at the dinette and pulled out her laptop. Time to find a mechanic nearby, she thought to herself as she linked on to the Rest Stops WIFI. Typing in ‘RV Mechanics Near me’ she pressed search waiting for the list to pop up before her. She let out a sigh that was more whimper than she liked and click on the first one; it was only 7.8 miles away. Good, she thought as she picked up her phone to dial the number.

A quick conversation about what had happened and where she was, and the mechanic was happy to schedule a diagnostic. Already late in the afternoon, the mechanic agreed to meet her first thing in the morning. The advancement dad had sent was already coming in useful. Booking the on-site diagnostic was a $100 deposit, but well worth it!

Jason was gone. She may have lost her convenient mechanic, but even Aaron didn’t ask about where dad was, or when they were going to see him again. It was like the Universe was saying, you finally made the right choice, he was only leading you astray. Calmed and now with a solid plan she pulled out a clean document on her laptop and started writing.