A Different Kind of Trip

It had been a slow day at the register. The break in the heat meant fewer customers coming in to grab a drink after filling up. As usual there'd been no need to use the grill. Few travelers would stop to order something hot from a gas station and the locals knew better.

The bell on the front door jingled. Joe came back to earth with a start. "Can I help you?" he asked, as the man walked up to the counter.

The stranger stared at Joe for a moment, then his eyes nervously looked around the store. "Uh, I guess I need something to eat." he finally said.

Joe looked dubious. "Do you want something hot? It will take ten minutes or so to get the grill going."

The stranger shook his head. "No. No, I don't know if I have that much time."

"Well, everything else is on the shelves." Joe waved at the few rows in the store. "The two on the right."

The man walked up and down the aisles, oddly starting with the non-food ones. He walked slowly, staring at all of the items for sale. Finally he ended up with the snacks.

The stranger picked up a candy bar. "This is mostly peanuts, right?"

Joe frowned at him. "Yeah. Not good if you have allergies." 

The stranger didn't respond but held on to the candy bar. He meandered over to the refrigerator case, continuing to look around. He stared at the case for a bit, then finally grabbed a cola.

"This should do," he said as he put them down on the counter.

"That will be $4.28." Joe said.

The man pulled out a very worn leather wallet. It was one of the largest Joe had seen. The man opened it, then hesitated. He looked around before focusing on the candy bar. He picked it up and started looking at the back.

"Peanuts and caramel." Joe said. "That's it."

"And salt," the stranger said. "But I was looking for an expiration date."

Joe shook his head. "Our guy is good about that. It won't be expired. I don't think those really go bad anyway."

"I'm sure it would be fine." The stranger had gone back to poking through the wallet. "No. No. That won't work." He kept muttering to himself until he pulled out a very worn five dollar bill and presented it to the cashier.

"Boy, that's seen better days." Joe said as he opened the cash drawer.

"Quite a few," the man agreed. "You can keep any change."

"Thanks." Joe put the loose change in the cup in front of the register. He was surprised when the man headed for the grimy bench in the corner instead of leaving and looked out side. The lot and pumps were empty.

"I must have been dozing a bit." Joe said. "I didn't hear a car pull in. I usually hear it on the gravel."

"No. No, I didn't come by car." He paused. "Those were a mistake," he added to himself as he stared at the bottle.

"What was a mistake?"

"Cars. Or at least building the economy around them. Big mistake," he replied, still staring at the bottle in his hand. Then, giving a quick nod he twisted the cap and opened the bottle. He took an experimental sip. "That's not bad."

"Well, it is the number one brand in the country." He watched the man take a larger swallow.

"I hope you didn't walk here." Joe finally said. "It's a long way to anywhere."

"No, they dropped me off. But they dropped me off at the wrong point."

"You need a ride somewhere?"

The man shook his head. "I've let them know. It happens sometimes."

Joe kept staring at the stranger, who was now working on opening the candy bar. Everything just seemed slightly...off. He was wearing jeans, boots and a flannel shirt. His brown cowboy hat was tossed on the seat beside him.

"You work at one of the ranches near here?" Joe asked.

"That's my plan." the man replied. "In a way."

"You don't have a job right now?"

"No."

Joe paused, staring at the man's soft hands. "Have you ever worked on a ranch before?"

The man shook his head.

"It's hard work. Do you really think you're cut out for it?"

"I'm prepared for hard work. But it's only for a few weeks," the stranger replied. "Call it a, uh, research project."

"These aren't dude ranches, you know. They're the real thing."

He looked confused. "Dude ranches?"

"Fake. For tourists to pretend they're cowboys."

"Oh. No, I don't want that. I'm looking for an authentic ranch."

There was another pause.

"You're not from anywhere near here." Joe said. "Back east? Like New York?"

The man grinned. "Yeah. Like New York."

"Well, whoever sold you that outfit did you a disservice. Fashion around here hasn't changed a whole lot, but I'd say you were dressed to work on a ranch about a hundred years ago, not today."

The man looked down, then gave a wry smile. "Closer to a hundred and fifty, I think. But you're right. It doesn't really fit in to now, does it?"

"Look, if you don't have anything lined up my friend Steve might be able to use you. Especially if you know anything about software. He's always complaining about the program he uses to manage his herd."

The stranger shook his head. "I don't think I'll be working for your friend Steve."

"Why not? He's a good guy. What have you heard?"

"I haven't heard anything. I know nothing about uh, Steve. Or anyone else who owns a ranch here."

"So?"

"I just don't think that's how it is going to work." He took a bite out of the candy bar.

There was a silence. Joe rearranged the displays on the counter while the man ate and drank. He kept looking around while he ate.

Finally, Joe said "You know what? I'm hungry and I'm not going to feel much like fixing something when I get home so I'm turning on the grill. Are you sure you don't want a burger?" He started fiddling with the knobs.

"No, thank you."

For some reason the grill wouldn't start. Joe knelt down and looked underneath. As he did so there was a blinding flash of light. Surprised, he shot up and ran for the door.

"Wow, that must have been close. Although I didn't actually hear it hit." Joe said as he looked outside. "And it's barely cloudy. There's usually a pretty big storm brewing before we get lightning like that." There was no response from the corner.

He turned back around. A soft breeze blew the candy wrapper across the empty bench.