One Good Turn

One Good Turn.

A torrent of rain continued to descend upon the streets and highways of old forgotten towns as a small, red, two door Pinto coughed and sputtered it's way up an exit ramp. William, it's driver, nervously peered through the windshield, hoping for some signs, landmarks or anything that would tell him exactly where he was.

William groaned. “Just my luck! Forced to go to some seminar, stay in some dive motel and now, driving home in a thunderstorm at night and to top it all off, I’m lost!”

Last week, he had been called into the manager's office for a one on one. Those don't usually go well and he knew it wouldn't go well for him because his numbers had tanked for the whole month. When the manager asked what it was that was keeping him from performing, he told him that was just luck that had run really really dry.  

Management was having none of this explanation and told him that he would get one more chance to turn things around and if he didn't, well it was a pink slip.  

“Will”, the manager said to him. “We are sending you to a sales seminar for a week, all expenses paid and we are doing this because we are committed to your success. The question is, are you committed?”

He didn't have an answer to that one.  

The cell phone he had brought with him on the trip had long since run out of power and the charger had fallen somewhere in the back seat, but he knew from his instrument panel that the first priority was to find a gas station if possible. The little car could only go so far on mere fumes.

The lightening flashed a bit illuminating a sign to the right that suggested that a 24 hour Shell station was just one mile down the road and he signed in relief.

"Whew! Saved, as long as I can get there at least. Come on, little red car!", he said patting the top of the panel, taking the right hand turn and heading down the road.   

The gas gauge indicated that it was close to empty but, he thought that he could make it if the station was only a mile away on the road. He kept his eyes on the two lane road which was lined with empty fields, distant hills and barren trees. Every time the lightening flashed, he could also make out spots of red mud on the side of the road and some construction equipment.  

Shaking his head, he fended off the thoughts of terror that had plagued him during this part of his trip

The most fun he had occurred when he had fallen asleep in his chair once during a lecture at one point until someone had politely woken him up. Apparently, he had been snoring and was a bit of a distraction.  

The return trip found him lost in road, looking for a gas station at night in the middle of a thunderstorm.

"Yeah, that's me, alright," he mused. "Lost on the road and lost in life,. listening to a sea of unsolicited advice from sales people and middle managers.". He frowned inwardly at all of this and was about to turn on the radio when he found the open gas station at last, shining like a lighthouse in a fog.

“Well,. maybe my luck is changing…”

The little Pinto pulled to an open gas pump and sighed as he got out and made his way to the convenience store, trying to shield himself from the downpour with his coat. He went inside and breathed a sigh of relief, feeling the warmth of the heat inside.

"Hey hon!". 

He turned around to his left and found a blonde haired woman smiling at him.  

"You look like someone who needs a nice, hot cup of coffee and and a home cooked meal! Come on and sit down here and I'll get you set up with something."

The blonde woman guided him to a booth and he sat down for moment while she went behind of the counter and poured some hot coffee in a cup and brought it to him. He felt the warmth of the cup and pulled it close to him, absorbing the heat from the steam.

"Steak and eggs, right?"

He opened his mouth to protest as a plate of steak and scrambled eggs was placed before him, a long with a fork, knife and spoon.  

“Hey don't worry! It's already paid for anyway.”

“What?”, he protested but the blonde woman had already disappeared. He looked around the store and saw the usual things you would expect, such as coffee dispensers, freezer section, aisles filled with snacks, bathrooms and showers, cafe, where he was and check out counters. Everything was in place except…people.

He looked back at the table. The hot coffee was still there, as was the meal. He smelled the char on the steak and scent of salt and pepper on the eggs.   

He took the knife and started cutting the steak and the knife sliced through the steak smoothly. He checked the cook and found a little pink on the inside.

The steak almost seemed to melt in his mouth as he savored the first bite. He closed his eyes as his mouth absorbed the flavor while hearing the rain patter against the window. He opened his eyes and saw….. a sunrise?

“What the…..”. He got up from the booth and walked around the store and continuing to look at the sunrise outside as the light touched the fields on the other side of the road.

He glanced at his watch and it read 7 am.  

“You okay, hun?”

He turned with a start looking at the blonde woman again, eyes wide.

“Ummmmm.. yeah. I remember coming here…..last night during a storm and I was…lost and I needed gas. The I met you…”

“Yeah, that's right, hun” she replied with a bright smile.

He continued.. “you gave me hot coffee and steak and eggs and told me that it was paid for.”

“That's right, too.!”

“I walk around the store and no one is there but me. I take a bite of the steak, which is delicious by the way, and suddenly, it's morning!”

“Yep!”

“I'm lost…”

“That's right too, hun! Don't worry though. You’ll find your way back!”

“Uhhhhh…..”. Will shook his head trying to control his temper and was about to ask more questions when she disappeared again…

He scratched his head in confusion and glanced around and looked down on the floor and say a name tag.

William bent down and picked up the name tag and read it.

“Fortuna”

William held the little name tag in his hand and smiled spread on his face. He put the tag in his pocket and headed to the car.

William made it home safely that day and the following month, he had the highest numbers in the company.  

Management figured it had to do with the seminar. Perhaps it did. Perhaps, he finally made the commitment to his own success…or was it one good turn on a rainy night from Lady Luck?