Keywords: After, Hours,

The rain poured down in sheets across my windshield and hammered like a tinsmith on the thin roof of my cheap used car. I leaned forward on the steering wheel, driving slowly, my wipers going as fast as possible, as futile as the attempt was. An approaching set of headlights blinded me enough so that I had to hit the brakes until he passed. I flipped him off with a grumble, even though I knew he couldn't see me.

"Fuck," I muttered. I rolled down the window and was greeted with a cold blast of fresh Texas rain. I was in the panhandle, headed east back home to Baltimore after spring semester at U of So-Cal. Somehow I had envisioned a cross-country trip as being more romantic. But there I was, with my head out the window of my car so I could see, driving 20 mph down a lonely stretch of road on the edge of nowhere. I could only see up to the end of my headlights, but with every flash of lightning I was reminded that the road went straight as an arrow all the way to the horizon.

I smelled something.

Being alone in the car, I tried to remember if I had farted, but I soon recalled the smell from the garage my dad owned: a hot car. I ducked my head back in the window. Sure enough, the 'check engine' light was on, and minutes later my car sputtered to a halt on the hard, gravelly shoulder. I bounced my head on the steering wheel for a few minutes before I tried my cell: no service. I hate Texas. I hit the flashers and jumped out of the car. Within a half a minute I was soaked. At least I wouldn't have to worry about dying of thirst.

I pulled the collar up on my leather jacket and went to open the hood, only to be singed. I swore and screamed and kicked my old piece of shit car so hard that the bumper fell off. Just fell off. Hopeless. I did a 360 and looked in all directions, and I just happened to be looking ahead when a flash of lightning revealed my salvation: a squat building with a couple of low-intensity streetlights. I pulled my hat down and jammed my hands in my pockets as I started walking.

The distance was deceptively long. All distances are in Texas. After about 40 minutes of trudging through the rain, I arrived at the building. It was an old, slightly run-down diner, with a homemade sign that read "Erma's Diner". How quaint. There was one car parked beside the building. With a little luck, Erma was around. I went to the door and tried it, but it was locked. I cupped my hands to the screen to get closer to the inner glass door and peered in. A dim light shone through a door leading to the back. I knocked and waited a moment, then banged harder with my fist, shaking the whole wall. A face appeared in the lighted door, but I couldn't really make it out. The person came to the door and opened the dinner one, so that we were separated by a screen door.

"Hey, mister, I-" she began. Yes, she. She was an almost surreally pretty, cute brunette, her light brown hair tied up in a bun in back of her head. She wore a brown and white waitress outfit and still didn't hide her killer curves. We both stood aghast in surprise. I'm sure neither of us expected to see such a person in such a place.

"We're...um, we're closed," she said, more quietly. I could barely hear her over the din of the rain of the metal roof. I took off my hat and ran a hand through my hair.

"Look, lady, I just need to use a phone, ok?" I said, shaking off my hat even though I was still standing in the rain. She just looked at me. I looked back, a little confused. I scratched my black beard stubble and sort of waved at her.

"Can I at least come in?" I asked.

"Yes! Jesus, get out of the rain," she said, opening the door and standing aside.

"Thank you," I said, stepping and taking off my coat. "My car broke down a few miles back, I need to call a tow-truck. Where's the phone?"

"Oh, we don't have one," she said. "Sorry."

"Ah. Great!" I said, throwing up my hands. I slumped down at the counter in the dark room. Another flash of lightning and peal of thunder shook the building. She jumped like a mouse; I didn't flinch.

"Well I guess I'm staying here for the night," I sighed. "Do you have anything to eat? I haven't eaten since last night."

"We're, um," she began

"Yeah, I know. You're closed. I heard. But this is a diner, you must have food around. C'mon, have some compassion! I'll pay you," I said, fishing out my sodden wallet. She laughed as I comically pulled out some dripping bills.

"C'mon in the back, I'll fix you something," she said with a smile, touching my bare arm for a moment. The touch was electric. What was it about this girl? I stood from the stool, shaking off my hat again as I followed her swinging hips through the small rear door. We walked through the darkened kitchen and into a small back office/stockroom. She cracked open some boxes and rummaged through a fridge. "Sit down, stay awhile," she offered, setting some food down on the table and pulling up a chair for me.

"Thank you," I said. She handed me a towel, and our hands touched. She blushed.

"I'll fix you some eggs and sausage, ok?" she said.

"Sure, sounds great!" I said, rubbing my hands together. She didn't take long. I stood in the kitchen with her, not content to be waited upon completely, and we talked while she took the 10 minutes to fix me dinner. Her name was Isabelle or Bella for short. She was 19 to my 21, and Erma was her mother. They lived about 30 miles up the road in a small trailer with her father and little sister. It was not a wealthy family, I gathered, but a very happy one.

"I've been working here since I was 13. My little sister will start next year," Bella said. "Mom would pay me a little for helping out, but I liked to, and money isn't much of an object around here."

"Where's the nearest town?" I asked

She pointed. "Oh, about 50 miles thataway. But we have a phone at my house, so you can call the truck from there. It'll cost you a bit, you know."

"The truck? Oh, yeah, I know. Whattaya gonna do, though, huh?" I chuckled. She laughed.

"Well, it's ready! Here, go on back in the office and I'll get you something to drink. Coffee OK? It'll be a little strong," said Bella.

"Just how I like it," I answered. She returned with my food and a couple cups of coffee, and she sat on the desk beside me as I ate, her smooth, shapely legs neatly crossed.

"So geez, the nearest town is 50 miles away...any neighbors?" I asked.

"Not for at least that same 50 miles," she answered.

"But you get plenty of customers out here?"

"Surprisingly, yes," she laughed. "Mostly truckers and bikers, but both groups have big appetites."

"Ha! I could eat them into the ground. No one on Earth has the appetite of a college student," I cajoled. We laughed. "What made your parents want to do something like this, anyway?"

"Used to be hippies," Bella said succinctly.

"Say no more," I said, putting up a hand. I ate a couple more bites. "This is delicious. Thank you so much," I added.

"You're welcome!" she beamed.

I finished and leaned back in my chair with my coffee. "So what do you do for fun out here?" I asked. I noticed she crossed her legs the other way, towards me, when I asked.

"Well, we do a lot of things," she began, leaning back on her hands. "You have a lot of time to spend with yourself, so you learn things you wouldn't learn otherwise. My mom sends me to boarding school during the year, but in the summers I like to come back home, and when I get here I always just fall back into my old routines."

I gave a questioning look, and she continued.

"Well, first of all I can play the harmonica like you wouldn't believe," (she gave me an odd wink) "and I learned some mild contortionism as a hobby."

I raised my eyebrows, and she giggled and blushed a bit. "You don't say!" I laughed.

"Mm-hm!" she nodded vigorously, then her expression changed. "But most of the time, we're just lonely. We always talk the ears off of anyone who will listen when the walk into the diner."

"You didn't seem too talkative when I showed up at the door a while ago," I pointed out, pointing with the thumb. She blushed a bit.

"Well, you were a bit off-hours. And with that hat and 5 o'clock shadow you looked kinda sinister. And..." (she paused, looking at the floor and smiling while brushing her hair behind her ear with one hand) "...we definitely don't get many good-looking young men in here, either." She looked at me at bit her lower lip tenderly. I felt my pants shrinking, and simply smiled at her over my coffee.

"Well, it's not every day that when my car breaks down on the edge of nowhere that a beautiful girl takes me in a feeds me dinner," complimented back. She smiled and twisted her feet around, her shoes clunking to the floor.

So...you have a girlfriend back in Cali?" she asked, pulling her legs up on the desk and sitting sideways on her hip.

"No, no steady girl," I said, putting down my coffee and leaning an elbow on the desk by her bare leg.

"No?" she said, looking at me with bedroom eyes.

"No..." I said. Carefully, I let my hand caress across her calf. She didn't pull away. She skin was soft, smooth, and warm. It had been a long time since I had really stopped to touch a girl. She stretched out her leg in response, our eyes locked. I rose from my chair and she sat up on the desk. I touched her cheek, then ran my hand back around behind her head, cradling it as I kissed her deeply. She moaned like I had just kissed her pussy instead; she obviously hadn't gotten any in a while! Her arms draped over my shoulders and around my neck as my hands took hold of her sides. We kissed more and more forcefully and passionately, our fingers fumbling with each others buttons. My shirt hit the floor with a wet slap, and she moaned again as she ran her hands down my hard, sculpted chest and abs. I got her out of the white smock to reveal a set of D-cup breasts that would have put any playboy model to shame. Her white lace bra kept them at bay for the time being as we kissed, our tongues intertwining and our hands roaming.

Keywords: After, Hours,

• Sodomy in the Moonlight
• A Day at the Office
• My Dark Submission
• Denied Love, Found Love