3. Damsel in Distress

This day was cursed. There was no other explanation. First, Ben’s alarm didn’t go off because his phone’s battery was empty, then his car had a flat tyre and now the bus didn’t seem to arrive at all. He might as well start walking to work. Walking was quicker than standing, but then his bus might come the moment he was too far away to sprint back. He didn’t see any cabs either and using his phone wasn’t an option.

Out of habit, he still reached into his pocket. But instead of his phone, he was holding a fortune cookie. Did it wander in there last night? Ben didn’t really care, but he had left without breakfast and a fortune cookie was better than nothing. He cracked it open and, like some dumb joke, it read Damsel in Distress.

Ben was both confused and annoyed, but before he could angrily start marching towards work, he heard a familiar voice: “Need a ride? I think I just saw your bus having a breakdown.”

Ben turned around and, sure enough, in the car was Theo in a suit and tie.
“Where to?”, he asked.
“The fire brigade, if it’s on your way.”
“It does happen to be on my way.”
Ben sighed in relief and entered the car gratefully.
“You’re a firefighter?” Based on Ben’s casual T-shirt and jeans alone, Theo couldn’t tell his job.
“No, but they also put paramedics for their shifts in there. It’s convenient with a big garage, and they had lockers to spare, too.”
“Sounds as if you’re also a hero at your day-job?”
“That would be such a cliché, wouldn’t it? I’m honestly just pragmatic. It’s a safe job that society needs and it doesn’t get boring. I mean it also has its stability. You get called, you show up, you do your best and then just the outcome decides if you’re a hero or not. So that is probably my least favourite part”, Ben said, looking out of the window.
“How does bartending fit into this? I mean, it’s chaotic, and you’re more likely to cause getting people into the hospital than just getting them there, right?”
“Getting customers into the hospital would be really embarrassing if they were picked up by my colleagues, so I tend to avoid that.”

Both were quiet for a moment. Then Theo said: “Listen, I really wanted to thank you for opening the pub last Saturday. Marcus often exaggerates, but he was right that The Black Velvet Band was the only place where I actually wanted a stag party.”

Ben hesitated. The guys had paid for all their drinks, had thanked him profusely and cleaned up afterwards. So he really didn’t want to hear more praise. Moreover, at that moment, he was sitting in the car of a guy who had saved a pretty crappy morning for him. But before he could think of a reply, they had arrived.

“You know, I really appreciate the ride. Next time you come to the Black Velvet Band, your drinks are on the house”, Ben said while getting out.
“Then I suppose I shouldn’t bring Marcus, he’d find a way to make me order for the whole pub.”

They both laughed as they parted ways.