Stranded in the Snow

I grabbed a slice of bread and spread some butter on it, tearing the bread in my frustration and cursing quietly. Alex watched me for a moment, but her eyes were distant.

"So... your car just randomly shut off, right? And then refused to start?" Alex finally said, lost in thought.

"Yeah, it did. Why does that matter?"

"Sounds like a dead battery to me, if I had to guess. Sometimes when cars aren't used to cold weather the battery won't charge properly while you drive, so over time it slowly loses its charge. It wouldn't be too hard to fix if that's the case unless you need a full replacement. I got some jumper cables in the garage, we could try charging it with my truck and see if that helps. If the battery is just dead but otherwise fine, that should be all you need to get driving again."

"That's not a bad idea, actually..." I was sure it couldn't be as easy as Alex made it sound, but at least it was something to try. "The only problem is that it's still storming and my car is probably snowed in by now. Not to mention all the way out there."

"It's not that far, I got home in a few minutes after picking you up. I'm not charging your battery at the side of the road though, that sounds like a bad idea."

"So what were you thinking, then?"

"We could try towing your car back to the farm. My truck should be able to pull it easily, even in this snow."

"Sounds like a plan."

We finished eating our lunch and prepared to go out. Alex advised me to dress extra warm, considering the inside of my car would be about the same temperature as outside, and with the dead battery there was no turning on the heat to help me stay warm either.

Hopping into Alex's pickup truck, it only took us a few minutes to get back to where Alex had picked me up yesterday. Unsurprisingly my car was still there, but it was still a relief when I saw it again. I jumped out of the car and grabbed the broom and show shovel that Alex had put in the back of the truck and got to work on clearing out the snow from my car and the surrounding area.

In the meantime, Alex had turned her truck around and was in the process of attaching the towing cables she had brought to our vehicles. We worked fast, not wanting to stay out in the icy wind any longer than was absolutely necessary. After digging out my car and clearing the windows I unlocked it, glad the lock hadn't frozen over.

Pulling on the door revealed a different problem, though. It wouldn't budge, and I could see some ice through the crack around the door. I put my hand next to the door and pulled again with all my strength. And again. After the third try, I heard a loud crack as the ice shattered and the door finally gave way.

Sitting in the driver's seat felt like taking a seat on a solid block of ice. The heat was instantly sucked out of my legs and butt, making me shiver in my seat. I was glad Alex had advised me to dress warmer than I would have otherwise, but I still wished I'd double-layered my pants, which was something I hadn't considered. Most of my extra layers were on my upper body instead.

I stuck the key in the ignition and held my breath as I turned it. My hopes soared for a moment as the engine rumbled, but then it coughed and went silent again, just like it had yesterday. That would probably have been too easy, if it had just magically fixed itself overnight. But couldn't resist trying, just in case.

As Alex had instructed me, I put my car in neutral and waited. I could see Alex finishing up in front of my car, inspecting the cables and then climbing back into her truck. She turned around and glanced at me through the rear window with a questioning look. After a thumbs-up from me, she turned back around and started slowly driving forward.

The towing cables lost their slack as they were pulled tight. There was a brief moment where I felt my car resist, but then I was being pulled forward. I turned the wheel to put myself back on the center of the road behind the pickup truck and watched as we slowly made our way through the billowing snowflakes.

While the cables were attached to the center of Alex's truck, the other end was hooked to a point below my right headlight. I was sure Alex had her reasons for that, but it meant my car constantly wanted to turn towards the left, something I had to keep correcting on top of braking regularly so I wouldn't bump into Alex. It made the drive back feel even longer, something that wasn't helped by the fact that I was slowly freezing in my seat.

The turn onto the driveway of Alex's farm was a bit difficult, but soon our cars were standing in front of the garage. I got out of my car and walked over to the pickup truck, climbing into the passenger's seat next to Alex.

"Well, that wasn't too bad, was it?" she said as she gave me a satisfied smile.

"Says the lady who had a working heater. I was freezing my butt off while you were nice and toasty in here." I was still shivering, but the heater was on at full blast and the feeling was already starting to return to my legs.

"Well, it was your car, and I wasn't going to let you drive my truck."

"Fair enough," I said, pulling off my gloves and holding my cold hands in front of the stream of hot air.

"I guess I should let you thaw for a bit before we start the next part," Alex said with a chuckle.

"Sounds like a good plan to me. Anyway, thanks. I already feel much better just having my car here at the farm, rather than stranded somewhere on the side of the road."

"You're welcome," Alex said with a big grin that made cute little dimples appear in her round cheeks. It was something I hadn't noticed before, but I didn't think she had smiled this honestly since I had met her either. For once, it didn't feel forced at all.

We stared at each other for a moment, until Alex seemed to realize she was smiling and quickly smoothed out her face as she cleared her throat. I let out a deep sigh and fell back into my seat.

"What?" Alex said, raising an eyebrow at me.

"Nothing. It's just..." I took another deep breath before continuing, knowing I was about to tread on thin ice. "You're just impossible to read. One moment you seem happy and I think you're warming up to me and the next you go back to being Miss ice queen."

"Excuse me?" Alex's raised eyebrow had come back down to join the other in a frown, her eyes flaring dangerously as they bored into mine.

I knew I should have just apologized and shut my mouth, but for some reason, I kept talking like the idiot that I was.

"I mean, either be friendly or be distant, I don't mind either way. But just pick one, this bouncing back and forth is confusing the crap out of me."

Alex just stared at me for a long moment, processing what I had just said. I was bracing myself for the imminent outburst as I watched several emotions wash over her face in quick succession. I really was an idiot, I knew I had made a mistake the moment the words had left my lips. Whatever was waiting for me, I definitely deserved it.

"Well, excuse me for still not fully trusting the random man that I picked up from the side of the road barely 24 hours ago," she finally snapped, her words dripping with sarcasm. "I'm only a woman living alone in the middle of nowhere, after all. No need to be careful at all."

Before I could reply she cut the engine, pulled out the key and stormed out of the truck, slamming the door behind her with enough force to make my ears ring. I watched her stalk off towards the garage and disappear inside through a smaller side door that I hadn't noticed before.

Great, now I'd done it. If I could only have kept my stupid mouth shut for once... And somehow mom still wondered why I never had any relationships that lasted longer than a few months at best.

After ten minutes I realized that Alex was probably not going to come out of the garage on her own any time soon. Part of me wanted to follow her and apologize, but even I could tell that there was a decent chance I'd get a wrench chucked at my head if I showed my face in there right now.

The truck's heater had turned off along with the engine, giving me flashbacks to yesterday as I felt the temperature slowly starting to drop. Bracing myself for the cold I exited the truck, deciding to return to the farm and leave Alex to whatever she was doing in the garage. Hopefully, she'd cool off a little so I could apologize properly later. If she wouldn't kick me out before that, I thought with a shiver that had nothing to do with the cold.

Nugget gave me a curious look as I walked into the living room before he started inspecting the empty hallway.

"Sorry, I don't think she's coming home just yet," I said. Nugget whined and paced around the hallway for a moment before he returned to his spot in front of the radiator in the kitchen.

I took my now-familiar place on the couch and started flicking through some channels on the TV, but quickly turned it off again. There was nothing interesting on, and my mind kept drifting back to Alex. Even my phone couldn't distract me for very long, and soon I found myself pacing through the living room.

There had to be some way I could make it up to her. Almost instinctively I walked to the kitchen and opened the fridge. She seemed to appreciate my hand in yesterday's dinner, perhaps finding a nice warm meal when she returned might improve her mood a bit. Nugget was eying me suspiciously, but kept to his spot near the radiator and left me to my exploration of the kitchen unhindered.

After the fridge I started pulling open cupboards, taking inventory of all the ingredients I had to work with. With no way to go to the store to pick up some missing things, I had to make do with what was in the house. And not use up everything at the same time either, because I had no idea how long this storm would last.

I found some jumbo pasta shells, which brought to mind an old recipe my mom had taught me ages ago. I knew we still had the half-empty jar of last night's spaghetti sauce, and after finding some Alfredo sauce, I was certain I could make this work.

After gathering some more ingredients on the counter I was ready to start. I preheated the oven and put the pasta shells on the stove to cook. In the meantime I picked apart the whole precooked chicken I had found and tossed it in a bowl, adding some bite-sized chunks of broccoli. Then I shredded cheddar and added some Parmesan and the Alfredo sauce.

By now the pasta shells were done and after draining them I started carefully stuffing each one with the mixture I had prepared, putting each onto a layer of spaghetti sauce in a baking pan when they were done. It took some time, especially since I didn't want to damage the shells, but eventually I had filled the pan. Then I covered it with foil, put it in the oven and waited.

Alex's return was announced by excited barks and the scratching of nails on the kitchen's tiles as Nugget jumped up and dashed to the door to greet her. I could hear Alex talk to him for a moment and held my breath as the door to the hallway closed. I was out of sight for now, but I knew she'd find me any second.

"Tim? Are you... cooking?" Alex asked as she sniffed the air. She licked her lips as she looked at the oven, locating the source of the smell of food.

"I eh... Yes? Hope you don't mind."

"Mind?" Alex said. "I'm starving and I can't deny that smells heavenly. Of course I don't mind." She forced a little smile and started to wash her hands, which were covered in oil and other grime.

"So you're not mad?" I asked.

"Relax, I told you it's fine. You proved you knew your stuff yesterday, and I'm kinda glad I don't need to worry about dinner tonight, to be honest."

"No, I mean... About what I said?" I looked down and picked at my nails as I waited for her answer.

Alex took a deep breath and turned to face me as she dried her hands.

"Not really. It's just-" Alex jumped a little when the egg timer went off.

"Hold that thought," I said as I put on the mittens and opened the oven. I pulled out the pan, carrying it carefully to the table and putting it in between the two plates that were waiting for us.

"Hmm... It really does smell good." Alex had a happy grin on her face as she eyed the pan. "What did you make?"

"I'm not sure what the official name is, actually. My mom taught me how to make this a long time ago, and she calls it Chicken and Broccoli Stuffed Shells."

"Catchy," Alex said with a soft chuckle.

"I know, rolls right off the tongue, doesn't it? Anyway, why don't we sit down and talk while we eat?"

Alex nodded and we took our seats on opposite sides of the table. I put two of the shells on each of our plates, leaving the rest in the pan so they'd stay warm a bit longer.

"Careful you don't burn your tongue. They're filled with molten cheese, among other things," I warned her.

Alex nodded and cut one in half before blowing on it. Then she carefully tried a small bite.

"Tastes good, though. But dangerously hot indeed." She glanced at me for a moment, opened her mouth to speak but then seemed to change her mind.

Alex's eyes moved back down to her plate and she started cutting the shells into smaller pieces. I was pretty sure she was blushing, but it was hard to see through the steam rising from her plate and with half her cheeks mostly obscured by her blond curls. I shrugged and copied her, cutting my own food and blowing on it.

"So, about what I said earlier... I'm sorry, that was insensitive of me," I said after a moment of silence.

"No shit," Alex said, her face tensing for a moment at the memory. "But... I can kind of see where you came from. I guess I've been all over the place with you. God, you must think I'm bipolar or something."

I chuckled, glad she didn't seem mad anymore. "Not really, but... Well, as I said, it's confusing. One moment you're laughing and the next you seem to want nothing more than to kick me out the door."

"I don't want to kick you out. Not in this weather, anyway." She glanced out the window briefly, noting that the storm was still going strong.

"That's good to hear. But what is it, then? You just don't trust me?"

"I... Look, I really want to, okay? I'm sure you're a nice guy. But... I'm a woman, living alone, who invited a strange man into her house. You can't exactly blame me for being a bit careful around you."

"You think I'm strange?" I gasped, feigning shock.

Alex chuckled. "You know what I meant. But the truth is, I've only known you for about day now. It would be foolish to blindly trust you."

"True, I guess you have a point there." I blew on my food and stuffed half a shell in my mouth.

Alex let out a sigh. "I want to trust you. I really do." She reached across the table and put her hand on top of mine. It was surprisingly soft and warm for a woman who worked the land and did maintenance on her own machinery.

I smiled, feeling a blush creep onto my cheeks. If I recalled correctly, this was the first time we'd touched each other intentionally. And she was the one to initiate it, no less. I looked up and our eyes met for a long moment before Alex seemed to snap back to reality and quickly pulled her hand back as if she'd been burned.

Having learned from the last time in the car, I decided to keep my mouth shut. Even I could tell that Alex was feeling conflicted. For now, I was already happy we were back on speaking terms. Besides, I was going home as soon as my car worked again. What was I even expecting to happen here? I guess my mom's insistence on me finding a girl and settling down was starting to rub off on me.

For the remainder of dinner, we alternated between making small talk and eating in comfortable silence. I wanted to start on the dishes when we were finished, but Alex wouldn't hear any of that. She insisted that since I had cooked, it was her responsibility to clean. Knowing better than to try and argue with her by now, I left her to it and retreated to my room.

Like the previous night, there was a knock on my door just as I was considering turning in for the night.

"Come in," I said.

The door opened and Alex entered the guest room, once again staying close to the entrance. I looked up at her expectantly.

"I realized I never thanked you properly for making dinner," she started, looking slightly awkward.

"You cleaning your plate and going for seconds was more than enough for me," I said with a smile.

"I'm sure I gained at least a pound tonight..." Alex put a hand on her stomach and chuckled. "But it was SO good."

"I'm glad you liked it. I just... I felt like I needed to do something nice to apologize."

"Well, consider us even now. So let's just forget about that and move on, okay?"

"Sounds good."

Alex looked at me for a moment before she spoke again. "Well, I guess I should hit the hay. Goodnight, Tim."

"Goodnight, Alex."

She smiled at me before she left the room, closing the door behind her. I just stared at the door for a moment and ran a hand through my hair, letting out a sigh. Despite having talked about it, all the mixed signals weren't easy to interpret. If I didn't know any better I'd think she was into me, but any time we got close she had shied away.

Well, at least we got my car back. With any luck, it would be fixed tomorrow and I could head home and try to forget about all this. Forget about Alex... I undressed and crawled into bed, but all I could see when I closed my eyes were the dimples in her cheeks as she smiled at me.

The next morning the storm was at the worst it had been so far. The wind howled around the farm and I could barely even see the garage through the window. We decided to stay inside for now and see if the weather got any better. Around noon it seemed to clear up a little and after eating some lunch we decided to go have a look at my car.

After dressing ourselves for the cold we stepped outside. The weather had gotten slightly better, although my coat was already covered in snowflakes by the time we reached the garage. The wind was still strong enough to blow straight through my jeans, but we weren't intending to stay outside for long.

"Alright, can you pop up the hood of your car?" Alex said as she started pushing open the sliding door of the garage.

"Sure, but won't we get snow in there?" I didn't know a lot about cars, but the idea of my engine snowing in wasn't a reassuring one.

"Probably. But that's not a big deal, it'll melt easily if we can get your engine running. And if not, well... It's only for a few minutes, it should be fine."

"If you say so..." Alex sounded like she knew what she was talking about, so I decided to trust her on this.

By the time I had the hood of my car up, Alex had driven her pickup truck out of the garage and parked it in front of my car. She cut the engine and hopped out, opening her own hood. I watched as she connected the two cars with the jumper cables she had brought and got back behind the wheel of the truck. The engine roared as she turned the key before settling into a low purring.

I opened the passenger door and took a seat next to Alex in her car, closing it behind me to keep the wind and snow out.

"So, now what?" I asked.

"Now we wait and see if your battery will take the charge," Alex explained as she turned on the heater.

I thankfully extended my hands towards the warm air. Even though we were shielded from the storm at the moment, her car had been sitting in the cold garage the whole night. While it was better than having been outside like my own car, it was still pretty chilly inside.

After about five minutes, Alex glanced at the clock on her car's dashboard.

"Should be long enough, I think. You want to give it a shot?" she asked.

"Sure, what do I do?"

"Just try to start your car to see if it works now. But don't panic if it doesn't, we'll just wait a few more minutes and try again."