Chapter 171 – Familiar Faces – Ellie Brooks

Curiosity led me to seek out Valentina every day that I could get an excuse to visit her workshop. It wasn’t hard since my dad was routinely stopping by to check up on the progress of our car repairs. He was only surprised that I was so happy to go with him. Cynthia was also feeling very self-satisfied.

My dad soon realized the truth when I routinely left him to see what Valentina was working on. Her brother and uncle handled the main repairs in their shop. She normally performed the grunt work unless they really needed an extra hand. She was in-training here in preparation for her future career.

For a few days in a row, I visited to watch Valentina tinker with the odds and ends around the place. She, like her older brother, was a jack of all trades in this field. Normally I’d be opposed to watching this type of thing. This type of mechanically oriented task was far outside of my typical daily experience.

It was the fact that a girl my age was already so experienced with such complicated machinery that really drew my interest. Valentina didn’t think it was a big deal when I brought it up in conversation, but she was underselling herself. The fact that her brother trusted her to help with secondary repair tasks was equally fascinating.

It wasn’t uncommon for girls our age to have an after-school job or perhaps summer job. They usually weren’t this technical. As silly as it was, I felt a little envious. People always talked about how good I was academically, but that type of thing didn’t measure well against Valentina’s skilled labor.

The traits that made me unique were shared by so many other people that it was hard to feel special. I didn’t have any unique skills like Valentina was so easily displaying. It was hard not to feel somewhat inadequate while watching her work.

For most of my time in her family’s workshop I just sat quietly in the corner, watching her do her thing. She always liked to work in this corner of the shop, letting her brother and uncle handle client interactions. Her aunt would come in from time to time to check up on things. It seemed like she worked on the accounting side of things.

It felt strange to come here so often after school. My intentions were painfully obvious by now. I was sure Valentina knew that I was visiting mainly for her. My interest in her was expanding beyond the realms of her skillset the more I learned about her. I was especially interested about her history back in Ukraine.

She and I shared a very different upbringing. I was always well off. Valentina’s family on the other hand went through an ordeal to get to where they were. Valentina’s parents risked a lot of money for their son to start up this shop. Fortunately, their investment was close to being recouped in full.

Valentina was currently doing basic cleaning for an old car’s engine. This car was a salvage brought in by a local used car dealership. They weren’t sure if the thing could be repaired and just wanted the workshop to do what they could. All the oil and grime had to be cleared before Valentina’s brother could fully assess the situation.

“So,” Valentina said as she pulled her head away from the car’s raised hood, “When are you going to start telling me about yourself in return?”

“Me…?”

“Of course you… Who else would I be talking to here?” She asked with a smirk.

“What I mean to say is that there’s nothing interesting about me.”

“Oh, I beg to differ. Your dad is quite talkative when he gets going. He and my uncle spent so much time talking about racing that I was sure they’d never shut up.”

I laughed quietly. Valentina sat down in the chair beside me and wiped her hands with a weathered old rag.

“My point is that you’re nothing like him. Is that a recent development, or…?”

I rubbed one elbow shyly as I thought back on my transformation process.

“A little bit of column A and column B.” I said. “We were never very alike, but that’s become truer recently. I’ve always taken more after my mother.”

“That Cynthia lady that came in here yesterday?”

“No!” I said defensively.

Valentina gave me a mildly surprised look, likely sensing the deeper story here.

“I mean... No…” I said softly. “It’s complicated.”

“Your dad’s new girl?” She asked flatly.

I gave her a blank look.

“I guess it’s actually not that complicated.”

She leaned back in her chair and nodded knowingly.

“It probably won’t surprise you to know that I’ve seen this type of thing before. You’d be shocked at how many people come here with their significant other to drop off their car, only to return with a new spouse sometime later when the repairs are complete.”

“That sounds more like a game of musical chairs, not human relationships.”

“Haha. I’d agree with you if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes.” Valentina said.

Our conversation was interrupted by Valentina’s brother Petro coming over to speak to us. Valentina stood up from her seat upon his arrival.

“More work for me?” She asked.

“Not really, no. You can take off for a while since things are slow.” He said and looked over at me. “I wanted to let you know that your dad’s car is complete. You can call him to come pick it up when he’s ready.”

I stood up beside Valentina.

“Okay. He originally said he’d come by once he was finished working later.” I said.

Valentina turned to me with a smile.

“He was just going to leave you here all evening with me?” She asked. “Not that I’d mind the company.”

“He’s been using his girlfriend’s car recently and she’s out buying supplies for their trip this weekend.”

“No problem.” Valentina said. “I can drop off the car myself, and you along with it.”

I gave Valentina a suspicious look. I wasn’t the only one. Her brother did the same.

“Really…?” I asked dubiously. “You know how to drive a car?”

“And you think you can handle a client’s car responsibly? A client’s car, Val.” He said for emphasis. “A client’s car.”

Valentina grinned confidently.

“Don’t look at me like that, both of you!” Valentina said. “Uncle drops client cars off all the time. It’s about time I start helping with that service. Besides, I need the pretext to check out Ellie’s place in person.”

Petro gave me a questioning look. I shrugged in response.

“If she can handle it then I’m okay with that. It’ll be fun to surprise my dad by returning home with the car.”

Val punched my shoulder jovially. It kind of hurt.

“That’s the spirit!” She said and turned to her brother. “See! We’re all good here! Don’t you trust your beautiful little sister?”

Valentina put her hand out towards her brother. Petro slowly lifted the keys from his pocket to put them into her hand.

“My devious little sister, you mean…” He corrected.

“Those things aren’t at all exclusive.” Valentina said.

“Get out of here before I gain some sense and change my mind.” Petro demanded.

We ran to the car while laughing together. My experience in this workshop was unusual. I was more talkative with Valentina than with anyone else in my life recently. The fact that she had no prior connection to my past helped. Our relationship was fresh and free of entanglements.

“You do have a driver’s license, don’t you?” I asked cautiously as we got inside. “I know you have a motorcycle license, but are you legally authorized to drive cars too?”

“Of course I am! Do you think my brother would let me drive a client’s car otherwise?” She said with a hint of outrage. “So what if I just got the license during the winter break? Big deal. That’s plenty of time to get accustomed to driving a car.”

“No it isn’t!”

“Got your seatbelt on?”

She didn’t give me time to answer before pulling out of the workshop in a burst of speed. I never knew my dad’s sedan could accelerate this fast. Whatever they changed below the hood must’ve been more than a simple ignition repair.

The engine’s revamped condition became even more evident as we hit the highway. We debatably didn’t even need to go on the highway. My place wasn’t that far. I was sure that Valentina was pulling my leg. It looked like she was having fun pushing the car to the edge of the legal speed limit.

No doubt she’d go faster if this wasn’t a client’s vehicle. It only took me a few minutes on the road to realize that she had a great deal of driving experience and was toying with me. Soon we got off the highway and went towards my neighborhood. Valentina laughed wickedly as we pulled up to my place.

“You should’ve seen your face back there.” Valentina teased. “I was sure you were going to beg for me to slow down or pull over. Scaredy cat!”

“I wasn’t scared…! I just wanted you to be careful!”

“Is that why you were gripping your seatbelt like that?”

“I was just making sure it was tight, that’s all.”

“Right… Are you going to invite me in, or should I climb in through your window?”

“Do you think you’re capable of reaching my window on the second floor?”

“Are you challenging me to find out?”

I put my palm into my face.

“Scratch that! I don’t want my neighbors getting any weird ideas about you. We can leave the car parked in the driveway. My dad will roll it into the garage later. You should stay for dinner. We can give you a ride back to the shop after that.”

“Or maybe I could stay over for the night. Unless…?”

I laughed.

“With my dad and Cynthia leaving for their trip tonight that doesn’t sound so bad. Come on inside.”

We got out of the car and went inside. Valentina marveled at the living room space as we entered. The place looked livelier after Cynthia’s redecorating. I hated to admit it because it felt like a betrayal to my mother, but Cynthia had a good eye for interior design. She studied that topic in college, and it showed.

“This is all stuff my dad’s girlfriend did.” I explained.

“Yeah, yeah… The furniture is nice and all, but that wasn’t what drew my attention. I was just thinking that the place is larger than I thought it was.”

“Is it?”

“Yeah. I’ve got a friend that has a massive mansion. Tamer stuff like this shouldn’t impress me anymore and yet it still does every time. It reminds me that a lot of my friends come from a totally different world than me. You included.”

“So we’re friends then?” I asked cheekily.

“Of course we are.” She said. “I’m looking forward to letting you ride on the back of my motorcycle like all my friends get to do.”

I shook my head.

“After a car ride like that, I’ll pass…”

“You’ll warm up to it eventually.” She assured me.

“Ellie, you’re back!” My dad said as he came into the living room. “And you brought a friend.”

“This is Valentina.” I said. “She’s the girl that I’ve been hanging out with at the workshop.”

My dad came over to shake Valentina’s hand.

“I remember! Your brother Petro talks about you a lot. He said you’d be a bad influence on a nice girl like my daughter, but I’m sure he was joking. Haha!”

“Haha…” Valentina laughed stiffly. “Right… My brother… Always joking, that guy… Anyways, we’ve dropped your car off now that the repairs are complete. She’s all good to go on your trip this weekend.”

“So soon?” My dad asked, walking over towards the window near the front door.

“She runs like a killing machine. We must’ve hit nearly 100 flying down the highway just n-…”

I gave Valentina a small pinch to let her know she was saying too much. My dad was liable to freakout about something like that, even if she was joking.

“What I mean to say is that she runs smoothly.” Val said. “You shouldn’t have any problems anymore. If you do, don’t hesitate to give the shop a call.”

“Did your brother say if I owe you anything more?”

“Nope! Insurance covered it all. As for babysitting Ellie, that’s its own reward.”

I groaned and pulled Valentina away by the arm.

“Come on, ‘babysitter’, I’ll show you to my room.”

“Oh, here! Don’t forget the keys!” Valentina said.

She tossed the keys to my dad as I pulled her over to the staircase. My dad surprisingly managed to catch them before they could hit the ground.

When I brought Valentina into my bedroom I expected that she’d sit down on the bed. Instead, she wandered around the room aimlessly. I wanted to show her some of the clothing I personally made. My knitting and sewing skills were nothing compared to her mechanical skills, but they were really all I had to be proud of.

“You make clothing?” She asked as she walked over to my desk.

My hobby was obvious since the center of my desk was dominated by a massive sowing machine. My computer monitor was pushed off to the side because of it.

“It’s an old thing my mom taught me a long time ago. I used to do it a lot in middle school, but I quit practicing for years. I only recently got back into it.”

“Did you make this scarf?” She asked as she picked up the folded scarf on the table.

“I did! That’s something I made recently to practice embroidery on.”

“I think you and my friend Silver would get along nicely.”

“Silver…?”

“Her real name is Sylvie… She’s another arts and crafts dork.”

“Hey…!”

“I mean that in the nicest way possible.” She said with a wry smile.

She continued looking around the room, giving the place a staunch examination. She’d randomly pick up an item to casually inspect it before setting it back down. It was a little embarrassing just how much she was scrutinizing the place. She froze suddenly when she picked up a random picture frame.

“This…” She started to say, staring at the photo with a wide-eyed expression.

“That…” I said, trying to search for how to explain things to her.

Of all the images for her to pick up, she had to randomly choose the one with Holly in it. This was going to be a complicated conversation…

“That’s my ex-girlfriend.” I admitted. “I say that, but she was more than that to me… We were best friends for years before we became romantically involved. It was only last year that…”

“You’re from Cherry Vale Public High School?” She asked, giving me a starstruck look.

“I am, yes…” I said. “How’d you know that? I never told you about my school life.”

“Because I know Holly Hayfield personally.” Valentina said. “She’s the one that helped me overcome my personal demons.”