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The only rest-stop on the little road that led nowhere in particular was a rundown gas station, and it was here Pearl found herself, wrapped in two jackets and a scarf, waiting for dawn. Or a friend. Whichever arrived first. The employee behind the poorly washed counter was chewing a fat wad of bubblegum and scrolling through some social media feed on his phone. The only words he had bothered to exchange with his late-night-early-morning visitor were: “We’re open twenty-four hours so make the most of them. Gas or food?”
Of course, Pearl didn’t need gas, because her car was broken down. It had been giving her problems with starting up and then randomly stalling out, and finally, as she drove down the road, it died. She had trudged a half-mile through the snowbanks to the dim lights of this store, and now she was in the middle of defrosting her feet. The packet of dried fruit strips she had bought with the last of her money was almost empty.
Somehow, the wad of gum fell out of the employee’s mouth and hit the counter. Without hesitation, he scooped it up and stuck it back in his mouth. Pearl made a disgusted noise at the back of her throat. Disgusting.
She dialed an all-too familiar number for the third time in the past few hours. “Hello? Amethyst? This is Pearl…again. Are you up? I don’t think so—oh…what’s the point? Call me if you’re awake. Or if my phone dies I guess come to the twenty-four hour gas station on Finch Road. Okay. Bye.”
Pearl hung up, exhaling. Amethyst lived closest to this isolated part of the suburbs, but she was not awake, and that meant Pearl was probably stuck here for a while longer. She dug around in the fruit strips and pulled out a measly little portion. Oh well. She chewed on it, the fruit taste a little stale. As she ate, she scrolled through her contacts, trying to find someone else who would come and get her.
She picked a different person. “Hello? This is Pearl—”
A tired voice spoke. “Good morning, Pearl.”
“Oh! Hi—Garnet,” Pearl suppressed a bashful smile even though Garnet couldn’t see her. “I’m in a bit of a predicament.”
“I assumed so, or you wouldn’t really be calling me at two am, would you?”
“True.”
“What’s up?”
“I was driving home and my car died.”
“That’s a problem. Where are you?”
“This little store off Finch Road. It’s really dingy and” —here the employee raised his eyebrows at her, a slight downwards curve to his mouth forming— “well,” continued Pearl, “it’s not the best, but’s it’s been my shelter for the past few hours. The storm’s really starting to set in.”
“I can come pick you up. That’s why you called, right?”
“Yes. Could you?”
“I’ll head out now.” There was a pause, and then: “I can bring food and hot drinks if you’d like.”
“Please,” agreed Pearl, glancing down at her miserable bag of fruit strips. “I haven’t had much in the way of food since dinner—yesterday.”
“Okay. I’ll be there in about twenty minutes to a half-hour, depending,” said Garnet. There was a scuffling noise, and then silence. Pearl set her phone down.
“Good call,” said the employee thickly through his gum. “Heheh. I didn’t mean for that pun.”
Pearl quirked an eyebrow. “Well…”
“It’s really gonna snow, the weather reports says. Like hellish amounts. Can’t believe I got the graveyard shift for this store.” He snorted. “At least I’m safe-ish indoors.”
“Yes.” Pearl nodded. She began to think about what she could do with her car. She could get it towed and then have it repaired but all of those services were most likely very busy with the current state of the weather. It’d have to wait until morning, if possible.
Twenty minutes slid by. Then five more. The faint rumble of a vehicle sounded down the road. Pearl stood up and peered out of the frosty glass.
“That your girlfriend yet?” asked the employee.
Pearl’s face heated up. “Um—I hope so.”
“You’re lucky to have such a nice partner,” continued the young man, propping his face up with his fist. “Man. My last boyfriend was an utter jerk. Shoulda left him sooner.”
“I’m sorry,” said Pearl, looking back at him.
The employee shook his head. “Oh, no, it’s fine. That was like five or six years ago.”
The headlights of a car shone through the windows. A tall woman stepped out of the driver’s side and made her way to the door, snugly wrapped in a thick jacket. She stepped into the entrance.
“There you are,” said Garnet. “C’mon. Let’s go home before anything gets worse.”
“All right.”
“You got everything you needed from your car?”
“Yes. I didn’t have much in it.”
“Okay.” Garnet put a hand on Pearl’s shoulder and they stepped outside. It was bitterly cold.
Pearl shivered. “I should have worn something warmer.” She looked behind her, at the gas station. The employee was back to scrolling through his phone, as he probably would until the battery died.
It was a much better temperature inside of Garnet’s car. The heater was running, and there was a thermos of something in the cup holder. Garnet pulled out of the tiny parking lot and started down the road home.
“Thanks so much for doing this,” Pearl said, taking a sip of the drink. It was tea. “It means a lot to me.”
“You’re welcome,” said Garnet. She looked at Pearl. “I couldn’t leave you in that gas station. I was pretty worried about you when you called me. But you’re okay now, right?”
“Yes. Much better.” Pearl smiled.
“Would you like to spend the night—well…actually…morning with me? My place is a lot closer than yours. If I remember correctly, you live on the other side of town.”
“I do. Unfortunately.”
“Then my place is open to you until you can get home,” said Garnet, nodding.
“Oh, gosh, that’s awfully kind of you—”
“It’s no trouble to me, if that’s what you’re wondering.”
“Sure?”
“I’m sure.”
“All right.” Pearl paused and took another drink of the tea. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Garnet’s place was warm and cozy. Pearl felt safe inside right away. Garnet arranged the sofa for her with blankets as Pearl cleaned up her hands and face. She carried a little thing of mouthwash with her everywhere (it was an odd habit she’d just picked up) and swished some around in her mouth. It would suffice for now.
They talked for several minutes, but Pearl started to doze off halfway through a conversation about the impending holidays. Garnet pulled a blanket over her, smiled softly to herself, and then went to her room.
Outside, the snow continued to fall.