Road Rage (Part 1)
Tracy Seeger
Bill impatiently drummed his fingers on the dark blue Volvo's steering wheel as he drove round the car park for the third time, searching for one of the "5 SPACES" the electronic board at the entrance had told him were hidden within. The air conditioning was on the blink, again, and even with all the windows open, the humid August air made Bill's suit stick to him like wet paper. The smell of petrol and exhaust fumes made Bill's stomach want to regurgitate the coffee and toast it had so readily accepted only an hour ago. On the radio, Madonna's 'Holiday' was finishing, and the DJ announced that the nine o'clock news and weather was coming up after the next break.
'Shit,' thought Bill, 'late for work again. Where are those damn spaces ? I only need one of them for God's sake !' As if on cue, Bill rounded the next corner, and spotted a space to his left.
'At last !' he said out loud. He pulled past the space, put the Volvo into reverse, and turned around, just in time to see a black BMW pull head first into the parking space.
'Hey !' shouted Bill in disbelief, and lent hard on his car horn. But the other driver took no notice, and switched off the BMW's engine, obviously having no intention of moving.
'Oh no you don't !' said Bill, and he leapt out of his car and strode over to the BMW. The other driver had not yet got out. Bill knocked hard on the car window, and shouted, 'Hey you, this is MY parking space, and you damn well know it ! Move !'
The other driver wound his window down halfway, and a gush of cool air hit Bill's flushed face. The man said placidly, 'Sorry buddy. Look, I'm late for work. You don't mind really do you ?'
Bill could not believe his ears, and his voice rose to a high pitch as he replied, 'What ? Are you kidding ? I've been driving round this fucking car park for half an hour looking for a space, and I should have been at fucking work fifteen minutes ago ! Now get out of my space asshole !'
The smile on the other driver's face dissolved, and he wound his window back up. As he started packing things into his briefcase, Bill could see that he still had no intention of moving his car.
'Okay then mate, ' he said quietly, 'have it your way then.' Calmly he walked back to the Volvo, which, after sitting idling for a few minutes, was now hotter then ever. Bill put the car back into reverse again, and with his face set hard, he rammed his foot down on the accelerator and whipped the steering wheel round to the left. He hit the back of the BMW full on, thrusting it forward into the barrier. The force of the impact threw Bill forward, but he just started laughing. Then he realised that his car had stalled. As he tried to start it up again, he glanced into the rear-view mirror. What he saw snapped the laughter right out of him. The other driver was shouting and screaming from the front seat of his car, hitting his fists onto the steering wheel, dashboard, and door panel. Bill got the impression he was a little upset, and the smile began to form again on his lips.
'Serve you right, shithead,' he muttered to himself, still desperately trying to coax the Volvo's engine back to life. Then he heard the BMW's door open and slam into the car next to it, and he nervously looked into his mirror again. This time, not only did his good humour disappear, but he completely froze. The other driver was standing looking at the damage Bill had done to the back of the BMW, and in his left hand, aimed right through the rear window of the Volvo, was a gun.
Copyright © 2009 Tracy Seeger. All rights reserved.