I stepped back and looked at my car, my pride and joy, the cherry-red apple of my eye… wrapped around a lamppost.
‘Well that’s not very good, is it?’ chuckled the tow truck driver, crossing his arms next to me.
I turned, very slowly, to glare at him. He put his hands up in mock defence.
‘Oh, don’t mind me, just got a job to do.’
‘And yet,’ I said. ‘Here you are.’
‘Well, I’ve gotta wait for the coppers, don’t I? Can’t go shiftin’ evidence around before they get here to decide just how much trouble you’re in.’
I turned away from him, glaring at my car instead.
‘So what was it?’ he asked. ‘Bit of the drink? A little too much candy?’
‘A duck, actually’ I turned back to him. ‘I swerved to miss a family of ducks.’
‘Right, right…’ he nodded. ‘Well, I hope those ducks know a good mechanic around Bentleigh, because I don’t know that your insurance are gonna be too happy to pay for all that.’
‘Probably not,’ I sighed. ‘They’ll probably just pay me out and scrap it.’
‘A right shame, that,’ he shook his head. I could only nod.
‘What is she, a ’79?’ he asked. ‘I hear the electrics are a beast in those. ‘I have a buddy who does auto electrical repairs, near Bentleigh actually, and he–’
‘Sorry, could we not?’ I asked. ‘I’m actually still going through a lot, right now.’
‘Oh yeah, too right,’ he apologised with a slight bow. ‘Because she’s a ’79?’
‘Because I was in a car crash.’
‘Oh yeah, gotcha, spot on too, that,’ he nodded, sticking his hands in his coveralls. ‘Did you need an ambulance, or…’
‘I’m fine.’
‘Yeah, yeah, no doubt, no doubt…’
I took a deep, shuddering breath, wondering how exactly this man had given me more of a headache than my airbag had.
Then the sirens arrived.