Gremlin

A recent graduate engages the company of an older man who is selling his used car.  They share a common connection to someone they have both known.

     Dusty got inside Gremlin and sniffed.  It had a homey lived in scent. The interior, vinyl red, appeared sharp and clean.  Dusty sat behind the large steering wheel, and fiddled with the lights and wipers. Fred showed him the defroster and heater and how best to start the engine when cold. Dusty pulled a knob, the choke, and then turned on the radio.  The station was set to a Ducks football game.   Absorbed by the game, Dusty and Fred cheered a Ducks touchdown.  It was late December, and a Bowl berth was at stake.  They forgot about the car and why they were there.       

     Gremlin was a five speed manual powered by a six cylinder engine, nothing fancy.  A worn owner’s manual lay in the glove compartment.  A new clutch had been installed, and now reenergized, neared one hundred and fifty thousand miles.  Fred, the original owner, had it twelve years.  He’d given it to his son Willy, but Willy no longer needed Gremlin.  Dusty would soon find out more about Willy.  The name rang familiar when Fred mentioned who’d driven it last.