Car Share! Coffee Break Tale

Will Rob’s new colleague measure up or be too serious? The journey would be revealing

The drone of the radio filled the air as Rob glanced over to the passenger seat.

He didn’t know Megan very well. She had blue eyes and blonde spiky hair. This was her first day at work. He smiled, barely resisting the urge to yell “Car share!” in honour of the TV show he’d watched online last night.

Everybody always remarked on his sense of humour. He liked a bit of banter to lighten the mood, though he did complain about the canteen at work looking as if a herd of elephants had just charged through. He was always the one handing birthday cards around for everyone to sign, and organising whip-rounds.

As the morning sun rose, he drove himself and Megan down a leafy avenue. “Looks like it’s going to be a cold one.” “Hope it doesn’t get too cold.” Megan puffed out her cheeks. “I’m not keen. I’ll be fighting my Josh over the thermostat.” “Is it just you and him at home then?” “No, there’s Toby. We’ve only got the one. I told Josh if he wants another he can get pregnant instead.” She giggled.

Rob grinned. He couldn’t imagine anything worse than being stuck in a car with somebody who couldn’t see the lighter side of life. It’d feel as if his seatbelt had stolen all his air away.

Megan in the passenger seat wouldn’t have argued with him if she could have read his mind.

Up ahead, she noticed children carrying bags leaving their garden gates behind. She thought of Toby, her five-year-old, being bustled off to school by her other half. At least they’d had a bit of a lie-in compared to her.

They’d all fretted over their move down south, but the new house was lovely. Josh seemed settled already. He’d even taken to jogging with her round the park at the weekend.

The car halted at a set of lights and Rob reached into his pocket. “Is it too early for a mint?” “My breath’s not that bad, is it?” “No, no you’re fine.” He chuckled as he offered over the packet. She prised out a mint and popped it into her mouth. They shared a glance then, nothing flirty, more an easing of the tension that lingers when you don’t know each other’s quirks just yet.

“I just wanted to say, if you ever have any problems in the office at all, you just let me know,” said Rob.

“They sound like a good lot from what you’ve told me already.”

“Oh, they are. Just label your food in the fridge and never ask Janice to make coffee. You can stand a spoon up in one of hers. What was your old town like?”

“Oh, quiet. Full of sheep, cows… and tractors.” “Oh – right. How very rural.” They shared a smile but their doubts still niggled – the proof of the pudding and all that.

Fate then decided to intervene. A little blue car screamed out of a junction ahead, forcing Rob to slam on the brakes. They both rocked forwards into the grip of their seatbelts.

“In a bit of a rush, are we?” Rob glared at the car that sat across their path.

Megan unclipped her seatbelt but even as she did so, tyres squealed and the blue car hared away at speed.

She clicked herself back in, glancing at Rob, all set to measure him as she knew he would measure her. Quite right, too.

He gunned the engine while she got on the radio. “We have a vehicle failed to stop. A blue Fiat. It’s making off down Dewport Avenue.”

The police car they sat within sped along, its sirens wailing. “Heading towards the town centre.” She continued her running commentary as blood roared in her ears.

Yes, it had felt a little nerve-racking during the first few hours of her first patrol since her transfer. Police work wasn’t all about villains, after all. Her life might depend on the person sitting by her side one day… and his life might depend on her.

“Turning into Henson Way.” During a break in her commentary, Megan aimed a smile in her new partner’s direction.

“Well now,” she said. “Isn’t an early morning pursuit the perfect way to break the ice on a cold winter’s day?”