The Detailer

by: Alyssa Hetterich

His third vehicle of the day rattled into the shop. A real garbage can on wheels, he thought. The beige Honda Odyssey minivan looked like it hadn’t been cleaned in the ten years since it first left the dealership in 2005. He walked over to the driver’s side window. His nose was revolted by the scent of what was probably a decaying McDouble to the point which he could barely glance up from his clipboard. 

“What can I do for you today, ma’am?” he asked, already dreading the job he knew would fill the rest of his day.

“Can I get a basic detailing, Scott?” she said. “Interior and exterior.” The woman’s voice was rougher than he remembered but as soon as he looked up, he recognized her. Thirty years hadn’t been too kind to either of them, judging by the state of her vehicle and the piss poor number in his bank account. Still, his heart stuttered a few extra beats as he quickly remembered his last interaction with Mindy Sterling. 

“Mindy,” he breathed. “How are you? It’s been so long,” he said. He hadn’t meant to sound like an idiot or a creep. He couldn’t help but comment on the crazy passage of time. He hadn’t thought of his junior prom since it happened, or at least he tried not to. Mindy’s appearance in his shop reminded him of what he pushed away years ago. Her deep, brown eyes had once made him feel like he might melt with delight. Now, they looked vacant. 

“I’ve been better. This mess has me down,” she said with a smile and gestured to her van. “How about you?” 

“Can’t complain too much,” he said. “I’ll need your ID and credit card, please.” 

“Of course,” she said while handing him the cards. He jotted down her information on his sheet. Mindy Murphy. Scott recognized the last name but wasn’t sure if it was given to her from the guy he was thinking of. He finished taking down her card number. “How long do you think this will take ya?” she asked. 

“Shouldn’t take more than four hours. Do you have someone coming to pick you up, or did you want to wait here?” 

“I think I’ll wait here if that’s okay,” she said. “My husband is watching the kids so I’m free for the next few hours.” 

“The waiting room is off to the left. Make yourself comfortable.” 

Mindy grabbed her purse and a hardback book from the passenger seat before walking into the waiting room where she found a seat on an orange couch that looked better suited for a college dorm room. Customers rarely chose to wait so it wasn’t the best-decorated space. An orange couch that looked better suited for a college dorm room creaked when sat on was the only seating, and the coffee pot promised customers the most bitter cup ever tasted. 

As soon as Mindy was out of sight, Scott put on his thick protective gloves and began to run down his mental checklist. First, the engine. To his surprise, the exterior was not reflective of what was under the hood. It looked to be running fine and wouldn’t need detailing. 

Next, Scott picked up the soft-bristle brush and tire cleaning concentrate. He sat on his rolling work seat and began scrubbing the tires. His current job was not one he ever wanted. He wasn’t really sure how he got here to begin with. In high school, he’d had an interest in becoming an accountant. It wasn’t a flashy career, but he was good with numbers and picking out errors. One semester at Cincinnati State had turned into a few years at home taking care of his mom. He picked up shifts at Superior Detailing to help pay the bills. His uncle had initially hooked him up  with the position out of pity, but before long, the shop was left to him. He was halfway through rinsing the fourth tire when a roller chair from his office moved to his side of the garage. 

“You’re not supposed to be back here, ma’am,” he said. Scott knew he was in trouble already. The shop kept a strict rule against allowing customers too close to the detailing. The chemicals made for a huge liability. 

Mindy shook away his comment with her hand, “I’ll be fine, Scott.” 

He sighed, remembering her inability to listen to him. “Careful of the splash zone, it can get pretty mucky,” he said. 

Scott wasn’t used to much chatter while working on a vehicle, but he welcomed the familiar company. 

“Don’t worry, I’ll stay over this way,” she said. “I figured we could catch up while we had the chance.” 

He nodded at the sentiment. She sat far enough away that he could kind of justify her presence. As Scott went past the air compressor to wash the body of the van, he took another look at his former prom date. Her dark roots had grown out for at least a few weeks. He used to make trips to Sally Beauty Supply when his mom was still able to keep up her dye-job, so he knew the signs. Her face and neck were sporting far more freckles than had been there before, probably due to the tanning craze of the ’90s. 

Scott was used to taking in a person’s car and learning their character traits and secrets based upon what hid in their floorboards. He’d never forget the swisher wrappers belonging to the county’s all-star baseball player, or the happily married superintendent’s BMW concealing quite a few empty bottles of Jack and Magnum wrappers. Catching up with Mindy required a sort of observation he hadn’t put to use in a couple of years. 

“So,” he began, “you mentioned your husband is watching the kids today. Who is the lucky man?” 

“Do you remember Cameron Murphy?” she asked. “Red-head? Soccer team?” 

Her qualifications verified his previous suspicion. Mindy had married the man Scott had known and leaned on since the second grade. He and Cameron had fallen out of touch a few years after graduating high school. He thought it was because they’d simply moved on in life. 

Scott hadn’t imagined it could have been because of who he took to prom. “I remember him. What brought you two together?” 

“We both ended up going to Wright State,” she explained, “and ran into each other at a bar few months into our junior year, and that was that. We married in 98.” 

“A classic love story,” he said. 

Mindy nodded and asked, “What about you? Who’s the lucky lady that locked you down?” 

He laughed and picked up the foam cannon to lather up the van. “I haven’t quite found the one yet.” 

Scott turned on the cannon and covered the vehicle in suds. He could tell she was watching him intently. He hadn’t disclosed the entire truth. What he hadn’t said was that he had met quite a few, but he’d always managed to ruin it in some way. One ended after he spent too many hours in the shop, another because of a poorly executed joke about a developing unibrow. One relationship had even gone so far as the purchase of an engagement ring. Still, he knew that wasn’t the relationship he wanted to be in forever. 

Once he lathered the car, he removed his protective gloves and replaced them with a hand mitt. This was the part of the job he loved most. It was a mindless motion, rubbing down the body of a vehicle. However, Mindy’s presence turned what normally was a chance for him to zone out into an opportunity for discovering what could have been. 

“So, no special lady?” she began. “I always did take you for a lady’s man.” Her tone indicated that she was kidding, and he laughed. 

“Please, I was anything but that. You were the one coming after me during Mrs. Johnson’s class, remember?” he asked. “I was all but powerless against those hand gloves and acid wash jeans of yours.” 

She scoffed, “Not true. I was the helpless victim of those stupid curls of yours.” A younger version of himself might have thought she was flirting with him. The years had taught him that sometimes it was nice to just joke around with an old friend.  Judging by the state of the car, there were at least two hours of work left. Scott finished spraying down the car and drying it with a microfiber cloth. He wanted to keep talking with her before he needed to clean out the inside of the van. 

“So,” he prompted while putting his protective gloves back on, “Aside from marriage, what have you been up to?” 

His question sucked but he wasn’t sure what else to ask someone who used to be a friend. 

Lucky for him, she was still polite as ever and placated him with a smile, “I’ve got a couple of kiddos. Ashlee and Liam, 14 and 16,” she said. “I’m also the manager at JCPenney, over in Bridgewater.” 

Walking over to where he was pulling the carpets out of the van, she pulled up her phone and two grinning faces with freckles and russet hair gleamed back at them. Scott wasn’t much of a kid person. One too many boogers removed from under the last clothed row of multiple minivans had left him with little desire to make any of his own. 

“Sure do look like their dad,” he said. 

Mindy’s smile fell for a second, “That’s the funny thing, isn’t it? You think you’re making something 50-50 and you end up with only a small share of the credit.” 

Scott wasn’t sure how to respond to that. It was clear to him that she was unsatisfied with something. He knew he was, but doubted it was for the same reason. 

“I’ve gotta get in the van now,” he said. “It might be difficult to chat for a bit.” Mindy nodded and moved back to the rolling chair. Still, she didn’t leave the garage. 

Scott began removing the trash from the front and middle rows. The crushed Pokémon cards and Polly Pocket clothes clearly hadn’t been played with for at least five years. He moved the tan clothed middle-seats forward. His least favorite part of his job was easily backseat excavations. As soon as he took a peek at the cup holders, he wished he hadn’t. Stuck in goo at least an inch deep was a solo monkey missing from the barrel. 

He found it hard to sympathize with people who let their vehicles reach this state of filth. 

Each shift Scott reminded himself that people led busy lives and that their cars weren’t always used for more than transporting them between places. 

Grateful to have put on gloves, he patted underneath the seat. First, he found a cleat. Plastic spikes indicated to him that one of the kids was a baseball player. Not that great of one if there’s only one cleat, he thought. 

As much as he thrived while organizing and cleaning, he couldn’t stand senseless messes. 

Disgusted, he continued patting. His hand brushed against what felt like a bag. Intrigued, he pulled it out. 

Scott was careful to remain unseen in the backseat. He knew Mindy was right outside the van and could interrupt his search at any moment. Invading her privacy felt wrong with her sitting right there, but his curiosity was stronger than his apprehension. 

He pried apart the drawstring Under Armor bag. Inside was a small clasp envelope. 

Opening the envelope would be a step too far, even for him. Quickly, he put the envelope back in the bag and sealed it the way it was before. Scott scooted out of the back of the van and walked over to Mindy. 

“Hey, Mindy,” he said. “I found this bag under the seats in the back.” 

“I guess someone forgot about that. Thank you, Scott.” 

“Not a problem, ma’am,” he responded. His use of ma’am earned him another smile and he realized how much he had been hoping for one. 

He shook his head and grabbed the leather and cloth cleaners. The inside of the van was going to take a good bit of effort to clean in its entirety. He sat in the driver’s seat and began cleaning. After taking the bag back to the waiting room, Mindy walked up to the open door and lightly leaned against it. 

“You better not leave any fingerprints on that door,” Scott said. 

“Don’t worry I won’t mess up your work, Scott,” she said. “There was something I kind of wanted to talk about.” 

Scott looked away from the car and at Mindy. She was picking at the skin on her thumb. “What’s up, Mindy?” he asked. 

Still looking at her hands she responded, “Do you remember our prom night?” 

“It was a long time ago,” he said. “But, yeah. I remember it.” 

She nodded, “That’s good. Do you remember me distancing myself from you after that night?” 

Scott knew what she was talking about. Their time spent together went from nearly every day to simply saying hello before English. He’d always been confused about what made her go from dropping flirty notes in his locker, to barely speaking to him. 

Their prom night had concluded parked in an empty lot in the back of his mom’s Ford Taurus. The sedan’s backseat didn’t provide much room to move around, but they didn’t need much space to do what they did. He remembered waking up with a crook in his neck after sleeping in the reclined passenger seat while Mindy was curled up on the backseat. Even with her giant hair greasily pressing into her cheek, he remembered feeling so consumed with her. 

“I figured you weren’t allowed to see me again since I kept you out all night,” he said. Scott didn’t mention that he also thought he had done something incorrectly that night. For the sake of his own confidence, he kept that detail to himself. 

“No, no that wasn’t really it,” she said, “Although, my dad was pretty pissed at you.” 

“I don’t blame him.” 

Their conversation lagged for a moment. Scott wanted to get back to work, but she was still standing against the car door. 

“Mindy,” Scott said, “What’s going on?” 

She finally looked up from her fingers and he could see that her eyes were watering. “There’s so much I regret, Scott.” 

His body tensed. Surely, she wasn’t going to admit the things he’d been thinking since she arrived. 

Scott moved out of the car and threw his gloves to the floor. He took Mindy’s hand and together they walked back into the waiting room. He led her to the couch so that they could talk in a more comfortable setting. Besides, the interior cleaner was starting to give him a headache. 

Once seated, Mindy began again, “Scott, there’s something I never told you and I’d like to do that now.” 

“Go ahead.” 

“A few weeks after prom, I was pretty tired and nauseous,” she began. “My mom joked that I might be pregnant and I laughed it off. The next few days only got worse so I took the test.” 

Mindy paused for a moment and looked at Scott. He knew his face always gave away his emotions, so he tried to look calm. However, his left leg began to bounce and the back of his neck started to perspire. 

“Mindy,” he whispered. “Was it positive?” 

She nodded her head slightly, “I knew we weren’t ready for a baby, we weren’t even officially together,” she said. “I made the decision for both of us.” Mascara-stained tears streamed down her cheeks as she alluded to what she had done. 

Scott was at a loss of what to do or to say. When Mindy arrived, he’d thought he was only in for a quick trip down memory lane. He hadn’t anticipated learning details about a life he could have lived from a woman he could have loved. 

“Do you hate me now?” Mindy asked. 

He knew the general sentiment in their community leaned towards life. However, Scott never felt particularly qualified to debate this topic or engage with the conversation as a whole. Looking at the burdened woman in front of him, all he felt was sympathy. 

“I would never hate you,” he said. “I just wish you would have told me. I could have been there for you.” 

“I wasn’t sure how you would have reacted,” she said. “You had so many things going for you and so did I. It seemed like keeping it a secret was the smartest idea.” 

“I think you made the best choice, Mindy,” he said. “I’m sorry you had to do it alone.” 

“Me too.” 

Scott leaned across the couch and took Mindy into his arms. For a few minutes, they stayed there in a silent and tearful embrace. Against his better judgment, Scott began to wonder about the baby he could have raised with her. He probably would have started at the shop years before he did. He and Mindy could have found a cheap place to rent and things would have been fine. Not wonderful, but fine. His mother could have been a grandma. That final possibility sent a tear down his face he hadn’t realized was waiting to fall. 

Their moment of quiet was brought to an end as Mindy shifted to sit upright again. She took Scott’s hand to keep their connection from ending. 

“Scott,” she said. “That’s not the only decision I’ve been regretting.” 

He cleared his throat and asked, “What else do you regret, Mindy?” 

“I don’t think I should have married Cameron,” she said. 

Once again, Scott made his face as passive as he could. He knew she shouldn’t be with Cameron, but he couldn’t just tell her that. 

“Why do you say that?” he asked. 

She looked up at him again and the vacancy that was present in her eyes disappeared. The Mindy he knew from thirty years ago had returned to him. 

“I don’t think he’s the one I’m supposed to be with.” 

“How do you know that?” 

“We haven’t been a couple in years,” she explained. “Any connection we once had has left completely. There’s nothing really left between the two of us.” 

“Not even your kids?” Scott asked. 

Mindy nodded, “They’re going to be out of the house in a few years, they barely need me as is.” 

“I’m sure that’s not true.” 

“No, it is,” she said. “I could leave today and they’d probably not realize it for a week.” 

Scott sighed. He couldn’t remember the last time he helped anyone through a personal problem. He preferred to keep situations as linear as possible. Mindy’s confessions had impeded his workspace and his brain in a way he could not have prepared for. He was at a loss. 

Mindy squeezed his hand and brought him back into her world, “I want to leave, Scott,” she said. “I want to go and I want you to come with me.” 

“Mindy, I-” he said before she quickly interrupted. 

“Scott,” she began, “I need you to tell me you’ll come.” 

Scott shifted in his seat. The couch creaked and reminded him of his current position- sitting next to the woman he always thought of, on a couch he paid thirty dollars and a bag of Doritos for. 

“This is a lot to think about, Mindy,” he said. 

“I know it probably seems like a lot, but I’ve got it figured out.” 

“What’s your plan then?” 

“You actually found it in the van,” she said, “I thought you would have opened the bag and the envelope. I left a note in there for you to read.” 

He couldn’t keep his eyebrows from raising, “Your big idea was to write your plan on a note?” 

She laughed softly and responded, “Honestly, yes. I remembered you used to be a lot more curious.” 

“Can you fill me in on this plan, please?” 

“I’ve been putting money back,” she said. “There’s two-grand in that envelope. We can pay for everything in cash and no one will be able to follow us.” 

“Doesn’t Cameron know you’re here?” Scott asked, “Won’t he be suspicious if you never come back from the detailers?” 

She shook her head, “I told him I was going away for a yoga retreat.” 

“He believed that?” 

“He barely heard me when I said it,” she said, “He was packing for a golf outing as we spoke.” 

Everything Mindy had been saying seemed to line up. However, Scott couldn’t shake the few things that wouldn’t leave his mind. 

“Mindy,” he said. “Why do you want me to go with you?” 

She smiled at him before responding, “You were the one person I always felt connected to,” she said. “I don’t want to make another mistake and say goodbye for another thirty years.” 

“I understand that, Mindy,” he said. “But why now?” 

She shrugged her shoulders, “I guess I’m just tired of living a life that’s not mine.” 

Scott never related to a statement more. His whole life he felt he was destined for something beyond this detailing shop, something just beyond his grasp of capability. He wanted nothing more than to leave it behind. 

He took her left hand in his. The freckles dotted across her chest were apparent on her hands as well. The tan she acquired artificially had found its way into the creases of her skin, deepening every wrinkle. The round-cut stone on her finger reflected the shabby light hanging above them. He knew then the decision he had to make. 

“Mindy, we can’t do this right now.” 

Mindy smiled sweetly at him again, “Of course we can. Just say yes.” 

“No, Mindy, we can’t,” he said. “Your kids need their mother.” 

“I can promise you they don’t.” 

“I can promise you that they absolutely do,” he said. “Losing my mom years ago made me incredibly depressed and awful to be around. You can’t do that to them.” 

Mindy stood from the couch and began to pace. 

“What about me, Scott,” she asked, “What about what I want?” 

He stood to stop her pacing. He reached to grab her hand again but she batted him away. “Please, Scott, say we can do this.” 

He had never been so conflicted. Choosing Mindy wasn’t choosing what was right. Scott didn’t think of himself as a particularly moral man. But then again, he wasn’t not a moral man. He just wasn’t able to be the reason her kids lost their mother. Making that choice would take years to overshadow the regret he knew he would later possess. 

“We can try this in a few years, Mindy,” he said. “Right now just isn’t good for anyone. I’m sorry.” 

As she began to cry again, he pulled her into his embrace once again. Under the fluorescent light of his waiting room, they stood there. Lovers destined for a life beyond their current station but anchored by the decisions they had made and the circumstances they were given. Scott wasn’t sure if he’d be able to hold her like this again, his own words not sounding so truthful out loud. He held her tight against him. He wanted to lean down and kiss her but knew that her lips would no longer taste like Watermelon Lip Lickers. With nothing left to say, the two unlinked themselves. Mindy returned to her book on the couch and Scott cleaned the rest of the van’s interior. 

Once he finished the van and she had paid, Scott watched with cloudy eyes as that rolling dumpster drove out of his shop. He wanted to chase it, to tell her he was wrong and that they could leave right then and there. Instead, Scott picked up his cleaning supplies and began preparing the shop for another day of work.