The Stranger (Closed for heartofcourage)

DeathsKnight

Harmless Teddybear
Joined
May 22, 2008
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Dave Jennings stood at the cashier, he had just purchased a pack of chips and a six pack of Diet Soda. He was no health nut, he just enjoyed the taste of the diet cooldrinks for some reason. The fact that he spent most of his free time working out did not stop him from hitting the burger joints when he got to town. Picking up his purchase he almost bumped into the woman who walked in,

"Excuse me."

He mumbled and moved past her, he walked out to his Jeep, slipping on his sunglasses, placing his road chow on the passenger seat, he started the engine and drove off to the supermarket just at the edge of town. He had to stock up on some canned food and meats, the only thing they did not carry was the brand of chips on the seat next to him.

After buying his groceries and loading it into the Jeep, he drove out of town, not too far from his turn off he spotted a car next to the road. As he drew close he noticed that it had a flat. He pulled over, stopping behind the car, inside sat a person talking frantically on a cellphone. He got out and walked over, as he came up to the driver's window he tapped lightly on the window, indicating for the woman inside to roll the window down just enough so he could talk. At first she seemed reluctant and then rolled the window down. He gave her a disarming smile,

"Good day ma'am, I see you have a flat. If I am not mistaken the spare with jack and wheelspanner will be in the boot. If you pop that for me I can get the tyre changed for you in a jiffy."
 
The music from the radio filled the interior of her SUV as she traveled down country roads that seemed like they hadn’t been used in forever. She had passed through small towns, smiling to think about the lives of the people there. Did they get bored? Did they get lonely? It was a question that she always asked herself, because living in the largest city in the country, she most certainly did feel all those things herself.

Jennifer had been booked across the country for a movie. It wasn’t a starring role, but she really couldn’t complain. Work was work and it had been very scarce lately. Instead of flying, she had told her agent that she would be driving. It was all an adventure, one that she couldn’t wait to tackle.

Passing by a lone grocery store and a gas station in the next town, she glanced down at the gas and saw that she still had a half a tank. It was enough to get her to the next larger community. She started humming to herself as she continued on her way. A short distance from the town, the ominous thumping sound began, following by rough steering.

“What in the world?” She murmured, pushing her sunglasses up on her blonde hair and pulling over to the side of the road. Stepping from the vehicle, she noticed the flat rear tire and she let out a groan. “Fuck.”

Back in the car, she pulled out her cellphone and dialed AAA. The man that answered the phone assured her they could get someone out there, but the wait was upwards of six hours.

“Six hours? I could walk back into town before you got here!” She exclaimed, the man apologizing. “Well, what am I suppose to do out here in the middle of nowhere for six hours?”

She didn’t notice the Jeep that had pulled up behind her nor the man that was suddenly tapping on her window. She jumped and turned towards him, her eyes wide and weary as he indicated that he wanted her to roll down the window. Hanging up the phone, she considered it for a moment and thought about all the bad things she’d heard about women traveling on their own and strange men. Still, he seemed nice enough with that handsome face and the charming smile.

Rolling the window down part way, she shrugged her shoulders and gave him a slight smile. “You sure your don’t mind?” She asked as she reached under the front consol and popped the boot for him. “I hate to be a bother.”
 
He grinned,

"No bother ma'am, out here you have to help somebody when they seem to need it."

He moved to the back, removing the baggage, he got out the jack, settled it under the SUV, making sure the ground was level enough, he loosened the nuts, lifted the jack, removed the nuts and wheel, replaced it with the spare after bouncing it once or twice to make sure it was still inflated. He tightened the nuts, lowered the jack, locked the nuts and replaced the flat, jack and wheelspanner in the back, loading the baggage back into the back, he closed the back door and moved to her window.

"There you go ma'am, should hold you to the next town, there is a tyre shop so I'm sure they can fix that flat for you, seems like you had picked up a piece of iron."

He nodded at her,

"You drive safe now."

He patted the roof of the SUV and headed back to his Jeep, starting it up.
 
Jennifer watched in the rearview mirror as he worked methodically and quickly on the tire. He unloaded her bags, took the time to make sure that everything was in working order once he was finished, and then packed everything back neatly.

“Yeah, I’ve been on these back roads all week.” She said as he mentioned that she had picked up a piece of iron. “I’m honestly surprised it didn’t happen sooner.”

She watched as he moved back to his car and she thought about what had just happened for a long moment. Grabbing her purse off the passenger seat, she exited the car and hurried over to his Jeep before he could take off. She wasn’t exactly dressed to the nines that day. She had pulled on her favorite pair of old jeans, a black t-shirt with her favorite band’s logo on the front, and a pair of old tennis shoes.

“At least let me give you some money.” She said as she approached him. “Just a way of saying thanks for helping me.”
 
"Oh heavens no ma'am, I can't take your money. It's a pleasure. For me a simple thank you is enough."

He had to admit that he really enjoyed watching her walk over to his Jeep, she had a sway to her hips, but it wasn't exaggerated, it seemed very natural. She had a lovely face and even though the clothing wasn't of the most flattering, he could see that she had quite a body hidden there. He smiled,

"Anyway ma'am, where I'm going, I can't use any cash."
 
She was brought up short when he refused her money and she frowned slightly, cocking her head to one side. She was a curious person and it sometimes got her in trouble, but she couldn’t stop herself from asking the handsome stranger one question.

“Where are you going that you can’t use cash?” She asked, her hand pulling from her purse as she held it tightly to her chest.
 
"To a wildlife reserve. I'm a game ranger so to speak."

He flashed her a grin,

"The animals doesn't take cash or Visa, they do like fresh water and grass though."

He chuckled at his joke, then stuck out his hand,

"Dave Jennings, Ontonugua Game Reserve."
 
“A game ranger?” She asked, laughing softly. She’d never met a game ranger before and that was saying something in the line of work that she was in.

As he extended his hand to her, she took it and gave him a firm shake, a smile spreading across her face at the friendly nature of the stranger that had saved her. “Nice to meet you, Dave. I’m Jennifer.”

Should she mention her last name? He might recognize her if she did and she like the anonymity that she had out here in the middle of the country.

“Jennifer Collins.” She said softly, hoping that he didn’t make a big fuss about everything.
 
"Well nice to meet you Jennifer."

He had heard the name somewhere, but it didn't mean much to him, must've heard it in the passing somewhere. He placed the Jeep into gear,

"You are alright? Don't need any further help ma'am?"
 
“Yeah, I guess I’m fine now.” She said, glancing back towards her vehicle. “Although, I think I’ve had enough excitement for one day. Is there any place around here that you’d recommend someone to stay the night?”
 
He chuckled,

"A mile up the road there will be some white gates on the right, the road leads to a very nice Bed and Breakfast called Daisy's Flats. She's very kind and very cheap. If you tell her that I sent you, she might even toss in a little souvenir for you."
 
“Well, then it seems that I’ll have to pay her a visit.” Jennifer said, a bright smile on her face as she offered Dave her hand and shook it firmly. “Maybe we’ll see each other again.”

Another flash of her pearly whites and she turned to head back to her SUV, waving at him as she slid inside and started the engine, intent on visiting this bed and breakfast that had gotten such a glowing review.
 
He smiled and shook her hand, watching as she got in and drove away, he swung the Jeep into the road, the huge vehicle purring in satisfaction, seemingly glad to be on the road again. He kept behind the car, making sure all was well, when she turned off into the road he had indicated, he sped forward. The way to the reserve was quite a way to goo, he opened a bag of chips and pulled a cooldrink from the portable fridge plugged into the lighter socket. Taking a swig from the bottle he sat back into his seat as he drove off.
 
Jennifer noticed that he followed her as she pulled away from the side of the road. The gate entrance was right where he said it would be and she pulled in, watching as he hurried past on his way back to the game reserve. She smiled to herself as she continued along the way, coming upon a beautiful home and a little woman standing on the porch to see who was coming up.

Parking the SUV in a spot, she slid out of the seat and waved to the woman. “Hello! Are you Daisy? I was told to come this way and ask about a room.” She said, making her way towards the front porch.
 
He drove all the way, munching on his little sinful pleasure and sipping his cooldrink, he arrived late the evening. He grabbed some shut-eye and the next morning he was heading out to check on the southern border, they have had some problems with poachers in the past and he was authorized to shoot if any of them shot at him. Luckily for him they were poor shots, bad for the animals they poached.

He was all alone, his fellow rangers was busy conducting guided tours as was their trackers and drivers, that left him to do what he loved the most to do. Spend time with the animals and checked that they were save. He was seated in his Jeep, reclining in his seat, feet propped up on the open window and checking a herd of gazelle grazing on the grass plane below him. It was his second day on patrol, he had camped out the previous evening and had used one of the small streams to bathe in. This was the good life. He lifted his binoculars and scanned the rest of the border, checking for any suspicious movement before he had to move on.
 
It had been a whirlwind trip so far for Jennifer. Barring the flat and the lovely stay at the recommended bed and breakfast, she had gotten to the city without any other problems. The production crew was happy to see her, but there had been a snag. Some of the locations they were hoping for had fallen through and she was warned that they would have to move to another location.

“Well, just where are we going?” She asked the director and the producers during a meeting, her leading man wanting to know the same thing.

“We found a lovely little place just north of here. The Ontonugua Game Reserve. We’ve secured a filming permit and they seemed very excited to have us.” The producer said with a large smile.

Jennifer was stunned. Wasn’t that the place where the man who helped her with her tire had worked? Surely that was mere coincidence. The place was large and she probably wouldn’t even run into him the entire time that she was there. Still, it was a nice little thought, she told herself as she found herself back on the road, heading towards the game reserve.
 
He was driving slowly along the road, not wanting to startle any of the wild,

"Romeo Three Romeo Three report over."

He frowned, it rarely happened that he was called on patrol as nobody else wanted to do it, it was tedious and dangerous work, not just because of the poachers, but also due to the predators and big wild roaming the reserve. He picked up the mic and keyed it,

"Romeo Three reporting over."

"Romeo Three bzzzzzlghblll..."

He frowned, driving onto a small rise,

"Do you read over?"

"Hotel Quebec repeat over."

"Romeo Three, report back to office pronto over."

His frown deepened, what the hell? He keyed the mic,

"Roger that I am four hours out over."

"Read that Romeo Three over and out."

He shook his head and shifted the Jeep into gear, something big was up if they recalled him in such a hurry. Finding the more mayor route back to base camp he drove back. He had a full four hour drive ahead of him, he knew that he would arrive just after lunch. Did a tour group suddenly show up and he was the only one kind of free to show them around? Reserve manager Oswald knew he hated doing tours, it was tedious and the people thought that a camera gave them the right to ignore him.
 
Jennifer had to admit that the game reserve was a beautiful place. Passing through the gates in her SUV, she took in the sights and sounds that she usually missed living in the city. She wondered if she would run into the man that had helped her out the other day, but on a place this big, it seemed unlikely.

She was shown to a spot, parking the vehicle and stepping out into the hot sun. She was dressed a little more presentable that day with a button down shirt, jeans, and a pair of sturdy boots. She ignored the producers as they talked to a man that seemed to be in charge. Her mind was elsewhere as she looked out of the beautiful place.

“Lunch is being served, Jen. You want to come with us?” An assistant called and she looked over her shoulder, shaking her head no.

“Nah, I think I’ll take a look around for a while. I’ll catch up with everyone tonight.” She said, waving at them as they turned into the building.
 
Dave Jennings

He came to the gate leading to the main camp, pulling into a parking spot he saw a big van, more new vehicles and a SUV which seemed very familiar, but he wasn't sure why. Shrugging it off he got out, pulling his shirt a bit straighter. Drawing the rifle from it's scabbard, he got out the extra ammunition and headed towards the armory to book the rifle and ammunition back in, procedures of course. After booking it in, he headed to the office, since he was a bit early, he knew that he had time to get something to eat and drink since it was still lunch time. Just outside the building he saw a person, he stopped and moved over to the person, as he drew closer he saw that it was a woman. He stopped a few feet from her,

"Good day ma'am, have you been helped already?"
 
Hearing a man speak behind her, Jennifer turned around and raised her eyebrows when she saw who was talking to her. She smiled at him as he asked if she’d been helped already and she cocked her head to the side, trying to figure out if he recognized her or not.

“Well, you already changed my flat tire once, so there’s not much that I can ask you for.” She said with a cheeky smile on her face.
 
Dave Jennings

He frowned at her words and then it dawned on him, snapping his fingers as he smiled,

"Right! The SUV in the parking lot! Uhm... Jennifer Collins if memory serves?"

He grinned,

"Well are you stalking me now ma'am? Or did I intrigue you to come and see if my work is as glamorous as they make it out to be?"

His watched beeped and he glanced at it,

"Darn, OK I have to head over to the cafeteria to grab a bite before going to the office."
 
“Yes, Jennifer Collins.” She said, smiling as he grinned at her and began asking if she were stalking him.

“Unfortunately, no. I’m here for work.” She said as his watch started to beep and he told her that he had to go. “Well, would you mind if I tagged along? I could stand for something good to eat.” She offered, patting her flat belly as it rumbled beneath her fingers.
 
Dave Jennings

"Oh sure, come along."

He stood aside for her to pass as he motioned with his arm towards the building, he fell into step next to her,

"You're here for work? What kind of work do you do? I'm quite certain you're not part of a wild life organization and definitely not from another park."

They reached the door and he pulled it open for her, following into the canteen.
 
Jennifer looked at Dave as if he were an alien from another planet. Did he really not know who she was? She slowly began to smile, stepping into the canteen ahead of him and waited before he joined her yet again.

“You really don’t know what I do?” She asked him in an astonished voice as she followed him towards where the food was being served. “I’m an actress. My studio has struck a deal with the reserve to shoot here for a couple of weeks.”
 
Dave Jennings

He stopped and stared at her,

"Actress?"

He blinked,

"Wow OK, I'm sorry that I did not recognize you...wait...what kind of movies do you play in? And what type of movie would you be shooting in a game reserve?"
 
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