He cleaned the solenoid.
The clicking disappeared.
Douglas stared at him.
"How long have you been doing this?"
"Three months."
Douglas looked at Henry.
"You taught him?"
"I showed him the basics."
Henry smiled.
"The rest is him."
Douglas handed Eli a business card.
"My name is Richard Douglas. I own Douglas Automotive Group."
Then he made an offer.
A salary of $45,000 a year.
Full benefits.
Housing assistance.
Six months of advanced training in Atlanta.
Access to some of the best technicians in the country.
It was the opportunity Eli had never imagined.
But it came with a terrible price.
He would have to leave Henry.
Goodbye
Henry told Eli to accept the offer.
"You should go."
"But you're my family."
"That's exactly why you should go."
Eli eventually accepted.
On Monday morning, a car arrived.
Eli stood in the doorway.
"Thank you."
Henry kept working.
"Do good, kid."
"I will."
The car disappeared down the street.
Henry watched until it was gone.
Then he returned to the garage.
The Impala sat in the corner.
Perfect.
Silent.
Alone.
Just like him.
Five years passed.
Eli never called.
Never wrote.
Henry convinced himself it was for the best.
The garage survived, barely.
His hair turned gray.
His hands became slower.
His sister Louise urged him to retire.
But Henry couldn't leave.
The garage was all he had left.
One night, he uncovered the Impala.
He sat behind the wheel.
Turned the key.
The engine came alive immediately.
Henry listened.
Then, after five years, he finally cried.
He cried for Jake.
For his wife.
For Eli.
For every broken thing he had failed to save.
At two in the morning, Henry was still sitting in the garage.
Then he heard footsteps.
He looked toward the door.
A man stepped into the light.
Henry froze.
It was Eli.
Five Years Later
"Hi, Henry."
Henry's heart broke before his anger could protect it.
"Get out."
Eli flinched.
"I deserve that."
"You left."
"I know."
"You never called."
"I know."
"You got everything you wanted and forgot about me."
Eli's eyes filled with tears.
"I didn't forget."
Henry's voice cracked.
"Then why?"
Louise appeared at the doorway.
She had heard everything.
"Let him explain," Henry said.
Eli took a breath.
"The night before I left, I heard you and Louise talking."
Henry's expression changed.
Eli told them what he had heard.
Henry had been sacrificing his business, his money, and his future to help him.
Louise had been afraid Henry would destroy himself.