The 1951 Dodge Business Coupe

It wasn't a hard decision to make. Mom and Dad weren't poor, but they couldn't afford to send me to college. I wasn't sure college was for me anyway. I didn't mind school, but I didn't love it like some of the guys did who took all the math and sciences classes the school offered.

Two weeks before I graduated, I went down to the Army Recuiting Office and signed up to be what the recruiter said was called a "Sixty-Three Bravo", Light-Wheel Vehicle Mechanic. A month after I graduated, I'd passed the physical and was standing in a room with about a hundred other guys swearing to defend the US against all enemies, foreign and domestic.

I was in mechanic's school when the US started sending troops to Vietnam, and most of us figured that was where we were headed too. About three-fourths of did end up there, including me. I was assigned to the motor pool of the 25th Infantry Division at Chu Lai.

After my year was up, I came back to the US and was stationed at Fort Campbell, Kentucky for the next two years.

I'd liked working on Jeeps and trucks in both locations, and had decided that would be a good career for me. As soon as I got out, I applied at every car dealership in town and got hired at the Ford dealership.

Dad had been starting my old Dodge every week or so while I was away, so it still ran, but it was getting more than just old. The seat covers were worn through in some places and the bumpers were more rust than chrome. I drove it back and forth to work for two months and then bought a 1969 Ford pickup a farmer had traded in. I made a pretty sizeable down payment so the monthly payments wouldn't take all my income. The truck had only sixty thousand miles on it so I figured I wouldn't have to work on it for quite a while.

Well, it lasted two months before the water pump started leaking. I asked the parts department what a new water pump would cost and even with my discount, it was almost as much as I'd paid for my old Dodge. That Saturday, I drove my old Dodge out to see Amos.

Nothing much had changed about the place except it looked like there were a lot more cars and a lot more farm machinery. The real change was when I knocked on the door of the house.

When I'd left for the Army, Judy was a skinny, flat-chested thirteen year old girl who was kind of gawky when she walked. Now she was eighteen and had blossomed out into a very shapely and very attractive woman. She was still wearing a blouse and jeans with work boots like before, but her blouse was filled out with a pretty sizeable pair of breasts and her low-rise jeans just accented the hips of a sensuous woman.

She smiled when she opened the door.

"Ricky...Ricky West? I thought you must have left town."

I smiled back.

"Well, I did. I joined the Army. Just got back and now I'm a mechanic at the Ford dealership."

Judy chuckled then.

"I didn't think the Ford dealership ever used anything but new parts. Is that why you're here, for parts?"

I nodded.

"Yeah, I need a water pump for a 1969 Ford pickup with a 302 V8 engine. It's for me, not for the shop."

Judy said she'd have to go ask Amos. When she came back Amos was with her. He stuck out his hand and grinned.

"Judy says you been in the Army. It's good for a man to serve his country. I got a '68 F100 in a couple months back. Driver turned left in front of another truck and bent up the frame, but the engine's still good. That water pump should fit your '69.

"Judy, it's up on the hill by that school bus. Take this young man up there and show him."

It was just like before. Judy got her oil can and hopped into the passenger seat and said, "We need to go up that lane".

That hill was almost a quarter of a mile from the house and the lane was just grass with a lot of places that were washed out, so it took a while to get there. Judy seemed to want to talk this time.

"So, what did you do in the Army?"

I said I was a mechanic and she smiled.

"You used to come out here a lot, so I figured you must like working on cars. I guess you did if that's what you did in the Army and what you do now."

"Well, the Army was different, but yes, I do like doing that."

"Where did they send you? I hope it wasn't Vietnam."

"Well, actually, I did get sent to Vietnam. I spent a year there and then finished out my enlistment at Fort Campbell. So, what have you been doing while I was gone?

Judy looked at her oil can.

"Oh, about the same as always. I went to school and I helped Daddy. I kind of missed you too. You were the only guy even close to my age who came out to our place for car or farm equipment parts."

I didn't know quite what to think about that. I didn't figure she'd paid any more attention to me than I had to her, but evidently she had, because she sounded like she'd been a little sad. I figured it was just a young girl's crush and she'd worked her way out of it once I left. I didn't really want to talk about that.

"So, now that you're out of school, what are you going to do.

"Well, for right now, I'm going to help Mama and Daddy. I'm not sure about after that. I always wanted to get married and have a big family because I know what it's like not having any brothers or sisters. It's lonely a lot of the time."

I said she'd probably not have any problems since she was a pretty nice looking woman. Judy just chuckled then.

"That's what Mama keeps telling me, but it isn't happening that way. I've never had a date, not even one. You're the only boy who's ever said more than two words to me. I know it's because of what people think about Daddy, but if they knew him, they'd know he's not like they think he is. I keep hoping though."

That didn't set right with me, that people would judge Judy by how her father seemed to be. Amos wasn't a bad person. He was just a little different. The Judy I'd known was a really nice girl, a little shy around me, but that was probably because I was older. She still seemed to be a nice girl and still a little shy. I don't know if I felt sorry for her or what, but the words just sort of came out on their own.

"Well, if you've never had a date before, maybe we could do some something sometime?"

I laughed then.

"It's only fair to warn you though. I haven't been on a date in over four years so I'm out of practice."

I thought Judy would laugh too, but she didn't. She put her hand on my arm.

"Are you being serious, or are you just teasing me?'

Well, I'd been half teasing her, but when she asked, I couldn't tell her that.

"No, I'm serious. I have to get this water pump on my truck today, but what would you say to next Saturday? We could go somewhere and have dinner. What would you think of that?"

Judy squeezed my arm.

"I'd say I'd be the happiest girl in the world."

I got the water pump off the wreck, took Judy back to the house and she went in to ask Amos how much I owed him. When she came back out she was smiling.

"Daddy said five dollars for the pump. He has to charge more now because prices for everything are going up."

She looked at me with a hopeful look on her face then.

"Are you sure about Saturday? I don't want to think I talked you into doing something you don't want to do."

I grinned.

"You didn't talk me into anything, Judy. I just like you and I thought we might have a good time together. I'll pick you up about six next Saturday if you still want to go."

She grinned then.

"I have to go tell Mama."

Well, it wasn't as easy getting my old water pump off, but by six that night, I had the new one on and the system filled with antifreeze again. Part of the reason it took so long was I kept wondering why I'd asked Judy for a date. I barely knew her, really, so I had no idea about what she liked to do or where she'd like to eat or much of anything else about her for that matter.

All I knew about her was she hadn't had any boys interested in her and she lived in the middle of that junk pile that was her father's business. She came from, as they used to say, "the wrong side of the tracks".

On the other hand, she did seem like a nice girl and she obviously loved her father or she wouldn't have been helping him like she always did. I didn't understand why Amos needed any help, but I couldn't imagine any of the girls in my graduating class putting on hiking boots, picking up an oil can of gasoline, and squirting bumblebees while I took parts off some car.

I spent the week wondering if I'd made a good decision and never really came to an answer. That Saturday afternoon, I cleaned out my truck and wiped down the seats, then got dressed and drove out to Amos' place.

Every time I'd seen Judy in school, she was always wearing a dress that pretty much hid any figure she might have had. Of course, since she was so much younger than I was I didn't really look all that close.

She usually wore her dark brown hair in a pony tail and she didn't use makeup like most of the other girls did. She was just a plain girl without much of a sense of how she looked.

When I went out to Amos' for parts, she was always dressed in baggy jeans and a blouse that didn't fit very well, but it didn't matter to me. She was too young and my primary interest was in getting parts for my Dodge.

When she answered the door, for a second I wondered if I had the right house.

Judy was wearing a dress, but it was one of those summer dresses with little tiny straps that went over her shoulders and was cut pretty low in the front. It was cut low enough and fitted well enough that the swell of her breasts wasn't quite visible, but I could tell she was pretty well endowed. The waist of that dress fitted tight enough I could see that she had a small waist that then flared out to hips that were nothing if not absolutely female. She didn't have on stockings, but she was wearing low heels.

It wasn't only the dress. Her hair fell over her shoulders in waves and framed a very beautiful face. She'd used some makeup and lipstick, and the effect was pretty fantastic.

I just stared for a while, and then said, "Judy, you're a different woman."

She blushed a little then.

"Mama made me this dress and she helped me with my hair and makeup. Daddy said I was beautiful, but that's what he always tells me so I didn't believe him. Do you like how I look, I mean, really, and you're not just saying that?"

I smiled.

"Judy, I'm gonna be really proud to have you with me tonight. Does that answer your question?"

I was proud when Judy took my arm and we walked into The White Mill. I think Judy was a little afraid. When we sat down in a booth, she leaned over and whispered, "Why is everybody looking at us?"

I smiled.

"Well, maybe it's because they think you're too pretty to be with a guy like me."

She blushed again.

"You don't think I look out of place? I've never been in a fancy restaurant like this."

"No, you don't look out of place and this isn't a fancy restaurant. They have good food, but that's about it."

The waitress walked up then and put a menu down in front of each of us and then asked us what we'd like to drink. Judy looked a little confused, so I said for the waitress to bring us both iced tea. She left and said she'd be back in a little while.

Judy looked at the menu for a while and then looked up at me.

"It all looks good, but it's so expensive. We should probably have gone to a hamburger place. I don't know what to order."

We went through a conversation about what she liked and for her not to worry about how much anything cost. When she said she liked chicken, I suggested the Dijon Chicken and mushrooms. She said she'd never had it before but she guessed it would be all right and then chose carrots and a loaded baked potato as sides. She didn't want a salad. I ordered a ribeye with a loaded baked potato and broccoli casserole.

Judy seemed really nervous while we waited on our meals, and I asked her why. She just gave me half a smile.

"Ricky, I've never been in a place like this before and I don't know how I should act."

I chuckled.

"Well, look around you. There's nobody here that's any different than we are, and they're just being themselves. That's what you should be doing, just being yourself."

She shook her head.

"I can't. I'm just a plain old country girl."

I reached across the table and put my hand on Judy's.

"Judy, I don't care about that. I didn't ask a plain old country girl to have dinner with me. I asked a woman who turned out to be the best looking woman in this place. You don't have to be nervous about anything."

Judy was still acting that way when the waitress sat the plate down in front of her. As soon as she saw it, her eyes opened wide and she looked up at me.

"They put a whole chicken on my plate. I can't eat all of this."

I had to chuckle.

"Well, it's not a whole chicken, it's just two chicken breasts, and you don't have to eat it all. When we get done, they'll bring us a container so you can take the rest home with you. I'm going to have half my steak for dinner tomorrow night. Don't worry about how much you can eat. Just see if you like how it tastes?

Judy cut into one of the chicken breasts on her plate, stabbed a small piece, and put it in her mouth. She chewed a couple times and then said, "Wow. I have to learn how to make this. Daddy would love it." After that, she concentrated on eating and not being nervous.

On the way back to her house, Judy sat there holding the cardboard container with the half of her meal she didn't eat and didn't say much except to keep thanking me for taking her out. I kept saying it was my pleasure, but inside I was thinking something else.

I'd thought Judy would probably be like the girls I'd dated in high school, but she wasn't. Those other girls had looked great, but once I got to know them better, they weren't the type of girl I thought I could really like. They always made a show of looking their best but didn't seem to care much about me other than that I was paying the bill for what they ate or the movie we went to.

Judy was so much different. I knew she'd tried to dress up and she'd done a fantastic job of making herself look good, but she didn't seem to realize that. That was the difference, well, that and the fact that she'd been worried about how much money I was spending on her. I was thinking Judy was a lot better person than those other girls. I was also thinking I liked being with her.

I walked her up to her door and she thanked me again.

"Ricky, I had a good time tonight. I was a little scared about what people would think, but I still had a good time. Thank you for everything."

I said I'd had fun too, and then asked if I could pick her up at the same time the next Saturday. Judy stood there with her mouth open for a few seconds before saying anything.

"You want to do this again? I thought you were just being nice to me."

"Well, I was being nice, but the reason is I like you. Can I pick you up at the same time?"

Judy grinned.

"I have to go tell Mama."

She started to open the door, then turned back and kissed me on the cheek, and then went inside and left me standing on her porch.

We went out every Saturday that month and Judy seemed to get more comfortable. She still worried about how much money I was spending, but she didn't seem as nervous when we ordered our food or when I took her to a movie.

Every night just before she went into her house, I got that kiss on the cheek. By the fourth date, I was wanting more than a kiss on the cheek. On the fifth, we'd just gotten a burger so Judy wasn't carrying anything, and when we were standing on her porch, I put my arms around her. Judy looked up at me with a bewildered look on her face.

"Ricky, what are you doing?"

"If you'll hold still and not talk, I'm going to kiss you."

She didn't pull away, so I held her gently and put my lips on hers. It wasn't much of a kiss and it didn't last very long, but when I eased back, Judy was standing there with her mouth still open a little and her eyes were closed.

It took her a while to open her eyes, but when she did, she smiled.

"I have to go tell Mama."

Just like all the times before, she went inside then and left me standing on her porch alone.

I was still living with Mom and Dad, mostly because I just hadn't looked for a place of my own yet because they'd changed. They never asked where I was going or what I was going to do like they had before I went into the Army. When I got home that night, Dad was waiting for me in the living room.

He asked if I'd like a beer and when I said yes, he went to the kitchen and brought back one for me and one for him. He popped the tab on his and tossed it into the ashtray on the table, took a drink, and then asked if I was serious about Judy.

"Ricky, I heard down at the Legion Hall that you've been dating Judy Meadows. Are you getting serious with her?"

I took a drink of my beer to have time to think.

"Yeah, I'm thinking about it anyway. She's a nice girl. Why?"

Dad sat his beer on the coffee table.

"If you're thinking about it, that means you are. There are some things you need to know before you jump headfirst into marrying the girl.

I was getting ready for a speech about how Judy wasn't good enough for me and I was going to head that off before Dad got started.

"Dad, I don't care about her family. I care about Judy."

He smiled.

"I wasn't going to say anything about Judy's family. All I was going to say that you should talk to Amos before you promise Judy anything. Of all the things Amos has done in his life, Judy is the thing he's proudest of. If you don't get his agreement, living with Judy won't be much fun."

I'd been toying with the idea of asking Judy to marry me when I was in better shape. I just didn't know how I could take things any further since I still lived at home, and while I was making pretty good money, I wasn't sure if it was enough to support two.

That's what I told Dad that night. He just smiled.

"Ricky, if you wait until you're comfortable, you'll be waiting a long, long time. If you like Judy that much now, it won't matter. Your mother and I got married right after I came home from the war. I didn't have a job and we didn't have a place to live, but we both knew it was what we wanted. It was tough for that first year, but it all worked out. It'll work out for you too. If you both feel strongly enough about each other to get married, you'll make it work out."

Judy and I dated for another two months before I decided I couldn't live without her. By then, our Saturday night dates always ended with a kiss, though now, Judy would put her arms around my neck and pull her body into mine as soon as I took her in my arms. The feeling of her lips on mine sent shocks down my spine. The feeling of her firm breasts against my chest was more than a little embarrassing. If she noticed how that made my cock stand up, Judy never said anything, but I knew she had to feel it.

The Saturday night after I'd made my decision, I asked Judy if I could come back on Sunday and talk with her father a while. She said Amos didn't usually sell parts on Sunday, but she supposed it would be all right. When I said I didn't want to talk to him about parts, Judy asked what I wanted to talk to Amos about. I just said we'd gotten a truck at the shop that cost more to fix than it was worth and wanted to know if he was interested in picking it up.

Judy smiled then.

"Well, you can't drive all the way out here just for that. We have dinner on Sunday night at six. Why don't you come for dinner and you and Daddy can talk after that?"

At ten till six, I drove up the gravel drive to the house, parked my truck, and then knocked on the door. I wasn't nervous enough I was shaking, but my knees felt a little weak. I'd been through all kinds of scenarios about what would happen. In most of them, Amos had frowned and said he didn't like it but he wouldn't stand in our way. In one of those scenarios, he told me to get out and never come back.