Tim is making his way toward home from a late night date. Unfortunately, he becomes hopelessly lost and a long way from cell service it seems. He is driving at a slow pace. Praying for his phone to connect to a tower somewhere so he can find his way home. For the twentieth time in as many minutes, he glances at his device. When he looks back up he sees a tree that has fallen across the road. Too late to stop completely he crashes his car into the trunk. Fortunately, he isn't hurt too badly but does have a sizable knot on his forehead. Cursing under his breath he gets out of the car to survey the damage. As soon as he reaches the front of the car a man pulls up in an old rusty Ford smoking a cigarette. Tim quickly scans his aura to see what is intents are. He sees a mostly good aura but something else grabs his attention. For a split second his aura is nearly black. "Well, I did have a bit of a wreck." Tim looks back at the car once more and prays it doesn't burst into flames.
"Hop in the truck young man, there isn't anyone up this time of night to cut the tree or fetch your car. You can stay at my place on the couch if you like. Oh, and by the way my name is Jim."
"My name is Tim," the young man replies." Thank you for the offer but can you just take me to a payphone?" Tim is still a little on edge after the black aura incident. "I don't want to impose."
"Well my house is closer than walking to a phone, closest one is about eight miles away. On the other side of the tree. But suit yourself?" Jim is already walking back to his truck when a steady rain begins to fall. Tim sighs and looks to the heavens muttering something about how unfair life is.
The darkness has an oppressive air as the men are traveling down the road toward the older man's trailer. "So Tim is it? Are you feeling ok after that off-road trip? I know you took a pretty hard hit on the head." Tim winces and gives a feeble smile.
"Yes thank you I am alright. That fallen tree picked a great place to be at this time of night. I'm just thankful you came out this way when you did." Tim stares out the windshield at the dilapidated shacks that line the side of the road as they get deeper and deeper into the woods. On the right side is a sheer drop off.
"You are lucky I came along when I did. These back roads can be dangerous in the daylight much less in the middle of the night." Jim lights another cigarette as they ride along the bumpy road in silence for a few miles. "Come morning we will call the forest service and get someone out to remove the tree." Tim nods but says nothing. He is trying to figure out the older man's aura. He catches glimpses of something not quite right. He is lost in thought for a few minutes. He is jarred from his reverie by Jim pulling to the shoulder of the road to let another truck pass. In the interior lights, dim glow Tim can make out what appears to be a young man sobbing. He tries to read him but there is nothing there. No emotion no aura just like he was watching a movie.
In the years since Tim discovered his gift, he hasn't felt something like that. The older man shakes his head sadly and stops on the side of the road. He sighs and says "watch this. It's horrible." The crying man in the old truck slides sideways into a ditch and thinks about the pain he is suffering. He then spins the wheels and gets the truck back onto the road. He backs up on an embankment and pulls the truck back into drive. Then he does the unthinkable and floors the gas pedal. The truck accelerates and jumps off the side of the mountain. In what seems like a full five seconds his truck is airborne falling from view. A loud explosion and fireball are all that are left. "Goodbye again Nate." the older man says bowing his head in a moment of prayer. He looks at the young hitchhiker and says flatly "Pretty weird huh? He does that 3 times a night every night. I rode with him several times trying to calm him down. But the end is always the same. For whatever reason, I always end up at the top of the embankment as he hits the bottom of the ravine."
