It was a flawless May afternoon. I wound down my window in the car to let in a cooling breeze. The sun was beaming down a blistering heat from a cloudless sky. The trees and hedgerows flew past in a blur as I drove the old familiar road out towards my parents' house. Having reached retirement age, they were enjoying their twilight years with frequent trips abroad. This often led to requests for me to call out and check over their house in their absence, to lift mail and water plants as needed. I had planned for a quick visit to the countryside. But fate had other plans in store.
The main road back to my parents was closed for roadworks which meant having to drive the narrower country lanes. I turned off the main road early, remembering a few shortcuts I could take to get around the closure. As I zig-zagged from one lane to another, I suddenly came upon a delightful view. She was quite tall, about 5 8" or 5 9", with a slender build. She was wearing figure hugging running gear which perfectly accentuated her long, lean legs and a sculpted ass. Her midriff was exposed with her chest wrapped in a tight running bra. Her dirty blonde hair was tied up in a ponytail. On her feet was a pair of pink and black running trainers with neat ankle socks. She was running at a brisk pace, but I slowed my car as I drew closer. She was wearing ear pods and clearly off in her own world.
She suddenly faltered and I watched as she tripped and fell sideways into the hedgerow. I promptly stopped the car and climbed out. I heard her lamentations and colourful language as I approached.
"For fuck sake! Ah!"
"Need some help?" I asked as the girl turned her head towards me.
I recognised her immediately. Ella had gone to a different high school but lived near to my parents and floated in a similar friend group. We had met several times at house parties and one of the other guys in my year had invited her as his date to our formal. I always found her attractive and her looks had not faded. Her face flickered with recognition.
"Oh wow! Small world! Yeah, if you don't mind."
I reached out a hand and helped her clamber to her feet and out of the hedge. She was limping on her right foot and wrapped an arm over my shoulders.
"Can you walk on it?"
"Ah! Barely. Must have twisted it."
"What happened? I was just driving along when I saw you and next thing you were in the hedge."
"Must have stepped into a pothole in the road. They are everywhere on these country roads."
"True enough. What brings you out here? I thought you went overseas for college?"
"I was but am back visiting my folks for a few weeks. They let me stay in the spare bedroom above their garage."
I opened the passenger door and allowed her to slide onto it. I knelt and softly gripped the trainer of her right foot.
"Can you rotate it?"
"Ah! No, not easily. Must have twisted it."
"You'll likely need to elevate it and get some cool pressure on it."
"That sounds ideal. Just need to get home."
"Is your folks place far from here?"
"Just over that hill." Ella gestured towards a wooded hill a short distance away.
"I can drive you over then. Save you doing any more damage limping these roads."
"You sure? Don't you have somewhere else to be?"
"Nothing important. Just headed out to my folks to check on their house. They are away on holiday for a few weeks. I can drive you over on my way there."
"Thanks. I appreciate it."
I closed the passenger door and returned to the driving seat, setting off down the country lane. Ella's family lived in a very remote converted farmhouse in the middle of the countryside. As I drove, we chatted about what we had done since high school. She had got a Master's in Computing and was working for a tech company but did some freelance work on the side in graphic design. Like me, her parents had gone away on a cruise and asked if she could mind the house. They kept some chickens and other farm animals so needed someone to keep an eye on them. We rolled up the rough laneway to the house. The main farmhouse was to the right with their two-car garage on the left. The whole property was surrounded by huge trees with an overgrown lawn and small orchard tucked at the back side of the garage.
"Thanks for the lift. Just need to manoeuvre myself into my room now."
"I can help you in. Do you have cool stuff for the compress? You will need to rest for a bit."
"Should have something in the freezer. The spare room has a small kitchen."
I climbed out of the car and helped Ella to her feet. She gingerly limped with her arm over my shoulders as we approached the side door of the garage. She removed a key from her pocket and opened the door, revealing a small staircase which took us to the upper floor. As she threw the door open, I could smell a hint of weed in the air. The room was more spacious than I expected. Just inside the door on the right-hand side was a small living area with a sofa, an armchair and a TV. Beyond, in the far-left corner was a small kitchen with a sink, microwave, oven and a mini fridge freezer. In the right-hand corner was a double bed with a small alcove tucked into the left opposite it which was presumably a small bathroom. The ceiling was vaulted with bright sunlight pouring in the skylight windows
"Just on the sofa should be fine." Ella said.
I carefully lowered her onto the sofa and she extended along its length with her trainer clad shoes pointed towards me.
"Where is the cold stuff?"
"There should be a bag of frozen peas in the freezer. Oh, and there's a metal box on my bedside table, can you bring it over?"
"Sure thing. First aid kit?"
"Sort of." Ella said with a smirk.
I opened the freezer drawers and quickly found the frozen peas. The metal tin was about the size of a pencil case and was sitting on the bedside table. I returned the tin to Ella and sat at the far end of the sofa close to her trainer clad feet. I elevated her right ankle and carefully placed the frozen peas on it.
"Oh, chilly!" Ella giggled. "Thanks for this. You really didn't have to do this."
