Thanks to WAA01, Killerarmyguy, and OM for the edits.
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"Cory, Cory, Cory?!" A sweet, haunting voice whispered in his ear. "We're home, Cory." Dayana's face came into view as Cory opened his good eye as he came too. Stretching out, his grogginess clearing as he looked around to get his bearings. That was when his gaze fell on the old '53 Ford pickup with a custom paint job, with a long car trailer attached to its tow hitch. Sitting upon that trailer was his '69 Mustang Mach 1 429 Cobra Jet. The baby blue paint job that once adorned it could be seen in a few spots on its old body, along with a few dents. However, that was to be expected given how old the car was and the number of owners it once had before landing in Cory's lap. Jairo, their father, wasted no time in parking their Explore along the curb in front of their house, so they could pull the Mustang into the garage once they had moved Celeste's car out of the way.
"How are you feeling, buddy?" Jairo asked when he helped his son out of the seat.
"Sleepy, but... not bad, given everything," Cory stated, suppressing his yawn.
"You boys go look at the pretty car; we ladies will handle the big stuff," Celeste stated in a teasing tone as she walked around the front of the SUV. Knowing Jairo didn't have a lot of time before he had to leave for the airport to catch his flight. Her 32D breasts moved gracefully beneath her shirt, her sandy blonde hair bounced against her shoulders, her skin showed off the light tan she was able to start during their stay at the beach. Her emerald green eyes lustered as she gazed upon the two men in her life. "Go on, shoo, you menfolk always gets in the way," she said, waving them off. Smiling at her husband's chuckle and her concern was evident in her eyes as she eyed her son. It had been roughly two days since Cory was released from the hospital. While she was glad that so far Cory's health has steadily improved, yet she didn't like seeing her son in so much pain.
"Thanks for bringing it over," Jairo said, as he greeted his coworker.
"Not a problem," the man said, with a friendly smile. "So... this is your son?" he asked, slyly noting how injured Cory was.
"This is him," Jairo nodded, placing a hand on Cory's shoulder.
"If you look like this, I wonder how the other three fared," the man said, with a coy smile.
"A lot worse, I can assure you," Cory stated, matching the man's smile.
"Already have the car unchained, why don't we get this baby down," looking down at Cory's hands, knowing he wouldn't be able to keep a handle on the car's horsepower given the shape of his hands, "and we'll take a little spin? Good," the man uttered when Cory nodded vigorously.
Cory watched excitedly as the man backed the car off the trailer. Seeing his father nodding towards the car telling him to go on. Seeing the man nod when he thanked him for opening the door for him. Feeling the rumble of the engine traveling up his spine once he was settled in the passenger seat.
"Better hold on; this thing has some power to it," the man warned before making the tires bark, the ass end squatting down as he applied a little bit more gas once they were past his home. "The wiring is all new, so you don't have to worry about anything like that. Just a new radio and speakers," he said, pointing to the hole where the old radio used to be. "I got a guy that upholsters my other cars. He'll give you a good price on the seats. A lot cheaper than buying new ones."
"Do they do custom work?" Cory asked, seeing the heads that the car was turning as they cruised down the street.
"They do," the man nodded. "I'll send your dad the link I use when I'm restoring an old car. For liners and such, it already has a new dash installed, and the liner is new," he said, reaching forward and tapping it. "So you don't need to worry about that. Most is just minor work to get it back into its sleek shape. Expensive, but minor."
"Bet your son loved this car," Cory mused, "sorry," seeing the look in the man's eyes.
"It's alright, and he did. This was his dream car; now I hope it will be yours."
"I planned on it," Cory said, running his left index finger along the top of the dash. "You know any good painters?" he asked, turning to look at the man as the rumble of the exhaust quieted down as they slowed to a stop before turning back onto his street. Wondering how much a back windshield was. Arching an eyebrow when the man chuckled.
"You get the paint; I'll paint it for you. I paint cars in my spare time, have my own paint shop at my house. Saves me a ton of money when one of my cars gets finished."
"How many cans of paint would I need to paint this car?" Cory asked, as the man took a left onto his street.
"Three should be enough." Cory noted how his family was watching as Jairo directed the man to pull it into the garage.
"Enjoy the ride?" Zoe asked, as she opened the door for him.
"Oh, yeah," Cory said, with a wide smile on his lips.
"Good. I can't wait for this thing to be ready," Zoe said, not hiding her excitement.
"We have time before we have to catch that flight. Want to put in the back glass," the man said, pointing at the hole. "Since I'm here and all."
"You got everything it needs?" Jairo asked, unsure if he or Cory could do it on their own. Minor car repair they could handle. Putting in a new piece of glass wasn't something he or Cory had the skill or experience to do.
"It's all in the bed of my truck," the man said, pointing over his shoulder at it.
"Everything?" Celeste asked, perplexed.
"Every item missing on this beauty except the hood, at least on the outside, the interior you'll have to handle," he said, looking right at Cory.
"Already one step ahead of you," Cory stated with a wide smile.
It didn't take long with everyone, including Cory, as much as he could with his hands in the shape they were in, helping to unload the bed of the truck getting it neatly stored in the garage. Cory was looking over everything that was lined up on the workbench, along with the few bigger items, such as the car's grill, which they had leaned against the wall.
"Hey, what's this window for?" Cory asked, looking over at the man as he laid a bead of the glass adhesive to the metal of the car frame after prepping it.
"Goes to the right window. It's not hard putting one in; you just need patience and a steady hand," the man spoke in a teacherly voice. "I'll contact the guy I was dealing with and see if he still has that hood."
"Thanks," Cory said, watching the man nod and how he worked. Stepping aside and out of the way as they unboxed the glass, cleaning the edges so they would get a good seal. Seeing how his father followed the man's instructions as they laid it onto its housing.
"Hand me that rubber mallet." Cory jumped at the chance to be able to do something besides watching it all. Even if it was just fetching a tool, he was still a part of it, albeit in a very minor role. "Yeah, that's nice," the man said, in praise of his and his father's work. "Let it sit for at least 48 hours, just so you're certain the adhesive is cured." Cory nodded in understanding. While he might not be able to use his hands, that didn't mean he couldn't brush up and watch whatever he could find on the net on how to restore a car. "If you're not worried about parts matching, it shouldn't cost you too much. If you're going with the authentic look, that's where you'll be dipping into a lot of cash. Here," holding out a business card to Cory, "that's my paint guy, he can make you any kind of paint you want, It's a bit pricey, but worth it, as you can see," he said, gesturing to his truck.
"Can he make a two-toned, metallic kind of paint?" Cory asked, thanking him for the card. Not missing the luster in the man's eyes when he asked that.
"Two-toned, huh?" he asked, with a coy smile. "It would look nice on that car. Sure, something like that shouldn't be too hard for him to make. It might take him a few days to make it, but his paint is top-notch."
"Thanks," Cory said, slipping the card into his back pocket.
"I appreciate this," Jairo spoke, shaking his friend's hand.
"Any time. I'll see you at the airport." Sharing a nod with Jairo before saying goodbye to his family and headed towards his truck.
"Let me take that," Celeste said, taking the title from her husband. "I'll go by the DMV in the morning before work and get the car transferred over."
"You'll be needing these," Jairo said, handing his son the keys. "Just no driving it until we get the tag."
"Yeah, won't be a problem," Cory said, moving his fingers like miniature pincers. "You want to fire it up again, don't you?" he asked, seeing that boyish look in his father's eyes. "Go on," Cory said, tossing the keys in the air, which his father had no trouble catching.
"The inside isn't so bad, or not as bad as I thought it would be," Jairo spoke, looking around the interior of the car. "Shouldn't be too much work for us," he stated, peering out the open driver's side window.
"Cory, can we...?!" Zoe squealed happily as he nodded for them to get in. She and Dayana filed into the rear seat; their mother elegantly glided into the passenger seat.
