wheel art copy
Angel in disguise
by Maria Nestorides

Flap, flap, flap.
I don’t even notice the sound until
a car overtakes me
driver’s arms flailing
as he yells “you’ve got a flat!”

I pull over
onto a small
half-circle patch of dirt
exhaust fumes gag me.

I’m 18.
Never before
have I dirtied my hands changing a tyre.

A car swerves in towards me.
Dust blends with fumes
as the back wheels skid to a halt.

Jesus springs out
wearing loose-fitting jeans
and covered in tats.
Wait. What?

He has the greenest eyes
I’ve ever seen
They slant up
slightly at the ends.
Like a cat’s.
‘Do you need help?’

‘Yes, please.’
My voice is a scratchy whisper.

Hunching my shoulders
and wrapping my arms around myself
I try to fade into the background.

There’s something unsettling
about him
Maybe it’s how green
—almost neon—
his eyes are.
I’m nervous.
So nervous.
My heart thuds,
visible—I’m sure—through my ribs, but
he seems oblivious to my unease,
changes my tyre
matter-of-factly.
Leaves.

I never see him again,
But looking back,
I can’t help but wonder
whether that
stranger
might actually
have been
an angel
in disguise.

Illustration by Mstjahanara903. 

NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: I had just returned to Cyprus from the UK and had bought an old used car that broke down at every given opportunity (read: often). I was amazed at how kind and helpful people were when I found myself stranded. This particular incident is one that has stuck with me through the years.

Nestorides_1

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Maria Nestorides lives in sunny Cyprus. She is married and has two adult children. She has an MA in Developmental Psychology from Columbia University and an MA in Creative Writing from Lancaster University. Her short stories have appeared in Silver Birch Press, The Sunlight Press, The Story Shack, Inkitt, and Scribes Micro Fiction. She has also contributed a six-word memoir to the book Six-Word Memoirs on Love and Heartbreak: by Writers Famous and Obscure by Larry Smith and Rachel Fershleiser (Jan 6, 2009). Visit her on Facebook and Twitter.