It was a night in which only the witless or demented would venture out, at least that's how the young man called it as he made his way, head bent, along the sidewalk to his parked car.
The rain fell from the heavens as if it was out to present the world with a second Flood, only this time Dean doubted there would be a Noah ready to save the Earth's fauna and a few family members on his wooden Ark.
Not that Dean was overly concerned.
The world was a shit-bag anyway, so bringing on a cleansing tsunami to make everything bright and shiny again was fine with him.
As for family, he certainly couldn't remember ever having one, nor it seemed did anyone else, as he'd been in the foster system ever since abandoned as a baby on the steps of an hospital.
He pushed the thought away, the past wasn't something he wanted to dwell on, better to concentrate on getting to the relative shelter of his car and out of this freak storm, that is if he managed to find it given the near zero visibility and the water cascading in miniature waterfalls down his face.
More than find his ride, he stumbled on it, its long unmistakable shape looming out of the rain like a sanctuary.
§
Dean unlocked the car, but didn't slide inside, first turning away to shrug off his drenched jacket, hoping to save the car's leather seat from treading water.
The Impala was his pride and joy, and though he could do nothing about his pants and boots, he could at least save her that.
He took a moment to heave a sigh of relief at being out of the rain, then the powerful engine roared into life.
He soon realized the headlights were of no use against the sheets of rain and so at a snail's pace and more from instinct than anything else, Dean made his way back to his tiny apartment.
§
Nineteen years old and pretty as a picture.
At least his unknown parents had bequeathed him that.
Despite his young age, or perhaps because of it, Dean had already built up a steady clientele among the cougar sisterhood, the bored, stay at home wives with absent, career-orientated husbands, passing the word and lining up to pay for a night with Dean's young body and perfect face.
Once out of the system, Dean had found himself with very few options.
Yeah, he'd found a job in a car body shop, but his wages weren't enough to cover all his needs, so when the snooty forty-something wife came in to collect her Porsche and offered Dean good money for services outwith those of a mechanic, he didn't take long to make a decision.
He was no virgin. The way he'd been deflowered while still a kid still made him shiver with horror, nonetheless he accepted the offer and it had been all downhill from there.
His phone was filled with numbers from satisfied clients.
Though he had some money in the bank now, he still kept his tiny apartment. He didn't need much. Any expenses incurred when meeting with his clients were covered by the ladies themselves, so he managed just fine.
§
The rain was still pouring down when Dean pulled up next to his apartment block, the pale glow from the street lights a fuzzy, useless halo.
"Fuck this!" Dean grunted, pushing the car door open. There was no use putting it off. He'd make a run for the door He was wet through anyway.
The key was already turning in the lock when he realized he'd left his dripping jacket back in the car.
He was tempted to just leave it there, but he needed to dry it out. Cursing, he dived back into the rain and ran to the Impala.
Afterwards he was to wonder at how that simple action was to change his life completely.
At first he thought it was a trick of the light, but as he approached the car, he could've sworn he saw a shadowy movement inside.
tbc