Stuck Chronicle (Part 25 - Challenge!!)

[Xavier B]

Lyle had Saturday off from school and from work. He’d hoped to go mudding with Joel, but he’d already gone somewhere. Lyle had just finished tweaking his bike, and decided to lay back in his outdoor chair and relax.

“Knowing him, he’s probably practicing for when we go back to that football field”, he said to himself. Then another thought came to his mind.

“I’m almost certain that Mickey is back by now. He’ll probably show up and ambush me any day now...”

Lyle chuckled, remembering the old days when he and Mick went mudding together. Mick would challenge any truck or SUV he found having fun (or just getting stuck accidentally) in one of his spots. Mick knew each spot like the back of his hand, and he had a set of tricks he’d pull if he was ever in a pinch, so he’d always win.

That made Lyle worry a little, and he remembered the Jeep he and Joel saw back when they went to the drive-in.

“I’m certain that was Mickey back there”, Lyle thought. “Joel was eager to show him up. And Mickey never turns down a challenge...”

Lyle looked up at the sky. “For all I know, they could be duking it out right now”, he continued. He got a hard-on—and a chill—at the idea of his boyfriend and best friend tearing up a trail or two to prove their skills.

“I hope not...they both get kinda scary when they’re serious! ”

Meanwhile, down at the Shortcut, Mick was plowing down the muddy path. Every time he took a turn, his tires slid, leaving round-square angled paths in the mud. Joel’s truck was big, so it was harder for him to make sharp turns; every time he reached a turn, his rear tires slipped and spun in the ruts that Mick made.

Mick was happy to see Joel losing more and more speed with each turn. “Only a matter of time now”, he said snidely.

The path then turned straight, and there was a series of mud puddles that concealed deep holes. Mick decided to maneuver around the puddles; Joel instead drove through them like a tank.

“You gotta be kidding me!” Mick yelled. Suddenly, a big puddle appeared before Mick; he couldn’t dodge it, so he drove straight through the middle! His Jeep sank sideways into the deep hole, and he got stuck.

“Dammit!” He shouted angrily. He slammed his logger boot on the gas, but he couldn’t escape the hole. Muddy water and globs of mud slung behind his Jeep as he furiously struggled to break free.

Joel caught up to Mick, and drove through the right side of the puddle. It wasn’t as deep as the middle, but the mud was gooey and caught his back tires. Suddenly, he’d gotten stuck too. Joel backed up from the hole, put his truck in 4WD, and plowed through the gunk, making it through.

He looked back at Mick, who also managed to escape the hole. He drove through the shallow end where Joel had been, and made it through.

“Looks like I'm the leader now!” Joel shouted to Mick, before speeding down the trail.

Mick turned red, and sped after him. The mud posed little difficulty for Joel, now that he was using all four tires. He was confidant that he could keep his lead.

At the end of the puddles came a tall, steep hill. There was no way around it. Joel put his boot to the pedal, and tried to clear the hill—his tires started spinning on the muddy incline, and he found himself slipping back down. Joel gripped the steering wheel, and tried again, but as soon as he reached the middle of the hill, the mud wouldn't let his heavy truck reach the top.

“C’mon, baby!” Joel coaxed his truck, as he went for the third attempt. He made it a little further, before his mud-caked tires gave out and started spinning loudly in the mud again. “C’mon, c’mon, COME ON!!!” But he just couldn’t make it up the hill and slid back down to the base.

“You done?” Mick called from his Jeep. “Lemme show you how a pro does it! ”

Mick revved his engine a few times, then dashed towards the hill. His tires started spinning, then Mick yelled, “COME ON, YOU GOT THIS!!” His Jeep made it over the hill, but barely.

Joel was frustrated, but wouldn’t let himself be defeated here. He backed up his truck, revved it up a few tires, took a deep breath, and floored it. Once he got to the hill, he kept it hammered, muttering “Come on, come on, come on, come on, come onnnnnn.....”. He turns his wheel to the left and the right, and zigzagged his way up the hill.

He slid down the opposite side; he hit the brake with both his feet, but his truck was powerless against the slippery slope! He tires landed in the soft, muddy ground below, sliding a few feet before squelching to a halt.

Joel opened his eyes—his truck was still in tact, and so was he. He sighed from relief, and pressed the gas pedal. All he could hear was a clear ZZZZZZZzzzzzzzz! He hit the gas again.

zzzzzzZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzz!!

Joel opened his door, and saw that his truck was caught in a mud-trap—it was so gummy, it was almost like quicksand. It was also on a slight incline, so even his 4WD truck couldn’t escape it.

Mick’s Jeep was right ahead of him, its tires halfway in mud as well. He trekked his way toward’s Joel’s truck, rubbing his hand on Joel’s hot, vibrating hood with a satisfied grin.

“Looks like that’s game!” He said to Joel. “You’re not gonna get outta there ”

Joel ignored him, and got back in his truck. He revved the engine and put his truck in gear. His Ariat punished the gas pedal as he tried desperately to escape the mud. He gritted his teeth, growled, and cursed as the air filled with the smell of his exhaust, and the sound of his squealing tires and they burned rubbed in the mud.

Mick leaned into Joel’s open window and shouted, “Hey! Enough!! Just accept that you lost, and I’ll give you a tow.”

Joel stopped driving, and gripped the wheel. He reluctantly extended his hand, and said, “Okay, I’ll admit. I lost to you today...”. They shook hands, before Joel gripped Mick’s before growling “...but I’ll get you next time! ”

Mick was surprised by Joel’s tenacity. “Sure thing, Muscles!” He said eagerly. “Just name the time, and the place!”

Joel had the perfect place in mind. “Do you know where that abandoned football field is?”

Mick’s expression suddenly changed.

Joel snapped his fingers. “Hey, Nick!”

“Mick”, Mick said evenly, “and yeah, I know where that is.”

“Okay. How about we have a rematch over there next Sunday?”

“Sure thing!” he replied. He attached a tow line to Joel’s truck, and pulled him out. He was heavy, so it took a few attempts.

“Oh! One more thing...” Joel said, “is it okay if I bring a guest with me?”

Mick shrugged. “Sure, I like having an audience. I wanna see the look on their face when I beat you again ”

“Don’t count on it ” Joel replied, before adding with pride and reassurance: “When my man’s by my side, I feel like I can take on anything...”

“Awwww. Well in that case, I wanna bring a guest too” Mick said. “I want my lil buddy to have a front row seat for your defeat!”

“I don’t mind”, Joel replied. Then, as Mick started up his Jeep, he called out to him once more...

“Hey, is your buddy a mudder too?”

“Nah, he's always been more of a passenger! But he said he wants to get into it himself!”

Mick paused for a second, then turned off his motor and yelled back, “How about your boyfriend?”

“Yeah he muds”, Joel replied, “but on a motorcycle, not a truck. He’s more into the leather scene...”

Mick suddenly put two and two together, and his expression changed again. “Gotcha”, he said blankly, before starting his Jeep again and taking off.

“That was kinda weird”, Joel muttered, before also taking off. “It’s almost like he knew who I was talking about...”

Joel cleaned off his truck and his Ariats, before heading straight to Lyle’s house to tell him about the day he’s had...

Meanwhile, Mick headed straight home from the Shortcut. He left his muddy black logger boots at the door, then washed them and his Jeep off with a hose.

“He was talkin’ about Lyle. I'm sure of it...” Mick said.

He ate some dinner, showered, and head to bed.

“I was gonna anyway”, Mick mumbled, “but now I definitely gotta see my buddy....”

He drifted off to sleep for the night.