How Green Becomes Wood

"You can do this," Dark said, not knowing it was the same thing Alec was telling himself, "Everyone makes mistakes their first time. Do not worry about that, you will not hurt anyone or yourself." Then he talked Alec through adjusting the seats and the mirrors, exactly like he had with Xander, who had left the car on, so Dark didn't explain that.

"Okay. Put it into drive. Very gently, right foot, touch the gas pedal. It is the one on the right. Go as slowly as you want."
 
Hands shaking, Alec gripped the lever and pulled it down. He lifted his foot off the break and felt the car rolling backward. He'd put it in reverse! Panicked, he tried to hit the break. Somehow, his foot slipped, and he hit the edge of the gas instead, making the car jump backward. Fast. Thankfully, there was a lot of parking lot, and he managed to get his panicked brain to stop stepping on the gas and to hit the break instead, bringing them to a jarring halt. He sat there, shaking, and put the car into park. He still didn't say anything, his face pale.
 
"Take a breath, Alec, it is okay," Dark said, not seeming all that bothered by the jolts in the car, "One day you would have learned to back out of a space anyway, there is no harm in it. You learn from mistakes just as much as you do from doing it correctly."

He waited a few moments to give Alec time to breathe and then asked, "Do you want to try again?"
 
Alec started to shake his head. "No, no, I... um. Yes, I guess," he said tremulously. If he didn't go again, then Dark would be disappointed. He had to figure this out! He couldn't disappoint Dark. He took a couple more breaths, his heart still racing, and put the car in gear again, this time into drive.

Meanwhile, in the back, Xander was doing everything he could to brace himself. The front seat had a much easier time at bracing than the back did, he was discovering. He held on tight and prepared for another round of bumper cars.

Alec also braced himself and let go of the break. The car rolled forward. He put his foot on the gas, but he couldn't bring himself to push down. What if they shot forward again? What if they sped forward so fast that he couldn't stop before they hit something? What if he couldn't stop pushing the gas down? What if the gas pedal stuck??

The car rolled along lazily until it came to a stop. And sat. And sat.
 
"Just keep breathing," Dark said, keeping a close eye on Alec, and after the car came to a complete stop, he waited again for a period of time. When it felt evident Alec wasn't moving the car again, he said, softly, "It is okay. If you do not feel ready, you do not have to be ready. I would rather you be comfortable than have you force yourself to do something you aren't ready for."
 
Alec hesitated a little longer, but the fears and the worries kept clouding his mind. He could do this. He could... He couldn't do this! He put the car in park and took his hands from the wheel. Tears stung his eyes, and he looked down, ashamed of them. Ashamed of his weakness. "I do not want to drive," he admitted, his voice breaking.

Xander glanced between them, worried and confused. He wanted to ask what was happening, but didn't want to push himself forward into whatever was going on.
 
"That is okay. If you are not ready, you are not ready. It is simple as that. You are making the safest choice, and there is nothing wrong with that." Dark reached over and squeezed Alec's shoulder. He remembered months ago when he and Alec had discussed his fears of driving, and although Dark could've taken time to say you will learn one day, it felt better to not add that additional pressure. Either way, the teen would end up in driver's ed, and maybe having a licensed instructor would make him feel better.

That all could be dealt with later.
 
Alec took a deep breath, trying to calm down. Dark was right. He was always right. "I'm sorry about today," he said softly.

Xander finally leaned forward and rested his hand on Alec's other shoulder. "Hey, that's okay. It just means more time for me to drive, and then I can drive you around until you're ready to return the favor," he told Alec in a gentle but happy tone. "It's no big deal."

Alec nodded and managed a smile. "I think I'd like to get out now." He unbuckled his belt and opened the car door to get out. He wanted a walk in the open air, but instead moved to get in the back seat.
 
"You do not need to apologize," Dark said, turning to watch as Alec went to the back seat, "You have done nothing wrong."

Then he took a breath, sat back, and said, "Xander, do you want to drive some more? We still have some time before we need to pick up Daizi from the station." It was true most of the time she took a cab from the station to their house at the end of the day, but since they were out anyway, it seemed natural to go get her.
 
"Maybe a bit more," Xander agreed, sliding out and taking the driver's seat. "It's kind of fun, but I can't tell where the wheels are."

Alec huddled in the backseat, trying not to think too hard about his failure. He was truly glad Xander was having such a good time, but he wanted nothing more than to be done with it. He tried to hide his feelings and look at least a little bit encouraging for his brother.
 
"Okay, well, when you are done, you need to put the seat back because you are small and I cannot cram myself into the two milimeters of space you have between the seat and the steering wheel," He teased, attempting to bring levity to the car, "Try backing out this time, Xander," he suggested, before explaining where to look behind him and where to look in the mirrors.
 
Xander did exactly as Dark told him and turned awkwardly to try to see behind himself. He let the break go slowly and started backing out. The car went back and slightly to the left instead of straight. Xander overcorrected and started going back and to the right. He was still going slow, meaning to an outsider, it would look like the world's most carefully executed zigzag pattern.

"Are we backing in a straight line in sections instead of one long go?" Alec asked as Xander tried to correct again and went too far.

"Shut up," Xander grumbled, making Alec smile.
 
"It is difficult your first time doing it," Dark said calmly, watching behind them as Xander made his attempt, "Use little movements, and remember, you turn your wheel in the direction you want the back of the car to go when you are in reverse. Go slowly."
 
"If we go any more slowly, we'll be stopped," Xander remarked dryly, but he did his best. Eventually, they had done a near circle - a very badly drawn circle - but Xander had finally gotten the hang of backing up in a straight line. He grinned proudly as he drove slowly backward until he finally stopped and put it in park. "There! Got it! Just in time to go to the train station!"
 
"Good job, Xander," Dark said, when he finally did it successfully, "Move the seat back and let me get over. I do not trust you to drive out on a main road yet, we need to try the neighborhood first. Plus if we crash on the way to the train station, Daizi will not know what happened to us, and god knows what the stress of it would do to her."
 
Xander snorted as he moved the seat back so Dark could get in without squishing like in a clown car. "Of course, losing your one and only car, your precious chariot, wouldn't be so great, either."

"I just hope nobody would get hurt," Alec worried.

"They won't, because I'm not driving," Xander pointed out as he got in the back. "They won't get hurt with me driving, either, because I'll learn to be incredibly careful"

"Good," Alec breathed.
 
"Of all the nouns I care about who would be affected if we crash on the way to the train station, this car does not top the list." Dark said, getting out of the car so he could get in on the driver's side again. Thankfully Xander had moved the seat as far back at it went, so he only needed to adjust the mirrors before heading to the train station.

Once there, Dark parked and began to exit the car, "I am going to go wait for her on the platform. Are you two coming?"
 
"Nah, you go on and greet your lady," Xander told him. "We'll wait here. You two don't have long until you're back to your soul-sucking job of guarding the inmates at the educational institution. Then you won't have nearly the same amount of energy to devote to her." He smirked and gave Dark a quick wave.

Xander waited until Dark was well on his way to turn to Alec. "Hey, it's okay. It don't matter if you can't drive, 'specially not just yet."

"Everyone drives, Xander. It's a fact of life," Alec said quietly, keeping his eyes on the window. "It's not a big deal to be able to drive. It is a big deal to not be able to."

"Yeah, unless you're in a big city, then you probably wouldn't even own a car. Or old, or disabled, or old ladies who solve mysteries while writing about them."

Alec turned to stare at him with that last bit. "What?"

"I caught a rerun once on tv, some old broad in Maine who solved mysteries," Xander explained. "She didn't drive. She caught rides or took her bicycle everywhere. There was even a point made about how she'd never learned to drive, and nobody said one word about it. You could get a cool bike and ride around like her."

"And solve mysteries with only my wit and my nosy personality to help me?" Alec asked dryly.

Xander grinned. "If you want. Of course, maybe it's a good thing you don't want to drive. You get lost bad enough while walking. What happens if you get lost while driving? You'll call us from the Canadian border!"

Alec punched Xander in the shoulder but couldn't help smiling. He felt a little better after Xander's pep talk, though it did still bother him. Maybe eventually he would learn, but he supposed there was no rush. For now, he would focus on trying to be as helpful as he could be to Daizi for the baby.
 
Dark grumbled something sarcastic about 'his lady' and his job, before getting out and going up to the platform. He made it there before Daizi's train came in, so he leaned against a pillar to wait. Eventually it did come in, and Dark watched from a distance as Daizi came off the train, rubbing her lower back with a mild grimace. He sauntered over her and greeted her warmly before reaching out to touch her, since if he did the opposite it would definitely frighten her, and after their kiss hello, Dark asked, "How are you? Are you feeling okay?"

"Better now," She mumbled, letting Dark walk her from the busy front of the platform off to somewhere more open, "but my back hurts and my feet hurt and everything else hurts, and, ugh," she took the heel of her hand and pressed it against the side of her bump near her ribs, "she's discovered she can wedge herself under my ribs, so I keep having to try to pop her out. You know, so I can breathe."

Dark smiled slightly, liking even the grumpy expression on his wife's face, "When we get home I will rub your back and your feet and wherever else you need me to, darling... Where exactly are you pressing?"

"Her foot, I think?"

Dark blinked, "Oh."

"I know." She replied, and then sighed deeply upon successfully completing her mission.

Then Dark ran his hands over her belly, and leaning in slightly said, using a tone very much unlike himself, "You need to give Mama a break, or else how is she going to have enough energy to take care of you when you arrive? You need to stop torturing her, baby."

While her husband straightened up to kiss her again, Daizi chuckled and said, "She wiggled when you spoke to her. I think she's starting to recognize voices, she's been getting really excited when I speak to her."

"Good, then maybe she'll start listening," He replied, but then frowned and said, "although, she is your daughter so... Doubtful."

She laughed, and took his hand, "Where are the boys? If they're still in the car we better hurry there before Xander gets it into his mind to steal it."

"Oh, you need not fear that, I have the keys," he teased, but still they made their way back to the car. When they got in, Daizi swiveled around to smile at the boys.


"How was driving?" She asked.
 
Xander grinned and leaned forward. "It was fantastic! I'm an absolute natural. I'll be driving you around in no time at all."

Alec smiled weakly and leaned forward. "How was work?" he asked pleasantly.
 
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