For a second, Ethan just stared.
The dashboard was clear. No warning lights. Nothing wrong.
He stepped out, stunned. “How did you do that?”
The boy carefully wrapped up his tools. “Loose airflow sensor. Bad contact on a coil wire. I patched it enough to get you to a shop. Just don’t push the car too hard.”
Ethan reached for his wallet and pulled out bills worth more than most people around there made in a month.
“Here. Take it. You earned it.”
The boy looked at the money and shook his head.
“I don’t want cash, sir.” He pointed across the street to a bakery glowing with warm light. “I just want food. Bread with butter and some juice. That’s what we said.”
Ethan froze with the bills in his hand. In his world, money fixed everything. He could not understand why someone would refuse it for something so small.
“Put that away,” he muttered, suddenly ashamed. “Come on. I’ll buy.”
Inside the bakery, the cold air, the smell of coffee, and the sweetness of fresh pastries felt like another world. The boy stared at the display case with quiet awe. Something about that look hit Ethan harder than he expected.