Chapter 23 — The owner of the car shop behind the school gate

Vy learned how to repair Khoa's mother's old car.

The silver-blue car had been sitting in the corner of the shop for months. The frame is in good shape, but the front brakes are worn, the chain is stretched and the fenders are bent. Mrs. Man said it was the bike she used when she first opened the shop, but since her husband's leg hurt, she switched to riding a motorbike.

“My mother kept it because she couldn't bear to give it up,” Khoa said.

“If you keep it, you have to give it a chance to run,” Mrs. Man replied.

Vy wanted to do it quickly to prove that she wasn't just going to the store for fun. Khoa gave her the kit and told her to check each part. She removed the front wheel too hard, knocking out two balls in the bearing.

“Don't panic,” Khoa said. “Put the towel under the table before removing it.”

"I know."

“Knowing after dropping it doesn't count.”

Vy glared at him, but still picked up each marble. Mrs. Man gave a small magnet. Three people looked under the table and rolled at Huy's feet, who had just arrived with the estimate. Huy bent down to help, then realized the marble was in the sole of his shoe.

“I will not put this incident in the report,” Quynh Chi said from the door.

“Write it down,” Vy replied. “Let people know that repairing a car is not a clean operation.”

They cleaned the bearings, changed the grease, adjusted the brakes. Khoa did not do it for Vy. He just asked each step: is the contact surface even, are the wires frayed, do the brake levers have enough clearance. Vy gradually realized that repairing a car is a series of small decisions, not a single turn of a wrench.

When she got to the chain, she discovered that one link was stiff. Khoa suggested replacing it, but Mrs. Man said to try saving it first. Vy soaked in oil, used a screwdriver to gently remove it, then wiped it with a towel. The chain link is still stuck.

“If you can't save it, change it,” Ms. Man said. “Saving is not keeping something that makes others fall.”

Vy remembered that sentence. It's like what they say about garages: keep what's valuable, get rid of what's dangerous, don't turn everything old into a treasure.

When the car was tested, the rear wheel rattled. Khoa sat down and discovered that the fender was touching the tire because a screw had been changed incorrectly. Turns out the old repair used longer screws. Vy wanted to blame the first person, but Mrs. Man only said: "I don't know who did it. Knowing how to fix it is enough."

They cut a small buffer tube and changed the screws to the right size. The wheel rotates smoothly. Mrs. Man tried cycling around the yard. Her legs were a bit shaky, but her face lit up like someone who had just found an old room.

“Does Mom walk?” Khoa asked.

"Go. Go to the market, go to school, and check to see if the children have made a mess."

Vy laughed. She felt like her hands were full of oil and her hair was dusty, but she had never seen a day of extra classes so meaningful.

Khoa gave her a towel. “You didn't do bad.”

“Not a bad compliment, huh?”

“For someone who dropped marbles on Huy's shoe, that's a big compliment.”

Huy was recording spare parts prices and objected when he heard that. “I just happened to help keep a department.”

In the afternoon, Mrs. Man gave Vy an old car bell. "Take it, it's not a gift. It's something for the garage."

Vy shook her head, but Mrs. Man said the bell would remind her that a safe place needs sound to let people know someone is passing by. Vy mounted it on the tool board and did not bring it back.

On the way out the gate, Khoa asked her if she was afraid her hands would get calloused. Vy said she was afraid she would turn back into someone who only looked at things through their price. Khoa said everyone has times like that, the important thing is whether they bend down or not.

Vy turned. “Did you ever think you would leave the shop?”

"Yes. But if I leave, I want to leave behind someone who knows how to continue, not let my mother have to start over."

Vy did not say that she wanted to become human there. She was afraid the statement sounded like too big a promise. She just asked if she could study more on the weekend.

Khoa replied: "Okay. But next time, check the towels under the table first."

The silver-blue car stood in the sunlight, its wheels turning slowly and then faster. It's not new, it's not shiny, but it runs properly because someone patiently searches for every small marble that falls.

After Mrs. Man's car was repaired, Vy started carrying her own cloth towel. She learned to wipe tools before putting them away, check threads by hand, and not put wrenches on the saddle. Khoa still had to remind her to close the oil tank valve. She said she is progressing along a very slow curve.

Mrs. Man assigned Vy a more difficult task: calculating the price for a repair. She has to add up spare parts, time, electricity, tool wear and tear, and the free portion for disadvantaged students. Vy wanted to round the number, but Grandma asked her to write down each item.

“If you don't know where the money goes, you'll think you're helping for free,” Grandma said. “Actually, someone else is paying for it.”

Vy realized that the same statement was true for her family. Many of her opportunities are paid for with other people's time. She asked Mrs. Man if she ever felt guilty about accepting help. She said yes, but guilt is only useful if it turns into clarity, not self-torture.

Khoa tested the silver blue car and discovered that the rear brake was a bit stiff. Vy adjusted the string, but tightened it too hard. The cake is stuck. Khoa didn't say "I told you", just asked if she had checked the rotation range. Vy said again and tried again.

“Do you ever get tired of having to teach the same thing again?” she asked.

"Yes. But boredom is not a reason for others to go wrong."

They held classes for new members using Mrs. Man's car. Each person must remove a part, take a photo first, and then reassemble it. One friend dropped the spring, the whole group looked under the table. Mrs. Man did not scold her and told her to put the towel from the beginning.

Vy told the story of how she once dropped a marble on Huy's shoe. The whole class laughed. She felt that admitting it awkwardly made others dare to ask. One friend said she was afraid of being laughed at if she didn't know the tire pressure. Khoa said not knowing is not shameful; If you hide it if you don't know it and put others in danger, that's what's worrying.

At the end of the session, one parent paid a repair fee that was higher than the price list. Mrs. Man paid the remainder, saying that if she wanted to contribute, she should put it into the general fund. Vy asked why he didn't accept it. She replied that money was not wrong, but the way to receive it needed to be for the right purpose.

Khoa received a letter from Truc Street garage, inviting him to join a basic engineering class. He was happy, but afraid he would have less time at the shop. Vy helped him make a schedule and mark shifts that needed replacements. Mrs. Man saw this and told her not to turn her son into a project.

Vy replied that she was just helping him look at his options. Khoa added: "If she decides for me, I will return the board."

Vy pretended to be angry, but knew he was right. Wanting to love someone does not give you the right to manage their future.

A week later, the blue and silver cart was used in the classroom. Each member must choose a part to examine and then explain it in his or her own words. One person spoke too fast, one person pointed at the wrong place, but no one was eliminated. Faculty asked them to ask the listener if they understood.

Vy helped a junior classmate adjust the saddle. I'm shorter than the car, I'm afraid I won't touch the ground. Vy didn't stop immediately, asking how she wanted to ride. I said just go in the yard. She lowered it a notch, let me try it, then raised it again when I left. Khoa praised her for not guessing for users.

Mrs. Man asked Vy to check the income and expenditure books. She saw a spare part amount with missing units. She said it was It's your mistake, it will be fixed. Vy asked if she needed to inform the whole class. She responded to the relevant part, not turning a small mistake into a story to make others feel sorry for her.

The department received news that the garage wanted to use the silver-blue car as a model in the technical class. He asked his mother. She agreed, but only if the car was returned in the correct condition. Vy helped prepare a loan slip, recording old scratches.

A friend of Vy's came to the shop and was surprised to see her cleaning the floor. You ask her if she feels uncomfortable because she does things that aren't "worthy". Vy said she did before, but now she only feels uncomfortable when someone makes a mess and then leaves.

Khoa listened and laughed. He said she was talking like Mrs. Man. Vy replied that it was a sign that she had learned something, not that she had lost herself.

In the evening, they tried to ride back the same way. Khoa walks slowly to help Vy avoid potholes. She reminds him not to run close to the sidewalk. No one leads anyone completely. The two cars kept a comfortable distance, as they were learning to believe.

At the intersection, the traffic lights changed quickly. Vy stopped early, Khoa stopped next to her. He asked her if she wanted to go first. Vy said to come along. Two cars pass when the light is green, no one has to tow the other.

Khoa said the garage has a mechanic who likes to talk, but doesn't like students asking questions. You are practicing asking at the right time. Vy said her father used to not like being asked questions, but now he is learning how to answer. The two laugh because the adults are similar in many places.

At the gate of the house, Khoa said tomorrow he would take the silver-blue car for maintenance. Vy said she would put it on the calendar, but wouldn't reserve a spot for him. Khoa nodded, then wished her good night in a voice so normal that it made her smile the rest of the way.

Vy came home, opened the calendar and wrote "silver blue car - maintenance". She did not write her name in the decision maker column, only the contact person was Khoa. She saw that small thing as a word of respect.

Khoa nodded, then put the calendar in his pocket.