The transmission had finally gone out in Ben’s little Chevy station wagon and since he was an auto mechanics student at the local Skill Center, he rounded up his best buddies to come over and help him replace it one day after school.

The job went well and with so many hands turning bolts and reconnecting lines, it went quickly, too.

Now all that was left was to raise the front end of the lightweight vehicle up to remove the jack-stands that held it up in the air while being repaired.

This would be followed by a trip around the block to road test the quality of their work.

“Okay guys, on the count of three, we lift it up while Ben pulls out the jack…okay…ready?”

“Yeah, Mike, go…” Nick replied, followed by two more teen-aged male voices echoing “yeah.”

“You ready down there, Ben?” Mike asked.

“Yeah, just about have my hand on it…okay, got it, go guys!” Ben answered.

“Okay, one…two…three … LIFT!” Mike commanded.

The little blue Chevy raised silently into the air, as Ben grabbed the top of the jack-stand with his left hand. But suddenly, the car shifted sideways as the other boys grunted loudly and shuffled across the smooth concrete floor of Ben’s parent’s garage, desperately trying to keep it up and off of their friend’s hand.

“I can’t hold it!” Mike warned.

“Look out, it’s coming down!” Bill shouted.

And down the little Chevy came in a heap.

“Ben…are you okay, buddy?” Tom asked.

But their friend didn’t answer. He was too busy propping his right foot against the passenger door trying to yank his hand out from under the car.

“I’m stuck!” Ben cried out.

“What do you mean you’re stuck?” Mike asked incredulously.
“Oh my God! …guys, his hand’s caught between the top of the jack and the underside of the car! Tom said as he squatted down beside his friend.

“Ben! …get your hand out of there!” Mike ordered.
“Geese, Mike, I’m trying to!” Ben answered, still trying to free himself.

All four of the teens panicked and offered tips to their friend, as he braced himself and yanked over and over without success.
“Geese, guys! …We’ve gotta pick up the car so he can get out!” Tom shouted.

So, they again lifted in unison and all four of them shouted to Ben to get out from under the thing, which he did with such force that it sent him reeling backwards into the back door of the ranch-style house.

“Man, Ben! …are you okay buddy?” They all asked.
“Yeah, I think so…” he responded, as he stood up and looked himself over.

“I don’t see anything, so, guess I’m okay.” The young man said.
“Whoa, dude!” Tom started…”Look at your fingers! …they’re all bloody!”

Now they were all looking to see what the heck Tom was talking about.

“Oh man!” Bill said as he spotted the trail of blood and pointed to it.

“Holy cow, Ben, you’d better go have your mom check that out, dude!”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right…” Ben said as he found the source of the bleeding.

“Man, doesn’t that hurt?” Bill asked wincing at the sight of all the blood.

“Yeah, really!” The others chimed in.

“No, my whole arm is numb…fingers, too.” Ben explained.

“Yeah, I’d better go show mom…” he mumbled, knowing she wouldn’t be too happy with him.

He could hear her now… “Benjamin, what on earth have you done to yourself now?!”

She just didn’t seem to understand that he was just being a typical teen-aged boy.

They didn’t have a floor jack to lift the front end up with so they improvised and something went wrong. That was just life…it happens. He thought.

“Besides, no big deal, a few stitches and I’ll be good as new.” He mumbled before knocking on the bathroom door.

“Yes, Benjamin, what is it, honey?”

“Uhh…mom…I hurt my fingers…a little…” He said softly, not wanting to alarm her.

“What happened?” She asked, raising her voice an octave or two.

“I’m okay; the car just fell on my left hand is all…”

“OH MY GOD!” She cried, jerking the door open.

“Let me see! …which hand?” Seeing it was the left one, she held it closer to take a good look.

“Come in here under the light…” She said as she dragged the boy along.

“Mom, it’s okay, right?” He asked nervously.

“I don’t know, yet, Benjamin.” Now she opened the bathroom closet door and began rummaging around in her massive first aid box. Uh-oh…he thought. This can’t be a good thing…it always hurts when she goes looking through that darned box!

“Yes! …here it is!” His mother said, as she turned around with a finger brush in her hand.

“Oh no, mom! …That’ll hurt like crazy!” Ben gasped.

“I can’t help it, Benjamin, your fingers are covered in grease and the muscle’s been pulled out of your left index finger…I’ve gotta get them clean, or you could lose both fingers.”

“I don’t care! …Let them rot off! …Just please don’t scrub them!” He pleaded.

But she wasn’t listening. She was an R.N. and a good one. She was also head nurse of the emergency room, 2nd shift, at Flint Hospital, which was where she was getting ready to go to now.

As she started scrubbing, Ben grimaced and fidgeted so badly that she finally gave up and wrapped a towel around both bleeding fingers and told him to go get one of his friends to come along with them to the hospital.

“And you might as well tell the rest of the boys to go on home because you aren’t going to be up to doing anymore work on that car tonight.” She reminded him.

“Okay mom…” he said sadly.

“Mom, this is Nick and he’s gonna go with us to the hospital.”

“Okay…hi Nick!” She said smiling.

“Okay, since you’ve bled through the towel and we need to clean those wounds, anyway…I want you to soak your fingers in this solution.” His mother explained, handing Ben a bowl with some kind of clear liquid in it.

“Okay, mom.” The boy said with a smile.

“And you behave yourself, young man! …Do you understand me?” She asked eyeing him sternly.

“Yes, ma’am!” He snapped.

“Alright then…” She concluded, turning to walk down the long hall.

Nick hadn’t said a word…he was just grateful it wasn’t himself that was in trouble for a change.

“Hey Ben! …Does it hurt?” Nick asked.

“Nope…when mom was scrubbing it, it felt kind of like when your arm goes to sleep and someone comes up and rubs it…you know?”

“Yeah! … I hate that!” Nick said, contorting his face.

“Yeah! … Me, too.” Ben said.

Just then Ben’s name was called for the x-rays that had been ordered to make sure his fingers hadn’t been broken.
Holding up his hand, to motion to the technician, he got up and left the area.

“Be right back, buddy.” Ben hollered over his shoulder.

“Be right here waiting on you!” Nick replied.

Just as he’d sat back down next to Nick, his mom stepped out from behind the nurse’s station to call his name.
The injured teen sprang to his feet and followed his mom’s voice, again leaving Nick behind.

“I’m going to put you in here for Dr. Shaw.”

“Okay mom.”

“And Benjamin…”

“Yeah, mom?”

“Don’t you embarrass me now…you behave yourself and no screaming, no whining…got it?”

“Yes, ma’am.” He sighed.

“Alright…I’ll be back to check on you in a bit.”

“Okay mom.”

He’d waited at least a half hour by the time the door flew open and in walked Dr. Shaw.

“You must be Benjamin!” The doctor said with a huge smile, as he offered his hand in a handshake.

Ben straightened but remained seated on the exam table as he extended his hand back.

“Yes sir.” The teen said with a slight smile.

“Okay, let’s see what you’ve done here…”

After looking at the still grimy fingers, Dr. Shaw explained that he was going to numb the index finger in several places and then once it was completely numb, he’d scrub the tissue and then pack the muscle back inside and sew it up.

“Then you can go home! …Because you didn‘t break any bones! …That‘s a miracle in itself…but you didn‘t!” Dr. Shaw stated with another genuine smile.

“Sounds good, doctor!” The boy replied with a smile of his own.
Ben was true to his word and didn’t embarrass his mother in anyway and after Dr. Shaw had sewn up the index finger, and then bandaged both the index and middle fingers, Ben was free to go.

“You boys be careful going home and Ben I’ll get a ride with Dorothy, so don’t worry about coming back to pick me up. I just want you to go home and rest.”

The young man smiled at his mother as he waved and walked out with his buddy Nick.

“I don’t think I’ll ever do that again, Nick…” Ben said shaking his head.

“No, I’ll bet you don’t!” Nick responded with a smile.