Who Writes Short Shorts? 2

So this is my second "short-short" I had written for my Fiction Writing Class. It is called "Practice". the other two stories are on myspace and facebook.

The Driving Instructor introduced himself James Bond Style. “I’m Stone. Jeff Stone,” he said to the nervous 16 year old boy in the driver’s seat. He told the boy not to worry and that everything would go fine. He then said to turn the car on and put it in reverse. He boy fumbled with the keys, turned on the car, then struggled to put it in reverse. “Do you like video games,” Stone asked. The boy looked at him kind of confused while trying to wrestle with the wheel, then answered, “I guess.” “Grand Theft Auto is my favorite. I like driving away from the cops after I’ve totally mowed down about 20 people. I once had 4 stars and managed to escape. I also like playing Halo a lot. Halo 1 was classic, but Halo 2 is my favorite. Have you ever played?” asked Stone. The boy looked over at him and said, “Yah. It’s one of my favorites too.” “My weapon of choice is a shotgun, how about you?” asked Stone. “I like the Needler,” said the boy smiling. “Well I don’t know how good you are at driving the warthog in Halo, but let’s see if we can’t get this car onto the road,” said Stone.
The boy drove alright. He seemed more relaxed as Stone and he continued to talk about video games. Stone was doing this as a side job to pay his way through school. He remembered how nervous he was the first time he drove a car and how silent and cold the instructor had been. It was Stone’s policy that the driver should feel as relaxed and comfortable as possible so that driving could come more easily. You’re more likely to crash into a car coming into your lane if your nervous than if you act casually and see it coming ahead of time.
As they drove on, Stone used another tactic to make the boy more aware of the pedestrians and people around him. “Oh Look,” he said, “There’s an old lady about to cross the street. 45 points!” The boy knew this game and he gave a slight laugh and said, “Guy on a bike up ahead. 150 points.” Now he was really getting in it. “How about that kid on the skateboard?” the boy asked. “Mmm . . . I’d say about 234 points. He is a fast moving target and he can swerve out of the way,” said Stone. Then Stone gave the same complimentary advice he always gave his student drivers. “If you ever run someone over, start a spree. Just start running people over right and left. You might as well since you’re probably going to jail forever anyway. Just mow down all the people within range of your vehicle. Just don’t tell the cops I told you that.”
Finally after two hours the boys turn was up. Since he was the last student of the day he had the boy drive himself all the way back to his house. “So how was it?” Stone asked as the boy parked the car in his driveway, hitting the curb only for a moment. “It was a lot better than I thought it would be,” the boy said smiling. “well I’ll see you again in 3 weeks and maybe if you’re really good I’ll let you do spins and donuts in an empty parking lot. “Cool!” said the boy as he walked towards the back of the car. Stone felt good sitting in the front seat. He had managed to help another driver feel more comfortable behind the wheel. Stone quickly threw the car in reverse and backed up, but stopped suddenly when he hit something and heard a thud. “What the . . .” was all he could say as he quickly turned the engine off and ran around to the back of his car. There was the boy lying face up on the pavement. He was fine, but the car had knocked him down hard. As the boy looked up at Stone he suddenly moved his lips and asked in a faint voice, “How much was that worth?” Stone looked down, disappointed in himself, and answered, “Negative 756.”