Auto-De-Fe    by Paul Hawkins
Price: Free! 8280 words. Published on September 2, 2011. .
Two young friends are united by a crappy old car, dead-end summer jobs, and the endless desire to escape from tedium into the big wide world. One breaks free and gets the girl; the other gets an empty garage and a valuable lesson. Short story: humor, coming of age, around 8200 words.