Here’s a short, engaging story based on the search phrase The sign on Church Street said, “Caution: Rough Road,” but for Lena, it might as well have said, “Caution: End of Your Muffler.”

Lena watched from her porch. By the time Frank finished, the patch looked less like a scar and more like a fresh button on an old coat.

She paid him cash. He left a business card tucked under her door mat: “A-1 Asphalt – We fill holes, not promises.”