Resolution

The young woman’s hand flew from her mouth as the car shook from the impact. In the rearview mirror, she saw a red lipstick line stretching from the corner of her lips to her ear.
“Fuck! Again, I missed the red light!” she mouthed.
The front bumper of her car kissed the rear bumper of the car in front. This unwanted kiss meant that a traffic accident had occurred.
The driver’s door of the car in front opened, and an old woman slowly emerged. Almost at the same moment, behind the young woman, the police car’s lights began flashing, as if celebrating the defeat of crime.
A minute later, all three of them stood together. Fear and confusion filled the old woman’s eyes, while the young woman’s eyes radiated confidence and seduction. The officer’s eyes were hidden behind sunglasses, revealing nothing.
“What happened?” the officer asked.
The young woman recalled her boyfriend’s funny story about a ninety-year-old woman who had smashed through the front window of a liquor store after confusing the gas and brake pedals.
“I have a chance,” she thought.
The young woman smiled at the officer, and her gaze stuck to his sunglasses like honey to a spoon. The sunglasses slid down his nose, as if they were ready to jump off.
“The car in front of me suddenly moved backward, and there was nothing I could do,” she said calmly.
“Is that true?” the officer asked, finally turning toward the old woman.
“Dash…” was all she managed to say.
“Did she mean that her car moved backward and dashed into the young woman’s car?” he thought, trying to make sense of her words.
The young woman moved closer to him. He felt a rush of heat. Even in uniform, beneath the professional exterior, he was still a young man.
“Your driver’s license and registration,” he managed to say.
“What did she mean? She definitely has a dash of crazy in her. I’m on the right track. This could work,” the young woman thought triumphantly.
“Veronica Pride may have told the truth. She’s only thirty-five, while Ellionore Kollinz is eighty-four. I’ve heard that elderly drivers sometimes do strange things,” the officer thought after looking at their driver’s licenses.
He returned the documents and took a look at the damage to both cars. It wasn’t significant, but both cars needed repairs.
“Did you move backward?” the officer gently asked Ellionore Kollinz.
“Dash…” Ellionore repeated.
“Dear, are you all right? Maybe we need to call an ambulance?” Veronica said to Ellionore, her voice softer now.
“What ambulance? You’re the one who should see a doctor when you can’t even see a red light right in front of you. Dash—I have a dashcam in my car!” Ellionore finally said firmly.
“You hit this lady’s car from behind while the traffic light was still red,” the officer said after reviewing the dashcam footage.
The sunglasses climbed back up his nose, covering his eyes. Then, as if by magic, a pink traffic citation appeared in his hand.
Veronica’s face became pink as well.
“No more lipstick in the car! This time I’m banning it forever. I’ve made a resolution,” she thought.