“ Your backpack is on fire”

I guess Nik is short for Nikki or maybe Nikole? Anyway, I was notified by Lyft and drove over to the Marathon gas station on Riverside Drive to pick up Nik. I could tell she was relieved when I arrived. She told me about a man who had offered her a ride three different times. Her plan was to walk to McDonald's for coffee and then take a Lyft home. The determined stranger offering his service made Nik feel pretty uncomfortable so she felt safer getting a ride to both stops. “The man was driving down Riverside drive, trying to convince me to get in his car while everyone behind him was honking,” Nik told me. On the way to McDonald's we talked about how she probably made a great decision turning the man down all three times.
I parked and waited for her to come back with her coffee so I could take her home. She had offered to grab me a cup too but I already had some I'd made at home. I rarely drive without coffee by my side. I cracked the windows while I was waiting and noticed a pretty overwhelming burning smell. It was strong like incense and my eyes actually started to water a little. I kept looking outside trying to figure out where the smell was coming from. The odor was so strong! It was almost like it was coming from the inside of my Jeep. The funny thing, it was coming from inside of my Jeep. I happened to look down at the backpack Nik had left in the floorboard. It was on fire. I calmly got out and noticed my passenger exiting with her warm cup of coffee in hand. “Is something wrong,” Nik asked me. I said, “Well, your backpack is on fire.” I continued around the vehicle, opened the passenger door, and pulled out the burning object. I shook the backpack until a cigar fell from what was left of the side pocket. She frantically apologized and seemed incredibly embarrassed. I told her this was a first, no one had ever tried to set my Jeep on fire.
We laughed about it on the way to her house. She mentioned how this was probably a sign she should quit smoking. This is how I look at the whole experience. I got to save Nik two times in one day. Once from a crazy stalker and once from an exploding backpack. It's a little bit of an exaggeration but hey, it's my #ridesharestory

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