One time I was working on my car at my apartment complex. One of the wheel studs had broken off, so I was trying to replace it with a new one. So I jacked the car up and took the wheel off like I knew what I was doing (spoilers: I didn't). In order to get the stud out I had to take the entire hub off, which required removing the brake pad. And so I removed the brakes, but I couldn't get the hub off. So I said forget it, I'll just do it later. It was getting late and I had work the next day so I started trying to put everything back together. Thing was, I couldn't put the brake pad back on. The caliper was too tight. My car was also parked in what I thought was a maintenance station, but it was actually a car washing station. I really wasn't supposed to be there and I couldn't just leave my car there. What I thought would be a quick fix turned into hours of frustration and stress. I had no friends to call at the time because they were either working or they weren't car-saavy. So naturally, I start to panic.
It's 10:00 pm. I'm tired. Can't fix the car. I'm starving. Haven't had a shower. I just wanted the day to be over.
Lo and behold, a guy sees me in distress. He was one of the apartment maintenance guys. He approaches me. "Having trouble?"
I was confused as to how he came into existence at 10 pm but I didn't care. I accepted his help, and he knew what to do right away. Of course.
So he took the hub off, hammered out the broken stud and put the new one in, put the hub back on, and told me to "pump the brakes". I had no idea what he was doing but he certainly did, so I just did what I was told. Somehow he put the brake pad back on and all that was left was to reinstall the wheel and lower the car. The job was done. Finally.
Curious as to why he was even walking around so late in the evening, I asked him. He said he lived with his ex and was done putting up with her so he went on a casual stroll around the apartments and saw me. Said he'd much rather be helping me with my car than be stuck at home with his ex. I never asked why he still lived with her, figured it was none of my business. So I said thanks and he just...left. Like it was a normal day. Didn't get his name or anything. I never saw the guy again. Car drove like it was brand new the next day.
Thanks for reading.
TL;DR - some random guy helped me fix my car