She throws her bag over her shoulder and puts her oversized sunglasses on top of her head.

“Ready?”

Another nod.

“Let’s hit it, then.”

Oh, I wish.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

We walk into the parking lot and I look around trying to guess which car is hers. When she begins to walk over to a Porsche, and then finally claims it as hers, I’m astounded.

“When my dad died, I inherited a lot of stuff,” she explained simply.

“This is a nice ride,” I said, pretending to smell the new car smell, but in actuality I was taking in her scent that permeated the atmosphere. Looking over, I noticed that the car was a stick shift. Stick shift! I relaxed back into the comfortable seat, unsure of whether I should start a conversation or stay in silence. Gratefully, I didn’t have to choose because she turned on music.

Rock blared from the speakers and we both started to sing together to the music. Well, I started to sing, but when I heard her I stopped. She was magnificent.

“Do you sing?” I ask after the song is over.

“Not anymore. I gave it up a long time ago,” she said, leaving it at that. For the rest of the car ride, the only words spoken between her and I were directions to my house.

 As we pulled up to my house, she turned to me and said with a smile:

“Sorry for making you miss the bus, Spencer.”

“No problem. I definitely didn’t mind,” I said too enthusiastically, making me blush.

“Well you’re welcome to a ride home anytime.”

“Thanks.”

We paused, because I didn’t know how to end the conversation.

“I’ll see you tomorrow then,” she hinted.

“Oh! Yeah. School. Yeah. Tomorrow. Definitely.” I fumbled, looking down at my shoes.

She pulled away and I looked after her, silently ‘doh’ing myself for being so stupid around her.

Great. Now she probably thinks you’re a moron or something.

When I got to my bedroom, I put on my sweats getting ready to go for a jog. It wasn’t track season, but coach liked us to stay in shape during off-season, and I hadn’t exactly been practicing lately. I called Madison and asked her if it was okay to come over because her house was a good jogging distance away.