Rob gave their intrepid instructor a lazy smile. “I know, Fletch. But nobody was home. I had no other way to get here on time.”
“It would be generous to say you’re on time, Mr. Harris.” Mr. Fletcher checked his watch. “And the next time I see you driving without an adult in the car, I’m going to call the police. But we better get going. Mr. Harris, why don’t you go first since you already had a warm-up this morning?”
Izzy giggled again. Rob shrugged and held the back door open for her, watching appreciatively as her miniskirt-clad behind wriggled into position. He reached in and made a show of securing Izzy’s seat belt, which allowed him to graze her breasts with his arm. Izzy smiled.
Rae made a face she hoped portrayed her utter disgust. So immature. And embarrassing. And gross. No wonder her parents didn’t want her to have a boyfriend.
She slid in next to Izzy in the back while Mr. Fletcher took the front passenger seat, a clipboard in hand and instructions ready on his lips.
“Check your mirrors and—”
Rob didn’t need any helpful hints or reminders. He pulled onto the road like he’d been doing it for years.
RAE FORCED A smile as all eyes turned on her.
Mr. Fletcher repeated himself. “Your turn, Miss Walters. Up you go.”
Her legs shook as she got out of the back seat and took the keys from Izzy’s outstretched hand. Rob’s and Izzy’s drives had gone off without a hitch. Rob had even pulled off a textbook parallel park downtown, and Izzy had remembered to yield to the car on her right when the two cars arrived at a four-way stop at the same time.
But Rae was certain her drive was not destined to go as smoothly.
The car was centered perfectly in a parking space in front of the post office, which hadn’t opened yet. She climbed into the driver’s seat and adjusted the rearview mirror, buying time. So far, Gerrit was the only one who knew she was a terrible driver. And who would he tell? But now the world was watching.
Behind her, Izzy slid over to the middle seat, because an arm’s length away was apparently too far to be from her boyfriend. Rob placed a hand on her bare knee. Maybe they would be too enamored with each other’s presence to notice if she turned the wrong way on a one-way street or backed over a curb.
But Mr. Fletcher would notice.
She started the car and awaited his instructions.
“Check your mirrors and look behind you before backing up.”
While no one would be around this early in the morning, she checked and double-checked before grabbing the shifter, pressing down on the brake with her foot, and trying to put the car in reverse. The shifter wouldn’t move. She wiggled it, pulling harder. Nothing.
“Ahem.” Mr. Fletcher made a note on his clipboard. “You have to press down on the brake pedal to shift gears, Miss Walters.”
Rob and Izzy chuckled behind her. Heat crawled up her face from her neck. So that was why the engine was revving.
She lifted her foot off the gas pedal and depressed the brake. “There we go.”
She slid the shifter in reverse and inched her way out of the parking space, swiveling to look all around and behind her the whole time.
Izzy leaned close to Rob and whispered, “She drives like my grandma.”
Rob snickered. Rae tried to ignore them. Once she had room, she straightened the car and drove to the end of the parking lot but stopped short of pulling onto the road. She gave her left a long look. Then her right. The road stretched before her like a long list of expectations and demands.
“Every assignment is major, Rae.”
She clenched the wheel. She couldn’t give her parents any reason to be angry with each other or throw blame around.
“I’ve never seen a kid so dedicated.”
“I don’t need to remind you how important this is.”
She had to succeed.
“What are you waiting for?” Mr. Fletcher asked. “There’s no one coming.”
Focus. Focus.
“Which way?” The pitch of her voice was too high.
“Turn left.” Mr. Fletcher pointed. “We’ll head down to Fifth and hit a few stoplights, then drive over toward Howard Elementary, where they have that roundabout.”
Rae gulped. A roundabout? Might as well rip up The Plan right now. She was doomed.
MR. FLETCHER DROVE the car back into the school parking lot about ten minutes before the first bell. Rae slumped in the seat next to him. As far as she knew, no one had ever been asked—er, commanded—to give up the wheel halfway through their drive and let the instructor take over.
Rob and Izzy murmured to each other in the back, and she could only imagine what they were talking about. Even they had stopped nuzzling each other’s necks and come up for air when she ran a red light and that SUV almost hit them. She hurried out of the car without looking back. Thank goodness Mr. Fletcher had made them all put their phones away for the drive, or who knew how many videos Izzy could’ve posted to social media by now.
Inside the building, a hooded head that looked like Morgan’s bobbed among the swarming masses at the other end of the hall.
“Morgan,” she called. “Hey, Morgan, wait up.”
He ducked into the bathroom. Had he been too far away to hear or was he avoiding her? She was pondering the likelihood of the latter when Kylee appeared.
“Where’s your usual Monday morning cheer?” Kylee folded her hands under her chin and gave an exaggerated smile.
Rae frowned. “I’m not that bad.”
“Didn’t you have a drive this morning?”
Rae looked away. “Yes.”
“How’d it go?”
Fibbing or changing the subject crossed her mind, but Rae knew Kylee would find out sooner or later. Rob and Izzy were known for a lot of things, but keeping gossip to themselves was not one of them.
“I bombed big-time.”
“Uh-huh.” Kylee smirked.
