"How's your senior year going? Do you have any college plans?" It’s ame, but it’s a safe topic. She clears her throat. "It's going," she says simply. "We plan on going to state."
"We?"
"Yeah, Taylor and I."
"Watch out now, the double trouble on the loose at State. Takin' names and breakin' hearts." I laugh.
She lightly backhands me on the shoulder. "We are not trouble!"
"You and Taylor? Oh yes, you are! Walking, talking, double trouble!"
"Whatever." She shakes her head. "You're one to talk!"
"OOH! What does that mean?"
"You and Vance? Takin' names and breakin' hearts."
"That's all Vance," I say and look out the window.
"Uh-huh," she hums.
I decide, ‘fuck it’. I lean back in my seat, "You jealous?"
She quickly looks at me, then back at the road, "What?"
"You heard me, sounds like jealousy." I sigh and place my arms behind my head.
"Jealous of what? The,” she takes her one hand off the wheel to air quote the next word, "'lucky' ladies that get to hook up with you? The same ones you guys don't have the decency to call back?"
"Ouch." I wince. "I don't care how you view your brother, but you really think that of me?"
She shrugs.
"Don't get me wrong, I like women." She makes a face. "What?"
"Nothing."
"Why did you make that face then?"
She sighs, then shifts gears. "You sound like such a womanizer."
"Just because I like women? It doesn't mean I've slept with as many as you may think. It's the same with your brother."
"TMI, dude."
"No, you went there, so we're goin' there. You like men, right?"
She glances at me and purses her lips.
"Yes?" I prompt.
"Yeah."
"Okay, so just because you like men, doesn't mean you're going to sleep with every one of them,” She says nothing, “right?" Finally, she nods. "That's all I meant by it. I love women. But cut me some slack, I have some standards. When I'm really into someone, that's the only person I see. So whatever prejudice you have of me, forget it, because it's wrong."
"I'm sorry," she says quietly.
"It's important you know this."
"Why?"
"As I said, when I'm into someone, they're the only person I see."
She glances at me, the confusion written all over her face. "So you're into someone?" It’s a question.
"Yes."
"Okayyy. Well then, I guess it's good that she's all you see, then."
"You have no idea," I say looking at her. She's completely oblivious as she turns into the parking lot of Victor's Garage. I have no idea what I'm doing here. For the first time, I'm way out of my league. The more time I spend around her, the more attracted I become. This shouldn't come as a surprise; she's absolutely amazing. The smart thing to do would be to keep my distance, but I don't know if I'm smart enough for that anymore. I have to be careful, Vance would kill me, but I'll deal with that when it comes. Veronica pulls into a spot near the front office of the garage, then she pulls the e-brake. She looks at me, giving me a weak smile. "Thanks for letting me drive."
"No problem. I told you I'd make it up to you." I return her smile. Vance pulls up next to us, and Veronica is out of my car without another word. I take a deep breath, get out, and walk around the back of my car. Wes and Vaughn pull up behind us but remain inside with the windows down. Vance says something to Veronica then jogs over to the tow truck driver, directing him where to put V's car. He unloads it and waves as he drives out of the lot. Veronica gets into the passenger side of Vance's car, and I'm a little bummed. I guess I just assumed we'd ride over to the Field together. Vance walks back to his car, and whirls his finger around. "Let's roll."
I glance at the passenger side, but the window is up, and I can't see through his tint. So I just get in my car and follow behind everyone to the Field, trying to think where things went wrong in my conversation with Veronica.
Not into Me
"What the hell was that?" Vance starts immediately grilling me as soon as we pull out of the garage's lot. I can't help but roll my eyes, "What the hell was what?"
"You and Chase, what the hell were you driving his car for?"
"He asked. I think he was trying to cheer me up with my car being down."
"He didn't try anything, did he?"
I look at him like he's the one who lost his mind now and laugh. He doesn't say anything, so I have to follow up, "You're serious?"
"Fuck yeah, I'm serious."
"No Vance, he didn't try anything."
"He better fucking not. I'll fucking kill him."
"Vance, he's your best friend. We've known him forever. I can tell you he thinks of me as a little sister. In fact, he told me he's into someone."
"He told you that? Who the fuck is he into? He cannot be serious about that chick he hooked up with."
Whoa. All that crap he was talking in the car makes sense now. He's seeing' this girl, and anything that may have come off as flirting was just the opposite. He was making it clear tonight that he's into her. Ugh. I knew he wasn't into me! How could he be! But why the hell did he touch me like that? That wasn't nothing. I'm getting some serious whiplash on Chase's words and actions.
"That dog." Vance's whole demeanor has changed now that he knows Chase wasn't trying to put the moves on me. He's visibly relaxed and drops the whole subject. He leans forward and turns up his music. The car becomes engulfed in some techno rap and I can barely hear myself think. This is going to suck. I don't want to see Chase with this girl. Dammit, I should've just told Vance to take me home. Maybe I can find a ride home with someone who's leaving early. I have to get up for work in the morning, anyway, and I need to get a start on finding out what the hell happened to my car. I wonder if I can get Vin to go in early. He shouldn't be out too late because he has to be up, too.
I pull out my phone and send him a text. He responds quickly, which surprises me. It's one word. ‘Maybe’.
Ugh.
Vance slows as we come to the entrance, his car bouncing because of the dirt road until he finds a place to park. I open my door but don't get out right away. Vance slams his door, "Let's go V, I need to lock it." I stand up and close my door. It beeps, and I walk around, leaning against the back to wait for Taylor. Chase is lingering until Vance calls him over, where they wander off. Taylor's smile is taking over her whole face. I shake my head, and her smile falls. Taylor hangs behind with me, Wes looks back at her. She tells him, "I'm gonna girl talk with V, I'll be up there in a minute." He just nods, he and Vaughn keep walking.
"What happened?" she asks.
"We were so far off Tay," I tell her.