“Why do we need to come here?” I hedge, anxious as we walk into the building.
Austin and I fall into step side by side, but he doesn’t reach for my hand like he did at his grandfather’s party. A sense of rejection nestles into my bones like an old, prickly friend.
“I just have to pick up this mic I put on hold at an electronics store, it’s pretty rare, and I found it here. Sorry, we’ll get going soon.” He smiles down at me, and I get distracted by the sandy blond stubble on his chin.
“Well, I’ll have to get a cinnamon pretzel now that we’re here. Seeing as you didn’t let me stay for cake,” I joke as we walk through the mall.
“Remember the milkshake stand that had those awesome peanut butter chocolate milkshakes? I miss that place.” Austin references one of the most popular stands in the mall from our childhood.
Two girls from Austin’s grade pass us, then do a double take. I see them before he does, but he clocks them when they start to whisper loudly about what “that girl,” meaning me, is doing with Austin Van Hewitt.
That’s when he seems to snap out of the haze he’s been in since we left Gino’s, and I feel his hand reach for mine. The moment our fingers lock, my whole body is at peace. My skin flushes, my heart begins to beat double time, the butterflies in my stomach take off in flight.
We grab Austin’s microphone from an electronics store that has me scared to touch anything inside and then begin to make our way back to the car.
But as we walk into the department store we parked near, the pair walking toward us are two people I never expected to see on my short trip up here.
“Taya?”
My mother looks at me like she can’t believe I’m really standing in front of her, and Kathleen looks back and forth between my companion and me.
“Oh, woah. Hi, Mom. Hi, Kath.” I’m a little bit in shock, seeing them here when I wasn’t going to even drop in to check up with my family.
We hug and kiss, and the actions feel forced. Austin stands where he is until I introduce him, and he gives my mother and sister friendly smiles.
“Nice to meet you,” he says, holding my hand.
Kathleen won’t stop staring at the place where we’re joined.
“I didn’t know you were coming into town,” Mom says, smoothing her hair behind her ear.
She’s flustered, and I’m not sure if it’s because I caught her off guard or if it’s because I’m the daughter she never really connects with.
“Austin had a thing, and he asked me to come with him. Didn’t want to bother you guys if you had a training or practice or something.”
I try to keep the bitterness out of my tone, but it still creeps in. Austin squeezes my hand, as if he can sense I’m in an awkward family conversation now. How does he know, this soon, just what I’m feeling?
“Oh my gosh, honey, you could have called us! We would have loved to see you.” Mom laughs as if I’m making some sort of joke.
Meanwhile, they’ve barely called to check in since I got back to college in January.
“How is everything going, Kath?” I nod, asking the question out of politeness.
My sister blinks. “Good. I have a competition in London next week.”
Nothing about her personal life or how she’s actually feeling, just all about the horses. This is why we will never understand each other.
“Well, we have to get back to campus.” I shuffle my feet.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful to grab coffee and sit and chat? Austin and I are in no rush. Normally, a girl would be so excited to introduce a guy like Austin to her family. A normal family would joke and walk the mall shopping, maybe do a stupid little try-on like those montages in the movies.
But we’re not most families. I feel disconnected, like an outsider to the people who are my blood. Now that I think about it, Austin and I have that in common.
“Okay. It was so good to see you, sweetheart. Let’s chat this week, okay?” Mom gives me a bright smile.
Yeah, right. She’s going to London with my sister, which means she’ll forget she ever promised that.
This trip to Webton has shown me some new things about Austin, but it has also exposed sides of me that I don’t know if I am ready to reveal to him.
As we get in the car, part of me wishes we could have just stayed in our Prospect Street bubble forever.
21
Austin
The first ten minutes of the car ride are quiet, the darkness shrouding us as David Bowie hums through the speakers.
It’s nearly seven p.m., and we haven’t hit daylight savings yet, so I can’t make out Taya’s expression, though I want to, terribly.
“Thank you for coming with me today.”
I reach across the center console and put my hand on her knee, then squeeze. Though she has jeans on and I can’t run my hand over her smooth skin, this is the most comforted I’ve felt all day. There is something about Taya that puts me at ease, almost like I can be my most authentic self when I’m around her. It might have been a last-minute invite, but I’m glad she’s with me today. And there is something about her being in the room with my family that shows her something about me I could never explain.
Apparently, the universe is throwing us all kinds of demonstrations today, since we ran into her family at the mall. From the way she was with her mother and sister, it’s clear that there is just as much tension in that relationship as the one I have with my parents.
When Taya doesn’t answer, I realize she’s so preoccupied that she didn’t hear me.
“It was nice to meet your mom and sister,” I toss it out, wondering what she’ll say.
Because while it was nice to meet some of her family, the whole thing felt more awkward than my grandfather’s entire party. Taya knows a lot about my family because of who they are in Webton, but I guess I never really realized hers has baggage too. It’s a big flaw of mine, my inability to look past my own life’s drama and issues. When I do, I realize that a lot of the people around me have shit going on too. In that regard, it makes me feel closer to this beautiful girl whose mind I suddenly want to pick apart.
“Yeah.” She nods, clearly lost in her own head.
“Your sister is the Olympian, right?” I throw the question out, waiting to see when Taya will actually talk to me.
A quick glance away from the highway and in her direction shows me that she’s deep in thought, staring out the passenger side window.
“Not yet, but yes, she’s on her way.” The sarcastic end note to her sentence alerts me that it’s a sensitive topic.
But just like my family and me, you get to know people by the chatter in Webton. It’s a big suburb with a small-town feel, and everyone is always in everyone else’s business. And those people loved to know the business of Webton’s most famous, or infamous, residents. I didn’t put two and two together when I met her, or even when we saw her sister in the mall. But now that I think about it, I’ve heard things about her sister and those horse competitions. Taya’s sister was going to be a local celebrity after her brush with the Olympics, so of course, some townspeople want to ride her coattails or be attached to her.