home from school. And I knew for a fact that Aaron hated to ask people for help.
All I knew was I wasn’t about to let Aaron stress over this or end up walking an hour after a grueling practice to get home.
As awkward as things had been lately between us, I still had the biggest soft spot for him. At the end of the day, he was my friend.
So I grabbed my stuff, closed my locker, and walked over. “Hey.”
He turned toward me, surprised. “Hey.”
“I couldn’t help but overhear what you and David were talking about just now,” I said, glancing in the direction my bother had left.
Aaron stumbled over his words for a second. “Oh, um—” he said, shaking his head like it wasn’t a big deal. “You don’t have to—“
“I can give you a ride home after practice,” I offered. “I don’t mind.”
He shifted on his feet and glanced away. Was it me, or were things more awkward than ever between us? I hated it. So much. “It’s okay,” he said. “I don’t want you getting in trouble or something.”
I could hear the uncertainty in his voice, but I considered what he said.
He had a good point. There was a reason my brother hadn’t just told him to ride home with me. Yeah, Dad probably wouldn’t love the idea of me in a car with a boy, but as well-meaning as he was, some of his ideas were kind of antiquated.
I knew in my heart I wouldn’t be doing anything wrong by giving Aaron a ride home. My parents knew him and trusted him. They would give him a ride home in heartbeat. “It wouldn’t be any trouble,” I replied. “I mean, we live right next to each other and I’m heading home at the same exact time so…”
He still looked kind of unsure.
“Aaron,” I told him, louder this time. That got his attention. “Just say yes,” I said with a smile, determined to get one on his face.
He shifted his weight. “What if your parents find out?”
“They won’t,” I reassured him. “Besides, we’re literally going straight home. Ten minutes.”
Finally, he seemed to relax like an inch. “Alright, then. Yes.”
My grin grew wider. I liked seeing him smile. A little bit of the weird tension around us disappeared. “Good,” I replied.
“Thank you,” Aaron said, meeting my eyes.
It made me happy to see him that way. No longer worried about this situation.
As we stood there, something shifted between us. I froze, lost in the way he looked at me. I remembered to breathe. Aaron Garcia seemed to have that effect around me. “Cool,” I said, trying to recover. “See you after practice then.” I turned and left, my heart pounding like crazy inside of me.
Already, I felt kind of anxious and unsure about the idea of us riding home together, but if I knew one thing, it was that it had been the right thing to do. That I was sure about.
Maybe Dad wouldn’t like it, but it was mostly because he probably would’ve chosen for me to stay secluded in a tower like Rapunzel if he could.
He had always been like that with me, his only daughter, and he probably always would be. But I was growing up, and sooner or later, I had to make my own decisions.
They were good decisions.
As far as I knew, I was just doing something nice. For a friend who deserved it.
Besides, he didn’t have to find out.
So I’d be spending a few minutes alone with Aaron every afternoon on our way home. That was it.
No big deal.
No need to keep my feelings in check because he was just a friend.
Most importantly, my brother’s best friend.
So as much as he took my breath away, nothing could ever happen.
We were just friends.
5
After cheer practice that afternoon, Scarlett walked back to the parking lot with me.
Meanwhile, it was finally starting to hit me that Aaron would be riding home with me. David wouldn’t be there. It would just be me and him.
Alone.
Scarlett’s mom waved at us from several feet away.
We waved back, coming to a stop to say goodbye.
Scarlett focused in on something behind me. “Who’s that? Wait, is that Aaron?”
I turned to see what she was talking about. Aaron stood by David’s black Nissan.
Scarlett grinned at me as she connected the dots in her head. “Wait. Is he waiting for you?”
I tried to play it cool, but inside, I was already freaking out a little. “Oh. Yeah. He usually rides home with me