tired yet? ||cashby||

Chapter 6

"Put your hands on the wheel like this." He took my hands and placed them on the wheel in the 10 and 2 o'clock position. Trying desperately to ignore how much I liked his hands on me, I nervously gripped the wheel, and he let go.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" I swallowed, and he smiled.

"You don't have to," he said softly. "But it's totally safe. I told you that I wouldn't let anything happen, and I meant it," he said in a firm tone. I didn't have the heart to turn back after that.

"Okay," I muttered, looking at all the different gadgets and buttons. How was I supposed to know what to do with all of those? Austin smiled, and handed me the keys again. He'd driven us to an empty lot that no one ever built any property on, so there was just a long road with a huge cul-de-sac.

"Turn the car on," he directed. That seemed easy enough. I put the key into the ignition, turned, and heard the engine growl. It made me feel like an adult, and I smiled up at him.

"What's next?" I asked.

"Turn your headlights on to low."

He hadn't told me where anything was, so I was trying to find things without looking like a total idiot. A little stick stood out from the side of the wheel, and it had sun markings. I turned it, touching some of the buttons, and the headlights flicked on, as well as the windshield wipers.
Quickly, I hit the buttons again, and turned the wipers off.

"Oops." I giggled a little bit, and Austin just grinned at me.

"You're doing great. Okay, now look all around you; check all your mirrors and make sure no one is within distance. I know right now there isn't, but in any other situation, you always keep your eyes open for other cars," he said, and I adjusted my rearview mirror. Of course, no one was out at this late hour, save for the two of us.

"Okay," I mumbled, scared for the actual driving part.

"Good, now put the car into drive and take us down to the cul-de-sac," he said, and suddenly I felt very unconfident. I froze, and he chuckled.

"Just go slow, maybe like 10 miles an hour. Stay in the lines as best you can, I'll help you," he directed, and I nodded shakily. Taking the gear change in my hand, I shifted us into drive, with my foot clamped on the brakes.

"Slowly ease off the brakes, and keep yourself on the road," he said, and I did as he instructed. The car started moving slowly, inching along, and I turned the steering wheel to keep myself on the right side. We crawled along the road for a moment before Austin spoke again.

"Press the accelerator."

I touched it lightly with the tip of my toe, and the car jerked forward, making me slam the brake.

"Alan, that was good, except for the part where you stomped on the brakes," he chuckled, rubbing my shoulder. Somehow, the way he spoke didn't make me feel stupid. I felt good.

"Alright, now just be gentle, you can do it. Drive us down the road."

Gulping, I tried again. My foot moved to the gas pedal, and we moved faster along the road, at 15 miles an hour. Oh my god, I'm doing it. I'd never driven a car before, and now I was driving at night! I drove us all the way down the road, Austin giving encouraging comments the entire way, until we nears the turn around.

"Slow down here," he said, and I did it! I slowed down! "Okay, now pull the wheel all the way to the right and go around the circle," he said, placing his hands on mine and helping me turn. I went all the way around, and then back up the road.

"I did it." I grinned, feeling very in control as I pulled to a smooth stop at the start of the road. It wasn't half as hard as I'd imagined!

"Yeah, you did. I'm proud of you." He smiled. I froze. No one has ever been proud before. It hit harder than it should've, and I just sat there, staring for a moment.