It was late in my sixteenth year. I was seated next to my best friend in our English class, anxiously awaiting for the bell to ring, excusing us for summer. Janelle kept watching the clock, stopping whatever she was saying to turn around and check how much time we had left in class.
At two minutes, she began to talk about our summer plans.
"Elijah wants to go to the carnival tonight," she said, smiling as she said her boyfriend's name. "Are you coming?"
"I don't know," I sighed. "It's opening day, so it's going to be crowded. Plus, I don't really feel like being a third wheel."
"You'd think after three years you'd be used to it."
"Don't be rude!" I laughed, poking her.
"Bring someone! Then you won't be a third wheel."
I rolled my eyes. "Like who?"
"Tyler? Maybe you'll finally let him take you out on a date."
I shook my head. "Tyler and I are just friends, and you know that."
"But he so obviously has a thing for you," Janelle tried- again- to convince me that our friend Tyler, a boy I had known my entire life, was into me. "Come on, just-"
The bell rang, and I stood up, swinging my bag on my shoulder and looking down at Janelle.
"Saved by the bell," she snorted, standing up and following me out of the classroom.
We walked slowly, not wanting to be a part of the stampede of students shoving their way to the front of the school.
"Is Elijah driving us home today?"
"I think so, yeah."
I nodded in return, dodging someone running to join the stampede.
When we finally got out of the school, we still had a small ways to walk before we got to where Elijah parked his car everyday, which was past the park next to our school. Elijah was extremely paranoid of having his car get scratched or hit, and while I didn't really blame him, I did often join in on Janelle teasing him for how much he loved his car.
"So you're coming tonight, right?"
"Why does it even matter if I'm there? You and Elijah will end up going off on your own anyway."
"No we won't..." she tried to defend herself, but she knew I was right.
I rolled my eyes. We stopped to let a car pass before crossing the street. "Yes you-"
"Stop! Stop, stop, stop!" someone shouted.
Janelle and I turned our heads to find a car skidding towards us, the driver trying desperately to stop the car. Janelle grabbed my arm as it came towards us, trying to pull us out of the way. We ended up tripping and falling back. I held my breathe, curling up, not wanting to see the car when it hit my body. A few seconds too long passed, and I still hadn't felt the impact. I raised my head slightly, opening one eye, and finding the car directly in front of me, barely a centimeter away. I raised my head completely and exhaled shakily.
"I'm so sorry!" the driver was standing next to me, his arms extended, hands hovering above me like he wanted to console me but wasn't sure if he could. I wasn't paying too much attention to the driver though, because I recognized the car.
"What are you doing with Elijah's car?" I moved my eyes from the car to the driver. He was on his knees next to me in dark blue jeans and a faded Pink Floyd t-shirt. His light brown hair wasn't long enough to fall into his face and cover his stunning hazel eyes, but long enough to fall onto his forehead.
"I thought I'd let him drive," Elijah said, a few feet away from us, hugging Janelle. "Never making that mistake again."
"It wasn't me!" the boy in the band shirt said, his tone offended. "It was your shitty brakes!"
Elijah glared at him before looking at me with a much softer expression. "You okay?"
I nodded. "Is she?"
Elijah looked at Janelle before smiling and kissing the top of her head. "Yeah, just shaken up."
"I'm surprised you're not worse," the boy next to me said. "You were the one who would've been hit, not her."
I nodded slowly. "Who are you?"
"'Name's Dean," he answered, his eyes flickering over me. "Are you sure you're okay?"
I nodded again. "Maybe a little bruised from the fall, but yes."
Dean smiled, offering me his hand to help me up. I took it gingerly, allowing him to pull me up off the street. "I'm really sorry," Dean said, looking at his shoes before looking back up at me. "I'm normally a really good driver."
"For some reason, I find that hard to believe."
"It was the brakes," he held up his hands, as if surrendering, and smiled a little. "But still. Sorry."
I gave him a small smile in return. "I don't know if it'd be appropriate to say it's okay, considering you could have killed me."
"But I didn't," he gave me another smile, showing his teeth that time, and I couldn't help but return it. "I never got your name."
"Audrey. I'm Audrey."
"Well, Audrey. I'm very sorry for almost hitting you with my friend's car because of his shitty brakes. Is there anything I can do to make it up to you?" Dean was smirking now, his tone confident and cheeky.
I laughed, shaking my head. "Nothing I can think of right now."
"Well then I guess I owe you." he winked when I made eye contact with him again.
I looked at the ground, trying to hide my blush. "I guess so."
"Come on, guys," Elijah said, opening the passenger door for Janelle. "Let's go."
