The Homecoming War by Addie Woolridge

Author:Addie Woolridge [Woolridge, Addie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Random House Children's Books
Published: 2023-10-03T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirteen

“If the space were any bigger, you’d be parallel parking on a city block,” Nadiya yelled at me through the open car window, which was excessive, seeing as I’d shut the music off so I could concentrate.

“Let me think.” I cut the wheel so I was at a forty-five-degree angle, then inched backward while Nadiya huffed as she waited for me. Finally, I put the car in park.

“If you want to be ready for that driving test, you better have Grandmama and your mom practicing with you day and night, because I can’t.”

Nadiya practicing with me wasn’t exactly 100 percent legal. Technically, she wasn’t over twenty-five or related to me, so she shouldn’t have been anywhere near me while I was driving at all. But I was desperate. Mom was still out of commission, and Grandmama was at some church fundraiser. And honestly, it was nine a.m. on a Saturday, and we were practicing in a nearly empty strip-mall parking lot. I dared anyone in Huntersville to care about the legality of that.

“You failed the test the first time. I suspect I’ll be fine.” I unclicked my seat belt and got out to switch places with her so she could reposition the car.

“Or you could learn from my mistakes.” Nadiya sank into the driver’s seat as I got into the passenger side. “Now, I’m just gonna have you do this from the other side, and then we can practice— Wait.”

“What?”

“Is that Chris?”

“No. Where?” I sank lower in my seat.

“There.”

Even across the parking lot, I recognized him. He was wearing jeans, a white T-shirt, and a red apron and lifting a box of flowers into a van.

“Oh.” If I was lucky, maybe he wouldn’t know what Nadiya’s car looked like. “Let’s keep practicing. I only have two more weeks to get ready.”

Nadiya looked over at me and scowled. “What are you doing?”

“Nothing.” I sat up and pushed my big, bug-eyed sunglasses off the top of my head and over my eyes.

She grinned, reaching for the key in the ignition and making my heart thump wildly in my chest. “If it’s nothing, let’s go say hi.”

“It looks like he’s working. Let’s not bother him.”

“It’s not bothering when you’re working for your parents. Trust me.” She started the car, oblivious to the fact that I was basically sweating through my tank top. Thank god it was black.

I should have told her about the hug at the party and then the tension between us when we were counting ballots. Not to mention the football game. But now was definitely not the time to confess to hiding a crush and being a mess about it.

“But—”

“Hey, Chris!” Nadiya leaned her head out the window and shouted from halfway down the parking lot. I’d never tried so hard to become one with the spilled coffee and other stains on her car mat as Chris looked around to see who was yelling.

“We really shouldn’t—”

“Oh, it’s fine. Plus, I heard his mom is thinking about starting a high school student internship program this summer.

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