AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Don’t tell me,” she said. “You won.”
She heard him laughing. “Of course not,” Nick said. “I’m headed home in disgrace.”
“What, right now?” She took the book she’d been reading off her lap and placed it on the table next to her. “You’re not driving while you’re on the phone, are you?”
“That’s exactly what I’m doing.”
“Nick. That’s not safe.”
“Sure it is. Just as long as I don’t have to use the brake.”
“You’d better be screwing with me.”
More laughter. “I’m not holding the phone. There’s a hands-free system in the car.”
She relaxed. “How do you drive, anyway?”
“I’ll show you sometime.”
“You can’t just tell me?”
“It’ll make more sense if I show you.”
“Sure.” She stood up from her chair. “You just like being mysterious.”
“Exactly. Otherwise you’ll find out how boring I am.”
Howdidhe drive? She assumed his feet weren’t involved, but she couldn’t swear to it, and it bothered her that she hadn’t taken the time to find out. Or maybe it was good she hadn’t thought about it. That meant she focused on him, not his disability.
But what was she focusing on now?
“What’re you up to?” he asked her.
“Just reading,” she said.
“Yeah? Reading what?”
She glanced at the cover. “It’s calledBefore I Fall.”
“Tell me about it.”
She liked how he didn’t hesitate. No flattery, no pretense, just four words that told her what she was doing was worth his time.
“It’s about this high school girl who keeps dying,” she said.
Silence for a beat. “Keeps …”
“Dying,” she repeated. “She dies in a car accident and then relives the last day of her life over and over.”
“So it’s a horror story?”
“Nope. It’s kind of a love story, actually. LikeA Christmas CarolorIt’s a Wonderful Life. She’s learning what’s important.”
“God, I hate those movies.”
“You take that back.”
“Seriously. You get, like, five minutes of happiness after watching people’s lives go to hell for an hour and a half.”
