Free Falling Stars by Charles Sheehan-Miles

talking about me, boys.”  
    Barry met my eyes, shrugging minutely, then turned toward Julia as she approached him.
    “Barry… I feel awful our visit was so weird.”
    He gave her a lopsided smile. “Baby girl, you’ve got a standing invitation. I know things are weird right now, but they’ll get better.”
    That sentence was followed with the same death stare I was pretty sure he’d given Iraqi commandos before dispatching them. I just nodded back. I was determined not to lose her, I just didn’t know what that was going to take.
    We hugged and shook hands goodbye all around, and then we all started to pile in the car. She walked around to the driver’s side—a very clear signal.  
    I handed her the keys.  
    She blinked, a little deflated because I think she’d been expecting a fight. Her shoulders lowered a little and she let out a breath. “You drive? I may nap a little.”
    “Sure,” I replied.
    She gave an infinitesimal smile and handed me back the keys then walked around to the passenger side.  
    What. The. Fuck?
    Whatever. Maybe I should give in more often.   We all got in the car and I cranked it up. We waved goodbye to the Lewises as we got the hell out of there.
    As I finally reached the end of the driveway, I looked over at her and asked, “Top down?”
    “Why are you asking me? Why don’t you ask them?”
    Christ on a crutch. Was all that necessary? I swallowed and looked over my shoulder. Carrie and Sean looked at me with blank faces. No help at all. I raised my eyebrows and stuck my arms out. Well?
    “Sure, Crank, why don’t you put the top down?” Carrie said.
    “Awesome, thanks.”
    I reached for the catches on the edge of the windshield; Julia muttered something and crossed her arms over her chest.   I sighed and took a breath. I mean, seriously, what had I done? What was so offensive about asking her whether she wanted the top down or not?
    “Is everything okay?” I asked as I pressed the button and the top began folding back.
    Julia rolled her eyes.
    “Please,” I said quietly, attempting to preserve the illusion that Sean and Carrie weren’t hearing every word. Both of them had their noses buried in books they weren’t reading. “Julia… I don’t know what I did wrong. If you don’t want the top down, it doesn’t have to be down.”
    “What does it matter? I don’t care if you have the top up or down. Seriously, Crank. You’re going to do what you’re going to do anyway. Why bother asking me what I want?”
    “Oh, for Christ’s sake,” I muttered.  
    The top was down all the way and Carrie and Sean buttoned the cover down without being asked. I took a right and began driving. In a few minutes we’d be back out on the two-lane blacktop which would lead to a divided highway which would lead to the interstate and our route home. And the sooner we were moving quickly, the sooner it would be too loud in the car to hear her talk.
    With that thought, I slowed down a little. Okay. It was uncomfortable. It was stressful.   I felt like she was judging me and not giving me a chance, but the fact was, I’d screwed up. So I said words that were difficult for me. Sometimes really difficult. But they were necessary.
    “I’m sorry.”
    Silence reigned in the car for the next forty-five years or so, because she didn’t answer. I reached the divided highway and turned right, headed back south on US 385, a barren, empty stretch of divided highway that led over the horizon toward Odessa. I quickly got up to speed, the hot air blasting into the car not really cooling us at all. In the rearview mirror, Carrie’s hair flew all over the place, and she ducked down behind the seat to try and get it tied under a bandana.
    “Carrie, you want me to put the top back up?” I shouted.
    She shook her head no, which was fine. But in the seat in front of her, Julia rolled her eyes.
    “What?” I asked.
    One eyebrow went down, the other went up, her face wearing a skeptical, mocking