Free Spiraling by H. Karhoff Page B

outfit, but nothing looked right. My clothes were all too preppy or immature. I wanted something that more closely resembled what the dark-haired girl and her friends wore. I didn’t have anything like that in my closet, though. I had to settle for the next best thing—a cute pink and gray plaid skirt and matching cropped sweater.
    When Devon didn’t show up by six-thirty, I started to worry that he’d changed his mind. Sitting down to dinner with my family, I poked at my food absent-mindedly while James grumbled about everything from politics to the tub of butter Mom had left on the table. It irritated me that with everything else going on in the world, he found the time to complain about butter. I was so tired of hearing him go on and on that I sprang from my chair the second the doorbell rang.
    “Where do you think you’re going?” James demanded.
    “Out,” I answered. “I already asked Mom.”
    “Liz?” James looked across the table at my mom.
    “I told her she could go,” Mom said. “Have fun, Honey.”
    “Thanks, Mom.” I kissed her cheek and hurried out of the kitchen.
    “Make sure you take your heavy jacket,” Mom called after me. “It’s supposed to get cold tonight.”
    “Yes, Mom,” I sighed.
    I grabbed my jacket off the coat rack and opened the front door. Devon stood a few feet away, staring out at the yard. When he turned to look at me, his hair fell into his face and I was relieved that he’d changed out of the grocery store uniform. A concert t-shirt and blue jeans suited him better, even if he did look a bit scruffy.
    “Sorry, I’m late,” he said. “I got held up.”
    “It’s okay,” I replied.
    Stepping outside, I closed the door behind me and followed Devon off the porch. He led me to a small, dark blue car parked in the street in front of the neighbor’s house. It was full of rust and had red tape over one of the tail lights. I wrinkled my nose when he opened the passenger door. The inside was worse than the outside. There were cigarette burns and tears in the dirty seat. After the time I’d put into finding the perfect outfit, I didn’t want to mess it up by sitting in something gross.
    “It’s not mine,” Devon explained. “I borrowed it from my sister’s boyfriend, RJ. He said if I got it running I could drive it until I get my own. I was going to clean it, but it took longer to finish putting the new starter in than I thought and I figured you were getting tired of waiting.”
    “It’s all right,” I lied.
    Despite my reservations, I took a deep breath and got in the car. Devon waited until I was completely in before he slammed the door shut. The sudden bang startled me and I jumped.
    “Sorry,” he said as he slid into the driver’s seat. “I probably should have warned you. It won’t shut all the way unless you slam it.”
    I sighed. Everything about the car made me uncomfortable. When he started it, I thought it would fall apart. The engine was loud and something behind me rattled.
    “Did you already eat?” he asked.
    I shook my head. “Not really.”
    “All right.” He took a deep breath as he grabbed the pack of cigarettes stuffed in a hole where the stereo should have been. He started to light one. Then he looked at me. “Is this okay?”
    “Sure.” I nodded.
    In one motion, he flipped open a rectangular silver lighter and struck the fire. I watched as he touched the flame to the end of his cigarette. As soon as it was lit, he closed the lighter and put it back in his pocket. Then he took a long drag and exhaled.
    “Are you sure this is okay?” he asked.
    “Yeah,” I answered.
    He studied my face for a second as if he were trying to decide whether or not I was telling the truth. I smiled and assured him that I didn’t mind. The way the smoke curled from his lips when he exhaled was titillating. Everything he did captivated me. As he drove out of my neighborhood, I couldn’t take my eyes off him.

Nine
    A block past the school the car