Drive Faster

Laina

Mason was watching me as I put the seat belt on and gripped the steering wheel. I stretched out my left foot to find the clutch, which I couldn’t push down all the way due to my and Mason’s height difference.

“I don’t mind if you adjust the seat,” he said.

“Good,” I said loftily, reaching down under the seat to pull the lever and drag the seat forward. I tested the clutch again and nodded with approval. Then I went about the tedious process of adjusting all of his mirrors. When I was done, I shot him a sideways glance. “You’re not going to tell me how to drive a stick?”

Mason chuckled as I turned the ignition. He rolled his window down and hung one arm over the ledge, letting his wrist dangle in the cool night air. “I assume you know how to drive a manual.”

“Why?”

He shrugged. “You’ve grown up with Benji. I can’t picture a universe where he’d be okay with his little sister not knowing how to drive a stick.”