3 weeks (Wattys 2017) | ✓

Part Fourteen☏

"Austin, you okay?" Jack drops the box to the ground, the china shard shattering against the wooden interiors of the box.

"I can't even believe that.. How did they know?? That was from my dream!!"

Stepping back a little, Jack shakes his head. "Then Austin.. Let's be real.. That was not a dream."

"I don't know what it was, then, Jack! I mean, seriously." As I observe the smooth scars across my hands, it all comes back to me. "You might be right..."

"What are those scars from?"

"I dropped a plate in the sink, the glass flew up and hit me."

"What did it look like?" He eyes the box suspiciously.

"It was blue china, why?"

"Blue china!!" Jack runs over to the box and carefully plucks a bit of the broken plate out of the box and lifts it in front of my eyes.

Nodding my head, I flick it out of his fingers.

"Dude! Be more careful, you could've cut me!" Jack says as he shakes his hand.

I raise my hands up and show him my scars, an annoyed look on my face.

"Whatever.. At least I didn't get cut." 

"Let's get out of here." I pick up the box, close the lid, and we start to walk.

"Where are we going?"

"Lets try walking to town square."

"That would be like.. A two or three hour walk!" 

"We. Need. To. Ditch. My. Crazy. Grandma."

"Do you drive?"

"Well.. I have before, like twice.."

"Then this will be your third time. Let's go!!" Jack grabs the box out of my arms and runs to grandpa's car.

"I don't have the keys!" I shout as I chase behind him, my hair whipping around in the wind.

***

As he opens the car door, Jack turns to face me. "Do you have the keys?"

"No!!!!!"

He blankly stares at me and walks over to where I'm standing. 

"What are you doing?" I ask as Jack searches through my hair.

"Got it." He smiles when he pulls out a bobby pin.

"A bobby pin? What're you gonna do with that?" We both walk to the open car door. He sits in the drivers seat. It takes a minute, but he bends the bobby pin out of place until it is one single wire. He jams it into the ignition, turning it around before the engine starts.

"How did you know how to do that?!" 

"Well, bobby pins open doors, right? So I just thought this might work."

"How did you know that bobby pins open doors?"

"Everyone knows that."

I walk over to shotgun and take a seat. 

"What are you doing?" He looks at me, his door still open.

"What, do you expect me to drive, or something?"

"Yeah, so get over here and sit down. It's not like I've ever done it."

"You can start a car with a bobby pin, but you can't drive?" I retort as I walk back around the car to drivers seat. Jack gets out and walks back around to shotgun.

"Ready?" He laughs as he watches me mess around with the controls. As I try to back out, the car jolts forward. "Oomph!!" He smacks against the dashboard.

I laugh as I switch gears and back out of the driveway.