handle [discontinued]

SUMMER // 8

"Wow. How did you know?"

"Denim told us." Alicia said, and Rashaad pointed to his son.

I walked to the front of the car, and I just gazed at it. This was the car I'd been wanting for forever. A Jeep Wrangler Unlimited. I'd actually just wanted a Wrangler, but a Wrangler Unlimited was more than enough.

And it was white. So it was perfection.

"I. . . I don't know what to say." I stuttered, looking back at them.

"You don't have to say anything." Rashaad smiled. "You needed it."

I thought of my penny board, and to be honest, it was really old. Like a few years. I could still use it, but the car was definitely better.

"Thank you." I breathed. "You guys are like second parents." I hugged them both.

"We're your godparents, so come to us if you need anything."

"I'm gonna go pay Nano a visit."

Before I went to the August's house, I went back home to get them something for Nano. I took my bags home and left them in my room. I took my debit cards; I was planning to take Nano somewhere if he hadn't gone anywhere while I was in Monaco. And to give Mr. & Mrs. August a break.

I got back in the car, inhaling the new car smell. I gripped my hands on the wheel and pulled out the driveway and made my way to the August's house.

I pulled into their driveway and knocked on the door. After a few seconds, Mrs. August opened the door.

"Drew!" She greeted in happiness and hugged me. When I pulled back, I saw that she was wearing a one piece bathing suit and was still lightly wet. She looked past me and gasped. "You got a new car?"

I nodded. "Mr. and Mrs. Notting gave it to me. I want to give something to you and I would also like to take Nano out somewhere if it's okay with you."

"Yeah sure, come in, come in. We're in the pool. "

I took in the scent of their house, it smelled like wet wood and vanilla. It was a perfect combination for the house and it's setting. We walked to the back door and to the backyard. They had a huge saltwater pool that Mr. August and Nano were wading in. They were splashing each other and playing in the water.

When Nano saw me, his eyes lit up and he rushed out of the pool. He ran to me and jumped in my arms, getting my top half completely wet. I didn't care, I just hugged him back. I hadn't seen him in forever, and it felt like an eternity that he was gone.

"Go get dressed. I'm gonna take you somewhere." He nodded fiercely and ran into the house, water falling from his hair onto the ground.

"Can I talk to y'all about something?" I asked, and Mr. August nodded. He had a towel wrapped around his waist and sat down at a table by the pool. Mrs. August sat down next to him.

"I want to give you Nano's college fund." I breathed out.

They exchanged looks then looked at me. "Keep it."

My eyes nearly popped out of my head, but my pace was normal. I was a little unsteady, but I managed to keep my breathing in control. "I want you to have it. For Noah. I want him to get in before I would."

Mr. August nodded slowly. "I understand how much you care for you brother. But since we legally adopted him, we've already set up a college fund for him. We have all the money we need."

I looked in between them, and they were holding hands. They were truly happy with not accepting the money. "You know it's like, a lot of money, right?" I hesitated. They nodded again.

"Keep it. Save it for your college fund."

Nano came back out fully dressed, patting my shoulder, ready to go. "You ready?" He nodded. "Let's go then."

I got up and said my goodbyes to the August's. I asked Nano where he wanted to go, and surprisingly he said he just wanted to go to Chik-Fil-A to eat, then the store to get some candy. He was flabbergasted when he saw my car, and he pulled out his little board and began writing.

" It's like Denim's car. "

I thought about it and nodded. "Kind of. I have a Jeep, he has a Range Rover. Big difference." I smiled, and he jumped in the front seat. I checked to make sure he had his seatbelt on, and then I put mine on. I drove off to Chick-Fil-A, and Nano put on some alternative music from his phone.

We hopped out of the car and went into Chick-Fil-A. I ordered a chicken sandwich and waffle fries while Nano got some chicken strips and waffle fries. I splurged a little by getting him a milkshake of his choice. We sat down and ate our food, and I told him about what happened in Monaco from us checking into a couples hotel to Denim almost getting left. He laughed at several parts, then he told me about his stay with the August's. He surely was enjoying himself, saying that he was able to play with the majority of everyday and go to the skate park or somewhere else with the one parent while the other was gone. They also went to the movies alot lately, and he had seen alot of the movies he had been wanting to see.

We finished eating and made our way up the street to Kroger. We walked in, and Nano walked with me so I could get some Cheez Its and Arizona Tea. He walked off to the candy aisle while I walked to the frozen food aisle to get some pizza. It was right next to each other which was convient since I could keep an easy eye on him.

I got some DiGiorno's, and when I was looking at the price, I saw a familiar face coming towards me. And it wasn't a good familiar face, either.

"Hi, Drew." She smiled and I waved, closing the freezer door. I wasn't about to deal with her right now. "I saw the pictures of you and Denim in Monaco. Did you guys have fun?"

"Yes, we did." I answered. "Now what is it that you really want?" I just wanted to get my pizza and get out of here. 

"I wanted to ask if we can be friends again." I huffed in annoyance, and she kept that innocent smile that actually wasn't so innocent.

I thought about what I wanted that would benefit her, and get her stop asking me if we wanted to be friends. "We can be on that 'I-wave-when-I-see-you-in-the-hallway' basis if you stop asking." 

"If that's the best I can get, then yes."