He held the door for her as they left the building and headed toward his car. He’d
snuck out of school plenty of times and knew how to do it unnoticed. He motioned
for Casey to stop while he peered around the corner, scanning for the resource
officer. The walkway lay still, yet his pulse quickened. Seeing no one, he and
Casey continued to the car.
He felt thankful his dad had made him clean out the car the day before. If he’d met
Casey last week, the passenger-side floor would’ve been buried in fast-food
wrappers. Now, it just needed a quick vacuum.
He opened the passenger door for her. As she slid in, William asked, “Have you
eaten yet?”
“Just a Pop-Tart,” she responded as he settled into the driver's seat and started
the engine.
“A Pop-Tart? That's not a filling breakfast,” William said as he backed out of the
parking spot and shifted into drive.
At the school’s exit, he hesitated, deciding between left and right. “Have you ever
eaten at Cooper’s? They have the best breakfast in town.”
“I could go for some pancakes,” Casey told him. “But you need to promise me
something first. And! You can never ever break this promise. If you do, I will
never speak with you again.”
William tightened his grip on the steering wheel. “What?” he asked, not sure what
to expect.
“You need to promise to never do any impersonations of Austin Powers or any other
characters in that movie. I spent the last year hearing people mimic that movie and
I can't stand it,” Casey said with a deadpan expression.
Unsure whether she was joking, William kept his tone light and playful.