Exactly one week before her 18th birthday, my not so baby sister climbs into the driver's seat of Austin's Jeep. Austin said something about 10 A.M. being a good time to practice her driving without the roads being too busy, so here we are, up extremely too early for a Saturday.

I'm sitting in the backseat directly behind Austin, my nerves churning in my gut, feeling like a helicopter parent without actually being one. "Please be careful," I murmur with my hands over my eyes, peeking through my fingers with trepidation from the backseat.

Sav and Austin both ignore me.

"Seatbelt," he says.

"On," Sav chirps.

"Rearview mirrors,"

"Adjusted,"

"The engine,"

"Not cranked," Sav and I say simultaneously. "Hurry up before I pass out from heat exhaustion instead of anxiety," I pant.

"Not helping," Sav chimes, promptly turning the key. I sigh in relief when the the Jeep rumbles to life and cold air immediately blasts from the air vents.

"Just for the record I don't approve of this," I mumble dejectedly, as if I hadn't already tried to talk them out of this a thousand times already. Once again they ignore me, Sav zoned in intently as Austin discusses the ins and outs of intersections and right-of-ways.

"Maybe you should write this all down first and then you can try again some time later. Preferably without me in the backseat," I suggest hopefully. Austin laughs and cranes his neck to look at me around his headrest, a backwards baseball hat on his head and a goofy grin on his face. "No better way to learn than a hands-on experience."

"That's what she said," Sav murmurs distractedly, adjusting the lever of her seat. I roll my eyes.

Austin smiles but pauses, peering down to meet my eyes. "If I can manage to learn how to drive in New Orleans traffic, then Savannah can manage the neighborhood. I won't let anything happen to you guys. Do you trust me?"

The nerves in my gut pause and make way for a bout of butterflies. I meet Austin's eye meaningfully. "Yes," I state truthfully. It's quiet as we stare at each other for a second, our stares holding a conversation that our mouths can't say yet. It's too early. Too quick. Too scary. "But I'm not happy about it right now," I cut the tension, grumbling playfully. Austin winks before turning around in his seat, regaining focus.

It's nice to see I'm not the only one being shaken up by these newfound feelings, I internally muse.

Five minutes later when Sav is finally situated, Austin says, "Alright. Keeping your foot on the brake, put the car in drive and slowly inch off of it before gently pressing the gas."

I squeeze my eyes shut, leaning my head against the backseat. "I need a Xanax," I murmur. Austin snorts and quickly clears his throat.

"You're doing good," he states encouragingly. "Alright, slowly make your way down the end of the street and stop at the stop sign. We're gonna turn left."

When Sav abruptly speeds up, I yelp. Raising my head I look up at her and yell, "The speed limit is 25! Do you not see the 'Children at play' sign?!"

"Can you stop yelling before I hit one of the neighborhood kids?" Sav groans. I gasp.

Austin smothers a laugh. "Babe, she's only going 20. It's fine."

I sigh loudly, flopping down in my seat. These two would be the death of me. But deep down, I can't be mad about it.

——

Hours later, my nerves are gone and my heart rate has calmed down. We'd thankfully made it home alive, and I have to admit that I was impressed with Savannah. Unlike me, she was fearless when it came to the unknown and eager to learn. And it didn't hurt that she'd had Austin as a teacher — he was both patient and encouraging.

I'd opted to spend my Saturday evening at RJ's instead of Vice for a change, so I decided to take an afternoon shift. The tips wouldn't be anywhere near as good as what I would make in one night at Vice, but with the bills being paid on time for once and Mom not being in the house emptying my pockets I wasn't feeling as stressed about money as I used to. Plus I missed my best friend and the slow atmosphere that RJ's and the south side of downtown Memphis brought.

After taking an afternoon nap together, Austin drove both Sav and I to work before heading to Vice. I internally pouted when remembering I wouldn't be seeing him again until most likely the following afternoon after he'd rested up from the late night hours. And then I cringed a bit when I realized how clingy that sounded. And then I shrugged because I really cared about this guy, and for some reason he cared about me too, so I could care less about how needy I'd become. I never thought I'd be the type of person that constantly wanted to be around my partner, but I felt my best when I was around him. Austin had a habit of making my world feel right when he was in it.

It was nearing 9 P.M. and Sidney and I were standing side by side behind the counter wrapping silverware in napkins. A country song softly plays from the radio Anthony and the other cooks have back in the kitchen, intertwining with the light chatter of conversation from a few scattered customers.

"I still can't believe you thought he was cheating on you," I say, shooting her an amused grin.

Sidney laughs and swats me playfully with the rolled silverware. "I already feel bad enough about that! Here I was ready to do a stakeout and bust him for his infidelity, meanwhile he's planning some elaborate proposal. That I ended up ruining, by the way," she snorts.

I cringe, remembering how she told me she'd drunkenly confronted him after finishing off a bottle of wine which, in turn, led to him getting down on one knee and popping the question right there in Sidney's living room. "It all worked out in the end though," I quip. "You don't need a fancy proposal to know that he loves you."

She smiles, a happy glow illuminating her mocha skin. "You're right. And it looks like you'll be next," she says slyly.

I immediately balk. "No way. Not anytime soon, anyway." I was only twenty-one, three years younger than Sidney, but saddled with the job of providing for my little sister. Marriage wasn't even in the cards right now. Maybe one day..

"You never know," she sings.

We both laugh, mindlessly teasing each other as we finish rolling the silverware. Sidney disappears into the kitchen and I listen as she loudly teases Anthony while I store the container full of silverware underneath the counter. Standing up, I straighten a stack of menus to my right, thinking quietly to myself. I'm thinking of how easy life has felt since Austin's entrance and Mom's departure, and how everything in mine and my best friend's lives are slowly falling into place. The minute that thought leaves my mind, the bell above the door chimes as someone enters. And when I look up, my world freezes.

I have the urge to laugh. To pinch my arm or wait for Ashton Kutcher to pop around the corner yelling that I've been punked. Because there's no way in hell my father is standing in RJ's right now, making his way towards me.

Irony is fucking cruel. Just when I thought life decided to cut me some slack, it decided to pull the rug out from under me again. And I had no choice but to stand back up, on my own. Like always.

——

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