When he held out the phone to her, he seemed to notice her for the first time. “You look nice.” He glanced at Brandi.
She nodded, giving a slight shrug. “I think so too, but she’s not feeling good about any of it.”
Nicholas shifted. “Then it’s probably something we need to talk about, but right now we have to go.”
The man liked to talk about things, and sometimes it was helpful, but usually he explained how she needed to feel rather than listened to how she felt. Sometimes it seemed her Englisch parents only wanted to mold her into someone they could learn to like. Thus far, neither one was willing to consider going to church. Nicholas said he would listen about her faith after she read a book called
Religious Poison.
She read a bit a few nights ago, but its opening was horrible, saying that man made up God’s existence and that the author would explain, through research and reason, why that was a fact. She had closed it and hid it in the closet before reading her Bible. But the words still haunted her.
Brandi waved at her and remained in place as Ariana hurried to keep up with Nicholas. He walked into the parking lot and pulled out his keys. “You excited about the next step?”
Excited
was the totally wrong word, but she had to keep moving toward Nicholas’s goals, and she had one more hurdle to get over today—taking her driver’s test. “You’re sure they’ll let me take the test?”
He opened his car door. “You worry a lot. You know that?”
She shrugged and got in on the passenger’s side.
“You have an appointment, and it’s as I said earlier this week.” He pressed the brake and pushed a button to start the car. “The laws for getting a license are different because you’re not a teen.”
He backed out with ease. Despite the hours he’d spent teaching her to drive this past week, she always felt she was on the verge of having a wreck when she was behind the wheel.
He turned on his left blinker. “If you can pass the written and driving tests, and if you have car insurance, which you do, you can get a license.” He pulled onto the main road. “Oh, and you have to have ID to prove who you are, which I have right here.” He patted a leather portfolio.
It was ironic. A man she barely knew had all her true identification information, and yet with each passing day she was less sure who she really was.
“Will the driving test include toll booths?” She hated those. They were confusing, and the cost seemed extreme.
“No toll booths. You did great learning how to drive.” He merged into the far left lane. “I still can’t believe it.”
“Learning to steer something that doesn’t have a mind of its own and doesn’t have wheels that only go straight was incredibly easy.”
“Interesting. I never thought about that.”
“The worst is when it’s raining or snowing or the winds are howling, and the horse refuses to come to you.”
Nicholas laughed. “Gives new meaning to ‘catching a ride,’ doesn’t it?”
“Not to mention the idea of ‘can’t catch a ride.’ ”
They chuckled, and she pointed at the driver’s manual.
“Oh yeah.” He nodded. “Study.”
She focused on the rules of the road while he drove. The number of laws seemed to be increasing by the minute, and when they arrived, she was shaking.
He turned off the car. “I’ll go in with you to make sure you get in the right lines and fill out all the paperwork correctly. Then I’ll wait for you out here.”
“Sure.” She took a deep breath. Her will was set. She would keep putting one foot in front of the other, and maybe at some point she would stop feeling as if she were about to shatter. He held the door for her, and she went inside.
The busyness of the DMV looked like organized confusion.
“Just relax. You simply go through the steps until it’s done.”
Would it be that easy?
Two hours later Ariana walked out of the DMV with her driver’s license. Part of her felt like a
She nodded, giving a slight shrug. “I think so too, but she’s not feeling good about any of it.”
Nicholas shifted. “Then it’s probably something we need to talk about, but right now we have to go.”
The man liked to talk about things, and sometimes it was helpful, but usually he explained how she needed to feel rather than listened to how she felt. Sometimes it seemed her Englisch parents only wanted to mold her into someone they could learn to like. Thus far, neither one was willing to consider going to church. Nicholas said he would listen about her faith after she read a book called
Religious Poison.
She read a bit a few nights ago, but its opening was horrible, saying that man made up God’s existence and that the author would explain, through research and reason, why that was a fact. She had closed it and hid it in the closet before reading her Bible. But the words still haunted her.
Brandi waved at her and remained in place as Ariana hurried to keep up with Nicholas. He walked into the parking lot and pulled out his keys. “You excited about the next step?”
Excited
was the totally wrong word, but she had to keep moving toward Nicholas’s goals, and she had one more hurdle to get over today—taking her driver’s test. “You’re sure they’ll let me take the test?”
He opened his car door. “You worry a lot. You know that?”
She shrugged and got in on the passenger’s side.
“You have an appointment, and it’s as I said earlier this week.” He pressed the brake and pushed a button to start the car. “The laws for getting a license are different because you’re not a teen.”
He backed out with ease. Despite the hours he’d spent teaching her to drive this past week, she always felt she was on the verge of having a wreck when she was behind the wheel.
He turned on his left blinker. “If you can pass the written and driving tests, and if you have car insurance, which you do, you can get a license.” He pulled onto the main road. “Oh, and you have to have ID to prove who you are, which I have right here.” He patted a leather portfolio.
It was ironic. A man she barely knew had all her true identification information, and yet with each passing day she was less sure who she really was.
“Will the driving test include toll booths?” She hated those. They were confusing, and the cost seemed extreme.
“No toll booths. You did great learning how to drive.” He merged into the far left lane. “I still can’t believe it.”
“Learning to steer something that doesn’t have a mind of its own and doesn’t have wheels that only go straight was incredibly easy.”
“Interesting. I never thought about that.”
“The worst is when it’s raining or snowing or the winds are howling, and the horse refuses to come to you.”
Nicholas laughed. “Gives new meaning to ‘catching a ride,’ doesn’t it?”
“Not to mention the idea of ‘can’t catch a ride.’ ”
They chuckled, and she pointed at the driver’s manual.
“Oh yeah.” He nodded. “Study.”
She focused on the rules of the road while he drove. The number of laws seemed to be increasing by the minute, and when they arrived, she was shaking.
He turned off the car. “I’ll go in with you to make sure you get in the right lines and fill out all the paperwork correctly. Then I’ll wait for you out here.”
“Sure.” She took a deep breath. Her will was set. She would keep putting one foot in front of the other, and maybe at some point she would stop feeling as if she were about to shatter. He held the door for her, and she went inside.
The busyness of the DMV looked like organized confusion.
“Just relax. You simply go through the steps until it’s done.”
Would it be that easy?
Two hours later Ariana walked out of the DMV with her driver’s license. Part of her felt like a
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