Chapter 6
CHAPTER SIX
brIANNA
Brianna wasn’t sure what to make of Nathan’s offer to have Audrey be her driving teacher. She really was not that serious about driving, and it was something she’d have liked to procrastinate as long as humanly possible.
But she was…intrigued by Audrey.
There was no other word to describe it, which is why Brianna reluctantly agreed to the driving lessons.
It was weird arranging the details through Nathan, but he was game to spell out the details for them to meet next weekend, which was what led to Brianna shivering her ass off outside as she waited for Audrey to pick her up.
A grey Toyota soon arrived, and Audrey tentatively waved at her through the window. Brianna wasted no time quickly getting into the passenger seat, immediately relieved when the hot air hit her cold cheeks.
“Hello, how are you?” Brianna asked.
“Good. And you?”
God, this was so awkward. Brianna was starting to regret getting lessons from someone she hardly knew, and it didn’t help that her glasses were starting to fog over in the sudden heat.
“Good.”
Audrey nodded. Not sure what else to do, Brianna unzipped her parka and threw it to the backseat, where she had seen earlier that Audrey’s parka was laid out.
That was the trick with Canadian winters; no one wore their jackets inside the car here in Beaver Creek, and it was not uncommon to see folks foregoing them entirely, leaving them at home as they ran from car door to destination and back.
“Cute sweater,” Audrey said, snapping Brianna out of her thoughts on the difference between city and small-town living.
Brianna had to look down to see what she had chosen to wear: a cream sweater with pink bows embroidered all along the print.
It was actually one of her nicer ones; Brianna had no reasonable excuse to have worn it today. Certainly not for some driving lessons.
“Thanks… Shall we get the show on the road?”
“Absolutely. How does the Beaver Creek High School parking lot sound?”
“Works for me.”
“You may want to seatbelt first,” Audrey said, not unkindly.
That was probably why they were sitting here idling instead of on the road already. Brianna blushed in embarrassment and did the buckle. Audrey then started her drive, turning the volume on the radio up slightly.
It was becoming clear they had nothing to talk about, and Brianna was back to regretting all her life decisions. Though she was not a social butterfly, she found moments of awkward silence uncomfortable.
She knew the high school wasn’t far, and she prayed the drive would be faster than normal to escape the awkwardness but also wished the opposite so she had more time to mentally prepare for the undertaking she was about to do.
She really was not sure she was prepared, and when they arrived at the parking lot and switched seats, Brianna was now definitive in her thought that she was not meant to be operating heavy machinery.
Where to even begin?
The look on her face must’ve revealed her inner thoughts, because Audrey burst out laughing when they met eyes as Brianna turned to ask her what to do.
“The car won’t bite you, y’know,” Audrey said, a smile on her lips. It was a nice smile, and Brianna tried to return it.
“I know. I’m just nervous.”
“There’s nothing to be nervous about. We’re just driving around this wide-open parking lot.”
That much was true; at least there were no immediate trees to drive into.
“Alright, where do I begin?” Brianna asked, trying to feel more determined and less like she was about to total someone else’s car by merely existing in it.
Audrey wasted no time launching into an explanation.
“This car is an automatic, which makes things easier. See the two pedals? You’ll want to use your right foot to control either.
The left one that’s wider is the brake pedal, and the right one that’s thinner is the accelerator.
They do exactly what they’re called. You never want to rest your foot fully on them, just a light touch with your toes until you get used to it. ”
Brianna nodded as Audrey kept explaining. “Look here to the right.
“The PRINDL,” Brianna interrupted, causing Audrey to burst into laughter. It was a nice sound, and Brianna is pleased with herself for having caused it.
“Sure, that,” Audrey said before continuing her lecture. “These control the car.”
She explained all the gear shift options before instructing Brianna on what to do with the controls. When she suggested Brianna just get used to the feel of the car moving slowly, Brianna was scared out of her mind but agreed to the instruction.
She slowly moved the gear shift to drive, and her breath stilled as the car started creeping forward.
“Try lightly pressing the accelerator,” Audrey said, leaning over towards Brianna. “I’ll turn the wheel for you to get back to the lot if you get too close to the curb or road.”
That made Brianna feel better, so she decided to do as she was told. The car sped a little, but thankfully, Brianna’s touch was light, and the movement felt measured enough.
Audrey nodded in approval. “Now try braking.”
Brianna did and was a little shocked when the car jolted to a stop.
“Is it supposed to do that?”
“Yes, it’s a good way to know when you’ve properly braked. That little jolt is helpful for beginners.”
“Right.”
“Let’s try this again. I’ll steer you until we get to the curb,” Audrey said, and Brianna continued to practice accelerating and braking.
On her sixth lap, she was beginning to feel confident. She didn’t know why she hadn’t tried this before. Her victory was short-lived as they got closer to a pole Brianna had missed in all her musing.
“Brake!” Audrey yelled, which Brianna did immediately.
They jolted forward as the car stopped, Audrey’s arm coming to rest across Brianna’s chest in a protective move she had only ever seen on TV.
“Good girl,” Audrey said, turning to smile at Brianna.
Brianna blinked a few times to register what had happened. As Brianna was on her last deep breath to steady herself, Audrey moved back and turned away.
“Maybe we should stop here for today’s lesson?” Audrey suggested, not looking at Brianna.
“Sure, let’s switch back. Can you drive me home?”
“Of course.”
They did so quickly, wordlessly. Brianna didn’t want to distract Audrey, so she decided to stay silent on the drive back.
She wasn’t sure exactly what to say. Brianna felt horrible that she was clearly such a bad driver, she had missed that pole, but she was glad Audrey was there to tell her what to do.
She could also not get Audrey’s ‘good girl’ out of her brain. She would not let herself blush thinking about it. It must’ve been an instinct, a reflex, she tried to tell herself. But what did that say about Audrey, or Brianna, that she had said it to her?
Brianna decided she would stop thinking about it and focus only on the technical aspects of the car. She would clearly need to learn more about how the mirrors worked and what the hell a blind spot was. Yeah, that seemed important.
When they pulled up to her apartment building, Brianna was resolved to put the whole blip behind them. Despite the near-accident, driving was actually not as bad as she thought.
“So, when’s the next lesson?” Brianna asked, aiming for the cheerfulness she associated with her story time voice.
“My schedule is usually pretty flexible. Maybe you can text me when you’re free?” Audrey suggested. Thankfully, she seemed to be back to her usual self.
Not that Brianna had much exposure to her or knew what that would mean, but she seemed to at least be less awkward now.
“That would require me to have your number,” Brianna teased.
“Right.” Audrey dug her phone out of her pants pocket.
Brianna saw Audrey’s lockscreen was a picture of the inside of a library, or maybe a bookstore, and she had to resist the urge to comment on it.
When the phone was unlocked, Audrey passed it to Brianna on a new contact page. “Here, you can add it in.”
Brianna did so, making sure to text herself from Audrey’s phone so she could have her number as well. She couldn’t say what compelled her to make sure she had it, but she didn’t want to leave the fate of their next lesson to chance. If she didn’t hear from Audrey soon, she’d make sure to follow up.
“Well, thank you for everything. See you next time!” Brianna said and grabbed her winter jacket from the backseat. She ran into the building to escape the cold, stopping at the inside foyer to look out the window. She watched as Audrey’s car left before heading into her apartment.