CHAPTER 8

I briefly stopped at the table and told my buddies that I had to give her a ride home. My jaw involuntarily clenched as they indiscreetly checked Autumn out, who was standing a few paces behind me. Scott was going to make some smart comment about me stealing her for myself, but I think I gave him a death stare and he kept his mouth shut.

Autumn didn’t say anything as she demurely followed me out to the parking lot. When we got to my car, I jokingly offered, “Well, you can, uh, ride shotgun if you want. Or you can sit in the back and pretend I’m a taxi driver.”

She gave me a weak smile, “I can’t picture you as a cab driver.”

I opened the door to the front seat for her. “Oh yeah? Why’s that?” This isn’t weird. Just keep the conversation casual.

Her skirt rode up her legs a little further as she slid into the front seat. I tried not to gawk at those thighs as I made sure she was fully in the car. “Um… You like, know too much English!”

I gave her a sarcastic smile and shut the door. Walking around and getting into the driver’s side, I mockingly scolded, “Now Autumn, you shouldn’t stereotype.”

Her hands tugged the bottom of her skimpy tank-top, trying to make it cover more of her stomach. I couldn’t help but notice it not working… at all. God, that fucking body… Her eyes suddenly rose up and caught me. “Uh- seatbelt,” I croaked just as fast, then averted my eyes to my keys as if starting the ignition was a complicated procedure.

Within a minute we were pulling out to the street. Neither of us had said anything. “You just tell me where to turn,” I instructed.

“Yeah, okay. Go right after the next intersection.”

“Okie doke.”

Again, awkward silence. Should I make small talk or do we just sit here like this? God, why am I so nervous? It’s not like I’m on a *date* with her or anything.

“Now go until the hill and turn left,” she said softly.

I kept driving, unresponsive. Great, now I *have* to keep silent or it will sound like I’m forcing it. Not that I *care*…

“I’m sorry you, like, have to do this,” she huffed out abruptly.

I was a little startled by the sudden break in silence. “Uh, well, it’s okay. Just don’t go to any bars for a few more years…”

“I was only dancing,” she retorted defensively.

“You know that doesn’t matter. Besides, you’ll attract the wrong kind of crowd at a place like that.” That was stupid… What am I, her dad?

Another awkward silence… “Well, you were there,” she said with a hint of victory in her voice. I glanced over at her and she had this subtle little grin, like she finally caught me at something.

I grinned back with a smartass, “Somebody’s gotta keep the law in this town.”

“Oh is that it,” she played, “Do you always hang out in bars, looking for underage girls to save?”

The second she finished saying it, my face started burning red. Both from embarrassment and anger. This is getting too friendly. She’s still my student. She knew it too; I could almost hear the smile wipe off her face.

“Um- go uh, go straight here. For a little while,” she mumbled apologetically.

More silence.

Eventually, she piped up again. “Well, I guess this is really an unlikely encounter, right?”

Is she being coy or sucking up? “Uh, I guess so.”

“Maybe I should rewrite my story about this…”

I looked over at her and she was fidgeting with the hem of her skirt again. No sooner had I turned to face her, she pulled her knees up to her chest on the seat. Her skirt pulled back even more, showing almost the entire bottom of her leg. So much skin…

“I’m not sure it’d be, uh… very exciting,” I offered. Now the situation was really sinking in and making me anxious. Oh fuck- you’re still staring at her! I couldn’t believe I was still looking at her legs like that as I replied to her. My entire body tensed and I reactively reached between us to a little compartment and grabbed an empty gum wrapper, pretending like that’s what I was looking for.

“Well we don’t know how it ends yet!” she rejoined.

I threw wrapper onto the floor in front of me. “It ends with you being dropped off at your parents,” I replied flatly.

“Maybe not…” she said softly.

Enter stage left; huge lump in my throat. As hard as I tried to focus on the road, on the simple task at hand, every passing second broke down that little wall I had built around my attraction to Autumn. I was more consciously aware with each moment that a gorgeous young girl was sitting next to me in the car, wearing that tantalizing little outfit…