Noah

I pulled into Jessa’s driveway slower than necessary, mostly because I wasn’t ready for the night to end. She sat beside me, quiet but not in a bad way — more like she was trying to hold on to the last few minutes before reality came rushing back.

The streetlamps hit her hair in soft gold streaks. She picked at a thread on her sleeve, pretending not to notice me looking at her and definitely failing.

“You okay?” I asked.

She nodded, though her voice came out small. “Yeah. ...