“Do you want to stay in the car while we go order?” I asked.
“I feel bad ditching you guys,” he said, his cheeks turning pink. “But would you mind?”
“Not at all. We completely understand.” As soon as I said this, I realized how silly it sounded. As if I had any clue how it felt to be famous. “What do you want?”
“A clam chowder bread bowl,” he said, and then, “Are you sure you’re okay with this? We could always go through a drive-through somewhere.”
“Alec, you’re driving us all the way to San Francisco. The least I can do is stand in line for food.” I offered him a reassuring smile before grabbing my bag and lifting the canvas strap over my head.
“Okay, but before you go…” Alec reached for his pocket. After a few seconds of clawing at his shorts unsuccessfully, he leaned back and lifted himself off the seat, finally extracting a wallet. He pulled out a crisp fifty and held it out to me.
My fingers itched to accept his offer. But then I remembered Asha’s comment about how I was absorbed with thoughts ofmoney, so I waved him off.
“Felicity, take it,” he said, but I shook my head and scrambled out of the car before I changed my mind.
Alec turned to Asha with the bill, but she snorted. “Not going to happen.”
“Boomer, you coming with, or should I order something for you?” I asked, but he was too engrossed in his game to answer. Asha snapped her fingers in his face.
Startled, he blinked a few times and glanced up. “Huh?”
“Seriously,” she said, heaving a sigh. “What’s wrong with you?”
“Who, me?” he asked.
“Yes, you. What seventeen-year-old still plays Pokémon?”
He frowned. “I do?”
“Exactly.” She reached over and clicked open his seat belt. “Come on.”
Boomer looked out the window in confusion as if he’d just realized we’d stopped. “Wait, we’re already there?”
“Not even close,” Asha said with an eye roll. “We’re getting food. Hurry up. Otherwise, Felicity’s stomach is going to eat itself.”
“Ha. Freaking. Ha,” I said.
“Sounds painful.” Boomer tossed his Game Boy to the side. After clambering out of the car, he stretched his arms up in the air and yawned. It made him look taller than he already was, and I wondered how he could possibly fit in the backseat. “All right. Let’s go feed you, shrimp.” He mussed my hair, and I batted his hand away. “Maybe then you’ll grow a few inches.”
The inside of the café was as colorful as the outside, and the linemoved surprisingly quickly. After a ten-minute wait, we were out the door with a steaming bag of food—bread bowls for me and Alec, two fish sandwiches for Boomer, and chicken strips with fries for Asha. As we crossed the street, Alec climbed out of the car. While we were gone, he’d put on sunglasses and, despite the heat, a zip-up with the hood pulled over his head.
“Thanks for getting the food, guys. I appreciate it.”
“No problem,” I said, switching our meal from one side to another. It was heavier than expected, and without a handle, I had to prop the paper bag against my hip.
“Here, let me.” Alec reached over and took it off my hands. “How much do I owe you?”
Boomer, who’d paid for the meal, waved him off. “Nothing, dude. This won’t come close to covering gas.”
“You don’t have to worry about gas,” he responded. “I’m the one who offered to drive, remember? I’ve got it.”
Asha crossed her arms. “And we have your soup covered.”
The two stared at each other with set jaws, neither wanting to relent, but when Asha leaned in and narrowed her eyes, Alec sighed. “Fine, but I pay for my own meals after this, okay?”
She pretended to consider this for a moment, and then offered him a crisp nod. “Deal.”
My stomach growled again, and everyone turned to look at me. A sheepish grin crossed my face. “Can we eat now or…?”
