Prank Date [✔]

Part 31

"Stop," I said as soon as we had rounded the corner and were out of view of the Kim's house. "Stop the car. Please." I felt as if I were about to explode from all the emotions swirling through me. A two-hour ride next to a silent Jennie would kill me. We needed to get this out in the open. Now. "We need to talk."

"Okay," Jennie said, sounding as if she had just agreed to her own execution. Her hands shook as she flicked on the turn signal.

I wanted to reach over and give her arm a comforting squeeze, but I suspected it would make Jennie even more nervous. So I forced my hands to be still and instead searched for something to say.

Jennie pulled into a large parking lot. The car's headlights skipped over the entrance of a park.

Before I found the right words, Jennie opened the door and got out of the car.

I followed. I kept a respectful distance as we wandered past groves of cedars, palms, redwoods, and oak trees. Darkness had fallen, but the moon and streetlamps provided enough light. A family was packing up the remnants of a picnic near a barbecue pit, and up ahead, a man walked his dog, but other than that, it seemed as if they were alone in the large park.

We strolled across a rolling lawn until we stopped at the curved shore of a lily pond. Lights reflected off the water. Tall trees stretched their canopies across the pond and gave me the feeling of being shut off from the rest of the world, with just the moonlight shining down on us.

A wooden bridge linked the pond to another one. Jennie stepped onto the bridge and stopped in the middle. She stood with her hands stuffed into her coat pockets. Her head was turned away from me as she stared into the dark water. The wind picked up, rippling the water and throwing  strands into Jennie's face.

Say something, I mentally urged Jennie. But of course, I didn't say it out loud, knowing I shouldn't rush Jennie. Still I longed for a reassuring word.

Jennie moved her head to watch a pair of ducks paddling on the water. "As a child, I used to come here when I wanted to be alone." She spoke quietly, still watching the ducks.

I studied her. Does she want to be alone now? Was she distancing herself from me? And if I let her, would Jennie eventually be back and open up or would I lose her forever? Despite my fear, I decided to give Jennie a way out.

"Do you ..." I paused to clear my throat. "Do you want to be alone now?"

Slowly, Jennie turned toward me. The moonlight threw flickering shadows across her face. "No," she said. "I don't want to be alone. I'm just not sure if I can ..." She paused to gnaw on the inside of her cheek.

"We don't need to do or talk about anything you're not comfortable with," I said. I longed to find out what was going on in Jennie's head. Not knowing was killing me, but maybe the onslaught of emotions I heard in Jennie's voice was too much for Jennie right now. "We can just stay here and watch the ducks for a while, if that's what you want." I dug my nails into my palms.