Courtney’s bike lay in the back of Jesse’s truck as we drove into the cool night.

I had no idea what was going to happen now, but I didn’t want to think about it. I didn’t want this night to end. I wanted us to stay on the road forever, just me and him, not thinking about what I had to go home to.

I was pretty sure Lindsay and Courtney would tell Sophia what happened. Or at least their version of it. And that I had left with Jesse to go who knows where.

We came to a stop at an intersection not far from the school.

“Where to?” Jesse asked.

My house was to the left. Most places to eat were to the right.

“Are you hungry?” I asked.

“Yeah, pretty hungry,” he said, turning right. “What time’s your curfew?”

I thought about that. “I’m not sure.”

Jesse kept driving, but it seemed like there was something else he wanted to say. Something good from the way he kept grinning and looking from me to the road.

“What?” I asked with a smile.

“Nothing,” he said, looking straight ahead. “I just can’t believe this is actually happening.”

He glanced quickly at me before turning to the road again. His non-driving hand took mine.

“Me too,” I said, squeezing his hand.

We pulled into one of the restaurants in town. I recognized it. It wasn’t fancy, but it wasn’t fast food either.

Jesse opened my door. “I love this place,” he said. “Best roast beef sandwiches in town.”

Plenty of other people seemed to think so too. The place was packed.

The hostess found us a table near a window. As we took our seats, I realized I was on my first official date. Half of my heart panged with sorrow as it ached for my dad. The other half palpitated as Jesse scooted in next to me and reached for my hand again.

The server came over to take our order. I asked for a Coke, and when Jesse went ahead and ordered his favorite, the roast beef sandwich, I asked for the same.

The server left with the menus. “So, do you think you’ll be in trouble after what happened?” Jesse said.

I shrugged. “I don’t know. But I have a feeling things may be changing pretty soon.”

I told him about the will I’d found. I kept the part about the letter to myself, not quite ready to share that yet.

“Whoa. That’s incredible.”

“I know. All this time…it’s been in my room, and I had no idea.” I shook my head and sipped my drink.

“You have to show it to someone,” he said. “A lawyer.”

“I don’t know any. But I’ll figure it out. All I know is I’m so ready to move on with my life. I wish more than anyone that things had been different with my stepmom and stepsisters, but Sophia never liked me. She wanted my dad, not me. And Lindsay and Courtney automatically followed her lead.”

It was sad to talk about it, to think about what could have been. There were plenty of people at school who had stepbrothers or stepsisters, and they got along fine.

I pushed that miserable feeling out of my chest and thought of Jesse. Of Lena, Harper, Rey, and Tori.

For so long, I’d felt alone. But I wasn’t. Not anymore.

After dinner, I told Jesse it was probably best if he took me home. It was getting late, and I had to face Sophia sometime.

On the way to my house, I checked my phone.

I already had messages from my friends. They were wondering what had happened with me and Jesse. I’d waved to them when we passed through the lobby, but we hadn’t talked.

Lena had created a new group message. It wasn’t our old thread, and I quickly realized why.

Tori was now officially part of our group. My smile reached my eyes. All of them had chimed in to say how happy they were for us.

Lena: Tori filled us in. I can’t believe this is finally happening!

Harper: You deserve a guy like Jesse and more :)

Rey: I’m sooo writing about this. I told you it’s like a FAIRYTALE!

Tori: I knew it would all work out :)

My eyes slid across the top of my phone screen, reading all the names listed there.

Lena, Rey, Harper. And Tori.

My index finger tapped until I reached the screen I needed.

Edit Group Name.

I thought for a second before my fingers danced across the keyboard.

Ella has changed the name of the group to #BestFriendsForever.

I smiled. My phone buzzed as new messages came in.

Rey: :):):)

Harper: So glad I found you guys.

Lena: Cheesy, much? JK. Love it.

Tori: Me too <3 Glad I finally listened to Ms. Moreau. You guys are pretty cool friends.

There was something I had to say.

Ella: I guess we have Ms. Moreau to thank? Let’s make a promise. No matter what, friends forever?

It only took them a couple seconds to respond.

Lena: Friends forever <3

Harper: Friends forever!

Tori: Friends forever…

Rey: FRIENDS FOREVER.

Jesse turned to me. “Everything okay?”

I nodded and squeezed his hand. “More than you know.”

We pulled into my driveway a minute later.

I got out of his truck as he pulled open the door. Then he lifted Courtney’s bike out of the bed. He set it on the grass before turning to me.

“Thanks for dinner,” I said.

He didn’t say anything, just came in for a hug. I loved the way Jesse hugged me. Like he meant it, like he used it to say what he couldn’t out loud.

I closed my eyes, my arms wrapped around him. He was a lot taller than me, but it felt like I fit into his chest perfectly, his chin resting on my head.

“This was the best night,” he said, pulling back.

I nodded. “It was.”

“And maybe now you can help me with math homework in person.” He laughed.

I laughed too. “Sounds good to me.”

“Can I pick you up for school tomorrow?” he asked.

“Okay,” I said.

His eyes went to my mouth for a split second.

Then my phone was going off, and the moment was gone. Just like that.

I dug it out of my pocket.

Sophia. She wanted me inside now.

I sighed. “I should go.”

He nodded. “It’s okay. We’ll talk tomorrow.”

He leaned in, and my eyes automatically closed. His lips brushed my cheek. Then he got back in his truck, and I walked the few feet to the front door, watching him leave.

I went inside, closing the door behind me. It was dark inside, only a couple of living room lamps on.

“There you are,” Sophia said, stepping out of the shadows. “Where have you been? I get home, and dinner isn’t started. There’s still a huge mess from this morning.”

“I was at the basketball game,” I said, not missing a beat.

Sophia looked like I’d slapped her in the face. “The basketball game? You didn’t ask me for permission. And what about your responsibilities?”

“I should have told you where I was,” I said. “But I’m done with my ‘responsibilities,’ Sophia.”

Now she looked like I’d said every curse word in the book. “You will do as I say or I won’t pay for your college education. You can flip burgers and go to community college instead.” Her voice dripped with all the anger she had reserved especially for me. “You’re lucky I’m not revoking my offer after what Lindsay told me. I can’t believe you lied to my face about Homec—”

“I don’t need your money,” I said.

There was no going back now. I pulled a folded-up paper out of my back pocket and gave it to her. “You were wrong about my dad. He did think of me. And thanks to him, I don’t need your money anymore.”

Her eyes were big as she read it. “This—this can’t be right. It’s not real.”

“Oh, it’s real,” I said. “Look at the lawyer’s signature at the bottom. Look at my dad’s. That’s his handwriting. I’d know it anywhere.”

But she was shaking her head.

“Did you see the part about the house yet?” I asked. “Half of it is mine.”

“You can’t do this,” she said.

Then she ripped up the will.

“Keep it. That’s your copy. I have more. You’ll never find the original. And I already have a digital copy too. Backed up. Another copy sent to Ms. Moreau.”

Sophia’s eyes burned with fire.

“You ungrateful little witch,” she whispered. “After everything I’ve done for you.”

“What is that exactly? Giving me a roof to sleep under? This was already my house. And it turns out that half of it belongs to me. The little you’ve given me since my dad died has been nothing compared to everything I’ve done. The cleaning, the cooking, putting up with the way you talk to me. I always thought maybe one day you’d finally treat me like one of your own. Then maybe Lindsay and Courtney would accept me too. But no matter what I did, you couldn’t. Why?”

I was on a roll, and I couldn’t stop. Not when I had her in front of me, stunned speechless.

“What did I ever do to you? You’re the only person I had, and you weren’t there for me.” For the second time that night, tears stung my eyes, and this time, I had a feeling they wouldn’t go away until they raced down my cheeks like wild horses.

“It was all your fault,” Sophia spat. At first, she seemed surprised she said it, but then she went on, surer of herself. “It was your fault he died.”

“What?” I asked, not believing the words coming out of her mouth.

“If you hadn’t asked him to come home from his trip early, he never would have fallen asleep at the wheel. It was your fault he died, that he never made it home to us. We hadn’t even celebrated our first anniversary.”

Her words turned into angry sobs, and tears ran down my cheeks as I heard them.

“We could have had a long, happy life together, but as usual, he put you first. You were always first,” she went on.

I shook my head. How could she put his death on me? “Wow, Sophia, I didn’t think you could go any lower, but you love to surprise me.” Tears streamed down my face, but I wiped them away.

She didn’t blink. “You know it’s true.”

“It was an accident, and you know it. And if my dad were here…shame on you.”

Sophia’s mouth fell open for a second before she regained some of her composure. She threw the shreds of the will on the ground. “You want to do this? Fine. I won’t be stuck with you anymore.”

She left, and I ran up to my room. I wasn’t sure why I was still crying. I knew I never represented more than a burden to Sophia, but to hear it said out loud like that hurt more than I could have ever imagined.