“Jesus, why do you all drive so damn fast?” I grouched, peering at the speedometer.

“This is the perfect speed for the highway.” Ricky smiled sheepishly. “But what does ‘you all’ mean?”

“Danny drives like a lunatic, too!”

“Well, we want to get where we’re going.” Reluctantly, he eased his foot off the gas to slow the Honda. “Better?” He gave me his most radiant toothpaste-commercial smile.

I nodded, though I knew him well enough by then to know he’d start speeding up again as soon as he thought I wasn’t paying attention anymore.

I really liked Ricky. Besides being Danny’s best friend, and a super nice guy, he was totally reliable, despite being a textbook bro. Then again, I’d thought Danny was a textbook bro at first, too.

Ricky loved all women, especially tall blondes with supermodel measurements and huge breasts. Vanessa wasn’t blonde and didn’t exactly fit his ideals, but he’d never been seriously interested in a relationship with her, either. They’d both known that from the beginning. They’d had their fun and then gone their separate ways once they’d had enough of each other.

“How did you and Danny meet?” I asked, watching the speedometer creep up again.

“I’ve known him since he moved to Germany,” he said. “We went to the same high school in Rottweil.”

“He lived in Rottweil?”

“Yeah, didn’t he tell you that? He didn’t move here until he went to the home.”

“I didn’t know... He doesn’t like to talk about himself.”

Ricky scoffed. “Who does?” But he seemed a bit too nonchalant to me.

We drove on in silence for a while, until, lost in thought, I remarked, “That must have really sucked for him, getting put in a home so far away. First, he loses both parents, and then he has to move away from his best friend.”

Ricky stared at me for a second longer than was strictly necessary. Confusion bubbled up between us.

“He came out here voluntarily,” Ricky said at last. “And it wasn’t a problem. We never lost touch, not in all that time. I already had a car and a driver’s license by then, and it was only about an hour’s drive. Well, the way we drive, anyway.” As if on cue, the speedometer inched up again, putting us back at Ricky’s usual speed.

“I know Danny had a lot of problems with his dad,” I began hesitantly, carefully watching Ricky’s reaction—he bit his lip. “But it still must have been hard for him to lose both parents at once in that car accident.”

“Car accident?” Ricky blurted out.

Yeah, something fishy was going on.

“Um, yeah,” Ricky recovered, trying to smooth over his slip-up, “of course, that was really tough on him.”

“I can imagine,” I said emphatically, hoping I wasn’t over-acting this.

“He handled it really well.” Ricky seemed oblivious to my suspicion. But he was still eager to change the subject. “So when is your driving test?”

“Next week,” I said, my thoughts still on Danny. I wasn’t going to get any more out of Ricky, so I’d have to go straight to the source and ask Danny why he’d lied to me about his parents.

“I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you, of course. You feel ready?”

“Yeah, I’ll be okay,” I murmured.

“There they are.” Ricky pointed, and I squinted through the window into the distance.

I could just barely see Danny and Christina standing in front of a big building. Someone else was standing beside them—probably some kind of supervisor. The building was in the middle of the woods, with nothing but meadows and fields surrounding it.

As we got out of the car, before I even had a chance to greet Danny, Christina came running up and threw her arms around my neck. “Jessica!” she crowed. “I’m soooooo glad you’re here. I missed you!”

Ricky contented himself with giving Danny a friendly jab in the ribs and shaking Christina’s hand. She looked good—I noticed right away. Her cheeks were rosy, and she’d put on a few pounds. I felt bad about practically shoving her away from me, but I couldn’t wait any longer to be in Danny’s arms. He drew me in and kissed me passionately. His familiar scent enveloped me as I wrapped my arms around his middle, pressing him against me. Immediately, I felt him stiffen, so I let go again.

“How are you guys?” I asked brightly. “How is it here?”

“Tough,” Danny said.

Christina’s eyes lit up. “I haven’t felt this good in a long time. Once I get out of here, I’m going to start living a normal life!” She was visibly proud of herself. “I’m going to do it, Jessica! This summer, Danny’s going to get me part-time work at the gym, and then in a few months I’ll start applying for full-time jobs! Man, I have so much to tell you…”

“Can I talk to you for a second?” I heard Ricky say behind me. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him lay a hand on Danny’s shoulder and take him aside.