Chapters (93)
- Cover
- Dedication
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Thirty-Nine
- Forty
- Forty-One
- Forty-Two
- Forty-Three
- Forty-Four
- Forty-Five
- Forty-Six
- Forty-Seven
- Forty-Eight
- Forty-Nine
- Fifty
- Fifty-One
- Fifty-Two
- Fifty-Three
- Fifty-Four
- Fifty-Five
- Fifty-Six
- Fifty-Seven
- Fifty-Eight
- Fifty-Nine
- Sixty
- Sixty-One
- Sixty-Two
- Sixty-Three
- Sixty-Four
- Sixty-Five
- Sixty-Six
- Sixty-Seven
- Sixty-Eight
- Sixty-Nine
- Seventy
- Seventy-One
- Seventy-Two
- Seventy-Three
- Seventy-Four
- Seventy-Five
- Seventy-Six
- Seventy-Seven
- Seventy-Eight
- Seventy-Nine
- Eighty
- Eighty-One
- Eighty-Two
- Eighty-Three
- Eighty-Four
- Eighty-Five
- Author’s Note
- Acknowledgments
- About the Author
- Books by Kelly Yang
- Back Ad
- About the Publisher
He commands me to stop, slow down, and speed up, and turns the steering wheel with his hands over mine. After a while, I start to get it. I drive the car up and down empty streets, learning to control the speed, which isn’t easy, given how forceful the engine is. Slowly, Jay lifts his hands off mine. And I’m doing it! I’m driving!
I laugh.
“You’re a fast learner,” he says. He sits back in his seat and grins. “I know what I’m getting you for your birthday.”
I turn to him and say, “No. No. No. Please don’t.”
“Keep your eyes on the road at all times!” he barks at me.
“Sorry!” I force my eyes straight ahead. As I make my way down the street, I notice a beautiful house up the road. There’s a For Sale sign on the lawn.
“Stop here for a second,” he says.
I pull up in front of the house and we both get out. The Cape Cod–style blue-and-white house sits in front of the water. Jay and I hold hands as we walk across the lush green lawn.
“Hey! There’s an open house right now,” I say, noticing the sign on the door.
We walk inside. The house is stunning, with gleaming hardwood floors and sunlight pouring in from the windows. The real estate agent glances at us, but is too busy talking to someone else to come over to say hello. Jay and I show ourselves around the house. He runs his fingers along the walls and the wood, pointing out to me the Dutch door entry, the handcrafted French oak cabinets.
He studies every corner and angle mechanically, scientifically. This is obviously not his first open house. As we walk, I offer random possibilities for remodeling, trying to sound like the real estate expert I’m not. But I’ve picked up enough from watching my mother redecorate our villa.
“You could put a window seat right there,” I say, pointing to a quiet spot in the corner with lots of sunlight. “And you could store things under it.”
Jay’s impressed. “You’re good at this,” he says. He pulls out his phone and starts taking pictures of the house. When we get to the master suite, I hop onto the bed and stretch out my legs. Jay calls his dad, and I listen to him go through the specs of the mall as I text with Jess on my own phone.
What are you guys doing now? Jess texts.
Looking at real estate, I text back.
OMG #goals, she texts.
I smile.
“Oh, and there’s a house we found, Dad, right on the water,” Jay says to his father on the phone. “It’s beautiful.”
He snaps his fingers for the flyer, and I hand it to him.