Page 101 of Free Girls

My mom finally drops a tear and wipes it away quickly. “I support you, Jasmine. You mean the world to me—to us. Travis is so proud of you.”

Hearing that makes my heart swell. Still, I have to ask: “Are you?”

“I’m proudandI’m embarrassed that I’m crying in this car.”

“Yeah, that’s definitely embarrassing,” I say, laughing a little.

She breaks into a nervous smile and slaps my hand. “You think we can really start over? Or is it a dub or whatever you kids say?”

“Eww, please, Mom,” I say. “Where did you even hear that?”

She shrugs. “A meme or something.”

“I always feel like I’m going to disappoint you. I don’t know how to start over without that feeling. I just want to be honest,” I say.

“I think that’s the right place to start. Thank you for telling me.” She wraps her arms around me. When we pull away, we’re both smiling.

“Now, let’s get these donuts,” she says, opening her door. “Oh, and you can finish telling me how confronting Amari went.”

I groan.

“And if I need to go over there and talk to her!” she finishes before heading inside the bakery.

I take a seat near the entrance. My mom laughs with the man at the counter, and it’s nice to see her that way after talking to me. I smile at the thought of her yelling at Amari.

Even though we don’t have the best track record for fresh starts, this feels different. I think she wants one for herself and one for us. I want the same thing. We’re finally okay with being bad at things out loud and that might just be what works this time. Who knows.

On the ride home, my mom sings along with the radio the way she used to, and I laugh at how off pitch she is. When we pull up to the house, she turns to me.

“What?” I ask suspiciously.

“What’s Deanna up to?”

“I don’t know… why?”

She pauses dramatically. “Go see,” she says. “Take the car.”

“Wait, what?”

She opens her door. “Come on, before I change my mind! You deserve asafejoyride,” she says.

I cover my mouth in shock and shriek through my hands. “Really?”

“Yes, girl, I’ll finally let Kayla do the supervising!” She grabs the box of donuts from the back seat as I make my way to thedriver’s side. “Safely, Jasmine! Remember what Travis taught you,” she says, and heads toward the house.

Kayla throws the front door open, blows a dramatic kiss, and runs to the car. It feels good that she seems excited for me too.

“I will, Mom. Thanks for trusting me!” I call out, starting the car. Though I’ve had my permit for about a month, my mom never let me drive with anyone but her.

“Wish us luck!” Kayla yells.

My mom waves but doesn’t turn around. I think she’s too nervous to watch.

Kayla puts her seat back and tells me to pretend she isn’t there. “Enjoy it, sis. You deserve it.”

I linger at the Stop sign. No one is behind me, and I want to find the right song before I start driving again. I connect my phone to the car and put my playlist on shuffle. “Good to Me” by H.E.R. starts pouring through the speakers.

Wanna try, I wanna thrive

Not just survive, no fakin’

I can’t wait to see Deanna and decide to just surprise her. She’s going to freak out when she sees me behind the wheel. I love how contagious her excitement is, and I’m so glad I still get to share it with her—that she still wants to share it with me.

I belt the lyrics without a care in the world, off-key like my mom. Kayla snickers but maintains her silence.

A car pulls up behind me and I take a deep breath before I drive off. I think about the way things are working themselvesout, proof that my past can’t define me if I don’t let it, and that people will listen if I ask them to.

I turn the music up to enjoy the rest of my very first drive on therealfirst day of my fresh start. I hope the pieces keep fitting right where they belong.