Fable (An Unfortunate Fairy Tale #3)(22)

She ran to the box and hit the green button. “Hello?”

Static, and then she could hear two voices arguing in the background. “Why in the world are we pushing the button?” She recognized Ever’s voice.

“Because that’s the way they do it,” Jared’s voice argued back.

“Well, we are not like them. You’re a prince. Just wave your hand and—”

Mina quickly pushed the “open” button for the driveway gate, hoping to cut off Ever and Jared’s Fae magic conversation before Nan overheard.

A few seconds later, Jared pulled up in an orange 1969 Ford Boss 429 Mustang, which she knew was really Fae magic at work. Another car came up the driveway, and Mina was surprised to see Brody’s new car he’d gotten after the accident, a black Escalade. The driver’s window rolled down, and Brody leaned his head out the window. “You ladies ready?”

Nan smiled widely but gripped Mina’s hand nervously. “You bet.”

Mina tried to crane her neck to see who was in the car with Brody, but she couldn’t see who the passenger was. A second later, the other door opened, and someone stepped out. He was tall and broad-shouldered, with copper-colored hair and warm hazel eyes. He wore jeans, a white polo shirt, and a jacket. Mina scanned her memory of her high school yearbook and couldn’t place him anywhere. He was cute, that was for sure, and her heart did a small nervous flutter of anticipation. Now it was Mina’s turn to grip Nan’s hand really hard.

Brody hopped out of the driver’s seat, walked over to Nan, and put an arm around her shoulders. “Hey, Mina, this is Reid Stone.”

“Nice to meet you, Mina,” Reid announced.

Her head snapped up, and she responded softly, “Nice to meet you, too. You don’t go to Kennedy, do you?”

“No, I actually know Brody through a mutual friend of ours.”

“Oh,” she said sadly, wondering if Brody had been unable to find anyone from their own school who would actually go on a date with her.

“Wow, Brody. You forgot to tell me that she was so cute.” Reid punched his friend in the shoulder.

Brody frowned, and he was visibly grinding his teeth. “Didn’t I?”

Jared never got out of the car, and revved the engine irritably in response to their chitchat. “Let’s get this over with. Unless you want to hit the nine o’clock showing of Death Pledge, we need to get going.”

Mina hurried over. Reid opened the rear door for her and she slid into the car, her skin slightly catching on the leather seats. Reid slid in after her and turned so he could face her in the seat.

“So, Mina, tell me about yourself.”

She felt uncomfortable, nervous, and she felt like she was going to be sick. She watched Nan jump into the front seat with Brody, and she looked just as nervous, even more so. Maybe the two of them were not meant to date…ever. Neither one of them had any luck so far keeping the guys they really wanted.

“Um, let’s see. I’m a junior at Kennedy High, and I like…” She blanked. Completely blanked. In that second she realized how utterly boring and plain she was. Anything even remotely interesting wasn’t something that she could come right out and say. I chase down fairy-tale villains in my spare time and entrap them in my magic book. Yeah, she couldn’t say that. “…I like my family and kids and animals.”

Nan turned around and made a disgusted noise at her. “You sound like you’re being interviewed for Miss America. Here, let me help. She’s artistic, one of the best in her advanced art class. Her pencil sketches, if you can ever get her to show them to you, are phenomenal, along with her pastels. She likes to read, but not that smutty stuff—classics, and books that have depth to them. She remembers everything someone tells her and has a knack for finding the good in everyone.”

Brody looked back at her through the rearview mirror. “And she kills at flag football. Don’t let her fool you. She’s got some fight in her.”

Mina blushed, and Reid laughed. “I’ll remember that.”

Because Nan was a great icebreaker, the drive to the movie theater went by fast. She learned that Reid was the youngest of five brothers. His family was all lawyers, of a sort, and that he was lined up to work in the family business when he was done with school. He liked working with metals, welding and sculpting.

She felt herself smiling and laughing at Reid. When they arrived at AMC Theaters, she was prepared to buy her own ticket, but Reid wouldn’t let her. He bought both of their tickets, two drinks, and a large popcorn. She was secretly relieved that this date was actually going well.

Jared grudgingly paid for Ever’s ticket and her box of Sour Patch Kids. Ever flipped out and began to dance around in excitement when she saw that the theater also sold packages of Pixie Stix.

Nan ran ahead to the theater, then came back and announced that the theater was packed and that they would have to split up. Mina bit the inside of her cheek to keep from making a terrified face, but they all filed into the darkened room and tried to find seats that weren’t so close they would have neck aches from looking straight up.

Brody and Nan found seats a few rows in front of them and to their left. Jared and Ever ended up in the very back row. Mina and Reid found seats on the right side of the theater, next to an overly large man with a beard and glasses who had enough popcorn and snacks to last for three movies. Most of the teens had their phones out and were texting or tweeting while they waited for the movie to start. Reid leaned back and stretched out his long legs in front of him, and stared at her thoughtfully.