Chapter 17 Sixteen

• The car ride was steeped in silence. Azalea shifted in her seat, unsure of what kind of tension lingered between them. Was it just her overthinking, or was it actually there? Maybe silence like this was just... normal. But with Jackson, it never really felt normal. There was always something unsaid, hovering in the air.
• Eventually, the car slowed to a stop. Jackson parked at the edge of a familiar hill.
• "Well, fire ant, this is our stop," he said, cutting through the quiet with his usual teasing nickname for her.