They were up next. He checked the competitors and leaned in close so Cindy could hear him. “The Hulk might be a problem, he looks wily.”
“Catwoman’s bigger than the others. That might give her an edge.”
“Captain America is always a contender. But I have faith in our Black Panther.”
They joined with the crowd in calling out the countdown. “Three…two…one…go!”
Their turtle made a good start, but then circled for no apparent reason. The Hulk nudged Captain America out of the way, but then sort of stopped. Catwoman was making a perfect trajectory towards the line, but moving very, very slowly. Black Panther resumed course and headed towards the red. The Hulk started back up, but Captain America was getting close, too. Catwoman was on track, but still a couple of inches short. Black Panther veered again, and Jonas and Cindy both groaned.
“Come on, baby, you can do it!” Cindy called out.
Captain America decided to circle. Catwoman was still on target. The Hulk stepped it up and bumped into Black Panther, knocking them both off target as Catwoman slowly made her way right over the line.
The guy with the Catwoman sign whooped and cheered as the crowd congratulated him.
Laughing, they abandoned the races and found a two-top table to relax at while they finished their drinks.
Chapter Eleven
Cindy finished her cider and considered another round of turtle racing, but decided she’d rather head home. She raised an eyebrow at Jonas, and he gave a little head jerk towards the door, so she knew they were in sync. She took the hand he held out and they made their way back to his car.
The drive home was pleasant. She was getting used to the astonishing lack of traffic out here, though it was still weird to have to drive forty-five minutes to get to a Target. The radio wasn’t getting much reception, so she punched in one of her playlists. She’d been working on discovering which music Jonas had the best reactions to, and had made a list. This was her first time trying it out, and she was pleased to see his fingers tapping along to many of them.
As he neared their driveway, she was surprised to see a car parked in it, next to hers. He glanced at her but she just shrugged.
She gasped when the doors opened and her parents got out of the car.
Jonas pulled to a stop. “What?”
“That’s my mom and dad.”
“Wow. Okay. Any chance this is a good thing?”
“Slim.”
“Do you want to wait here, and I’ll get rid of them?”
She sighed. “No. Thanks, but no. Let’s find out what’s happening.”
She got out and met Jonas at the front of the car. “Mom, Dad, hi. Meet Jonas. Jonas, my mom, Dana and my dad, Tom.”
Jonas held a hand out to her mother, who seemed reluctant, but then took it. Her father followed suit then looked expectantly at Cindy.
“Let’s go inside.” She gestured towards the front door, and then led the way.
“Since we’ve been waiting for hours, that would seem to be the thing to do,” her father said.
“Did I somehow miss the fact that you guys were coming to our house today? Or even this state?” Cindy asked as she opened the door and held it wide.
“We texted you hours ago.”
“Okay. Well, we were in meetings and then a restaurant, so I had my ringer off. But it takes more than several hours to get here, so I’m confused as to why I didn’t know you were coming.” She hated the swirl of acid in her stomach, because she knew she shouldn’t let them get to her. Knew she had done nothing wrong.
They all stood in the entryway and Jonas pointed towards the living room. She considered offering them drinks, and decided no. Her parents perched on the edge of the love seat as if it would swallow them hole. She and Jonas sat on the couch and waited.
“We’ve come to tell you we’re ashamed of your actions, and we insist that you correct your behavior,” her father said.
Her stomach fell and her throat burned. Jonas tensed beside her, but she willed him to stay calm and rested a hand on his leg.
