Page 3 of Places We've Never Been

“You’re thinking King Kong, and I’m pretty sure hecausedher distress. But Donkey Kong is no prince either.” I tossed him back in my pile. “If I were to take anyone to my interview, it would be Ms. Pac-Man. She’s a baddie.”

“Like you’re going to be in that interview.”

I took a deep breath. I hoped she was right. I would just have to focus, not go off track like my brain sometimes did, and stick to my rehearsed answers. I’d be fine.

Before I realized what she was doing, Willow had snatched my flash cards from my pocket and started flipping through them. “These are the questions you’re studying for it?” She had her back to me and I reached around trying to get the cards back. “Who has influenced your art the most? Why animation?”

“They’ll ask those,” I said.

“Why do you look like you want to be our librarian?” she said, pretending to read off a card.

“You’re such a brat.”

She turned around with a big smile and handed me the cards. “There will be some questions you didn’t write on these cards, too, you know.”

Ididknow. And that was the thought that had me adding questions to the cards every day. I needed to think of everything. Even the unexpected.

“Norah! Ezra! They’re here!” Mom’s voice rang out from thehall.

My eyes shot to the window, where an RV now blocked my view of the road. I smiled. “They’re here!”

“Go,” Willow said, shooing me. “I’m going to leave some notes in your suitcase for you to find later that will remind you of your loyalty.”

I hugged her and ran out the door, nearly colliding with my older brother, Ezra, as I did.

“Today’s the day!” I said, grabbing hold of his arm and shaking it.

“It’s this kind of attitude that made Mom think three weeksin a rolling box is something we actually want to do,” he said dryly.

“You know you’re excited.”

“Three weeks, Norah. Only weirdos like you can spin that into anything but torture.”

And Skyler. He’d be into this, I was sure of it.

I took Ezra’s hand, pulling him toward the front door, where I could now hear voices. “You get to see Austin.” Austin was Skyler’s older brother, and much like me and Skyler, Austin and Ezra had been inseparable when they lived in Fresno.

Ezra shook his head. “Literally haven’t said a word to him in about three years.”

“So.”

“Just saying, it will be weird.”

“Only if you make it weird.”

“I will,” he joked. “I totally will.” Unlike me, Ezra never made anything awkward. He had been the King of Cool in high school. Mr. Popular. Star football player and class president. Nearly everyone I met knew of my brother.

We came to the end of the hall and rounded the corner into the living room, where laughter and hugs were being exchanged. Mom had her arms tight around Olivia, tears in both of their eyes.

“Best friends shouldn’t spend four years apart,” Mom said.

Olivia nodded.

My gaze searched the room, landing first on Paisley, Skyler’s younger sister. When they moved, she was only ten. Now, at fourteen, she had long dark hair and was almost taller than me.Austin looked like an adult, which technically, at nineteen now, he was, complete with face scruff, neatly trimmed dark hair, a filled-out frame, and jeans instead of basketball shorts. My dad was shaking his hand. When he backed away, Austin saw us.

He smiled. “Hey, guys.”

Ezra, who seconds before had pretended not to be excited, was the first one forward. They exchanged a quick hug, slapping each other on the back once, and then laughed.