couldn’t see much anyway. The new moon didn’t provide enough illumination for her rearview mirror to be used as a spyglass, but that didn’t stop her from trying.
“To the Kwik Stop so the girls can change clothes and the boys can buy beer. There’s a hoedown in Casey. Everyone’s going to be there.”
All the more reason to stay away, Dylan thought. She wanted Rebecca all to herself. She smiled as Rebecca climbed into the front seat. She had expected Rebecca to look different when she changed clothes, but she hadn’t expected this. Someone who strived to be plain had turned into someone breathtaking. “Well, hello, gorgeous,” she said, mimicking Barbra Streisand in Funny Girl.
Rebecca blushed. “I’ve never been called gorgeous before. What am I supposed to say?”
“How about thank you?”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. What do you want to do tonight?”
“Don’t you have anything special in mind? What about The List?”
“The List can wait. This is your night, not mine.”
“Maybe we could go to Casey for a while. Perhaps it’s best if I stick with my own.”
My own. Dylan latched onto the words. Why did their lives have to be separate? Hers. Mine. Why couldn’t it be theirs?
“I thought rumspringa was about pushing past your boundaries, not remaining inside them.”
“It is, but we don’t have to push them tonight, do we? I don’t want to end up like Sarah, forced to marry before I’m ready.”
“Do you think she made a mistake?”
“I don’t, but if she does, that could explain the unease I sense in her soul.”
Dylan looked at Rebecca out of the corner of her eye. “When do you think you’ll be ready to get married?”
“Not for a while yet. Four years, at least.”
“Four years can seem like a long time when you’re looking forward to something, but time passes in the blink of an eye.”
“That’s why it’s so important I make the right decisions now. I don’t want to make a choice I’ll spend the rest of my life regretting.”
“Is that what Sarah’s doing?”
“She doesn’t seem as happy as I thought she would be, but Joshua is a good man. Sarah made the right choice when she decided to marry him.”
“Perhaps she doesn’t feel the same way. Only she knows what’s best for her. The same way only you know what’s best for you and only I know what’s best for me.”
“What do you think is best for you?”
“Freedom. Freedom of choice. Freedom to love who I want and how I want.”
Rebecca frowned. “Don’t you want to get married and have children?”
Dylan hesitated, unsure whether she should answer the question or deflect it. The rules of Rebecca’s religion forbade many things and allowed limited use of others. Alcohol was okay in moderation, smoking was tolerated as long as there were no cigarettes involved, and so on and so on. The rules on homosexuality, however, were unequivocal. Expressing romantic love for someone of the same sex was expressly forbidden.
Dylan turned on her blinker and pulled her car to the side of the road. Ahead of her, a string of taillights continued to head out of town.
“Why are you stopping? We aren’t there yet.”
“I want to tell you something first. After I do, I’ll gladly take you anywhere you want to go—even if it’s away from me.”
“You’re one of my closest friends. Why would I want to leave you?”
“You might not have a choice.”
Dylan looked down at her hands. Her fingers gripped each other so tightly her knuckles were white.
Rebecca placed her hands on top of Dylan’s. “You’re scaring me. What’s wrong?”
“I would say nothing’s wrong, but your father and the rest of your church might not agree.”
“What do you mean?”
“When I get married—and I do want to get married—it will be to a woman instead of a man.” Dylan waited for her words to sink in. “Do you understand what I mean by that?”
“You’re saying you like girls instead of boys. You’re
“To the Kwik Stop so the girls can change clothes and the boys can buy beer. There’s a hoedown in Casey. Everyone’s going to be there.”
All the more reason to stay away, Dylan thought. She wanted Rebecca all to herself. She smiled as Rebecca climbed into the front seat. She had expected Rebecca to look different when she changed clothes, but she hadn’t expected this. Someone who strived to be plain had turned into someone breathtaking. “Well, hello, gorgeous,” she said, mimicking Barbra Streisand in Funny Girl.
Rebecca blushed. “I’ve never been called gorgeous before. What am I supposed to say?”
“How about thank you?”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. What do you want to do tonight?”
“Don’t you have anything special in mind? What about The List?”
“The List can wait. This is your night, not mine.”
“Maybe we could go to Casey for a while. Perhaps it’s best if I stick with my own.”
My own. Dylan latched onto the words. Why did their lives have to be separate? Hers. Mine. Why couldn’t it be theirs?
“I thought rumspringa was about pushing past your boundaries, not remaining inside them.”
“It is, but we don’t have to push them tonight, do we? I don’t want to end up like Sarah, forced to marry before I’m ready.”
“Do you think she made a mistake?”
“I don’t, but if she does, that could explain the unease I sense in her soul.”
Dylan looked at Rebecca out of the corner of her eye. “When do you think you’ll be ready to get married?”
“Not for a while yet. Four years, at least.”
“Four years can seem like a long time when you’re looking forward to something, but time passes in the blink of an eye.”
“That’s why it’s so important I make the right decisions now. I don’t want to make a choice I’ll spend the rest of my life regretting.”
“Is that what Sarah’s doing?”
“She doesn’t seem as happy as I thought she would be, but Joshua is a good man. Sarah made the right choice when she decided to marry him.”
“Perhaps she doesn’t feel the same way. Only she knows what’s best for her. The same way only you know what’s best for you and only I know what’s best for me.”
“What do you think is best for you?”
“Freedom. Freedom of choice. Freedom to love who I want and how I want.”
Rebecca frowned. “Don’t you want to get married and have children?”
Dylan hesitated, unsure whether she should answer the question or deflect it. The rules of Rebecca’s religion forbade many things and allowed limited use of others. Alcohol was okay in moderation, smoking was tolerated as long as there were no cigarettes involved, and so on and so on. The rules on homosexuality, however, were unequivocal. Expressing romantic love for someone of the same sex was expressly forbidden.
Dylan turned on her blinker and pulled her car to the side of the road. Ahead of her, a string of taillights continued to head out of town.
“Why are you stopping? We aren’t there yet.”
“I want to tell you something first. After I do, I’ll gladly take you anywhere you want to go—even if it’s away from me.”
“You’re one of my closest friends. Why would I want to leave you?”
“You might not have a choice.”
Dylan looked down at her hands. Her fingers gripped each other so tightly her knuckles were white.
Rebecca placed her hands on top of Dylan’s. “You’re scaring me. What’s wrong?”
“I would say nothing’s wrong, but your father and the rest of your church might not agree.”
“What do you mean?”
“When I get married—and I do want to get married—it will be to a woman instead of a man.” Dylan waited for her words to sink in. “Do you understand what I mean by that?”
“You’re saying you like girls instead of boys. You’re
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