by Kate Gavin
That was the only thing Riley needed to hear before she quickly hugged Cam tightly.
“Everything okay?” she whispered in Cam’s ear and she nodded.
As they broke apart, her mom walked over to them. “Riley, I would like to apologize to you. I know I’ve treated you unfairly and I’ve kept you from seeing Cam. I hope we can get to know each other a little better this summer before you head off to school.”
“I’d like that, Ms. Leoni.”
She wrapped Riley into a hug, and then held Riley by the shoulders, looking at her with a stony expression. “There still won’t be any sleepovers. Got it?”
Riley straightened and said with a frightened look in her eyes, “Yes, ma’am.”
Her mom gave her a wink and told them, “I’ll see you two after the ceremony. Riley, tell your parents you’re all welcome to join us for dinner tonight.” Riley nodded, and Cam’s mom walked away. “Oh, and make sure you two don’t trip while you’re on stage,” she said with a chuckle.
“Thanks for the pep talk, Mom!” Cam called as she waved to the rest of her family.
Cam turned to Riley, grabbed her hands, and gave her a kiss. Riley looked into Cam’s eyes and interlocked their fingers. “So, things with your mom have changed?”
Smiling broadly, Cam replied, “Yeah, we had a chat last night. I’ll fill you in at dinner.”
“Sounds great,” she said, pulling Cam in for a lingering kiss. “Now, let’s go graduate. Don’t forget; don’t trip!”
As Riley listened to speeches from the principal, valedictorian, and salutatorian, she couldn’t keep a wide smile off her face. It wasn’t because the speeches were great or she was excited to graduate and move on to the next phase of her life. It was because she knew something had changed in a major way between Cam and her mom. For the first time in months, when it came to her family, the smile that graced Cam’s face fully reached her eyes.
While Riley knew Cam’s mom had kept them apart whether she explicitly said so or not, Riley had never once held it against her. She knew from her own experience of coming out to her parents the fear and apprehension parents experienced when finding out their kid was queer. Her parents certainly didn’t accept her sexuality right away, so she wasn’t surprised that Ms. Leoni had struggled with everything as well. But, it meant the world to Riley to have Ms. Leoni apologize to her and give her a hug. To have one of the most important people in Cam’s life show validation and approval for their relationship gave Riley a sense of happiness and peace.
Riley’s mind returned to the present as the principal told the first row of students to stand and line up to receive their diplomas. Riley watched as the first fifteen students walked to the side of the stage at the bottom of the stairs. After the first five received their diplomas, a teacher at the end of Riley’s row signaled the students to take their place in line. When Riley came to the bottom of the stairs, she took a deep breath as the advice not to trip echoed in her mind. She heard her name called and she stepped up to receive her diploma and shake the hand of the principal and vice principal.
As she made her way across the stage, she heard a high-pitched whistle come from the audience. She knew who it was immediately as her eyes searched her still-seated classmates. Finally, her gaze landed on a pair of big, beautiful brown eyes, and her breath caught in her throat when she saw the beaming smile that graced Cam’s face. As she continued to stare, a matching smile formed, and she gave Cam a wink as she walked down the stairs at the other end of the stage. She took her seat again and released a deep breath. All she wanted to do at that moment was jump out of her chair again, so she could walk over and envelop Cam in a bone-crushing hug. But she felt that would be slightly frowned upon, so she sat back and waited impatiently for the ceremony to end.
To Cam’s chagrin, the ceremony passed by slower than she would have liked. Once it ended, she made her way out of the gym to meet up with her family and friends, stopping every so often for a congratulatory hug from one of her classmates. She scanned the crowd on the way to a patch of grass which was the agreed upon meeting spot for her family.
She stopped when she saw her parents chatting with Riley’s parents—and Claire and Riley talking animatedly together. If anyone had told her a few months ago, even just a few weeks ago, that this is the scene she would see after graduation, she would have thought they had lost their mind.
Before her thoughts had a chance to turn emotional, Claire yelled as she and Riley turned toward Cam with wide smiles. “Cameron Elizabeth, quit your dawdling! Let’s get these pictures over with so we can go eat!”
Cam quickly walked to the group and received hugs and congratulations from everyone. As she finished with a quick kiss to Riley’s cheek, her mother corralled everyone for pictures.
“Okay, girls. I want to get a few pictures of the three of you,” her mom said as she held up her phone.
After about ten minutes of pictures in various groups and combinations, the parents all confirmed where they made reservations for dinner. Then everyone split up to go to their respective cars.
As Cam watched the families walk toward the parking lot, Riley reached for Cam’s hand and faced her. “Everything okay?” she asked softly.
“I’m better than okay,” she replied as she leaned in and kissed Riley tenderly.
“Good,” Riley replied with that grin of hers. “Now, let’s go. I’m starving and it’s time to celebrate!”
It was hard to fathom how things had all come together as Cam was beginning to take the next step in her young adult life. Soon, she would be leaving the shelter of familiarity and embarking on a journey into the unknown. She was undoubtedly thankful to have the support of her family, Claire, and Riley.
While she knew the future could be unpredictable, she also knew that the beautiful girl holding her hand had been the bright light in a dark and difficult year. She knew that as long as she had Riley by her side, then everything else would fall into place. Being in different states for college would be a drastic change, but she knew they’d always be able to come back to each other. One look into Riley’s eyes or a touch of her hand and Cam understood that would be all she needed to feel at home.
Bella Books, Inc.
Women. Books. Even Better Together.
P.O. Box 10543
Tallahassee, FL 32302
Phone: 800-729-4992
www.bellabooks.com