by Ali Novak
“Katherine, this—this is the best surprise anyone has given me,” I said, barely able to get my words out. My hands were trembling as I pulled her into a hug. There was nothing I could say to truly show her what this—having a family again—meant to me.
“I’m glad you like it, honey,” she whispered softly. It was almost as if she understood what was going through my head.
“We need to get going,” Danny said, glancing down at his watch. All morning he’d been an anxious mess, and I knew he was afraid of missing the flight.
Everyone paraded to the driveway so we could say our farewells.
“I’m going to miss my running buddy,” Nathan told me, wrapping his arms around me for a hug.
“Not as much as I’m going to miss you,” I replied, burying my face in his shoulder. “But I’ll be back in September. There’s no way I could leave you forever.” I pulled away so I could look at him. More like look up at him. Nathan was so much taller than me now that he could use the top of my head as an armrest. He only had a few more inches to go before he caught up to Danny.
“All right, you two,” George said, opening the truck door. “We should hit the road.”
After receiving a hug from everyone, including a second one from Katherine, Danny and I climbed into the truck.
“I’ll be home for dinner,” George called.
After clicking in my seat belt, I focused my attention on all the wonderful people in front of me as the car roared to life. Every one of them had been important in helping me during a difficult time of my life, and I never wanted to forget that. Looking past their sad but smiling faces, I found the window of my room on the side of the Walters’ house. If I squinted, I could make out the bright colors that were on the walls, but I had to imagine the image of my bed and desk inside.
As if the weather sensed everyone’s depressing mood, the sky had filled with clouds. Danny and I waved out the truck window, and I felt the mist of a coming rain brush against my skin. By the time we had backed all the way out of the driveway, it was raining.
Reaching back, Danny found my hand and rubbed it softly in a comforting way. I rested my head against the window and stared out into the gloomy weather. Leaving Colorado wasn’t just hard for me; I knew Danny was sad as well. Although he was excited about the opportunities that the theater program was going to offer him, he was leaving his family behind.
“What the heck?” George exclaimed from the front seat. My eyes snapped open. Craning my neck to peer out the window, I spotted a car speeding toward us dangerously fast. A horn honked as the car pulled up beside us. It was the newly restored Buick Grand National.
“It’s Cole!” Danny said, his eyebrows rising in surprise.
“You’re right,” George said, sounding just as confused. “What is he doing?”
My phone rang, and I had to tear my eyes away from the road to find it in my purse. “Hello?” I answered, my voice trembling.
“Jackie, it’s me. Please have my dad pull over.”
“Mr. Walter?” I asked, holding the phone away from my mouth. “Can you pull over quick? I promise this will only take a second.”
“All right,” he agreed, “but it has to be fast. Katherine would kill me if you two miss your flight.”
“I know. Thank you so much,” I said as he slowed the car and parked in the gravel on the side of the road.
Cole pulled up behind us, and I ripped my door open and jumped out into the rain.
“I thought you weren’t going to say good-bye,” I said, launching myself into his arms.
“I know. I’m sorry,” he responded and held me tight. “I was afraid. I don’t want to say good-bye to you.”
“It’s not forever.”
“It feels like it,” he said. Biting my tongue, I tried to hold back the rush of feelings inside me. “I wish things would have worked out between us.” His words were regretful. “It’s like the timing was never right.”
“Who knows?” I said. Lifting my hands up, I cupped his face with my cold fingers. “Maybe it will be.”
Yes, I was leaving Colorado. Coming here had helped me forget some of the pain of losing my family, but I needed to stop running from it. Going back to New York was going to be an agonizing process of putting myself back together, but facing it would make me a stronger person. Perhaps then, when I came back, the timing would be perfect.
Cole turned his head to look at the dark sky above us, and I couldn’t tell if it was a raindrop or tear that streaked down his face. “Okay.”
The truck horn beeped, signaling our time was up.
“Good-bye, Cole,” I whispered, nuzzling my face between his shoulder and neck.
“Wait!” he cried out as I started to pull away. “Just one kiss, Jackie. One real kiss, so you can have something to think about when you get home.”
I gazed up into Cole’s eyes before I let mine flutter closed. His warm lips pressed against mine, as the cold, numbing rain poured down on us. My hand gripped his shoulders tightly as he tangled his fingers in my soaking hair. Our heavy, wet clothes hung to our bodies, making our embrace feel even tighter.
And one kiss was all it was. As soon as his lips touched mine, it felt like they were gone, even though the kiss had probably lasted a good five seconds.
“Thank you,” Cole whispered, his forehead pressed against mine.
My heart was begging me to find his lips again and never let go, but the horn beeped again, and my head made me pull away.
“Good-bye, Jackie,” Cole called as I turned in the direction of the truck.
“See you in three months,” I responded, looking back over my shoulder. No good-byes. This wasn’t good-bye. He nodded his head and flashed me a small smile.
With that, I focused my eyes on the truck and didn’t look back. It was time to go home.
Acknowledgments
There are many extraordinary people who were involved in getting this story into bookstores. Firstly, I’d like to thank the people at Sourcebooks, especially my editor Aubrey Poole who helped me sort through the rambling mess of an enthusiastic fifteen-year-old, and Dominique Raccah who took a chance on twelve wild boys. Secondly, I’d like to thank the amazing Wattpad team. To Allen Lau for creating the website that shaped me into the writer that I am today, and Eva Lau who made Wattpad feel like a second home. Their generosity is unparalleled. Also, to Seema Lakhani who guided my through my fan-funding campaign.
Then there are the people who nurtured this story when it was only a single chapter. They encouraged me to add a second and a third, until finally I had a novel on my hands. To my beloved fans at Wattpad for helping me bring this story to life. Without their support, I would be nowhere.
Thank you to my little sister, who was the first person to listen to my story; to my mother, for supporting this crazy career path; to my father, whose memory gave me the strength to finish this story even when I didn’t want to; and lastly, to my best friend and fiancé Jared, for loving me even though I’m a little bit crazy.
A Special Thanks To…
Alexandra D. (Mimi)
Maja D Jørgensen
Bipasha Peridot
PeridotAngel
Chellsey Bland
Richard Wiltshire
Lauren Wholey
Fiona Hennah
Kelly Hepburn
Sarah Watson
Megan Toher
Sania Henry
Daniela Jáquez
Shez King
black_rose_love
Annette Kinch
Faux Punker
Natasha Preston
Katy Thrasher
Alexis Stambek
Samantha R. Weck
Isabel Jean Brice
Lovectic
Alexa Dougherty
Czarina Sophia
TheOddPersonOut
Lilian Carmine
Colleen H.
Courtney Baysa
Khadija Al Kiyumi
Colleen Bartsch
Candice Faktor
About the Author
Ali Novak is a twenty-two-year-old Wisconsin native and recent graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s creative writing program. She started writing her debut novel My Life with the Walter Boys when she was only fifteen. After posting the story online, it received more than twenty-five million hits. When she isn’t writing, Ali enjoys reading anything she can get her hands on and watching Food Network shows even though she can’t cook.
About Wattpad
You might not realize it, but the book you’re holding started as a story on Wattpad, a social reading platform. It was written by someone just like you, someone who might not have necessarily thought they were an author until they shared their story with the world’s largest community of readers and writers. Download the Wattpad app today to discover other stories like this one that you can read for free on your phone or tablet, or on your computer at www.wattpad.com.
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