She looks at me, serious. The playful expression wiped away. “We’ll just have to find out one day, won’t we?”
I just smile in response.
We mingle with the other dog owners. Skylar gets insight on the different breeds and which ones require more care and attention. She’s taking in every word as if putting the information away for another time.
I hear bits and pieces, “which is good for children?”, “are they easy to housetrain?”, “what’s their lifespan?”
We stay another thirty minutes before we take Bailey on the trail close by. She barks at everything, pulling on the leash, but she only pushes so far before she gives up the fight.
I finally break the silence and ask, “Are you excited about Europe?”
“Yeah, I’m pretty excited.” She replies. “I’m not excited about leaving you, but hopefully the summer will go by fast.”
I snort-laugh, “Please, you’re gonna be in Paris and totally forget that you even have someone waiting for you.”
She shoves me playfully. “Don’t even say that. I mean, it could happen, but don’t say it aloud.”
I take her hand, “Just bring back some cool weather, will ya?” I kiss her palm.
“I’ll see what I can do.” She squeezes my hand. I squeeze back.
After I drop her and Bailey off, I return home for a nap.
***
The week passes by in an uneventful blur; classes, work, home, sleep…repeat. I hardly had any time to see Skylar. Thankfully she understands but I can tell she was just as frustrated as me.
Since I’m off during P.M., I’m working, which means, she usually gets a ride home with Randa. But I finally took a day off to spend with the family. Even Rose seemed happy to see me.
“When’s he coming over?” Skylar asks her mom of Brandon.
We’re sitting on the couch in the living room with Bailey curled up between us, her head in my lap. I caress her fur
“He’ll be here in thirty minutes.”
Skylar taps my leg, “Is your dad coming?”
I lean in to whisper in her ear, “Yes, he’ll be there.” And then I kiss the spot behind her ear, making her shiver.
“Behave.” She scolds.
I shake my head, “Never.”
When Brandon arrives, we put the dog in her crate and pile into our cars. Everyone is meeting us at the restaurant. This should be interesting.
Chapter 31
Skylar
When we pull up to the restaurant, no one’s there yet. But with a reservation, we’re seated at the back. We just wait for everyone to show up.
Jackson places his hand on my leg, “Why are you so nervous?”
I glance at him and stop the incessant bouncing of my leg I didn’t realize I was doing. “I have no idea. I’m just fidgety.”
“Really? Is that what that was?”
I slap him in the chest, just as Paul walks in the room. Soon after, Jared and Hannah show up, along with the rest of the group. We all start conversing.
Brandon’s daughters still haven’t shown up, thirty minutes later and I start to wonder if they’re ever going to.
Randa and Ian tell us about their San Antonio trip, Monica and Jake announce their possible baby boy names; Brayden and Andrew.
“I’m in favor of Brayden.” Jackson tells them.
I say, “I like Andrew,” and stick my tongue out at him.
He reaches out like he’s going to grab it before he says, “Put that thing away, before I bite it off.”
I hit my knee hard on the table when his hand comes too close to my inner thigh. “What the hell?”
He snickers.
Finally, the girls walk in; Vanessa and Ashton. One is blonde, the other brunette, one is smiling, the other, frowning. Both of them are beautiful, though.
Brandon stands up, “I’d like to introduce my daughters, Nessy and Ash.” He glances at them, “Girls, these are everybody. They’re a tight knit family, very friendly and wonderful.”
“Hi.” Vanessa, the older one smiles at each of us. “I’m happy to meet all of you. My dad talks kindly of you.”
We all smile. I glance at Ash, the frowny face girl.
I get up, “I’ll be right back.” I tell Jackson with a peck on the cheek.
I move to the empty seat beside her, “You look a little sad. Wanna talk?”
She glances at me briefly, “I’m not five. I don’t need to talk.”
I flinch slightly, “I’m sensing you’re not happy with this arrangement.”
She crosses her arms, the frown replaced with a scowl.
I try a different approach, “My dad died a couple years ago. My mom hadn’t dated or talked to anyone since then. I wasn’t happy about her dating at all. But then I got over it. I had to because her happiness is more important than my bitterness.”
She sighs, uncrossing her arms. “I just don’t understand why my parents had to split up. If you’re gonna have a family, you should stay a family. Right?”
I’m not sure how to respond not having any experience in this, so I just shrug. “Sometimes people outgrow each other. They don’t mean to, but it happens. It’s human nature. But they both love you very much, no matter what they’re going through themselves. They’ll always love you and your sister, first and foremost.”
She watches our parents, a small grin making an appearance. “Your mom’s pretty.”
I shift my gaze to her, “Thank you. That’s my mama.” I smile.
She finally looks at me, “I’m sorry about your dad.” I nod. “But my dad really likes your mom.”
We sit in silence, watching everyone else. My gaze connects with Jackson’s from across the table. He winks at me, observing us.
“I’m guessing that’s your man?” She points to him. I nod. “He’s pretty hot and he’s been watching you. It’s obvious he loves you.”
“Thanks. I love him too.”
We return to the table and start ordering our food. I reach for Jackson’s hand under the table and place it in my lap. He smiles at me, mouthing, ‘I love you’.
I do it back, squeezing his hand.
“Alright let’s dig in, everyone.” Paul says in a chipper voice.
***
Later that night, lying in bed with my kindle and Bailey at my feet, I look up when there’s a tap at my window.
I get up and lift it so Jackson can climb through.
He pets the dog, “Hey, Bailey.” She attacks him with kisses and licks and nips, like she always does.
I plop down on my bed again. “What brings you here?”
He climbs up and lies beside me. “I wanna see you for a little bit.” He nibbles on my neck. “Unless I’m bothering you.”
I shake my head, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to sound irritated. I’m just tired. Of course you’re not bothering me.” I move to my back so he’s hovering above me. His hands hold him up, as he stares down at me.
“I’m going fishing with my dad next weekend.”
I smile, “That’d be nice. You need to do more stuff with your father.”
He kisses a path down my throat, making me forget what I just said. But then the dog starts licking me too. I begin to laugh, and it kills the moment.
“Bailey, you’re interrupting us.” I scold, she’s still licking me, and so I pet her.
Jackson tries to glare at her but he ends up falling onto the bed in a fit of laughter. “Oh shit, so this is what it’ll be like when we have kids. Never having sexy time.”
I sober up and glance at him curiously. “You sure do speak a lot about kids now, don’t you?”
He props himself up on his elbow, leaning close to me. “I told you, I want kids with you. Not now, but in the near future.”
I touch his cheek, feeling a slight stubble from not shaving a couple of days. “You’ll make a great dad.”
He smiles, shyly. “Yeah?”
“Yeah. But you’ve been blessed with a great teacher. I love your dad.”
A moan slips out, or more like a sigh of content. “She is pretty great.” I agree.
He kisses my temple, while holding me. I fall asleep just like that.
Chapter 32
Jackson
A few days later, I get a frantic call in the middle of the night from Skylar, telling me to meet her at the hospital. There’s been an accident. My mind races with worse case scenarios as I’m hauling ass, half-dressed. And at first all I can think of is something happened to Skylar and I feel sick to my stomach.
But when I pull into the parking lot by the ER and she meets me at the door, I discover it’s not her. It’s Monica. There was an accident, and now she’s in the hospital. And she’s pregnant. This can’t be good.
I’m chanting prayers over and over that she and baby Brayden are okay. Yeah, they settled on Brayden for his name. And they have to be okay.
“Hey, I’m here.” I envelope a tired and very red-eyed Skylar in my arms. Her body shakes with worry.
I pull back to look her in the eye. “What happened?”
“There was an accident, she was hit and banged up pretty bad. Jake is pretty messed up over it. He said it was his fault. He keeps blaming himself over and over. But obviously he didn’t hurt her on purpose, he wouldn’t do that. You need to talk to him. They have to be okay.” Tears pour down her face and I wish I was here sooner. “We’ve been here since eleven. Jake called me, so my mom dropped me off here. I didn’t want to bother you.”
I curse when I look at my phone and see it’s two a.m. “I wish you’d called me sooner.” I tuck her hair behind her ear and kiss her forehead, and then steer her to the lobby to sit down. She leans against me and covers her mouth when a yawn slips out. “Why don’t you sleep a little? I’ll wake you when Jake comes out here.” She doesn’t argue.
I send Jake a text so he knows I’m here.
Twenty minutes later, he pushes through the double doors and reaches my side. His eyes wide and face pale. “Hey, thanks for coming. Sorry, it’s so late.”
“Why didn’t you call me?” I shift in the seat, feeling the numbness in my muscles. “You’re practically family. You should know I’d be here in a heartbeat. How is she?”
He rubs his jaw, and starts pacing. “It was my fault. I should be in that bed. I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going, and I’m just…” he stops pacing and looks at me, his face pained. “God, please. I can’t lose them, either of them. I didn’t want a baby, at first. I was scared, and afraid I’d fail as a father. I don’t know the first thing about raising a child. But now,” He sits back down and I wish I knew what to say, how to console him. I just sit and listen instead. “Now, I’m looking forward to the unknown. I can’t wait to raise Brayden and be a family.” His eyes glisten with tears. I look away and clench my fists. “I’m sorry; I don’t want to babble about shit we can’t control.”
“Jake. She’ll be okay.”
“God damn, this is so fucked up. I need some coffee. A red bull. I’m so exhausted, my head hurts. I feel like I’ve been hit by a train. Jesus, this is ridiculous.”
I wrap my arm around his shoulder, trying to comfort him, anyway that I can. My heart is pounding, just being in this situation as the friend. This sucks.
I glance over at the chair where Skylar’s cooped up in a ball. I walk over to her, smoothing her hair out. I lightly kiss her cheek.
Jake’s called by the nurse when the doctor comes in. He talks to him for a few minutes. I wait until the doctor leaves to ask him the news.
“She’s okay. She’s banged up a bit, but nothing too serious. She hurt her leg but it’ll heal. The baby’s doing okay, too. Oh fuck, I feel like I can breathe again.” He runs his hand through his hair, frantically. “Thank you for being here.”
I pat his back. “Any time, Jake. I’m just glad she and Brayden are okay.”
“Go take Skylar home. She’s exhausted.” I nod and tell him to call me when he’s returning home.
I lightly shake her, “Baby, come on. Let’s get you home.” She mumbles something but doesn’t move. I lift her head up and kiss her, and it’s all it takes for her to wake up when she’s kissing me back. I pull back and smirk. “Good morning, Sleeping Beauty.”
She rubs her eyes, “What happened? Where’s Jake? Monica?”
I calm her down when she begins frantically calling their names. “He’ll call us when they’ve gone home. Let’s get you home to bed now, okay?”
Monica was discharged. Although she had to stay a couple days for observation, and because she hurt her leg, which I still don’t know what happened exactly, but I don’t push Jake to tell me. He just said it was his fault and he’s beaten himself up about it. So I left it alone. We just thank God that she and the baby Bray are okay. She needs the time to heal for her pregnancy.
The upcoming weeks are studying and getting ready for exams. I work, which I’ve gotten the money now for an apartment, finally. And I found one I like and I plan on moving the day before graduation.
Skylar and I go out with Jared and Hannah a few times, to get better acquainted. We spend time with our family. Even Brandon. We’re getting ready to finish high school and go off into the real world. It’s kind of scary, but in another sense, it’s definitely a journey I’m ready to take. As long as I have Skylar by my side, I can do anything.
Tonight, it’s prom at school and since we’re not going, I took today off so I could prepare my own prom for us.
Chapter 33
Skylar
I watch the scenery fly by and wonder where we’re going. I’m anxious and thrilled at the same time. I was under the impression he was working, but apparently he took today off. Things like this make me wonder if leaving is the right choice. It’s only three months, but so much can change in that time. Would he still be the same person? Would I come back different? Would our feelings change? So many questions plague me but I push them aside, for tonight.
I start to notice the lake we spent many summers fishing and realize where we’re going. A bout of giddiness fills my chest. I haven’t been here in so long. It’s dark but dim lights brighten our spot just enough to sit over the edge of the cliff.
“What are we doing here?”
“Since you weren’t gonna be at your own prom, I wanted us to have a private one.” He kisses my cheek once he parks the car. “ He’s laid out a blanket with a cooler. “What’s this?”
He smiles up at me. “Not your typical prom, but it’s my idea of a stroll down memory lane.” He opens the cooler and pulls out lunchables and snacks that we always brought on trips to the lake as kids. It’s better than prom. So much better.
“Oh my god, you seriously busted out the Guess Who game!” I beam, already taking it out of the box.
He puts his hand out to stop me, “Wait, let’s eat first.” He hands me a bag of chips and a candy bar. We eat in comfortable silence. It’s a warm night with a gentle breeze, cooling my sweaty face. I take my turkey, cheese and cracker and stack them on top of each other before shoving them into my mouth. I haven’t had these…at least with Jackson since we were kids. It brings back so many memories when my dad was alive and he’d take us camping and all we ate were lunchables. Tears prick my eyes; I blink them back so I don’t spoil the mood with my emotions. It’s too quiet, which is fine on other occasions, but it’s hard to hide my sniffling from my emotions.
I stretch my legs out in front of me as he says, “Don’t forget about your pudding.”
I stare at him and laugh. “You’re kidding, right? That’s my favorite part, which should be saved for last.”
He walks back to the car. I watch him for a minute, and look away to finish my food.
“Let’s dance.” Jackson brings back a boom box.
“Wow, tonight really is about walking down
memory lane, isn’t it?”
“These aren’t that old.” He laughs, setting it on the ground. “Remember the one my dad had with the broken antennae?”
“And the crappy speakers? Yeah, I remember.” We both laugh.
He looks down at my wrist. “You’re wearing your bracelet, I see.”
“Always. I love it.” My mood suddenly changes, “I don’t wanna leave you, Jackson. For three months, anything can change. I can change, you can change, and our love can change.”
He quickly scoops me up in his arms, “Nothing will change. You’re gonna go with your mom and you’re gonna have so much fun. You’ll paint and take all these amazing pictures. You’re gonna tell me all about your experience because I’ve never been there and I wanna know what it’s like, and then we’re gonna figure out where to go from there.”
I press my lips to his. Sparks ignite within me and I deepen the kiss. Our mouths move urgently as my tongue slips in, but I quickly pull back before it gets anymore hot and heavy. My forehead rests against his as I try to calm my breathing. “Sorry, I got carried away.”
A grin takes over his face, “Never be sorry for that.” I squirm when his hand slips under my shirt, grazing my bare stomach. I want more of it, but as I lean in to kiss him again, he stops me. “I like how you think, but I want one dance and a game of Guess Who first.”
We danced under the bright stars. Jackson brought a bunch of CD’s and I got to choose the majority of the songs we danced to. I was good about mixing it up and not just pick all the slow songs with sappy love notes.
“Is this better than being at the school dance?”
I pull back and grin, “Are you kidding? I never cared for the school dances. They can’t compare to this.” Nothing can.
“Well, what about when I do this-“ And I squeal when he dips me, keeping a firm hold on his shoulders so I don’t fall. We laugh and dance, until he tickles me and I dash to the other side, getting away from him but he catches me anyway.
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