Brian reaches for my hand, locking fingers with mine, as if reading my mind.
“Still fits perfectly, you know.” Then he pulls me to him and gives me a kiss. Again, I can’t help it; I sigh.
“I’ve missed you,” I say quietly.
“I’ve missed you, too,” he says.
“I need to ask you something, though.”
Brian’s face turns serious. “Of course.”
I take a breath. “Do you think Amelia will really buy me a coffee?”
“Charlie!” He drops my hand and walks away, laughing.
“What? Those are the rules of jinx!”
The girls come out of the animal shelter at that moment and Amelia asks, “Are you talking about the rules of jinx? Because I’m pretty sure you now owe me a coffee!”
“It’s a Coke, guys,” Kira says as we walk toward her car.
I slide into the backseat and Brian follows, while Amelia goes for the passenger seat up front.
“All I’m hearing is that I’m getting something from Amelia!”
She puts her hands over her ears. “La la la, I can’t hear you.”
“Charlie, if I buy you a coffee, will you be quiet?” Brian asks.
“Maybe,” I say. “Or you could kiss me instead.”
“Guys, gross!” Amelia twists around to look in the backseat. “Don’t make me come back there!”
I flip her off and lean into Brian for a kiss.
Because this kiss is mine.
Because this boy is mine.
Because this life is mine.
Because I deserve it.
Acknowledgments
How can you begin to acknowledge all of the people, places, and things that helped you get to where you are, with your very first published book, living a dream come true? Seems like an impossibly difficult task, but I will try. In no particular order (because I am NOT trying to get texts about hurt feelings!):
Thank you, Maya Papaya, for making the world better just by being you—and for napping during my final edits of this book. I hope you someday hold this book in your hands and know it is proof that you can do anything you’ve ever dreamed.
Thank you, Obi, for keeping my legs warm during early morning writing sessions.
Thank you, Grandma and Grandpa, for raising me and loving me the way I deserved, and for always encouraging me to try my best and follow my heart.
Thank you, Renz, for being a caring brother and for getting just as excited about my book as I did.
Thank you, Gigi, Auntie Patty, and Justin, for entertaining Maya so I could work on my book edits and for always being there for me.
Thank you to my family and in-laws for loving me and supporting me.
Thank you, Writer’s Row (Cait, Jane, Judy, and Kerri), for being inspiring women who offer endless encouragement for all things writing, wine, and everything in between.
Thank you, Samm, Steph (“Duddie”), Laraine, Paige, Kelsey, the Nasties, and all of my wonderful friends for your love and kindness.
Thank you, Livejournal Fatshionista community, for teaching me as a teenager that I could be Fat and fierce.
Thank you, America Online, for giving preteen me access to the internet and boy band fanfiction and online friends who shared my passion for writing.
Thank you, Plainville Public Library, for inspiring a lifelong love of the written word. (Support your local library!)
Thank you, Beyoncé, just because.
Thank you to my agent, Tamar, for believing in me and in this book, and for not running for the hills when I asked tons of questions. Your phone call changed my life and I’m eternally grateful. You loved Charlie the same way I did and you understood this story so deeply, and there is nothing greater.
Thank you to my editor, Mora, for understanding everything about Charlie and me and helping to shape this book into what it is today. Charlie, Amelia, and Brian are all better because of your sharp eye and big heart. Also, thanks for letting me keep the name Clarence McConkey in the book so I could laugh for a million years over something so silly.
Thank you to illustrator and artist Ericka Lugo, who designed the breathtaking cover of this book and captured Charlie perfectly.
Thank you to the incredible teams at Context Literary Agency and Holiday House, with special thanks to Miriam Miller, for seeing the value in Charlie’s story and working so hard to make it successful.
Lastly and most important of all, thank you to Bubby—for asking me out over AIM way back when; for laughing with me and loving me; for always encouraging me to follow my dreams; for reading and re-reading what I’ve written and never tiring of it; for making every day an adventure, whether we’re nestled on our couch or watching the sun rise in Rome; and for our beautiful love story. This is one for the books.
Fat Chance, Charlie Vega Page 31