Page 41 of Sure, Pal

I sighed and kissed her wet cheek. “I can’t keep you in our happy bubble?”

“We can still have a happy bubble.” She turned to face me, her hair dripping from the rain. “How about this? If we’re in bed, we’re in the bubble. We can pretend that nothing exists in the world but us.” Sienna kissed me softly. “But everywhere else, I want to be there for you completely.”

“Fuck Rob and his big mouth.”

Sienna frowned. “You would have had to tell me eventually. I completely understand why you didn’t, but if this is real, then I was going to find out.”

“I know. This is real, Sienna.” I took her hand, and we walked back to my apartment.

Back in my kitchen, I picked up the bottle of wine that Sienna brought and grabbed two glasses. I filled them and then sank into a chair at my small round table. Sienna sat across from me, watching me with worry in her eyes.

“What are you going to do about your soccer contract in the fall?” She asked.

I shrugged and sipped my wine. “I’ll probably give it up.” I honestly hadn’t given it a single thought since I’d been home. I wasn’t even stoked about the contract before my dad’s diagnosis. It was a part of my “life plan.” I hadn’t stopped to think about if I genuinely wanted it.

Now, I had no fucking clue what I wanted. My world was turned upside-down and inside out. Sienna was the one and only thing that made sense.

She watched me across the table, slowly sipping her wine, then she said perfect words. “I’ll help you figure out your dream and your path when you’re ready.”

I gave her a sad smile. Could she see how completely lost I was? A part of me hated how clearly she saw me, but most of me loved it.

“I love you,” I said.

“I love you, too.”

---