Page 100 of The Very First Night

“It’s fine.” I raise my lukewarm cup to my lips and swallow the last bit of hazelnut latte.

Jenna nods as she stares down at the table, then looks up at me. “Well, if that changes, I’m here.”

I swallow hard and nod in response, the only acknowledgment I can offer.

“Soooo…” Her tone again shifts. “You and Tanner.”

“We’re good.” I smile, thankful for the shift in topic.

“Good.” Jenna grins from ear to ear before clearing her throat. “Oh, and Kat?”

“Hm?”

“I told you so.”

I resist the urge to roll my eyes, but a small smirk betrays me. I can’t deny that she was right, though it pains me to admit it. Jenna has spent the better part of the time we’ve known Tanner saying he has wanted me since the day we met. If only I could tell her just how true that is.

I simply nod. “Yeah, yeah, I know.”

The path here has been grueling, but I’m starting to see the value in it all. As painful as it’s been, I don’t know that Tanner and I would be where we’re at if not for the tattered road that got us here.

“Thank you, by the way,” I say. “I haven’t had the chance to say that since my birthday.”

The topic of Elijah has been one I haven’t wanted to broach over the last week and a half. However, given what Jenna did for me, I feel like it needs to be acknowledged.

“It’s nothing,” Jenna replies as she waves her hand to dismiss me, drawing my attention to her still-bruised knuckles.

“No, it’s not.” I pause until her eyes meet mine. “You didn’t have to defend me like that, but you did. At the risk of your relationship. That isn’t nothing.”

Jenna shrugs and starts pulling her notebook out of her backpack. “You act like it was such an altruistic thing for me to do, Kat. I’ve wanted to deck that guy for a long time. So really, did I hit him for you or because it sounded like a really fun idea?” With a playful wink, she flips open her worn notebook and scribbles down a few words, seemingly unrelated to the conversation. “Besides, Marcus was on your side. Him and Elijah have talked; they’re fine. Marcus was crystal clear about why he kicked him out. Marcus gets why I did it and I don’t personally give a shit what Elijah thinks of me, so. It’s not a big deal.”

“Well, it is to me.”

She quickly diverts her attention elsewhere, but I can see the faint flicker of uncertainty in her eyes. Despite trying to play it cool, she can’t hide the hint of anxiety in her voice as she responds, “If that’s how you truly feel, then you can buy me lunch.”

“Deal,” I chuckle.

Her shoulders relax and a grin spreads across her face. “Deal,” she says.

FORTY-NINE

KAT

My mom’s apron is crumpled and stained with coffee drips. She sighs as she grabs it off the entryway table, her fingers deftly wrapping the rogue strings around her checkbook, which is nestled inside. “I really wanted to spend Thanksgiving with you two,” she says, her voice heavy with disappointment. “But no one else would volunteer to work today.”

“Mom, it’s fine.”

Tanner sits at the kitchen table, savoring the last of his bacon and eggs. He smiles and glances up at my mother. “Thank you for cooking, Julie—it was seriously delicious,” he says.

She had scolded him for being so formal with her and insisted on being called by her first name when he arrived this morning, and while at first it felt like a weird reprimand, I think I quite like the casual energy between my mom and boyfriend at this point.

While our relationship might be new in its present capacity, there is something about Tanner and me that feels oddly timeless. It’s as if we were always meant to find our way to this place, no matter what obstacles stood in our way.

My mother expressed a similar sentiment last night when I returned home for Thanksgiving break. Despite her jaded experiences, she has never let go of her romantic ideals, and she was more than elated to learn Tanner and me are now together.

I just wish she didn’t learn that by finding him sneaking out of my bedroom to get a glass of water in the middle of the night two weeks ago when it all happened. Not that she took issue with it, but man does that woman know how to make things awkward when she wants to.

“Thank you, Tanner.” My mom, heading off to work, tells me what time I can expect her to be home.

---