Page 48 of Something New

"Hey," I said.

"Hey."

"I miss you."

"I miss you, too," he said. "How are things? Are you comfortable?"

"Yeah. It's nice. Jonathan's so excited, and that's what makes me feel good about the whole thing."

"You're not indebted to him from the accident."

John-Michael knew I still had some feelings about all of that. I had told him that if I had been good to drive my own car that night none of it would have happened.

"He probably feels indebted to you for wrecking your car."

"He does," I said. "I just know how broke he is, so I'm glad this weekend will help him with some bills. Plus, he's freaking out about being here and staying in this house. It's gigantic, and they're setting up for the party tomorrow. I've already taken some photos."

"Have you talked to the owner?"

"Not yet. He's not here yet. We're supposed to have dinner with him later, at eight-thirty. Did you get the costumes squared away for tomorrow night?" I asked.

"Yeah, Ethan is Mario. Jenny's being Peach and my Dad is Bowser. He just has a mask and a backpack."

"What about you?"

"Luigi, I guess. My mom said she has the green shirt, but we're not sure about the hat, so I might get a pass."

I laughed. "That's going to be so classic. I wish I was there. I'd be throwing together some kind of piranha plant costume."

"That would be amazing."

"I'm going to miss y'all so much."

"Me too. Mom's got a church group coming out to use the trails and the bonfire that night. They'll have games and stuff. It's for all ages, but they had a few things for the kids. E saw them setting up today and he decided he didn't want to go trick-or-treating in our neighborhood at all. He said he's just going to stay at the fall festival at Nana's."

"Aw, that's awesome. Please take pictures."

"I love you, but I can't make promises. You know how I am."

"I know," I said, blowing past the fact that he nonchalantly said he loved me.

We hadn't officially said that to each other. Both of us had said it at different times, but we never officially said it. The quick statement made my heart ache for him.

"John-Michael there was an outfit in my closet when I got here—something that I'm supposed to wear to the party tomorrow night. It's a costume. I didn't know it would be here. It didn't seem like that big of a deal to me, but I wanted to tell you about it in case you thought it was weird."

"That there is a certain outfit this guy wants you to wear?" he asked.

"Yes. I mean, I don't feel like I have to. I actually brought a costume of my own, so I wasn't planning on wearing it when I got here, but yes, there was a costume in the closet. It's black, like the theme. It's a dress with feathers—it's like a bird costume. Is it strange?"

"Yes, it's strange," he said.

"Do you want me to not wear it? I won't if you tell me not to. I wish you were here with me. I would just feel so much better."

"Do you want to wear it?"

"Uh, objectively, yes. I do. It's the coolest dress I've ever seen, honestly. It's not cheap, and I like how it looks. But I wasn't expecting it, and I certainly don't feel required to wear it."

"I don't know what to tell you," he said. "Just do what you feel like you want to do. You know what you're comfortable with. I honestly don't know this guy. I don't know how extravagant he is or how normal it is for him to provide costumes for his photographer."

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