Page 114 of The Rules of Dating a Younger Man

“How far is the drive from here?”

“It’s a few hundred miles, should take about four-and-a-half hours. So I’ll be gone all day.”

“Do you want me to take the ride with you?”

I smiled. “It’s nice of you to offer, but it’s something I need to do on my own. Plus, I need someone to fill in for me at the house. I already typed up a list of things that need to be done, in case you didn’t mind. I can text it to you.”

Alex waved me off. “Alright. You should get going. Don’t worry about the project at all. I’ve got you covered.”

I stood and kissed Alex’s forehead. “Thank you.”

***

“Hey, buddy.” Later that day, I dusted some dirt off the top of Ryan’s headstone. “It’s been a while. Sorry about that.”

There was a heavy feeling in my chest, but Ryan’s gravesite could always make me smile. He’d made sure of that. After he passed, his dad had handed out letters he’d written to everyone important in his life. They all ended the same way. P.S. Don’t come to my grave empty handed. Bring me something to eat. It had seemed like a bizarre request at the time, but it was always fun to see what random things were here when I arrived. Usually I could guess the recent visitors by the snacks they’d brought. Like today, I could tell Ryan’s mom and Lala had both been here in the last few weeks. The potato that leaned against the gravestone had sprouts growing out of it. Mrs. Miller always brought a potato since Ryan’s favorite food had been her homemade mashed potatoes. The dude could eat five pounds by himself. Lala must’ve come more recently since the bag of fortune cookies sitting opposite the old potato wasn’t even dirty yet.

Ryan’s little sister was a few years younger than us and the smartest person I knew, but she’d also been the most gullible when we were kids. When Ryan was maybe ten and Lala probably eight, he’d convinced her that the fortunes in fortune cookies came true if you believed in them enough. For the longest time, he had replaced all the fortunes in her fortune cookies with ridiculous shit—

Girl with blond hair, must dye pink to live long life.

(Lala used red Kool-Aid to dye her hair pink the next day.)

Woman who speaks three languages solves world hunger.

(She’s fluent in Spanish and Mandarin to this day.)

Lala wasn’t much of a cook, so every time she came to visit, she brought the same thing—a bag of fortune cookies. It was their thing. Which reminded me… I reached into my pocket and took out the small bag of Oreos I’d brought. Ryan and I used to devour an entire package, along with a gallon of milk, while watching Saturday-morning cartoons together.

“Here you go, buddy. Enjoy.”

I took a seat on the grass and looked around for a long time. The cemetery was pretty empty this afternoon, but people wouldn’t have stopped me from talking to my friend anyway.

“I’m not sure if you met him yet, but I’d appreciate it if you could keep a lookout for my little friend Landon.” I pulled a few pieces of grass from the ground and shook my head as I threw them back at the Earth. “Fucking cancer. It’s still kicking people’s asses here. He was just a damn kid.” I didn’t like my visits with Ryan to be completely depressing, so I decided to tell him about my life. A lot had happened since I’d been here.

“So…I have some news. Are you sitting down? You might not believe me, but I met someone. Her name is Alex, and she’s freaking incredible.” I paused and smiled, picturing her beautiful face. “I know, I never thought I’d see the day either. But you’d like her. She’s warm and caring, smart and funny—and of course, smokin’ hot. I’m in love, man.” I took a deep breath. “I’m pretty sure she feels the same way about me, though she won’t admit it. There’s one hell of a crazy story behind why. Actually, before I tell you—let me clarify that this is Brayden speaking and not Holden. Because this shit is gonna sound like something Holden would’ve gotten his ass into—before the lovely Lala, of course.”

For the next half hour, I sat there spilling my guts. I told him the entire story about Caitlin, and even brought him up to date about Lacey. “I wanted to do it, but I just couldn’t. I felt like I was cheating, even though Alex and I weren’t together, and I hadn’t seen her in months. I’m not sure what to do, how to move past it. Maybe you could help me out, give me some guidance, because I have no damn idea which way to turn.”

I scanned the quiet cemetery, searching for some sort of sign from my friend. Finding nothing, I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Maybe there wasn’t an answer, and the best I could do was try to find peace within. But then suddenly, a gust of wind stirred, blowing something into my lap. I opened my eyes and looked down, finding the bag of fortune cookies Lala had left behind.

I smiled. “I’m not as gullible as your little sister was, but okay… I’ll give it a try.”

Unfurling the bag, I reached in, pulled out the top cookie, and snapped it in half. The tiny slip of paper had the familiar series of lucky numbers printed on the back, and I flipped it over to read my fortune.

Never let no be the end of your story. Make it a chapter in your journey to yes.

“Seriously?” I looked over at the headstone, a smile tugging at my lips. “How the hell did you do that?”

I wasn’t sure I’d ever get that answer, but Ryan had given me what I needed—a swift kick in the ass. The answer had been obvious the entire time, though, hadn’t it? I’d sat here telling Ryan I was in love, and I thought she loved me, too. Yet I couldn’t figure out what to do. Had my head been up my ass or something? Because the answer was so damn obvious now—never let no be the end of your story.

I climbed to my feet in a hurry, shoving the slip of paper into my pocket. “Thanks, buddy. I know what I need to do now.”

My heart raced as I climbed into my car and took out my phone. I debated calling Alex, but I didn’t want anything to mess up what I was about to do. So I went with a text and jumped right in without any preamble.

Brayden: I’m madly in love with you. Be ready at 8 tonight.

I hit send and then realized she might think I was drunk or be confused about what she was supposed to be ready for. So I tapped out another message.

---