Page 36 of The Road to Finding Us

“Helloooo,” she says, sounding annoyed.

“Sorry,” I mumble. “No reason.”

“How’s the road trip going? Have y’all banged yet?” With that, I hear Maverick say her name in exasperation. “What?” she asks, her voice quieter since she’s obviously talking to my twin and not me. “We both know it’s bound to happen.”

“Uhh, no, V. Aspen and I have not done anything. Nor will we.” I pick at a piece of chipping paint on the railing.

“Ugh,” she replies, muttering something to Maverick after.

“That ship has sailed, Veronica. Like it has sailed and docked somewhere new,” I tell her.

“But it hasn’t docked somewhere new. You’re single as fuck, and so is he,” Veronica says, blunt as usual.

“I’m going to hang up the phone if you keep talking about me and Aspen as a thing. Been there, done that, not going back.”

Veronica laughs. “We’ll see about that, Lil.”

What’s that supposed to mean? I want to pester her with more questions, but two seconds before I can, she tells me she has to go.

“Sorry, I have to go talk to our new caterer. But I loved catching up real quick! I love you—and remember to use protection. I’m not ready to be an aunt yet!” She makes a kissing sound before the line goes dead and I have no time to respond to her.

“Stupid,” I mumble, looking down at my phone and flipping it off. I wish she could see me right now, giving her the middle finger. She’d probably just laugh it off and flip me one right back.

“Everything okay out here?” Ed asks from the doorway, surprising me.

“What the flock!” I shout, almost dropping my phone into the bushes. My hand rubs my heart where it hurts from the shock of finding him unexpectedly eavesdropping.

Ed pulls at the tops of his pants, shuffling over to me and directing me to sit. He sets a glass of lemonade down next to me and I gladly take a sip. Then, I take a moment to look around. Their front porch is old, but it’s spacious. There are trees all around us, illuminated by the moonlight.

“Sorry. It was just my friend being incredibly annoying and asking about me and Aspen, even though we are very much not a thing,” I tell him, with an apologetic shrug.

“You aren’t, uh, together?” The way he says together makes it very clear he’s talking about sex. And I can’t talk about sex with Ed, he’s literally old enough to be my grandpa.

I start to choke on the lemonade that was halfway down my throat just before he spoke.

“Oh my word!” he shrieks, pounding me on the back as I continue to have a coughing fit.

“So sorry!” I sputter. “Aspen and I are just friends. Nothing, uh, together there.” I look at him awkwardly, finally taking a long sip of lemonade to ease the burning of my throat.

“I guess I got the wrong idea about the two of you, then. I thought you two were, well…attached,” he states rather awkwardly.

I take a deep breath. “There was a time when I was young and naïve that I thought Aspen and I would be together. But, it wasn’t meant to be. We barely tolerate each other on a good day.”

Although…during this trip, I’m finding myself tolerating him more and more. Even worse, I find myself enjoying his company—wanting to be around him. We’ve been gone for two days and things are already changing. The thought alone scares me.

“I’m sorry to hear that.” Ed reaches out and gives my hand a soft squeeze.

I squeeze back, taking a deep breath while memories flood my head. Memories of me and Aspen. “It’s life,” I finally reply. “Sometimes that happens.” My hands rub at my eyes to try to get the mental pictures from our past to go away.

Ed lets out a wheezy breath. “I don’t want to pry, but whatever happened between the two of you, I know that boy up there still cares for you, whether you notice it or not. And I know you still care about him, too. Take it from an old man like me, don’t let small things ruin a great bond. Real bonds are few and far between. Please remember that.” He slowly gets out of his chair. “Now, I’m going to go help my wife close up the café. Your bedroom is the first one on the left once you’re upstairs. I already put pillows and blankets on the bunks for the two of you.”

I get up and give Ed a big hug. “Thank you,” I whisper as he gives me a kiss on the cheek. Then I watch him limp down the path before I head back inside.

After closing the door behind me, I walk upstairs and slowly creep into my assigned room. I tiptoe across the room to find my bunk, but my toe hits something sharp. “Ouch!” I yelp.

“If I wasn’t awake already, that sure would’ve done the job,” Aspen drawls out from across the room.

“I was trying to be quiet. Why is it so dark in here?”

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