Page 7 of Chase Our Forever

“Have you always lived in Sutten?” I ask, changing the subject. The only things I know about this town are this cafe and the things I’ve learned from Lexi and Pippa.

Pippa smiles, her eyes wandering over to the register where Lexi helps the one other customer in here besides me. “Yes, basically. It’s the best place to live. Wouldn’t ever want to live anywhere else.”

“Really? Have you ever gone anywhere else?” Hopefully she doesn’t take my question wrong. I don’t mean anything by it. I just can’t imagine falling so in love with living somewhere that I’d live there my entire life. For as long as I can remember, all I dreamed about was getting out of Florida. I never wanted to stay—and I never want to go back.

Pippa shakes her head. “Oh, absolutely. I left for college, so I was away from Sutten for a bit. And after college, my best friend lived in Chicago for a long time, so I visited her a lot. My fiancé’s from New York and still has work there, so we visit often. I enjoy the city and love going there but definitely couldn’t live there. I love seeing what else the world has to offer, but at the end of theday, I can’t imagine myself living anywhere but in Sutten. It’s home.”

I’m quiet for a moment as I let her words sink in.What’s it like to love home so much you’d never want to leave?Pippa seems to have her life so together. It makes me a little sad, knowing she can’t be much older than I am, and she seems to be so sure about the rest of her life. I, on the other hand, can’t even answer where I plan to end up at the end of this journey.

“I wish I had more time to get to know Sutten,” I mutter, realizing how much I mean the words.

“Why don’t you?”

“Why don’t I what?”

“Why don’t you have more time? From what you’ve said, it sounds like you’re in charge of when and where you’re going.”

Before I can respond, Clara turns around and pushes a loose strand from her face in the process. The stray hair falls right back in front of her eyes, making her let out an annoyed groan. “Fix my hair for me? Daddy sucks at it.”

I try not to laugh. Something tells me she’s probably not supposed to use the wordsucks, but it isn’t my place to correct her.

“He tried his best,” I tell Clara, scooting back in the booth slightly so I can angle her in front of me well enough to do her hair. My mother wasn’t around growing up, and I didn’t have anyone to brush my hair or do cute hairstyles on me like the other girls in my class. I had to learn on my own, so although I don’t have the most experience with kids, I can do hair.

“Daddy always tries his best. He still bad at it,” Clara responds.

My eyes briefly meet Pippa’s as we both fight a smile. Gently, I begin to undo the ponytails from Clara’s head so I can fix Dean’s attempt at pigtails.

“Your dad always tries his best,” Pippa tells Clara as Lexi slides into the booth next to her after the other customer walks out the door.

“I know,” Clara responds, her tone rather sassy. I brush through her hair with my fingertips. This would be easier if I had a brush, but I make do however I can.

Pippa stares at the toddler affectionately. It’s clear she cares for her. So does Lexi. It makes me wonder how much they’re in Clara’s life and who is maybe missing from hers as well. “Maybe one of these days, your dad won’t be so picky and find you a nanny that’ll last longer than a week. Thenshecan learn all sorts of fun hairdos for you.”

Clara lets out a knowing sigh. The drama seems to be high with her, and I can’t imagine she’s much older than two or three. “Daddy has trust issues.”

This makes both Pippa and Lexi burst out in laughter.

“Where did you even learn that?” Lexi manages to get out.

“Mimi,” Clara immediately responds.

I smile. The comment from Clara was incredibly cute, but I think that was because of the exasperated way she talked about her dad. It reminded me of a tiny teenager instead of a toddler.

“Do you want pigtails again?” I ask Clara, missing some of the conversation between Lexi and Pippa that seems to still be about Clara’s dad.

“Can you braid? Poppy always has braids. I want braids.” It makes my heart sting a little the sad way she talks about another little girl having braids when she doesn’t. I remember the feeling all too well. My dad had no idea how to braid. He wouldn’t have cared enough to do my hair even if he did know how.

I realize I’m so lost in my thoughts that I’ve forgotten to answer her. “Yes, I can do braids.”

Clara giddily claps her hands, her body wiggling in excitement. “I want braids.”

I comb through her hair more with my fingers in an attempt to untangle it enough to do braids. I work at beginning one braid while Pippa and Lexi watch closely.

“Lexi, have you also lived in Sutten your whole life?” I ask. As someone who hates sharing details about my past and personal life, I’m never one to pry into others’ lives. But I am curious to know if most of the people who live here have been here since they were young.

Lexi nods. “I have. I used to dream about getting out, but now I’m not so sure.”

“Why aren’t you so sure?”

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