Page 46 of Drunk Girl

“You be a good boy,” Ashley tells Max as he lays down on his bed in the living room. His age is catching up to him, and we’re watching him closely these days to make sure he isn’t suffering.

“Ready?” I ask, holding the door open for her.

“Ready.” She grabs her purse and heads to the truck.

“Your mom texted me earlier to let me know that David will be coming with her. He was able to get the day off. So, you’ll have another person cheering for you when you cross that stage.”

Donna met David almost two years ago now, and they’ve been dating ever since. She finally moved out of that old rundown apartment she lived in for so long, and into David’s small house. They’ve been great for each other and he’s treated her well. The way a manshouldtreat a woman.

“Oh good. It will be nice to see him. I love that my mom is so happy these days.”

“Me too, she deserves the best,” I agree. Just like my girl deserves the best, so does her mother. They’re both badass women, who have more strength than any man I know. Each of them has lived through things no person should have to, but they’ve both come out the other side stronger. Life might have handed them lemons, but they definitely made lemonade, maybe even with a splash of rum in it.

“What time is everyone planning to meet you?” she asks. Since she has to arrive almost two hours early, I told our family I would just go with her and save us some seats, so they didn’t have to show up as early.

“I think about a half an hour or so before start time. Kaiden said they went ahead and got a babysitter, so Thomas won’t be with them.”

“Probably a smart idea. Tiffany was planning on the same thing for Lucy.”

“Yeah, she texted me, as well, to let me know it would be just her and Colton. So, I’ll be grabbing nine seats, at last count.”

“Hopefully, no one gives you a hard time about it,” she says, straightening her dress as I drive down the road toward the campus.

“I don’t think anyone will, and if they have a problem with it, they can get the fuck over it.”

* * *

I whistleas loud as I can as Ashley’s name is called, and she walks gracefully across the stage. Our entire row is standing as she turns and smiles at the crowd. She looks directly this way, a huge smile on her lips as she slides her tassel from one side to the other then walks off the stage. I watch her as she returns to her seat, so fucking proud of everything she’s accomplished over the last few years.

And she’s not done yet.

She’s already been accepted into the Master’s program, and will be dropping back to part-time at the clinic, to accommodate her class schedule when classes start back up in the fall. The clinic has already offered her a counselor position once she completes her Master’s. They’re also paying for it, as part of her employment contract. She agreed to work for them for a minimum of five years, and they pay for the entire Master’s program, upfront.

“You did it! I’m so proud of you!” Donna tells her, once the ceremony is finally over and Ashley has reached our group. She makes her way through all our family and friends, accepting hugs and flowers from everyone. I’m the last person she makes it to, and as soon as she’s in my arms, my lips find hers.

“I love you,” I say against her lips. “And I’m so fucking proud of you.”

“Love you, too, and thank you. I couldn’t have done this without you.”

“You could have, but I’ll let you think differently.”

“Are you guys ready to get out of here?” my mom asks, pulling us from our intimate moment.

“Yes! I’m starving,” Ashley says, taking off her graduation gown. She leaves the cap right now, since it’s so securely attached to her head with the number of pins she used earlier. I’ll help her remove it before dinner.

“Our reservations are in about forty-five minutes, so we should make it to the restaurant in perfect time,” my dad states, looking at his watch.

“Then let’s get out of here. Does everyone know where we’re headed?” I ask our group.

“We’ve got it in the GPS,” Tiffany says, and everyone else nods their heads.

* * *

“I’d like to make a toast,”Donna says a short while later, once everyone has been served their drinks and our appetizer orders have been placed with the server.

“Ash,” she says, then stops for a moment, already holding back tears as her emotions take over. “I’m so proud of you. For everything you’ve been through, for how you found resilience, how you figured out how to pick your life back up after you’d been knocked down, time and time again. You never gave up on your dream and look at where it has you today.

“I’m so thankful you found such a wonderful man to love you, and to show you that you deserve to be loved. I might have learned a thing or two about that, from his example.” She nods to me and then to David. “Most of all, I’m proud of the woman you are today. I love you and I wish nothing but the best for you. Cheers,” she finishes, lifting her glass slightly higher, signaling everyone to take a drink.

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