Page 113 of Forgiving Fate

“Yes, you would, because you are stronger than you know Allie.”

I smile through the tears. “Can I hug you?”

She huffs a laugh and pulls me into her arms. “Don’t be afraid of setbacks. Take every good day and bad day with confidence. I’ll see you next week for our session. Remember, I am always a phone call away. I am so proud of you.”

“Thank you.”

We separate and she pushes my suitcase towards me, waving a final goodbye before she steps back inside.

Grabbing the handle of my suitcase, I turn around and stop. In the parking lot, Logan is there, leaning against the front of her white jeep. We both stand there, stuck, staring at each other, neither one of us moving.

The past six months have been a whirlwind, and I have worked harder than I ever have. I have learned more about myself than I ever thought possible.

After I sent the first letter to Logan, it became a routine. We made a promise to have the harder conversations in person, but wanted to make strides back to the friendship we once had. Every letter that came brought me a step closer to the truth that was stolen from me.

Logan is not the monster thathesaid she was. She is my best friend. My sister.

I walk towards her and she takes a step forwards and pulls something out of her back pocket, unravels it and holds it up.

I stop in my tracks and smile. In her hands is a gray t-shirt with two puppies wearing tutus hugging. It’s simple and yet a reminder of who we once were. I cut the distance between us and pull her into my arms.

Both of our shoulders shake as every emotion hits us all at once.

We are locked in a hug that we’ve both needed for so long. When we pull apart, our tears are dry and we are laughing.

“Missed you Lolo.”

“Missed you, Al. Now get your ass in the Jeep. I’m fucking starving. I haven’t eaten since yesterday because I was so nervous.”

We both chuckle and I load my suitcase into the Jeep and jump in. As soon as my butt hits the seat, a wet nose boops me in the back of the head and I turn around to see who I assume is theinfamous Willow, staring at me. Her fluffy tail wagging a million miles an hour.

“Hi. You must be Willow?” I say.

“Yep. That’s her.”

“Can I pet her?”

“Yep. She has to have her vest on to get into public places, because she is an emotional support animal and therapy dog. Before we came to get you, she spent time at the children’s hospital a few miles away and got all kinds of kiddo love.”

As if she can understand Logan, she nudges me and I give her the pets she is asking for.

“Alright Willow. Place. Mama is hungry.”

In an instance, Willow lays down on the floor.

We have been driving for hours, talking about nothing of importance and I don’t mind it. It feels nice to catch up before jumping into the harder conversations, ones that I don’t necessarily want to have driving down the tree filled highway.

“So we are going to be back in Cliff Haven soon and there is absolutely no pressure, but I wanted to offer you to stay with Gray and I? The cabin is done and ready for you to stay in, but I wasn’t sure if you were ready to go back there yet.”

Definitely not. I may be far from where I once was, but I am not ready to go back to the cabin right now. Maybe ever.

“There are a few other options. We could get you into a hotel. You could stay at The Hideout. Or you could stay at Landon’s.Wes told us he offered his place to you and when he got back, he would stay at The Hideout or his parents.”

My stomach fills with butterflies at the mention of Landon. We have been sending letters back and forth for months. I learned so much more about him. Way more than I did before. The idea of staying in his place feels right, but I’m nervous because the last time I was there, everything started to crumble.

“I just stayed in an unfamiliar place for six months, so I would rather not stay in a hotel or the Hideout. And with Landon being gone, it feels odd being there without him with how we left things. So it’s best if I stay with you and Grayson.”

“Of course. There is a lot of uncertainty right now and I never want you to feel pressured to stay anywhere. I can make Gray go stay at Lan’s or the Hideout if you want me to.”

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