Page 70 of Eternally London

“You let out the same sigh every time you get into the bathtub. You also giggle and make funny faces when you’re scrolling through your Facebook feed on your phone. I know that it’s usually a funny animal meme that causes you to giggle.”

“I really do love animal memes,” she agrees. “Especially the dog and cat ones.”

I continue, “Your favorite cereal is Fruit Loops, but you always let it soak in the milk for a minute before you eat it; otherwise, it cuts the top of your mouth. You tap your foot whenever the news is on, as it makes you nervous. You’ll leave one small square of toilet paper on the roll, so you don’t have to change it. You useI hate youas a term of endearment. You check your blind spots three times before changing lanes. Always three times.”

London rolls her eyes. “Well, now, your knowledge is bordering on obnoxious.” She smiles at me.

“You know every episode ofFriendsby heart. You tell everyone that your favorite character is Phoebe, but you laugh the most at Ross. You’re a foodie, and you love all sorts of foods, though Mexican is your favorite. If you like something, you always let out a small sigh after you take your first bite. If youlovesomething, you smack your lips together after you taste it. Your favorite fruit is blueberries, but it’s also your least favorite. You only love the firm berries because the texture of the soft ones makes you gag. So, you’ll spend thirty minutes going through a container of blueberries, doing the squish test. You hate exercising because sweating drives you insane. You have a slight road-rage problem and like to call old ladies douches if they are driving too slow.”

London holds up a hand. “I will have you know that I do not call old ladies douches.”

“Yes, you do.” I chuckle. “Remember last week? The blue Chevy Malibu?”

“Well, first of all, I didn’t know it was an elderly lady driving. All I knew was that someone was going twenty-five in a forty-five. Who does that? Anyone who is going twenty miles under the speed limit deserves to be called a name. That’s just rude”—she holds up a finger—“and, not to mention, unsafe.”

“That doesn’t change the fact that I’m right.” I shrug.

“No, I called the driver of the Malibu a douche, not the lady.”

“Oh, I forgot to mention that you hate to be wrong.” I laugh.

London presses her lips together and glares my way. “I hate you,” she says with a slow shake of her head.

“I love you, too.”

“All right, fine. You know a few things about me.”

“Oh, I’m not done. You love to travel, and airports make you happy. You hate bugs. You’re deathly afraid of centipedes…and snakes. It must be a wiggly thing. You could live off of gummy bears and coffee if you had to. You name every wild animal you see. You love cherry tomatoes but hate all other tomatoes because of the texture. You can belch the ABCs and are quite proud of it. You spent years of your childhood in ballet classes but hated it. You prefer even numbers over odd, and your favorite number is sixteen. Your least favorite day of the week is Wednesday because you’re not a fan of words that start with W, and you have no idea why.

“You’re the strongest woman I know, though you don’t think you are. You’re the most beautiful woman in the world, and sometimes, I think you know you are. You’re a loyal friend who would do anything for those she loves. Your laugh gives me goose bumps. Your smile lights my insides on fire. And your touch makes my heart beat faster than if I just ran a mile. You’re the most intriguing person in the world to me, the best mother, and the perfect lover.

“And it was your side boob falling out of your bikini top as you washed my truck all those years ago that I first fell in love with,” I say with a devilish grin.

“Oh my gosh!” London laughs. “Thank goodness I wore that bikini, or who knows where we’d be?” She takes my hand in hers and kisses the top of it before setting it back down. “Fine, so you know a few things about me. But there’s always more to discover.” The sides of her mouth rise in a smile.

“Well, I have a random question for you,” she says. “What if you had a time machine and you could go back and stop your parents from getting in their car the night of the accident, would you?”

“Of course I would. I think anyone would stop someone they loved from dying. If that were plausible and I could save them, maybe they’d still be here today. They could have helped my grandma when she was sick, and my grandpa could have lived with them instead of going to a home. Who wouldn’t do that for their family?” I thread my fingers through London’s. “Selfishly though, I’m glad I don’t have the choice because it would ruin everything.”

“What do you mean?”

“My path would have been completely different. Every single thing that I’ve encountered in my life has led me here. If my parents were alive, I never would have met Sarah, which means I wouldn’t have Evan or Emma in my life either. I never would’ve met Cooper, so I wouldn’t have Maggie. I probably never would have gone into the military. And, even though I lost Cooper, I’ve been able to save many men over the years. That means that none of them would be here anymore. I’d probably still be in California, which means I wouldn’t have known you or Lindi.

“I love my life, London. I’ve had to fight really hard to get to a place where I can say that. And growing up with parents who love you doesn’t guarantee anyone a great life. Maybe I would have gotten in with the wrong crowd in high school and become a druggie, left home, joined a band, and died of a drug overdose.”

“That never would’ve happened. You hate drugs and singing.”

“I hate drugs because I saw the way it changed my foster parents over the years. If my parents were here, I wouldn’t have had that same level of anger toward drugs and what they do to people. And I don’t hate singing. I’m just not good at it. So, I would have been the drummer or something. My point is, who knows where I’d be if they were here now? I wouldn’t be here with you, in this beautiful life that we’ve created. Loving you, having this life—it’s everything and worth every single thing that I’ve gone through to get here.”

“Yeah, but maybe we would’ve ended up together anyway because we were meant to be,” she says.

“Perhaps, but I’d never want to take that chance.”

“You wouldn’t have had to go through so many horrible things as a child. Chances are, you would have been happy. And maybe you wouldn’t be with me now, but you could be with someone you love just as much,” London says thoughtfully.

“That’s not possible. There’s no one else on this earth I could love more than you, London. I wouldn’t change a thing. Everything has led me to you. I’d walk through hell and back to find you.”

“You kinda have.”

---