Page 77 of Don't Fall

Epilogue

Tessa

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GRADUATION. KIND OFstunned I made it through my college education in one piece, considering the final year it’s been. The ceremony was bittersweet, knowing Aunt Edi wasn’t in the crowd, cheering me on. But so many others showed up to take her place. More than I expected to. Meredith and Miriam both came, Miriam with her whole family in tow. Drea was with me, of course, but Scott and her parents showed an equal enthusiasm for the both of us as we each received our diplomas.

Lane and I argued for days whether he should come or not, given it would mean blatantly exposing the relationship we have and the likelihood it started sometime around our student teacher beginnings. In the end, I always knew my efforts would be futile. He was going to be there. And he was going to cheer me on louder than anyone else in the room. What I didn’t know, was that he’d bring his sister, Alexis and her husband, and that both of them would shower me with so much love and support, I couldn’t help but feel like maybe someday I could call them family as well.

Family.

Riley showed. She sat alone in the very back, until Lane spotted her and dragged her over to sit with him. She and I are getting better, slowly but surely. We’re even talking about having her move in next year, so she can finish high school and start getting serious about college without our mother trying to sabotage her at every turn.

We’re having dinner at the Rose Garden to celebrate this monumental moment for Drea and me. It’s not romantic or fantasy-like, but it still feels a lot like a fairy tale coming into its happy ending as I stand here, waiting for everyone to have a seat at our massive table, taking in all the love coming together for me and my best friend today.

“She’d be so proud of you,” Meredith whispers in my ear, one arm wrapped around my side, her head tipped against mine in the closest thing we’ve ever shared to a hug. “Everything she ever wanted for you, is sitting right here, at this table.” She squeezes me one last time before she lets go. “You created this from nothing, Tessa. If that doesn’t prove you can create anything you want with this life, I don’t know what does.”

Blinking back tears, it’s all I can do to mouth the words ‘thank you’ and nod as she backs away to find her seat beside Miriam.

Dinner is a loud and fabulous affair and by the time the evening winds down, I’m confident for the future in a way I don’t remember ever being before.

“Guess we’re officially grownups now,” Drea says with a painful sigh as we stand together outside our front doors, the only two left to call it a night.

“I think we can manage it.” I wink at her and make her grin.

“But, like...how different do you think it will be?” she asks, a scheming flash in her eyes as though she’s contemplating a way to buck the system, avoid becoming a fully committed adult somehow. Shouldn’t be too hard, all things considered.

“Well, we both enrolled to go back next year to get our masters, so, not all that different Drea,” I point out, laughing. Sure, Scott is making the official move into the apartment, which sounds like a big deal but really isn’t. And, I’m giving up my time at the Basement to write my first big piece on this photographer I know. But, come fall, I have a feeling we’ll still be having that same ‘first week of classes don’t count’ conversation we do every year.

“Feels weird, standing out here,” Drea mumbles.

“Because we’re acting like it’s some big goodbye when really one of us will be busting in on the other again before so much as twenty-four hours has passed,” I tease.

“Speaking of, here’s the new key,” she says, reaching into her pocket to retrieve a small silver key chain.

“What’s wrong with my old key?” I ask, studying the new set she just handed me. I guess Lane gets one too now.

“Doesn’t work since Scott switched the locks. Something about him moving in, new beginnings and new rules. I don’t know, I was only half listening,” she rattles on, her eyes half rolling into her skull, because in what world was changing the locks ever going to put an end to the open-door policy we’ve had for years now?!

“Huh, well, I’m going to pretend the new locks were in the interest of saving me from ever having to view his naked ass again and not some lame attempt at creating boundaries.”

Drea snorts. “Boundaries. Like we would know what to do with those.”

We laugh quietly until the last of it dies down to a soft hum of contentment buzzing through us. It’s been a full year. The kind that makes you giddy just thinking about the future.

“Drea.”

“Hm?”

“Thanks for being the sort of friend who gets drunk and parades around in her prom dress at three in the morning.”

Her lips purse and her eyes flash with delight as she attempts to suppress her amusement. “Don’t recall ever being thanked for that before.”

“Well, just think. If I hadn’t been distracted with dragging your drunken Cinderella ass up the stairs that night, I wouldn’t have walked in at the exact moment Lane was standing naked in the middle of my apartment. Instead, I might never have seen him until the next morning. Or he would have found me while I was passed out in my bed. Cops could have been called. I could have been arrested. It all could have gone so very differently.”

She grins. “Timing is everything.”

“On that note, I’m going to go inside.” I wiggle my brows. “Maybe I’ll get lucky and catch another showing.”

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