Page 49 of The Other Side of Apart

I crush her against my chest, and she laughs through tears and pinches my side.

When I squirm, she smooths the spot with her hand and crawls into my lap, wrapping herself around me. “I love you so much.”

“If you cry a little harder, I’ll probably believe you.”

She squeezes me until I squeak, then pulls back. “This is a complete shock. The perfect kind of complete shock, but…my brain is having a hard time catching up to this.”

“So I surprised you.”

“You will never top this gift,” she says against my mouth.

“Never?”

“Ever.”

I lean back enough to meet her eyes. “So I win best gift forever.”

“And ever. But I’m pretty sure you’re going to love my gift to you. At least I hope. I’m actually really, really not sure, but even if you hate it, it’s the thought that counts. Remember that.”

“You’re really selling this.” I say, tucking her wild hair behind her ear.

“There’s symbolism behind it. Hold on.” Mei scrambles off my lap, throws on a shirt and pajama pants, and seconds later, the front door opens and closes. I frown, wondering where she’s going, and flop onto my back. I stare at the fort ceiling, smiling to myself while I wait. That surprise couldn’t have gone better, so whatever she gives me is gonna be the best thing ever because today can’t go wrong.

A few minutes later, the door opens, and Mei’s light footsteps cross the room. Her shadow bends, and the blanket wall beside me moves. I sit up just as a tiny, furry head pokes through the crack, and a grey kitten pauses, then skitters toward me, meowing.

I gawk at it. Mei ducks inside the fort, her face beaming. “I hope this place allows pets. Didn’t exactly check first.”

“You…got me a cat.” I flinch as the cat crawls into my lap and turns a circle before pawing at the string on my pajama pants.

“Okay, so listen—yes, I got you a cat, but there’s a reason. A really, really good reason. I was at work two days ago, and one of the girls told me she and her husband were driving down the highway when they saw this little guy running on the side of the road, wet and shivering. They took him home only to find out her husband was extremely allergic. She was going to take him to a shelter, but I just thought…he’s a runaway. Like us. And all he wants is a safe, happy, warm place, just like us. And we have that now, even though we were once runaways too.” She picks him up and holds him to her chest. He licks her neck, and she laughs. “His name is Charlie, short for Charleston. After his daddy.”

I choke, shaking my head. “Whoa, whoa—I am not a cat dad. I’m not even a cat friend.”

Mei holds Charlie up to her face and says to him, “We’ll see about that, won’t we Charlie?”

CHAPTER 26

Mei: I’m fighting feelings of extreme jealousy.

Marcus: About my mad crossword skills? My undefeated streak of taking out the garbage before it reaches the top of the can? Tell me. Suspense is killing me!

Mei: I’m jealous of Charlie.

Marcus: He’s pretty good at killing crickets, and you’re just not, so yeah, I get it.

Mei: I pay him big money to kill those crickets. I’m jealous that he loves you more than he loves me, and I’m the one who rescued him from homelessness and certain death. He’s a Marcus Snob now, and it’s hurtful and annoying because I used to be the only Marcus Snob.

Marcus: Oh. Yeah. That’s true. He does love me more than you, but I think it’s because we both have hair on our chests and you don’t. For which I’m very, very grateful.

Mei: You told me you aren’t a cat person. But it doesn’t look like that to me. All I wanted was a little softening toward him, but this? THIS?!

Marcus: He’s growing on me, okay? Let it happen. Let the bros be bros. If you listen closely, he’ll meow-whisper that he loves you. I’ve heard it, so think of it this way: now you have two men who can’t live without you. One with green eyes, one with blue. Take your pick.

Mei: He sleeps on your feet now.

Marcus: Confession: he’s helping me get over my stuffed animal phase. It’s embarrassing, and I didn’t want you to know, but it used to be a problem, so he’s helping a brother out. No more teddy bear.

Mei: He’s a total brat. You’re spoiling him.

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