Page 80 of It's a Date (Again)

I stare straight ahead, careful to not trip over any uneven sidewalk. Her words tumble around my brain. Have I been overthinking it? I’ve been so scared of making the wrong choice that maybe I haven’t been focused on making the right choice.

When we reach our house, she holds the courtyard gate open for me. “It’s unlocked, so you can head right in,” Debbie says as she stops to check her mailbox.

I make my way up the steps, careful not to drop the cake, flowers, or grocery bag slung over my shoulder. At the door, I struggle with the handle. First, I try to turn it with my hip, then my foot. Finally, I extend my hand from beneath the cake and quickly grip and spin the handle, pushing the door open. The lights turn on before I can hit the switch, and a crowd of people yell, “Surprise!”

Startled, my shoulders jump. The flowers fall first, the cake flips out of my hands, splatting against the floor, and the grocery bag slides off my arm, its contents spilling out. There’s a collective gasp, followed by whispers.

“Whoops. Should have planned that better,” Maya says. She slips past everyone and approaches me as I bend down to clean up the mess.

Robbie joins us on the floor and helps flip the cake right side up. Thankfully, it’s still in the box. “I got it,” he says to me.

“Hey, girl,” Maya says, collecting the flowers. She picks up several of the loose petals and stuffs them into the bouquet bag.

“What is all this? And who are all these people?” I whisper. I quickly scan the room but only recognize a few of them—Anthony, Nash, and Tyler. The other six or so, I have no idea who they are.

“Surprise!” Debbie yells from behind me.

I glance back at her. Her smile fades and forms into a straight line. “Maya, I told you she was coming in first.”

“Yeah, but you didn’t tell me you had her loaded up like a mule. You were supposed to distract her, not make her run all your errands.”

“It’s called killing two birds with one stone,” Debbie huffs.

“Can someone tell me what is going on?” I ask again, this time more firmly.

Maya grins. “It’s a surprise party.”

“But my birthday isn’t for another five days.”

“It’s not a birthday party. It’s ayay you’re out of a comaparty.” Her grin widens as she gets to her feet.

Robbie scoops up the mangled cake while I grab the bag of spilled groceries.

“Your coworkers, suitors, and friends are all here to celebrate your consciousness.” Maya uses the mangled bouquets of flowers to gesture to the room of people.

They all stare at me, clapping and cheering. Smiles are plastered on each of their faces. I awkwardly wave and clear my throat. “Hi, everyone. Welcome to my surprise coma celebration.”

Several people chuckle. I scan the room, hoping my memories will come flooding back as I peer out at them, but they’re strangers to me. Tyler and Nash stand next to Anthony. They smile at me. I know Maya planned this whole thing so she could really talk with the guys and size them up, because there is no such thing as ayou’re out of a coma surprise party. I briefly glance over at her and wonder what else she has up her sleeve.

“Umm ... I’m glad to be conscious,” I add.

“We’re glad you are too,” an older woman with a sleek bob haircut says. “And we miss you at the office.”

Several other people echo her sentiment.

“I miss you all too ... I think.” An awkward laugh escapes me.

“She hasn’t lost her sense of humor,” a woman around my age calls out.

Robbie shuffles the cake box to one hand, palming it. He wraps his arm around my shoulder. “Peyton’s going to get her heart rate back down to normal, and then she’ll be back out to mingle,” he announces to the room and seals it with a wide grin.

Everyone laughs and claps, and then they go back to mingling.

“Thank you,” I whisper to Robbie.

He leads me through the crowd of people. I exchange smiles and hellos with many of them as I follow him through the hallway and into the kitchen.

“For the record, the party was not my idea,” Robbie says, setting the cake on the counter. He flips open the box, revealing a janky mess. Most of the frosting is smeared or stuck to the top of the box. “I tried to talk Maya out of it but—”

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