Page 110 of The End of Summer

The words make my heartbeat speed up. “I love you too, babe.”

“No, but I mean like Ireallylove you. Like, forever love.”

“Me too,” I say, looking him in his eyes.

“Gretch. Your parents are right that you need some time to figure out what your next move is going to be. But I want them – and you, obviously – to know that whatever it is, I’m here for it. I’m here for the long haul. I understand the idea of a parent wanting to make sure that their child lands on their feet. But, that’s the thing your parentsdidn’tknow.”

“What?”

“That you already did. With me.”

“What do you mean?” I ask.

“I’m going to work like crazy this year to launch a career for myself. Start saving, and all that good stuff.” He inhales deeply. “And then, I’m going to ask you to marry me.”

My mouth goes dry, and my eyes sting with tears. “Wait. What?”

Brady’s grin is like pure sunshine. “Not yet, silly. And not like this. Don’t worry.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yes, I am. I just needed to figure out the logistics. And I had to talk to your mom and dad.”

I look at my mom. “Is this real?”

She nods.

“Brady’s a good man,” my father says. “He really cares about you, Gretchie.”

“He reminds me of the way your father was with me all those years ago,” Mom adds. “We couldn’t wait to figure out our happily-ever-after. But Daddy was willing to put in the work for it. Just like Brady.”

“Marriage isn’t easy,” my dad says. “It’s full of challenges. I wasn’t about to let my daughter get swept away by some guy who wasn’t ready to take her seriously. It took your mom reminding me about how we started out to realize that sometimes, being scrappy and opportunistic just shows how much heart you’ve got.”

“Which is why, when Brady called me and asked if he could share his plan with us, I had to say yes.” Mom is glowing.

Brady leans over and gives me a kiss on the cheek. “Everything will fall into place, Gretchen.” He takes my hand in his. “You’ll see.”

Even though I still feel like an overwhelmed train wreck thanks to my job situation and my grad school plans being put on the back burner, compounded by the fact that I spent the morning in court, I look around and see the three people I love most in the world looking at me with hopeful expressions. And, I don’t know.

Somehow, I believe him.

Maybe itwillturn out okay.

EPILOGUE

BRADY

TEN MONTHS LATER

The dance recital begins at 7:00 p.m., and I can tell Gretchen is nervous.

It’s only five numbers. The Twinkle Toes are up first with their dance toShake it Off,by Taylor Swift. The Crazy Eights (so named because there are eight of them and they’re all eight years old) are up next, dancing to Pharrell Williams’Happy.Then, we’ve got The Tweenyboppers, which is our largest group – 16 kids in all – and they’re doing a six minute hip-hop/step combo to a mix of recent songs. We round out with a group that calls themselves High School Musical, and they’ll be doing eight minutes of choreo to a Bruno Mars medley of songs. After all of that, the recital will end with a surprise performance.

Miss Joy (formerly known to some of us as Arrow) is our choreographer and costume designer, and as Gretchen leads the Twinkle Toes out onto the stage behind the curtain, Joy’s niece, Kit, stands front and center, proudly donning her red and black fluffy tutu skirt over a black leotard. I give Gretchen the thumbs up from the side of the stage where the curtain ropes are. Gretchen breathes deeply and then exhales hard. “Okay,” she says, her eyes sparkling. “Here goes nothing.”

She slips out between the ginormous curtain panels and stands on the stage in front of the red sheaths of fabric. “Good evening, parents, families, and friends,” she says into the microphone. “Thank you so much for being here with us tonight to celebrate All-In Dance Studio’s first annual student recital!”

The crowd of about a hundred spectators cheers. In the front row, Gretchen’s parents gaze up at her. A huge bouquet of flowers sits across Annie’s lap. Jenna’s sitting a few seats away, clapping wildly. Next to her, Cherry, Indigo, and Saffron are all in a row. Of course, they go by Cheryl, Kim and Maria now. Big Mike is in the back row seated between Gina and my mom. And backstage are Arrow and her sister, Jenny. Notably missing is my dad, but that’s okay. He’s been notably missing since my first dance recital, if we’re being honest, and it just doesn’t bother me anymore. I’ll be a better father one day just by learning from his mistakes.

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