Page 107 of One of Them Girls

I shrug. “Didn’t sleep well. I didn’t have any big plans today.”

“Why didn’t you tell me you had nowhere to go? My parents would have let you stay.”

“It’s not that I had nowhere to go. Jack would’ve let me go home with him. Tinsley begged me to come home to her. I didn’t feel like being around people.”

“Why? You shouldn’t be alone on Christmas.”

I let out a humorless laugh. “I’ve been alone more Christmases than I can count. I’m okay. Really, Adra. You can go home and spend the day with your family.”

She sighs. “Avi.”

“It’s okay. I heard you loud and clear. I fucked up. I was up in my head and I messed it up. Jack warned me it had to be the right time for it to work with one of them girls. With the only girl.”

“I’m going to pretend I know what being one of them girls means and ignore the rest of that nonsense. I thought about what you said. It wasn’t all you. It was me too. I was caught up in my head too and let it affect us. I talked to my parents. It had nothing to do with you and everything to do with me. Everything to do with the fact that I haven’t dealt with the death of Ryan. Your gift brought that clarity. That was the sweetest, most selfless thing you could have given me,” she chokes up.

“Baby, don’t cry. Please. I can’t take any more of your tears. I’m supposed to make you happy, not sad.”

“These aren’t tears of sadness. They are tears of gratitude. Opening that gift to find that piece of wood polished and looking nice. Being able to trace our initials? That did something for me. It helped me see that I’ve been avoiding processing my grief for Ryan. I haven’t given myself a chance to heal. I want to heal now. I’m going to start going to counseling for a while. I want to be a healthier me. I had already had it figured out with my mom before you even came over.”

“I’m happy to hear that, Adra. I want you to heal too. I want you to be happy.”

“You want to know the funny thing about that?”

“What?”

“When Ryan died, I didn’t think I would ever be happy again. I did some things to try to feel something. Anything other than the agonizing grief I was feeling. I was surviving, but I wasn’t living. Then I met you. You changed that for me. I was happy with you. No. I am happy with you. Avi, I know what I said the other day, but after some time to reflect, I don’t want this to end. I don’t want us to end.”

My heart races. “What are you saying?”

“I’m yours, Avi. That is, if you’ll still have me.”

I pull her into my arms and kiss her hard. “I’ve always been yours. Even when we didn’t know each other, I was yours.” Kiss. “Fuck. I didn’t think I would ever get to kiss you again.”

She giggles. “You missed kissing me?”

“Fuck yeah. Holding you. Kissing you. Talking to you. Waking up next to you. I missed it all. That’s why I didn’t want to see anyone today. I wanted to miss you in peace.”

“Well now, that you don’t have to miss me, come home with me. Mom pretty much demanded it when I told her I thought you were spending Christmas alone.”

“Well, I can’t disappoint my future mother-in-law.”

“You’re so silly. Jumping ahead of yourself, aren’t you?”

“Not at all. When you meet one of them girls, you marry her. One day, Cassandra May Davis, I will marry you.”

Epilogue

Cassi

Four years later

Graduation Day

I sitin the stands with Tinsley and Finley on my left and my parents on my right. My graduation already over.

“I’m so excited,” Tinsley gushes for the thousandth time since we sat down.

“Trust me, we know you are, Tin,” Finley says as he squeezes her knee.

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