Page 416 of The First Time
Chapter Forty-One
It's a beautiful day. The sky is bright blue. The air is warm. The sun is shining over the grass.
The cherry blossoms are perfect. Lush and pink and alive.
Lizzy talks to the woman at the admission counter. There's a sign that saysPark Closed for Private Event. We're the event.
The woman nods and smiles. It's thatoh my God, congratulationssmile.
It makes me sick.
She unlocks the gate and ushers us inside.
Thankfully, she remains silent about our lack of wedding attire.
There's something on Lizzy's face—she's nervous.
It's strange.
Lizzy never gets nervous. At least, she never lets me know she's nervous.
We make our way through the rose garden—her favorite. Roses in every shade of red, pink, and purple. She checks if the coast is clear and plucks a deep red rose.
"Lizzy!"
"It's for you." She hands me the flower.
"You're defacing government property for me?"
"That's how much I love you."
"How sweet." I laugh. It feels good. It's still possible to feel good. That's something.
She grabs my free hand and runs forward. "Better get to those cherry blossoms."
Okay, something must be up. She hates running with a fiery passion.
It's only a few hundred feet to the cluster of trees.
They're even more beautiful up close. The soft petals flutter towards the ground, turning the grass pink.
"Um, Kat." Lizzy clears her throat. "So…"
Yeah, something is absolutely up.
I follow her gaze through the cluster of trees, all the way across the lake, to the place where we were going to hold the ceremony.
Blake.
He's standing there. I'm too far away to make out the expression on his face, but it looks like he's holding a bouquet of flowers.
My heart races. He can't be here. This can't be…
If he's here to let me down gently…
I swallow hard.
My feet move of their own accord. They carry me across the bridge, past the paper lanterns strung between the trees, onto the concrete.
