Page 130 of Meet Me in the Valley
Nora lets out a breath, her voice tight. “Then make it.”
“Okay, okay.” Cali refocuses on Dad, who’s now visibly fighting a grin. “I just meant—since Oma is Oma, is there a name I should call you, too? Like, the opposite of Oma?”
“Opa,” Mom chimes in with a grin, clearly delighted by the whole exchange.
I’m equally entertained, though my sister looks like she’d pay good money to hop on the next flight back to Vegas and redo this entire introduction. We lock eyes, and I give her a look that says, “It’s okay,”hoping to ease her nerves.
Cali is magic, and just like I knew they would be, my parents are already smitten.
“O-pa,” Cali repeats, trying it out. “That’s cool. How do you feel about that one?”
Dad doesn’t hesitate. “I’d love to be your Opa.”
“Cool.” Without missing a beat, Cali wraps her arms around his waist. It catches him off guard for a split second—then he melts, folding around her like he’s held her a hundred times before. He presses a kiss to the top of her head, eyes squeezing shut.
Mom rises from her seat, linking her hand with Nora’s as they slowly walk over. She rests her head on Dad’s shoulder, her other arm pulling Nora and Cali into the embrace. Dad wraps them all up in one big circle, like his entire world is finally back within reach.
He kisses Nora’s cheek and leans in to whisper something in her ear.
Whatever he says breaks her. She nods, crying harder now as she buries her face into his shoulder.
After everything in Vegas, this moment felt impossible. When I boarded that plane back to Austin, I thought I had failed. I thought I’d lost any chance of helping stitch our family back together.
The yelling. The hurt. The silence that stretched for years.
But all of it seems to fade now.
Because here we are—together again.
And for the first time in a long time, it feels like home.
Nora’s eyes lift over Dad’s shoulder, searching for me. She reaches out a hand, tears still fresh on her cheeks. Her expression softens as I watch nothing but peace wash over her. It nearly takes my breath away at the sight.
“Come here,” she cries, her voice thick. “We’re not complete without you.”
My heart swells as I step forward, like some invisible thread finally pulling me in. I close the distance and slip into the circle, Nora’s arm drawing me close as the hug widens to fit us all.
Mom’s hand finds mine. Dad presses a kiss on the top of my head. Cali leans into my side with a small sigh.
And suddenly, I’m surrounded by everything I thought I’d lost.
It’s not perfect. The cracks are still there.
But this—this is the beginning of something new.
And as I rest my cheek against my sister’s shoulder, I think of Logan. The way he looked at me the last time we saw each other, like he still saw the best version of me, even when I couldn’t. The way he believed I could be the glue, the steady thread, even when everything was falling apart.
How this moment right here wouldn’t be happening if it weren’t for him.
It hits me that this moment that this family was never mine to fix. It was mine to believe in.
And it’s not too late to believe in us, too.
Thankfully, Mom’s good day held steady after a tearful reunion with Nora. It was as if no time had passed. Our conversations slipped back into rhythm with barely a hint of awkwardness.
Cali helped with that, of course. She took her role as the first granddaughter very seriously, tugging on my parents’ heartstrings all night like she’d been doing it her whole life.
After she turned in early for bed, I gave Nora and my parents some space—stepping away so they could talk freely, ask questions, say what needed to be said.
