Page 84 of Show Me How to Heal
The parking lot in front of The Bar was crowded as Zayne and I drove by.
We were both silent, the only sound besides our breaths and the car engine was Sammy snoring away.
“I think we finally broke him,” Zayne said, glancing through the rearview mirror so he could see into the mirror attached to the headrest of the backseat. In theory, it was to watch babies in their car seats, but it also worked for puppies in their kennels.
“You went on a run with him,” I pointed out.
“After which you played fetch the ball for almost half an hour.”
We looked at each other briefly, bursting into laughter. My chest felt light as we bickered and joked. The last week had been heaven and hell at the same time. Zayne and I were more solid then ever, while everything around us had been a fucking mess.
It’d gotten so bad that we’d just holed up inside my cabin for a couple of days, our friends stopping by to bring groceries or takeout, to talk to us, and show their support.
Hell, I’d never thought there’d be so many people supporting us. Dana had sent her signature blend of coffee over so we could have the decent stuff at home. Raphael had brought a big bouquet of flowers, congratulating us on our relationship. Kathy, the waitress from Addy’s, had taken it upon herself to drive over after her shift to bring us consolation pie because — according to her — if you felt down, stuffing your face with pie was way more effective than ice cream.
We had a lot of people to thank, but today, we’d start with our friends and family. Moritz’s flight back was the day after tomorrow, and he’d been our main support during the week, so it felt wrong if he wasn’t here when we invited everyone.
Believing he’d really dropped everything, cancelled his plans to visit our vacation home, to fly over and walk right into the middle of an epic shitstorm was still surreal, though I didn’t know why. He was my brother. I’d do the same for him. But after a year of him caring for me, putting his own life on back burner until my life wasn’t a shitshow anymore… with me just leaving the continent afterward, I wouldn’t have blamed him for staying home.
“Ha!” Zayne exclaimed, guiding the car into a parking spot in front of Mason’s real estate agency. “Hey, Luke, you haven’t bought a house in a month. You want to have a look at the offerings?”
I snorted.
Zayne and Moritz got along far too well for my liking.
“I told you I’m not going to buy a new house. I’m going tobuildone… well, I’m going to have one built.”
Mason had put the thought in my head, and the idea had started growing on me. I didn’t need the space my cabin offered, but I didn’t want to miss out on the view. I had so much land at hand that was surrounding my cabin I could easily have a more reasonable home built. A home built just to my and Zayne’s liking. A home for us, a big new shed for Zayne to work in, and maybe, if everything was finished next summer, we’d move into our new place together.
Well, if everything got finished in time. I had no idea yet, but Corbyn and Mason had both recommended the same construction crew, which was the same one that had renovated Zayne’s shop, so I’d made an appointment with them and contacted an architect.
I just needed to tell Zayne about it.
“Yeah, of course you will,” he said, huffing out a laugh.
Maybe I’d tell him after the architect had come up with the first drafts. Man, he was going to be so surprised.
“What are you thinking about?” he asked as he killed the engine and started exiting the car.
“The future,” I said vaguely. I wasn’t terrified any longer. The future wasn’t bleak anymore; it was full of exciting new possibilities. And I had to thank Zayne for a good part of that.
We walked to The Bar in silence. I’d gotten rid of the crutches yesterday, but I was still careful not to put too much pressure on my knee, so it was Zayne holding Sammy’s leash. Well, Zayne and Sammy, who held his own leash in his mouth, basically trying to walk himself.
It was too cute.
The others were already inside of The Bar as we entered. Chris had moved things around a bit, so we had a big booth in the back corner which gave us a little privacy.
Mason and Corbyn were already talking animatedly. They apparently already knew each other, while the rest of the two groups were still a little separated, Avery, Carter, and Addy sitting at one side, and Raphael, Walker, and Mel on the other side of the booth. Moritz was right in the middle, his head pivoting between the different conversations.
“Addy came,” Zayne whispered happily, his eyes shining with joy.
He’d told me what happened to his best friend, the evidence of what his ex had done still visible on his face, though the bruises were already starting to fade. I was glad he’d managed to leave that asshole and proud Avery and Zayne were there for him, supporting him unconditionally as if he’d never ghosted them in the first place.
“He wouldn’t miss it. You invited him,” I reminded him.
“Yeah…” Zayne nodded. “It still feels surreal, though. For the last six months we always invited him, and he never came. Even before that…” He broke off. “It doesn’t matter. That wasn’t on him,” he said in a convinced tone. “I’m not going to hold his ex’s mind games against him.”
“Good. And now, smile. Those are our friends.” I stopped him as I saw Sammy was desperately trying to rub his muzzle against Zayne’s leg, almost getting trampled in the process. We were still a couple of steps away from our hodgepodge of friends, but I couldn’t help but revel in the fact all these people were here for us. For me.
