Page 70 of Seven Lost Summers
He said it like a confession, but the truth was already carved into him.
I get it now. I get what he was missing.
It was her.
Poppy.
Spitfire.
She anchors him in this life, and not in some fairytale, perfect kind of way. She drives him crazy at times, calls him on his shit, keeps him honest. But she’s his. And he’d give the world to make her happy.
You can see it in the way he watches her when she laughs, in how he listens to every word she says, even when she’s not talking to him. He’d hand her the whole damn world just to see her smile. These days, when Xander walks into a room, there’s an ease about him, a calm I never saw before.
I kick the fridge door shut and head to the table, handing beers to Scarlet and Ace before dropping into the seat across from Nate. Alex climbs into the chair beside me, still dripping pool water, grinning like the world’s never touched him.
The room hums with easy noise.
Xander and Ace bickering over nothing while Scarlet rolls her eyes and steals food off his plate. Alex crams way too much into his mouth, as if chewing is optional.
It’s chaos.
It’s family.
Messy, loud, imperfect as fuck, but mine.
And I wouldn’t trade a second of it.
I glance around the table and catch the quiet hiding beneath the noise.
Xander leans into Poppy, murmuring something only she’ll ever hear. Scarlet and Ace are wrapped up in their own world—half teasing, half tangled in something that runs deep.
And then there’s me and Nate.
I shift my gaze to him, and he’s already watching, like he feels it too. The way we hover on the edge of this life. Close enough to touch it, never far enough inside.
Everyone else has found their people. Their peace.
And us…we’re still stuck. Still waiting on something we lost a long time ago. Something that’s never coming back.
I blink, shake it off, and drag myself out of it. The table’s still loud, still alive, and I force myself to tune back in.
Ace is elbow-deep in some rant about a new bridge he’s written. Xander’s giving him shit about the chord change, and Scarlet’s throwing in comments between bites. Alex is trying to stack grapes on top of each other, determined, like the fate of the world depends on it.
Xander finally raises his voice, just enough to cut through and get us back on track. “Kit wants to see us in the morning. Meeting’s at ten.”
“What about?” Nate asks.
Xander doesn’t answer right away. He takes a sip of his beer, eyes flicking between the few of us still half-listening.
“She wants to give the fans more,” he says finally. “Not just the music. Everything around it. The process. A glimpse inside what we’re building this time.”
Ace raises an eyebrow. “What the fuck does that mean?”
Xander shrugs. “I doubt even she knows yet. Something about documenting all of it—the writing, the recording, the lead-up to the tour.”
Ace groans. “Fuck me. Next we’ll be doing TikTok dances.” His eyes flick to Alex. “Shit. I mean… fudge me.”
Scarlet shakes her head, muttering under her breath. “Real smooth.”
