Page 4 of My Always One

“For the record, you know I hated that wallpaper.”

“Don’t do prom night, Sami. It’s too cliché.”

“That’s what Maura said.”

Oh great.

Sami went on, “I just don't know if Todd’s the forever kind of guy. I want forever, but I also want...” She grins. “College and adventure.” She leans back on her arms and looks up at the crystal blue sky. “I don’t know what I want.”

“We don’t have to decide right now, do we?”

“Now, it’s your turn,” she says.

Sitting up and leaning near the edge, I peer down at the water. The lake is easily twenty feet below us. In the summer there were many times we'd jumped from this very spot into the cool spring-fed lake below. “Give it your best shot.”

"Okay. Truth or dare?”

I look up at her sparkling green eyes and realize that she's thinking the same thing—the water. I can practically see her consider getting up and jumping or making me jump. She would do it too, clothes and all. It’s part of what I love about her.

It's not that I don't want to jump. If it were summer and twenty degrees warmer, I wouldn't hesitate, but well, my better sense replies, "Truth."

Her lips come together for a moment before she smiles. “Do you think you'll ever be a forever kind of guy?”

Shit!That isn't what I expected.

I sigh as I lay back on the warm rock and stretch out my legs. “Truth?”

“Always.”

“I really don't see forever in my future. I’m selfish and I know that. I don’t have any desire to change. I don't see me being committed to anyone but myself. I know that makes me sound like an ass, and I probably am, but forever is a really long time."

Sami lays her head back beside me. "What if I never find that forever guy?"

I reach over and squeeze her hand. "You will, but if you don't, you'll always have me."

"Always?"

"Always and forever."

Sami

Eight years ago

Ipractically bounce on my toes when I see Marshal’s truck turn down the street. I can’t believe he came all the way to Ann Arbor for me. In reality, I didn’t ask him to do it. I just texted him and told him how upset I was that Josh had to leave town for a job interview.

Josh and I have been dating since the beginning of my freshman year. Now, I’m finishing my sophomore year, and Josh is about to graduate with a degree in kinesiology. I’ve never seen him as excited as he is about the job possibility. It’s in Detroit, working for the Lions’ organization. Josh recently completed his internship with the U of M football team, and working with the professionals is his dream.

My sorority has its big end-of-the-year dance tomorrow night. In many ways it’s like prom on a fancier and more intimate level.

I’ve been excited about the dance for weeks. Since freshmen can’t attend, this is my first one. Josh was looking forward to it too until he received the call. He’s a finalist for the position he wants, and they want him and the other applicant to spend the weekend in multiple interviews as well as social engagements, getting to know members of the staff and the owners.

Of course, I encouraged him to go. I’d even told him, “This is just a dance. There’ll be another one next year.”

Yes, I am thinking forever.

Marshal’s truck pulls into the space in front of my friend Rita’s apartment as I run to the sidewalk and wait for him to open the door. A smile fills my face as I see my best friend. From his light brown hair to his cocky grin, it’s hard to imagine him as the scrawny little boy who moved in down the block.

Even though he’s not playing football at Michigan State, Marshal has grown into a man, tall, solid, and muscular. Sometimes when I see him, I think of him like a brother. The truth is that Marsh and I are closer than I am with my brother. Byron—my brother—is a good guy, but being he’s three years older, we aren’t close, not like Marshal and I.

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