Page 149 of Finn Rhodes Forever

“Alright. Meet me by the garage.”

Moments later, the garage door opened and Sam pulled a protective sheet off the emerald car. It was spotless and sparkling.

“You know how to drive stick?” he asked, holding the keys out.

I nodded and took them. “My dad taught me.”

“Good.” He nodded once, folding his arms. “Alright, tiger, go get him.”

I got in the driver’s side and turned the key. The old engine roared to life, humming under the hood, and I gave Sam a wave as I backed the car out.

Next door, my mom was watering plants in the front yard. She spotted me in the car and her expression changed.

She knew what this car meant. Everyone did.

In the Rhodes’ driveway, I killed the engine while Sam lowered the garage door and went back inside. My mom stood there, staring at me.

“What are you doing?” she asked, gesturing at the car.

I dragged in a breath, steadying myself as I got out of the car and walked over to her.

“I’m going to see Finn.”

She let out a laugh of disbelief. “You heard what happened?”

“Yeah.” My chest felt tight as I folded my arms. “I did.”

We stared at each other. Frustration and anguish wove through my gut.

“I love you,” I told her, “and also, you need to cut people some slack.”

Her jaw dropped at my tone.

“Cole showed up today.”

“What?”

“Yep.” I nodded. “We had ice cream at the marina. He has a counselor and he’s in AA. He felt like we didn’t need him, that’s why he stopped calling and showing up.” I shook my head at her. “He saw Joe being Superdad and didn’t want to mess up what we had. He felt like he wasn’t good enough for us.”

She blinked, emotion flashing through her eyes. Shock rose in her expression, along with something else.

Regret, maybe. Pensiveness. Maybe she was wondering how it could have been if we had all just had a conversation.

“Finn told me what you said.”

Confusion flickered through her eyes. “What did I say?”

“When we were teenagers, you said something like ‘Olivia doesn’t need you dragging her down’ or something. Everyone called him the devil and joked about what a dirtbag he was, and then you said that and that’s why he left when we were teenagers. Because he thought I’d be better off without him.” I shifted on my feet. “And maybe you still think that, but I don’t.” My throat worked. “He’s the only one who believed in me about the flower. He hauled ass around those mountains so I could finish my PhD.”

My heart twisted.

“I’m not better off without him, and all that other stuff is in the past,” I continued, heart slamming in my chest. We didn’t talk like this, her and I. “Things with Cole are in the past, and things with Finn are in the past. People fuck up, and I want to move on.”

Her forehead creased as she listened. The garden bed she was watering flooded.

I shrugged. “You got pregnant at twenty in a less than ideal situation, but it doesn’t make you a bad person, and you aren’t defined by your mistakes. Same as them.”

The stuff that had happened with Finn in the past? It was only a small part of us. My mind rushed to the good moments—lying on the roof, staring at the stars. Laughing in front of the campfire. Racing on our bikes with the wind in our hair. Him whispering that he loved me.

---