Page 44 of To Catch a Firefly

I wait for a long time before I head inside to get dinner ready. But before I go, I pull my phone from my pocket. Confronted with the truth of my feelings—still, always—I text Gabby and call off our date.

Lucky doesn’t come back that evening. And I don’t see him the next morning. He and Dani stay away from the house, and I stay away from the corn festival where I was supposed to bewith Gabby. I spend some time in the silo, breaking glass in preparation for a new piece. The shards will be melted down and reformed. Reshaped. Made into something greater.

It took months to learn the process. Most was self-taught, watching videos and then spending hours in the heat of the silo, carefully blowing and shaping the glass. But I also attended a week-long workshop a few hours from here, learning the finer points from an expert.

Now, the techniques are second nature, although I never did care whether or not it looks perfect in the end. It’s more about the catharsis of it. Taking the pictures Lucky paints in my head and bringing them to life. The extra income doesn’t hurt, either. I didn’t expect people in town to be so excited about the glasswork, even the smaller pieces I make to keep my hands and mind busy, but they sell out faster than I can produce them.

It’s late afternoon, and I’m on the back deck, having just showered, when Lucky and Dani return from wherever they were. The car crunches down the gravel drive before stopping, and both men get out. Dani heads into the house next door, but Lucky beelines my way, his hands deep in his pockets. He looks young again. Vulnerable.

“Hey,” he says once close.

I set down the large glass jar I’d brought outside, and Lucky quirks a smile.

“Making sun tea?” he asks.

I nod. I always did like it better this way, rather than heating the water on the stove. I used some of the tea bags Lucky sent months ago and added a bit of lemon. It’ll be delicious once it’s steeped in the sun.

Lucky sighs a little, his smile faltering. “I’m sorry, El. I shouldn’t have left yesterday.”

I shrug, not wanting him to feel bad about it. It’s not often the pair of us fight, but Lucky’s not to blame. Ididkeep things from him, and that’s on me. I don’t fault him for being upset.

“Did you…” He peters out. “Did you have a good day?”

I think that over before nodding. It was fine.

Lucky swallows, nodding, too. He looks a little uncomfortable, although I’m not sure why. “Yeah, okay,” he says. “Um… Could we do something tonight? Just the two of us?”

My smile is immediate, and Lucky’s face softens, expression smoothing out.

“Yeah, yeah,” he says, chuckling. “Like I have to ask. Are you ready now?”

I nod, holding up a finger. Lucky waits as I grab my phone from inside. Mom is in the living room, running through a few exercises that are supposed to help with her muscle cramps. She does them from her chair now.

“Heading out?” she asks, eyes trailing to Lucky out on the deck.

I nod. “Need anything?”

“No, baby. Have a good time tonight.”

She motions me forward, however, so I step around the couch to give her a kiss on the cheek. She pats mine afterward.

Outside, I hold up my keys, and Lucky grins. “Hell yeah,” he says. “I’ve missed the truck.”

I snort, but there’s a lightness to Lucky’s steps as we head around to the front of the house, and it settles me down to my marrow.

Lucky slaps the open window once I climb inside the cab a second after him. “Drive on, Ellis. Show me the world.”

I give a salute, and he laughs.

Sitting inside my truck with my best friend as we bump down the dirt roads is like a blast from the past. He shoots me an exasperated smile as we pass the school and mouthsclamswith wide eyes as we drive in front of Maisy’s Diner, and every moment is one I soak up. It feels good. Like us again, that easily.

We’re about five minutes outside the town center when Lucky says, “So where are we going, anyways?”

I shoot him a look, even though I’m the one driving.How should I know? You invited me.

He laughs. “Guess we didn’t really think that through, huh?”

I let out a sigh, barely able to hold back my smile. In the end, we turn around and drive to the grocery store, grabbing a few easy to-go food options and a case of beer. Then I lead us out to the edge of town to a property I know will be deserted. I drive my truck right onto the flat land in front of the corn rows before turning off the engine. Grabbing an old blanket from the back of the cab, I motion for Lucky to follow. He looks out over the land for a moment, as if he hasn’t seen corn a million times before, and then, once he turns around, he smiles.

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