Chapter 7

Casey’s mad.I don’t know if it’s better or worse that I know exactly what I did… She just told me that she feels like I pick spending time with Cam over her, and the next day I kind of did do that. But in my defense, it wasn’t really like I chose him instead of her, because she didn’t tell me she wanted me to come find her after the game! So, like, I know why she’s mad. But does that mean she’s right?

“Girls are too complicated,” I mutter under my breath as I stare at my phone and the three unanswered texts I sent last night trying to lighten the mood between us.

“Where is this statement going?” Mom asks as she drifts into the kitchen behind me, patting my shoulder as she crosses to get a mug from the cabinet to fill with coffee.

“Hey, Mom.”

“Good morning,” she smiles over the rim of the cup before she takes her first sip and closes her eyes, exhaling slowly. “So,” she continues once she’s had her moment. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Well, I guess something… Casey won’t talk to me. She’s mad.”

“Okay,” Mom hesitates, and I know from previous encounters about Beth that she’s looking for all of the information before she jumps to a conclusion. “Do you think you’ve done something worth being mad at you for?”

“Yes. Or, no. I don’t know,” I run a hand through my hair.

“Oh,” she takes a seat at the other end of the bar and crosses her ankles. “This does sound a little complicated.”

“It’s just,” I frown. “Casey told me on Thursday that she feels like I pick Camden over her.”

“I see,” she nods. “Well, Camden is your best friend. But Casey is, too. I think it’s pretty normal, in a group of three, for one friend to feel left out…” she watches my face, then nods like she’s seen something there. “Except, when your friend is also your girlfriend, I could see how she might expect a little preferential treatment. Don’t you think?”

“Yeah,” I frown. “So you think she’s right?”

“I didn’t say that,” she sips the coffee. “I said I can see how she’d think that. I can’t tell you what to think about it, but you should always try to see things from others’ point of view too, hm?”

“I don’t think there’s anything wrong with spending time with my best friend.” I pause to consider. “But I think she was honest with me about feeling left out, and I ignored that. So, I probably should apologize. Like, really apologize.” I look up at her. “Could you take me over to her house this morning?”

“Sure,” she smiles at me, her eyes soft in the corners. “We can make that happen. Not until after breakfast though, okay?”

“Alright,” I set my phone on the countertop. “Thanks, Mom.”

Leaving the temptation of that chat box behind, I lope upstairs to get dressed. I slide on some clean basketball shorts, then tug on my canvas sneakers and shove my favorite black hoodie over my head. Running my hand through my hair for the hundredth time this morning, I give up on any notion that I’ll put it in some kind of order before I go and head back downstairs where mom is finishing up breakfast for us.

Beth has decided to grace us with her presence, wearing crew socks with her sherpa lined house slippers and some kind of giant blanket-hoodie hybrid that hangs to her knees and could easily fit three of her across. Her hair sticks in five different directions, and her eyes gaze hollowly ahead as she cradles the purple soup mug of coffee that’s been procured for her.

I need a photo of this…

Mom stands at the stove with her back to us, stirring the eggs to keep them cooking evenly with her wooden spatula. I eye my phone where it rests on the counter, reach for it with one hand.

“Don’t.” Mom says firmly, before I’m even close, never even turning around.

“Sorcerer,” I hiss, though I comply.

Her eyes roll, but she doesn’t bother replying as she finishes breakfast and plates four servings. Dad comes downstairs in his ‘yard jeans’ and an old t-shirt, crossing over to the sink where Mom has her back to us and wrapping an arm around her waist as he leans in to whisper into her ear. She giggles, giggles, and swats at his arm. I gag into the air and they laugh, Mom shuts off the sink and Dad urges her to take a seat while he gets us all glasses of juice to go with breakfast.

I listen to their easy conversation as we all eat, letting it flow over me as Beth slowly comes to consciousness. Having two parents who are still so in love with each other can be disgusting, but I know I’m one of the lucky ones. So many of my classmates live in unhappy homes, split time with both parents, or only have one like Cam. I guess it’s kind of nice, having them as an example of what I want someday.

“Elliot and I are going out for a bit,” Mom announces as she collects the plates to wash.

“Alright,” Dad kisses her cheek and steals the stack from her hands, slipping in front of the sink to take care of them himself. “I’m going to get the mowing done while it’s still cool enough. Could I request an iced tea when you come back?”

“I think we can arrange that,” she smiles indulgently, then turns to me. “Are you ready to go?”

“Yeah,” I wince. “I guess so.”

She smiles sympathetically and kisses Beth on the top of the head on our way to the garage door where she’s parked her car inside. I duck into the front seat of the white sedan and buckle, shoving my hands in the pocket of my hoodie as she joins me and starts the car. Before she opens the door to the garage she turns to face me.

“Are you sure you want to go over there? You seem a little anxious.”

“No, I do,” my mouth screws to the side. “I want to talk to her. I don’t like it when she ignores me, and I need to tell her that. She’s my friend first.”

“Okay,” she pats my knee twice then opens the door and backs out of the garage.

As we drive across town to Casey’s house, Mom chats easily about absolutely nothing. The chatter fills the empty space and gives me something to focus on, and by the time we pull through the familiar brick gates the knot in my stomach feels smaller. She winds through the paved streets to the house Casey’s lived in as long as I’ve known her, at the end of a cul de sac on the edge of the neighborhood of white brick homes.

With one last firm breath and a setting of the shoulders, I jog up the walkway and press my thumb on the doorbell then stand back to wait. My hands are shoved firmly into my front pocket, and I rock back on my heels until I hear footsteps on the wood flooring in front of the door and the lock clicks out of place seconds before the door swings open. Casey leans against the doorframe, folding her arms over her chest.

“You know,” she sasses. “When someone ignores your text messages, that usually means they don’t want to talk to you.”

“I know,” half my mouth tilts up. “But I really wanted to talk to you.”

“Hm,” she tries to force a smile down. “Do you want to come inside?”

“No, Mom’s waiting for me,” I throw a thumb behind me.

“Then what do you want, Elliot?”

“I want to apologize.” Casey seems surprised. “You communicated that when I do things alone with Camden instead of including you it feels bad, and I kind of did it again anyway. It was an accident,” I add quickly. “But that doesn’t make it okay. So, I wanted to say, I’m sorry for not talking with you after the game. I was inconsiderate, and I don’t want you to feel like I don’t want to spend time with you, because I do.”

“Wow,” her smile breaks free. “Your mom’s therapy speak is spreading.”

“Yeah, well,” I shrug. “Sometimes she’s right.”

“She is,” Casey reaches out a hand to link our pinkies, stepping closer to me. “I forgive you, it’s really okay. It just… hurt my feelings a little.”

“Yeah, no,” I nod. “I get that. I’m going to try and do better to make you not feel like that, okay?”

“Sure,” she swings our arms. “Thanks.”

I tug her closer, pressing my lips against hers, and then hug her and rest my chin on her shoulder. She pulls back slightly, hands drifting up to my chest, and I’m relieved to see the playful spark is back in her eyes when they meet mine.

“Tomorrow is Pepper’s birthday party,” Casey tugs at the string of my hoodie. “And she asked me to come.”

“Right, I heard about that,” I nod. “Want me to go with you?”

“Yes!” her eyes light up. “Yes, I’d love that! And maybe after, you could stay the night?” I start to answer but she interrupts me. “My parents won’t be here, so it will be okay. I just want to spend some time with you, just us…”

She blinks up at me, and my refusal sticks in my throat. Instead, I find myself nodding.

“Really? Oh!” Casey lets go of me, spinning in place before stopping to face me again with a smile. “Oh, that will be great, El. It will be so nice… I’ve missed you, lately. It’s like we have this, like, distance between us…” she glanced up at me through her lashes. “I want to feel close to you again.”

“Right,” my voice cracks, and I nod as I clear my throat. I’m starting to feel like one of those drinking bird toys. “Yeah, that will be great. Uh, if I can get my parents to clear a sleepover, you know.”

“Can’t you just tell them you’re going to Cam’s?”

She says that so easily, and I want to stand behind my excuse… But I feel her disappointment like it’s a tangible thing, and so instead I force a smile I hope looks effortless to my face and pull her in for a hug, nodding again. It seems like that’s all I can do.

“Yeah,” I agree. “I’m sure that will work. I’ll, uh, let you know okay?”

“I’ll pick you guys up at five,” she nods. “So that way me and Beth have time to get ready.”

“Right, yeah, okay.”

Casey hugs me with a little squeal, and I wrap my arms around her shoulders and squeeze. I glance over her shoulder, where my mom is patiently waiting and reading a paperback novel in the car, and swallow hard. She pecks a kiss on my cheek and ducks back into the house as I trot down the path to the car with my hands shoved deep in my pockets.

What did I just agree to?

Pepper Briggs isa spoiled rich brat, and I guess I should have expected her house to reflect that. And yet, for some reason, I wasn’t prepared for Casey to pull up to a gated community and type in a code on a pin pad. The solid wood and wrought iron gates slowly swing wide, revealing large houses on wide open lots lining the street and flowing into the hills. My face is pressed against the glass, eyes wide as I take in the estates around us. As we drive deeper into the neighborhood, the houses get larger, and each one has its own unique appearance, unlike the cookie-cutter subdivisions we usually drive past. Pepper’s birthday party is invitation-only, the kind of event my parents might kill me for attending, which is exactly why they think I’m just staying the night at Cam’s house before an early-morning practice. I’m unsure where they think Beth is, but if they want to remain oblivious to our teenage shenanigans that’s none of my business.

“This is us!” Casey giggles as she parks on the side of the road leading up to a white stone house at the end of a nearly empty cul-de-sac.

Lights flash, and music sifts around us from inside the house as soon as the engine is silenced. Beth scrambles out of the backseat, gift bag in hand and wobbles like a newborn calf in the ridiculous heels she”s borrowing from Casey’s closet. I can’t help but roll my eyes as I hold out my arm for her to use for support, and she grins widely at me before latching on and hooking her elbow as if the assist is intentional and not born of a desperate fight against the forces of gravity. I offer a hooked elbow to my girlfriend as she comes around the corner of the Jeep, grinning and locking the car with a double chirp before accepting the offered arm and starting us off towards the party ahead.

We bob and weave our way up to the front door, avoiding anything that could cause the girls to trip or slip in their stilts. By the time we walk into the party, I swear I’ve shrunk a few inches from their weight pushing down on either arm to keep their balance. Pepper is standing near the door next to their cheer captain Molly, and all four girls turn into each other and emit some kind of feral cheerleader squeal, bending their knees and throwing their hands into the air before launching themselves at each other until they’re one bouncing mob of giggling girls.

“Hey Case, I’m gonna go grab a drink,” I shout into the void, shaking my head as all that answers me is excited chatter between the girls.

I turn and make my way into the house, twisting and winding to avoid already tipsy partygoers on my way to find the kitchen. When I walk through the wide archway, a figure in blue leaning against the back wall catches my eye. I grin at Camden and the silver can in his hand, crossing to get one of my own from the cooler.

“Imagine seeing you here,” I chime.

“Of all the kitchens in all the suburbs in all of Texas,” he drawls as he pops the tab on my beer. “You walked into this one.”

“Wow,” I grin, bringing the can to my lips and sipping the bitter bubbles from the top. “Rick Blaine, you smooth fella…”

“What can I say, it comes naturally.”

I can’t help but laugh, shaking my head as I take another drink. Cam’s mom and dad were really into all the old movies before she died, I guess it was like their thing. Mr. Holt still watches them a lot, and now it’s kind of his and Camden’s thing. They’ve shared it with me, so when other kids were running around on the playground pretending to be GI Joes we were just as likely to be Rock Hudson and James Dean, fighting over the integrity of a Texas cattle ranch like the movie Giant. I was James Dean, of course.

Little weirdos.

“Wait,’’ I frown, my brows pulling together. “Does that make me Ingrid Bergman in this scenario?”

“It’s your svelte figure,” he nods easily. “Dance with me?” Cam asks before I can comment, brushing past me.

“Yes dear,” I sigh heavily, and a grin spreads across his face as he catches my hand and pulls me back to the den.

Someone’s phone is hooked up to the speaker system, playing a bouncy pop song that has us smiling and shaking our shoulders. Pepper’s invited most of our class to celebrate her birthday, plus the rest of the cheer squad. I can’t imagine someone’s parents okaying a party like this on a school night, but then again if the white BMW convertible sitting out front with a pink bow on it is any sort of indicator, she seems to sort of get whatever she’d like. I can’t help but laugh and smile as Cam finishes a rousing rendition of the Macarena to the completely wrong song, as Taylor Swift’s voice drifts through the crowd.

I love that he can make me smile in any situation. I love his knowledge of obscure music and classic movies. I love that I know the beer in his hand is the only one he’ll have tonight, that he won’t push me to have more either, and that he’ll drive safely home. The older we get, and the more people we meet, the more I appreciate all the little things I love about my best friend.

An unfamiliar gleam enters his eyes as the lyrics to the song register, and he slows his motions but he continues to dance as he looks into my eyes, singing the familiar words. The music is loud, but I can hear the timbre of Cam’s voice joining the melody, pulling me in as he approaches the first chorus of “You Belong with Me”.

The room has a heartbeat of its own, created by the thump of the bass and the stomp of feet as people bounce in place. I’m singing along with the song now, shimmying and pulling dramatic facial expressions as I compete with the level of the music. It’s the shimmering light in Cam’s eyes that keep me going, the beer in my hand is mostly empty now and the can takes the place of a microphone as I bend my knees, a rockstar in the making. My right arm raises, ready to windmill a riff on my invisible guitar, and I lean my head back just as slim arms slide down my chest from behind.

My eyes shoot open and glance at Camden, who seems inexplicably dimmer than he did a moment before. I turn to look over my shoulder, and Casey giggles as she pulls herself closer to me. The drink in the plastic cup in her hand sloshes nearly to the brim, threatening to spill the blue punch over her white tank top if she makes any sudden movements. Straightening slightly, I turn and put my hands on her shoulders. I take a step back, putting space between us, but she doesn’t seem to be bothered about it.

“Babe!” She pouts. “You didn’t come back!”

“Yeah, sorry,” I gesture behind me with a thumb. “I ran into Cam, and we-”

My explanation is cut off as Casey throws herself towards me, arms sliding around my neck and her lips rushing for mine. I release an ‘oomph’ of surprise into her mouth as I catch her, arms reflexively wrapping around her waist to keep her from falling. My eyes are wide, almost panicked, as she pulls me somehow tighter and keeps pressing her lips against mine.

Her kiss tastes like liquor, and the sharp burn offends my nose as I press my lips closer together. Cold punch spills down my back as her mixed drink tilts out of her cup, and I grunt as I instinctively push my shoulders back in an attempt to get away from it. She adjusts the pressure as this moves me closer to her, tongue slipping out to trace my bottom lip, and I push back against her hips as I release her to the floor.

“Case,” I turn my head, flushing. “What are you doing?”

“Kissing my boyfriend, silly,” she grinned, walking her fingers up my chest.

“Yeah but there’s like, people around…” I glanced over my shoulder, at the empty spot where Camden used to stand. “You know I don’t like that.”

“I know,” she reaches up to sweep some hair behind my ear. “I know, I’m sorry, I know you’re shy. Dance with me?”

I start dancing again, but something feels different. Off. I try to focus on Casey, on the smooth way she rotates her hips and rubs close to me with that smile on her face. Her eyes are half-closed, like either she is imitating some movie she’s seen or I maybe need to call an ambulance… I can’t quite decide which. Probably the first. Where did Cam go? I try to be subtle as I look around the room since I know Casey doesn’t like it when I’m not keeping my attention on her. Especially at parties, when she’s had a drink and is riding high on the energy of her friends. The music slows and I respond on autopilot, shifting closer to Casey and dropping my hands to her waist as we sway.

When I look into her eyes, a slow smile spreads across her face. She blushes prettily, and I find myself wondering if she’d practiced this lip-biting soft-eyed thing she’s doing in the mirror. There’s no way that’s natural, or comfortable. Casey pulls up on her toes, hands drifting across my arms on their way to my shoulders, and I know what she wants. I lean forward, dropping a kiss on her lips, but this time I’m in control. I keep it light, pulling back after an appropriate time has passed. Her smile widens, and she tilts her head to the side.

“Come with me,” she breathes, so quiet I almost can’t hear her for the music.

She leads me through the house with confidence; Pepper and Casey have cheered together for years and I guess this isn’t her first time here. I blink when I find that we’ve entered a bedroom, a wide bed with a blue covering filling the entire space. Cold sweat forms on my brow, my throat going dry as I realize what she means.

“Case,” I swallow, freezing when I turn to find that she’s pulled her shirt over her head.

“Elliot,” she smiles proudly. “I talked to Pepper, no one stays in this room so it’s okay if we use it. I figured this might be better, since Beth is coming over tonight too.”

“Use it?” I squeak, then clear my throat. Swallow down the panic that lurks just below the surface. “For?”

“You know,” she looks meaningfully at the bed, reaching for me, frowning when I step back.

“Casey,” I shake my head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Of course it is,” she says soothingly. “Just relax… we love each other, right?”

“Well yeah, sure we do, but…”

“And we’ve been together so long…” Casey slips a hand under my shirt, rubbing slowly upwards. “So what’s wrong?”

“I… don’t even have p-protection.”

“I do!” She says brightly. “I planned ahead, see?”

“Oh,” I swallow hard as I stare at the pink foil packet she’s just pulled from nowhere. “Wow, yeah…”

“So,” she drags her nails down my stomach, either not noticing or ignoring my wince as she trails her hands to my jeans.

“Casey!” I nearly yell as I shoot my hand down to catch her around the wrist, closing my eyes as I regret the sharpness of my voice. “No. I’m, I”m not ready. I said no.”

“But,” her face falls. “I don’t understand… we’re not at the house, no parents could walk in,” I stare at the ground as she lists off my excuses like she’s memorized them. “We’ve been together for two years, Elliot…”

“I’m not ready,” I squeeze my eyes more tightly shut. “That’s all.”

“Sometimes I feel like you don’t even think I’m attractive,”

I release her wrist as she takes a half-step back. The hurt edge to her voice kills me, and I open my eyes. I slowly drag them over her, taking in her toned arms and stomach, the pink lace bra she must have worn with this in mind. The jeans that hug her hips, and all the way back up to her loosely styled hair. She crosses her arms over herself, blushing, the beginnings of tears in her eyes as she faces my rejection.

What is wrong with me?

“You’re beautiful,” I nearly whisper. “Case, you’re such a beautiful girl.”

“But you don’t want to sleep with me.”

“No.” A flash of anger spikes in her eyes. “Not now,” I add quickly. “Not yet.” I shove my hands deep in my pockets. “I’m sorry.”

“I… Think you should maybe find a different place to stay the night,” she pulls her shirt on to cover her chest.

“Right,” I turn and twist the doorknob. “Sorry.”

My heart is beating like I’ve just run a mile, and it feels like I might throw up. There’s a hand around my lungs, squeezing so hard I can barely get a good breath. I wish I knew what to say to her, how to explain that I don’t know why I can’t take that step with her but I just… can’t.

I slip out of the room, close the door behind me, and quickly make my way down the hall. The tight feeling in my chest doesn’t go away as I look around, about to reach for my phone to call Cam when I notice him standing with his back to me in the kitchen. I cross and stand at his side, hands still firmly in my pockets.

“Can I go home with you?” I ask gruffly.

“Now?” He asks as he takes in my facial expression.

I nod, and without hesitation, he tosses his soda into the trash can and leads me out of the house and down the street to where he’s parked Glory. We drive in silence back to town as I take slow and even breaths. We’re nearly to our neighborhood before Cam finally speaks.

“So, you were supposed to stay the night with..?”

“Casey, yeah…” I rub my hands on my thighs. “Beth, too.” I frown as something occurs to me. “My clothes are still in her Jeep…”

“You can use mine,” he mutters almost sheepishly.

“Thanks.”

We resume our silence. Camden parks Glory and we slip into the house and up the stairs to his room, where he hands me boxers and a t-shirt from his dresser. I cross to the bathroom and change, blushing a little as I look in the mirror. Cam’s boxers hang low on my hips. His shirt drops too long on my slighter frame, loose and comfortable and smelling like Camden. Swallowing down the weird nerves in my stomach, I return to his bedroom where Cam sits up on the edge of the mattress. He looks at me and smiles slightly, surprising me by urging me to shut the door before leaning forward and grabbing a pillow to move to the bottom end of the bed.

“Looks good,” he says, a flush seeming to come to his cheeks before he turns to the wall. “Like, it fits well.”

“Thanks,” I cross and scoot under the blankets. “Cam, come up here with me.”

“Nah, it’s okay, I can sleep on this end,” he shakes his head.

“Camden.” I press as close to the wall as I can, making room for him. “You’re helping me out, you can’t sleep with my feet in your face.”

He resists for a beat, considering protesting, but turns instead to replace the pillow and join me under the blankets. We both shift to lay on our backs, staring up at the ceiling. I notice from the corner of my eye when Cam closes his eyes, but I know he isn’t asleep yet as I listen to his breathing. The warmth of his body is comforting, and I fight the urge to close that two-inch gap between us to seek more of it. I release a slow breath, relaxing into the pile of pillows that frames the top of the bed.

“Casey wants to have sex,” I finally say, breaking the silence.

“And you don’t want to.” He replies after a brief pause.

“No.” I feel lighter as I confess. “No, I don’t want to have sex with her. I feel like something’s wrong with me… There’s this really beautiful girl, and she’s my girlfriend, and she’s standing in front of me in this pink lacy bra and I just feel… Uncomfortable. That’s weird, right?”

“I don’t think it’s weird,” he smirks, eyes still closed. “I’d feel uncomfortable if your girlfriend took her shirt off and asked me to sleep with her, too.”

“Thanks,” a sharp laugh escapes. “Anyway… She feels like it’s time. And I just… Don’t.”

“I take it she was… Less than happy about that?”

“She was mad, embarrassed, probably.” I sigh. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me…”

“I don”t think anything’s wrong with you.” We both watch the ceiling again. “I think that you aren’t ready to have sex with her, and she’s ready to have sex with you. There’s nothing wrong with either of you… But you shouldn’t do something just because someone else wants you to. I think… That when it feels right, you’ll know.”

“The worst part is, I’m not sure why it doesn’t feel right. It isn’t, like, I’m nervous exactly. I know her well, she’s a pretty girl, she’s one of my closest friends you know? But when she kisses me or touches me, I don’t feel like I think I’m supposed to feel.”

We lay there in comfortable silence, thinking.

I wish there was a class they taught you in school. ‘What it’s supposed to feel like when you’re ready to have sex’. Okay, so maybe that’s kind of excessive…But I’d settle for a special assembly. This isn’t something I’ve really talked with my parents about, we’re close and all but I have my limits. It just really seems like something isn’t right, like I should be feeling something I’m not when faced with the prospect of sleeping with my girlfriend.

“Maybe I’m secretly one of those alien people, switched with a human infant at birth, and I’m never going to want to have sex with anyone.” I muse after a while.

“I’d love you anyway.”

With that confident pronouncement, Cam’s eyes drift closed. I feel warm all over, a slow smile crawling across my face at his reply. Despite our best efforts he’s pressed along my left side, and his solid warmth is comforting. I close my eyes too, curling the blankets close to my chin as I settle in to fall asleep.

“I love you too, Cam.”

The next morning,I wake up in a fog. The bed is too soft, too many pillows surround my head, and it smells like… Camden. My eyes slowly blink open, and I remember that I am in his bed. Cam is leaning on an elbow, looking down at me, and raises a finger to his lips to indicate that we should keep our voices down.

“Morning,” I whisper, my voice gravelly with sleep.

“Good morning,” he grins as he whispers back. “We should probably get ready and head out, my dad doesn’t know you stayed the night.”

“Right,” I sit up and rub my eyes. “Okay, sounds good.”

We slip out of bed, and I grab the clothes I’d left on Cam’s dresser the night before. I pull his shirt off over my head and toss it towards his laundry basket, taking a second to stretch as I wake up. Then I shimmy out of the borrowed boxers, hearing a strangled cough from behind me as I reach for my jeans. I turn to look over my shoulder, seeing that Cam has turned his back as he gets ready, and barely hold in a laugh. We finish dressing and I ball up my used boxers in my hand, blushing and shifting slightly as we make our way down the stairs and out the front door undetected.

As Cam pulls his truck out of the driveway, I pull out my phone. No texts, no missed calls. I tap out a quick text.

Good morning. I’m sorry again about last night. I hope you have a great day.

I watch as the status turned to ‘read’, waiting for bubbles that never come to show Casey has anything to say back. Sighing, I slip the phone back into my pocket.

“It’ll all work out,” Cam says, staring straight ahead of us at the empty road with all of the concentration he can muster.

“I know,” I half smile. “Thanks for being here for me.”

“Elliot,” he says seriously. “I will always be here for you.”

“I know that, too.” I smile for real this time, punching him on the arm as we make our way to town for breakfast.