Page 23 of So Long, Honey
“Where else are you going to go?” Her little laugh was a breath of fresh air.
“I would have gone to sleep at Landry’s,” I said honestly, and she scrunched her nose up at me. “But I’d rather stay here.”
Lorraine stared at me for a long moment, the silence stretching out tight until finally, she smiled at me, and it broke with a snap. God, I loved her. It was stupid and it hurt, but it was the truth, even if she wasn’t ready for it.
“Alright, I’ll find you some clean clothes.” She said with a tiny sigh. “Stay put.”
“Yes, ma’am,” I nodded and went back to eating cake.
The rest of the night was spent sitting on the floor of the guest room with me while she showed me all her constellation books. She had drawn everything by hand and left cute little descriptions in the margins of each star she liked.
It was like holding a piece of her in my hands, and I treasured it.
I was still stuck on the idea that her birthday was tomorrow, and she hadn’t said anything. In fact, if I hadn’t gotten in thefight with my Dad, she would have been left to sit alone in this massive cold house.
Tomorrow, I’d wake up and make everything perfect for her.
She looked over at me with a soft smile to make sure I was still paying attention to her rambling about the stars, making my heart race.I owe her the perfect day.
FIELD
“Morning, Starlight,” Ryan said as I wandered into the kitchen in my pajamas.
My toes still tingled as my body started to wake from sleep. I tucked my fingers into the pocket of my hoodie to keep them warm. My hair was tugged messily into a ponytail, and I was still rubbing the sleep from my eyes as I took in the kitchen.
“Ryan…” I said, unable to help the laughter that tumbled from me. “What are you doing?”
“Making you breakfast?” He said, his words curling up in confusion at the end as he turned to look at me. “Don’t tell me you don’t like pancakes,” he sighed and looked over at the towering plate.
“I love waffles,” I laughed and leaned against the island. “I’m just not sure I can eatthatmany.”
Ryan pouted, a full-on bottom-lip pout, as he looked over at me before saying, "Coward,” as a smirk grew on his face.
“Did you just call me a coward? You made like fifteen pancakes,” I pointed to the plate where he stacked another one.I can maybe eat two,” I said as my stomach grumbled. “Okay, maybe three,” I added, which brought his smirk into a full-blown smile.
I watched as he wandered back and forth, making me a plate. Everything he did was purposeful, and his brows were scrunched in concentration as he moved. When he was finally satisfied, he nodded to himself and set the plate down in front of me, beaming with pride.
Moving around me, I sucked in a tiny breath as he wrapped his arms around my shoulders and leaned over me. His lips close to my ear as he pressed our bodies together. He had cut up strawberries and bananas, scattering the plate with them before he slathered everything in whipped cream.
“Happy birthday, Rae.” He whispered to me and handed me a fork.
“You know you didn’t have to do this. I really wasn’t upset about it,” I said to him. And that was the honest-to-God truth. Birthdays held no sentimental value to me. We never really celebrated anyone's birthday in our house. It wasn’t just me. To my family, it was just another day on the calendar that could be crammed with meetings, chores, and educational activities.
But my heart was racing at an uncomfortable speed as Ryan waited for me to take a bite. He was so proud of himself for making such a nice breakfast. It was endearing, and I couldn’t find the proper words to convey how grateful I was for his gesture.
I cupped my hand over the overflowing fork and lifted it to my lips. Everything melted together, and it actually tasted really good. I turned my head not thinking about his proximity, only wanting to praise his cooking skills, and found his face millimeters from mine.
Time wasn’t relevant. Everything seemed to slow down, and each detail of his face became glaringly obvious. The way histhroat bobbed, the sparkle in his eyes as the gold danced across the green, and how bold the color was framed by the nasty purple bruise on his face. But distractingly so, and the worst of all was the small, nervous smirk on his lips. Our nose brushed together, and for a second, I thought he would pull away, but he only nuzzled closer.
“These are really good pancakes,” I whispered to him, uncomfortably confessing the compliment to distract me from my nervousness.
“It’s the only thing I can make, don’t be too impressed.” He huffed, and his breath warmed my skin.
Ryan’s eyes flickered to my lips as I cleaned the whipped cream from my bottom lip, and his entire body groaned, leaning forward to close the space even further.
“I would like to kiss you,” he said quietly, “but only if—”
I didn’t let him finish the sentence. I pushed my chin toward him and closed the little space between our lips. Kissing him without hesitation as my heart thudded wildly in my chest, and the crescendo of time seemed to stop altogether.His hands tangled into my hair, curling around my jaw to pull me impossibly close. The kiss itself was soft and careful. His bottom lip captured mine and sent a burst of fireworks across my chest. My skin tingled with heat from his touch.