I know how introverted you are.
But let me tell you, after those first few lines you were nothing
short of perfect! You’ve grown up so much since we moved
here. You’ll be heading off to college soon and we’ll barely ever
get to see you. I’m so happy for you yet so sad for me!”
I could see the tears forming in her eyes and I couldn’t
take it.
Tonight was emotional enough as it was for me—I
couldn’t handle any more sadness. “Please, Shelly. I can’t talk
about this tonight. Let’s talk about something good. How’s the
bed and breakfast coming along?
Did you get all of your
business licenses and stuff approved yet?”
“No, Jason and I decided to put all of that on hold for a
few months. We decided not to open until the fall. That way,
we can spend more time with you before you head off to
college.” Despite my efforts to steer clear of any more
emotional distress, Shelly burst into tears and so did I.
We
were a picture perfect tissue commercial just waiting to be
filmed.
While I have to admit that the thought of leaving home
did make me sad, that wasn’t the primary reason for my tears. I
still felt terrible inside for how I must have made Zach feel
when he knew that I couldn’t decide between him and Lucas. I
needed to find a way to reassure him that nothing like that
would ever happen again.
Footsteps in the hallway broke up our little tear fest
and I looked up to find that not only was Zach still in one piece,
he was actually smiling. He held out his hand to help me up and
I gladly took it. What in the world did he say to my dad that left
him so happy?
“Come on, Ruby. You’ve had a long night and I’m going
to tuck you into bed now.”
Okay, now I was worried. He sustained head trauma in
the accident tonight if he thought my dad was going to allow
him anywhere near my bedroom.
Quickly, I scanned his pupils
for any sign of a concussion. Not that I actually knew what I
was looking for or anything, but I figured that serious cerebral
damage would leave some sort of obvious sign. Nope, nothing.
His eyes were still the same wonderful shade of ice blue that
they were on any other day.
But after his suggestion to go
upstairs with me, I was certain they were about to be black and
blue.
“Goodnight, Ruby. We’ll all talk in the morning, okay?”
my dad said as he patted Zach on the shoulder.
What? So was my dad in a car accident tonight, too, that
I was unaware of because brain damage wasn’t contagious the
last time I checked.
Seriously, I was starting to wonder if
maybe I was the one with some kind of injury because none of
this was normal. It’s like I was living in Bizarro Rosewood now
or something.
Not that that was
a bad
thing, of course.
Whatever the case may be, I decided not to question something
good when it was handed to me and I escaped up the steps to
the attic with Zach at my side.
My overdose of adrenaline wore off almost instantly the
very second I laid eyes on my bed. Sleep was the only thing
that could take away the sting left by my long and tumultuous
day. I escaped into the bathroom long enough to change into
my pj’s then hopped into bed. Zach placed my desk chair
beside my bed, sat down, and took my hand. I was hoping to
fall asleep fast but in the meantime, there were many things to
discuss—starting
with how he
managed to
get
my
dad to
calmly allow him to be sitting next to me at this very moment.
“Well, I explained a lot of things to your dad tonight. I
didn’t really go into detail but I gave him a rough idea of what
Lucas did and why he did it.
And then I told him about our
conversation in the car—the one about us deciding to wait. I
figured that it was time to face your dad man to man and I think
I caught him off guard. Looks like my strategy worked. He said
I could stay until you fall asleep and then he’s going to give me
a ride home.” There—another reason why I loved Zach.
He
was brave enough to do battle with the scariest creature of
But let me tell you, after those first few lines you were nothing
short of perfect! You’ve grown up so much since we moved
here. You’ll be heading off to college soon and we’ll barely ever
get to see you. I’m so happy for you yet so sad for me!”
I could see the tears forming in her eyes and I couldn’t
take it.
Tonight was emotional enough as it was for me—I
couldn’t handle any more sadness. “Please, Shelly. I can’t talk
about this tonight. Let’s talk about something good. How’s the
bed and breakfast coming along?
Did you get all of your
business licenses and stuff approved yet?”
“No, Jason and I decided to put all of that on hold for a
few months. We decided not to open until the fall. That way,
we can spend more time with you before you head off to
college.” Despite my efforts to steer clear of any more
emotional distress, Shelly burst into tears and so did I.
We
were a picture perfect tissue commercial just waiting to be
filmed.
While I have to admit that the thought of leaving home
did make me sad, that wasn’t the primary reason for my tears. I
still felt terrible inside for how I must have made Zach feel
when he knew that I couldn’t decide between him and Lucas. I
needed to find a way to reassure him that nothing like that
would ever happen again.
Footsteps in the hallway broke up our little tear fest
and I looked up to find that not only was Zach still in one piece,
he was actually smiling. He held out his hand to help me up and
I gladly took it. What in the world did he say to my dad that left
him so happy?
“Come on, Ruby. You’ve had a long night and I’m going
to tuck you into bed now.”
Okay, now I was worried. He sustained head trauma in
the accident tonight if he thought my dad was going to allow
him anywhere near my bedroom.
Quickly, I scanned his pupils
for any sign of a concussion. Not that I actually knew what I
was looking for or anything, but I figured that serious cerebral
damage would leave some sort of obvious sign. Nope, nothing.
His eyes were still the same wonderful shade of ice blue that
they were on any other day.
But after his suggestion to go
upstairs with me, I was certain they were about to be black and
blue.
“Goodnight, Ruby. We’ll all talk in the morning, okay?”
my dad said as he patted Zach on the shoulder.
What? So was my dad in a car accident tonight, too, that
I was unaware of because brain damage wasn’t contagious the
last time I checked.
Seriously, I was starting to wonder if
maybe I was the one with some kind of injury because none of
this was normal. It’s like I was living in Bizarro Rosewood now
or something.
Not that that was
a bad
thing, of course.
Whatever the case may be, I decided not to question something
good when it was handed to me and I escaped up the steps to
the attic with Zach at my side.
My overdose of adrenaline wore off almost instantly the
very second I laid eyes on my bed. Sleep was the only thing
that could take away the sting left by my long and tumultuous
day. I escaped into the bathroom long enough to change into
my pj’s then hopped into bed. Zach placed my desk chair
beside my bed, sat down, and took my hand. I was hoping to
fall asleep fast but in the meantime, there were many things to
discuss—starting
with how he
managed to
get
my
dad to
calmly allow him to be sitting next to me at this very moment.
“Well, I explained a lot of things to your dad tonight. I
didn’t really go into detail but I gave him a rough idea of what
Lucas did and why he did it.
And then I told him about our
conversation in the car—the one about us deciding to wait. I
figured that it was time to face your dad man to man and I think
I caught him off guard. Looks like my strategy worked. He said
I could stay until you fall asleep and then he’s going to give me
a ride home.” There—another reason why I loved Zach.
He
was brave enough to do battle with the scariest creature of
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