Unexpected (33 page)

I’d been so worried about my mom being alone when I left for Florida. Now she wouldn’t be. She’d
be with family. The house wouldn’t be empty and lonely. For that alone, I was grateful.

“I’m happy for them,” Jamie said
. She set her makeup bag on my dresser, in front of my mirror. “And for you, too. Your family deserves to be happy again.”

“Thanks,” I said, meaning it from the bottom of my heart.

“And you and Tristan, too,” she said. She let out a long, dramatic sigh. “Willow was right. You two really are great together.”

I smiled back at her as I pulled my hair up, out of the way so I could start with my make-up. “I think so, too.”

“You’re happy with him?” she wondered.

“So happy,” I agreed.

We spent the next couple of hours working on perfecting our makeup. Jamie worked wonders with my hair. Mom came in to check on us a few times.

While the majority of the girls went with
classic Valentine’s Day colors—the standard rainbow of pinks and reds—I’d decided to go with cream. A nice, subtle cream with one strap over the shoulder. The waistline had a thick band of gold beading. I kept it simple with small, gold earrings and a gold bangle bracelet.

Jamie worked my hair into a slightly messy yet sexy up-do.

Her cobalt blue dress looked fabulous on her.

When the doorbell rang I bounced down the stairs. I could not care less about making a graceful entrance or a grand appearance. I just wanted to see Tristan. So I bounced down the steps and tossed myself into his arms.

He looked amazing in his black suit. But I still liked him in his black t-shirts and ripped up jeans the best.

Evan walked in behind him.

“I’ll see you in a little bit,” Jamie said as she excused herself. Anna had decided she needed pictures, too. So it was decided that Jamie and Evan would head over there first.

Mom…and Dad would take pictures at our house
. Then Tristan and I would head over to his house for our turn.

“You look amazing,” Tristan said.

“She does, doesn’t she?” my dad asked before I could respond.

I turned around to find my parents standing behind us. Dad’s arm was wrapped around Mom’s shoulder
s.

She leaned into him and she was beaming. Or maybe she was glowing. That’s what pregnant ladies did, right?

“Alright,” Mom said as she slipped out of Dad’s embrace. “Pictures!”

I took Tristan’s hand and led him downstairs. Mom wanted pictures in front of the fireplace. She meticulously rearranged Tristan and me, over and over again. Each time we were posed to her satisfaction, Dad would take the shot. It reminded me of holidays when I was a kid. I smiled, despite myself. It was strange and comforting to see how easily they fell back into a routine like that
.

What felt like an infinite amount of time later, pictures were finally over.

“I’m so glad I got to be here for this tonight,” Dad said. I knew what he was saying, the words that were implied without actually being said. Last year, he’d missed the winter dance. And he’d missed prom. And my birthday and holidays…and the list could go on.

“We’re glad, too,” Tristan said, stepping in for me when I hesitated.

“Yeah,” I agreed, “we are.”

“I suppose,” Mom said with a sigh, “that we should let the two of you get going. I don’t want Anna to think we monopolized your evening.” She winked at Tristan. “Since your family will be here for dinner tomorrow night, I should try to stay on her good side.”

Tristan laughed because Mom and Anna had been friends for years. We all knew that Anna would definitely give Mom a hard time if she felt inclined to do so.

“
You two have fun but be careful. Tristan,” Dad said as he pulled me into a hug. “You take care of my little girl.”

Tristan nodded at Dad but his gaze was on me. “Always,” he said.

I knew that he meant it. Not just for tonight but for the future, too. Whatever it may bring.

Epilogue

“You know,” Willow said, “I have envisioned this day all year. And this is not how it is supposed to go.”

She was giving me a stern look.
I was squinting back at her. I’d forgotten my sunglasses and the August sun was scorching. Her tone was teasing but I knew she was also being honest. “I know,” I said with a smile. “But—”

“You’re doing what’s best for you,” Jamie interrupted. “We know. We’re going to miss you like mad, but we know.”

“Geeze, Jamie,” Tristan said as he hoisted the last suitcase into the trunk, “why didn’t you just have Mom and Dad rent you a U-Haul?”

She smiled sweetly at him. “I asked. They didn’t go for it.”

“She did ask,” Anna said with a laugh.

I took a step back, watching Willow’s family say goodbye. Jamie’s family, too. Tristan pulled her into a hug so tight he lifted her right off her feet. She squealed and swatted at him until he set her back down.

Jamie had gotten her car for graduation. She’d gotten an Accord, silver, while mine was white. She and Willow had the car loaded up. The trunk and the backseat were overflowing. They were about to embark on their road trip to Tampa. Classes started in a week.

I had decided to stay in
Laughlin for a year. I’d enrolled at the local university. I was able to find classes that would transfer next year. As much as I’d been looking forward to getting away with Willow and Jamie, things had changed. I wasn’t even planning on moving into the dorms. I was going to live at home.

Yes, staying at home meant I’d be closer to Tristan.

That was an added bonus.

But it wasn’t the reason I’d decided to stay behind. More than anything, I wanted to be around when my little sister arrived. Mom was due in a month, at a time when there were no breaks in our academic schedule. If I’d gone to Florida, I’d have had to miss the birth. And even if I flew home right away, I’d inevitably miss a large amount of school. I was afraid I’d move away, come home to see my sister after she was born, and not be able to tear myself away to go back.

We’d already had so much fun turning the spare room into a nursery, shopping for baby clothes, feeling her kick. I’d even been allowed to be in the room when she and Dad had gone in for the sonogram. We’d all found out together a baby girl was on the way. It had all been so awesome. The closer graduation had loomed, the harder it hit me that I didn’t want to miss out on her arrival. Or her first smile. The first time she crawled or said someone’s name.

I wanted her to know who I was so she could say
my
name. I didn’t want to be some strange face that showed up during the holidays. And then disappeared again for months on end.

As if all of those worries hadn’t been enough, with Dad home, we all felt like a family again. I won’t say things were easy. They weren’t, at first. At least not between him and me but
Mom always managed to smooth things over. By the time the wedding had come around, I’d adjusted to the idea. We’d all adjusted to being a family again. And with the baby on the way, things would be different. I didn’t want to walk away from that.

It was a brand new start.

“Come here!” Jamie demanded as she came toward me. Willow followed. They pulled me into a hug.

“Make sure you keep Thanksgiving vacation open for our girls’ weekend,” Willow said. It was at least the third time she reminded me.

“Absolutely,” I promised.

“And Christmas break,” Jamie ordered.

“I’m already counting the weeks,” I honestly told her. “And don’t you two forget about Spring Break,” I said. “You better not go and make a new best friend to take my place.”

We’d already realized that, luckily, our academic calendars matched up. I’d be going to Tampa to spend the week with them.

“That won’t happen!” Willow said. She looked honestly alarmed that I’d even suggest such a thing. I laughed at the look on her face.

“I can’t believe we’re actually leaving,”
Jamie said. She stepped away, as she did, our hug fell apart and we just stood there for a minute procrastinating. No one actually wanted to say goodbye.

Willow sighed. “Next year, everything will be back on track.”

“It will,” I promised.

“Unless,” Jamie said wistfully, “that baby ends up wrapping you around her teeny tiny little pinky so tight you never leave?”

I had to admit anything was possible. Yet, I felt like next year at this time, I’d be ready to go. “We’ll see,” I said. “But I am looking forward to Florida. I think a year delay is going to be perfect.”

“Maybe you’ll be done with
him
by then,” Jamie teased as she nodded toward her brother. He rolled his eyes. “And we can check out the guys together. The beaches down there…” She grinned and faded off when Robert opened his mouth to protest. Anna hushed him before he got started and Tristan laughed.

“Anyhow, we’ll miss you tons,” Willow said as she tried to neutralize the conversation.

They were both excited to check out the Florida boys. Willow and Corey hadn’t even lasted until graduation. Evan and Jamie had an amicable break-up, slowly drifting apart over the summer. He was staying here, in Wisconsin. Neither of them wanted to try the long distance thing.

“I hate to be the one
to break this up,” Robert said. “But you’re already getting a late start. You better be getting on the road.”

We said one final goodbye. My friends hugged their parents again. Then they managed to peel themselves away. With a wave, they hopped into Jamie’s car and they were on their way.

I watched them go in silence. Willow’s family loaded up and left, too, right behind them. I felt Tristan come up behind me, giving me a backwards hug. I twisted around so I could face him.

“
Are you okay?” he asked.

“I’m not going to lie. A part of me wishes I was going, too,” I admitted. My chest felt heavy. I was sad to see my best friends go. The three of us had been together for what felt like forever. Sharing our milestones and looking towards our futures. I felt left behind but it had been my choice. And it wasn’t permanent. “But, I know I would’ve regretted it if I’d gone. This is the right decision for now.”

“Come on you two,” Anna said. She gave my shoulder a squeeze as Tristan let me go.

“We should get a move on,” Robert said. “I’m starving.”

I could smell the charcoal from four houses down. Dad was busy in the backyard, prepping the meat. Mom was probably directing guests; telling them where to place their side dishes, salads and desserts. It was my family’s sixth neighborhood barbeque of the summer. It seemed Dad had gotten a little carried away. Trying to make up for lost time I would guess. I had never seen my parents happier. Or more in love. And while it had been strange at first, now I was so grateful for the surprises life had thrown our way.

Anna and Robe
rt had started toward our house. They were walking hand in hand in front of Tristan and me. I saw other neighbors heading to our house as well.

“Ready?” Tristan asked as he tossed his arm around my shoulder.

“Yeah,” I said as I grinned up at him. My heart still fluttered every time he smiled at me. I’d been right months ago when I wondered if I’d fall in so deep with him that I might never get out.

Over the past year I had realized that life has a way of throwing the unthinkable at you. Tristan and I were young. I would never expect our relationship to last forever. But…if there was anything I
had learned during my senior year, it was to expect the unexpected.

The end