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This catches her off guard. She looks toward the house for a beat before looking back at me. “It would depend on how they change in my mind. When I think of them, if my feelings are still the same as before, then I would love them all the same.”
Love.
That word is harder and harder to understand.
“Change can be scary when you can’t control it.” That makes me sound like a fucking child, but it’s true. I want to control the change in my life, not the other way around.
“It can be, but it can also be a blessing. Change brought me George; it brought me Marc; and it brought you back to me. So yeah, change is terrifying, but it’s also exhilarating. That’s why I don’t want to stop you from your dreams.”
Her eyes redden, and I round the table to pull her into a hug.
“Also, to answer your question, if you still love them despite the change, then I think it's worthy of acceptance. They’re probably happier. What comes to mind when you think of them?”
The future.
My tomorrow.
I take my mom’s words to heart as I say my goodbyes and promise to visit soon.
Change can be a good thing, even when you don’t plan for it. Sally is a change I never planned for, but in the end, she’s the best thing to happen to me this summer. Scratch that. She’s the best thing to happen to me ever.
At first, it was odd that my feelings stayed the same. I never thought of my best friend romantically before. Now I can barely think about her without picturing us in bed, screwing each other’s brains out.
If I’m completely honest with myself, I’m not even sure it’s because I view her as a woman. For a long time, I couldn’t picture anyone with me, but Sally fits in perfectly.
The image always fills with Sally, both past and present. It can’t be anyone else.
As I drive through the town, my eyes land on the aquarium we went to on our first visit. A help wanted sign is posted outside of the entrance.
An idea pops into my head.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
Sally
The house is ready for Richie to start whatever process he needs to sell it. I don’t enjoy the fact that he’ll have to travel three hours to have showings, but he claimed it could be a good use of vacation time.
Emmy loves the beach, so taking her to a new one might make her happy.
“Alliance seems like a cute little summer town anyway, so Laura might also enjoy coming down,” Richie reassures me on the phone.
“Are you sure?”
“Stop asking me that, Cotton Candy.”
I smile at the nickname. He only calls me that when he knows I need a little extra love.
When I was a kid, that was my favorite snack to get at any event. It also holds weight because it reminds me of when Richie first addressed me as his sister.
It was my first vacation with the Reed family, and my voice was still high-pitched, and my hair was getting longer. I wanted cotton candy, and the vendor tried to misgender me.
Richie was having none of that and made sure to call me his little sister a total of five times while paying for the sugary snack. Every time I think of cotton candy, I think of him, and it always brings a smile to my face.
“Fine, you win,” I concede.
This causes him to mock cheer. “I always do.”
“Actually, I think Trin does—at least, that’s what family game night always says.”
