She glances at all three and then back to me. “You did good.” And she hugs me again. “You’re perfect, always.”
“I’m a killer, Mom.”
“We’re all killers in this room.”
She refuses to let go, no matter how hard I push away.
“I was so afraid,” I mutter.
“I know you were.”
“I didn’t want to die.”
The final piece of the misery in my heart unravels, and I hold on tight to the only person who truly gets me for who I am.
“But you made it, and you’re not going to die, not for a long time. And I want you to know, to feel, that we—thatI—willalwayslove you. Even if you think of yourself as broken, you’re not. You’re more than the sum of your organs, more than what you are able to do. Your body doesn’t define who you are, your actions do. And you’ve shown to yourself, to everyone around you, to the fucking world that you are who you say you are.”
I nod several times, and Dad approaches to hug me too.
“We hear you. We see you,” he says. “Do you know why we named you Sunny?”
I roll my eyes. “I’ve always hated that name.”
“I know,” Dad says. “But you light up my world. You always do and you always will. Nothing you do could ever deter us. And when everything fails, you’re there to save the people you love. You are a Sunny, because you shine brighter than anyone on this earth. Do you understand?”
“Yes,” I say.
“Good. That’s all you need to remember, kid.”
He pats me on the back, and I feel like I can finally let go of all that anger that’s been constricting my veins and poisoning my soul.
“And if you want three instead of just one fuck buddy, hell, who am I to stop you?” Mom says.
“Thanks,” I retort, snorting.
Dad winks as he adds, “Make that Foley fucker grovel on the floor like I did for your mom.”
I gasp. “You groveled on the floor?”
Mom smirks. “In the shower too, and I was covered in blood.”
“Oh fuck me,” Uncle Felix growls, averting his gaze in embarrassment, and everyone explodes in laughter.
Just like the good old days.
EPILOGUE
Orion
“Oh my God!”
The squeal that follows is so loud it nearly pierces my own eardrums. But I can’t believe what I’m holding in my hands right now.
“My book. It’s here!”
Xavier and Sunny peek around the corner of the Tartarus living area, where they were having a little brunch with the two of them.
“Sorry to interrupt you two,” I mutter. “But oh my God, look!”
