Page 49 of I Never Stopped Loving You

“What’s downstairs?” I ask, but it’s mid-yawn, and I can tell from her confused look that she didn’t understand me. “Sorry. What’s downstairs?”

“Oh. It’s a surprise.”

“I hate surprises,” I groan as I drag my body out of bed and walk toward my bathroom.

“You don’t have to get dolled up. It’s not that kind of surprise,” she teases as I slam the door shut.

“I have to pee. Fuck off.”

I’m not a nice person in the morning until I’ve had my coffee. I can hear her laugh getting quieter. She must be going back downstairs.

I look at my reflection. Dark circles are smudged under my eyes from not being able to get all the waterproof mascara off last night. There’s still a faded line of eyeliner under my eyes as well. I reach for a makeup wipe, then stop.

“Fuck it. It’s not like I’m going anywhere today.”

When I leave the bathroom, I grab my phone again. Not a single text from Noah, or anyone for that matter. Even though Jenna is pretty much the only person I ever talk to.

“Babe, you coming?” Jenna shouts from the landing.

“Coming. Sorry,” I shout back.

I throw on my UofM hoodie and step out of my room. The old hardwood floors are freezing, and I can tell from the way the air feels that the heat is acting up again.

“Can we please call someone to fix the heat? I’m going to…What the fuck?”

“Surprise!”

As I step off the last step and turn into the living room, I’m instantly surrounded by bouquets. But they aren’t just any flowers…They’re ditch lilies.

“What the hell? Where did these come from?”

She hands me a black envelope with a huge grin on her face. She didn’t open it, but I’m assuming she’s thinking it’s the same person that I’m thinking.

Noah.

“I didn’t know you liked tiger lilies,” she says as she sits down on the couch and picks up a bouquet to smell it.

“They aren’t tiger lilies. They’re ditch lilies.”

She looks at me, confused, and tilts her head. I forgot that not everyone knows about ditch lilies.

“Tiger lilies have spots on them. These are ditch lilies. They’re…” A wave of nausea hits me as a memory comes flooding back. I drop the envelope and quickly have to sit down.

“You okay?”

“Yeah. Sorry. Just started thinking of a memory. These have always been my favorite flowers. They thrive in some of the worst conditions, even in darkness. They’re tough and beautiful.”

I pick up the envelope and slowly open it. I hope to God this is from Noah. If not, I’m going to have an even bigger problem on my hands.

Willow,

I’m so sorry about last night. I hope you can forgive me. I look forward to seeing you on Tuesday. I hope you enjoy the flowers. They’re my favorite flower, so I think they might be yours, too.

-Noah

“So, what’s it say? Is it from Mr. Bigshot?”

“Yeah. He just apologized for last night and said he looks forward to seeing me on Tuesday.”