Page 54 of The Broken Hearts Club

“And it’s nice to see you unpacked your boxes.”

“Yeah, finally.”

“You have an amazing record collection. But why didn’t you have a turntable?”

“I got rid of most of my stuff when I moved in with my ex. His house was fully furnished, and everything was a lot nicer than what I had, including his stereo.”

“Did Bruce share your taste in music?”

“Not even a little. He was a classical music snob, and he thought my stuff was ridiculous.”

“Shows what he knows. This music is super cool. Oh, and I love the fact that your new furniture ties in with that whole aesthetic.”

“The places I lived before moving in with Bruce were sort of thrown together. This time, I’m trying to be more intentional.”

“You’ve been doing great, and I heard there might have been even more changes while I was gone. JoJo said something about the yard, but I haven’t taken a look yet.”

“Want to see it? Or we can wait, if you’re too tired.”

“Let’s go check it out.”

When we stepped out onto the back deck, I whispered, “It’s beautiful.” What was formerly weeds and cracked concrete was now a gorgeous oasis of trees and flowers, with a mosaic path winding through it.

“Here, let me help you.”

He picked me up and carried me down the stairs and into the yard. There was a cozy seating area with a fire pit, and halfway down the path was a bench swing, near a babbling water feature. “You can put me down if you want,” I said.

“You’re barefoot, so I’d like to keep carrying you if that’s okay.”

It was more than okay.

I didn’t see the swing set until we reached the back of the yard. My breath caught, and I whispered, “Why is this here?”

“Because you mentioned once that you wanted one. I don’t think you should use it on your own yet, because it might be too strenuous while you’re still healing. But I can push you if you want, or we can sit on the bench swing together.”

“The bench, please.” I was so shaky that I thought I might fall off the swing set.

He carried me back to the center of the yard and took a seat. I stayed on his lap, burying my face in his shoulder and fighting back tears as he gently rocked us back and forth. He rubbed my back as I said softly, “The yard is amazing, and that swing set is so great. Thank you. I can’t believe you did that for me.”

“I’m glad you like it.”

I kept my head on his shoulder as I asked, “How did you do all of this?”

“I hired the couple who did Yolanda and JoJo’s yard. They’re really sweet, and super talented. I gave them a rough idea of what I was looking for, and they totally exceeded my expectations. One thing I told them was that I wanted something to reflect my heritage, so three of the trees are a common type of cherry tree that’s grown all throughout South Korea. They’ll bloom with pale pink flowers in the springtime.”

“That’s really cool. What else did you tell them you wanted?”

“I asked for a garden that felt soothing, so they went with a color palette of blue, white, and purple. They also included elements for each of the senses, including a bed of edible herbs.”

“It’s perfect.”

“I think so, too. And it’s amazing that they got all of this done in a week, since that’s how long you were supposed to be in the hospital. I think being outside can be therapeutic, so I wanted you to have someplace peaceful and comfortable to spend time while you heal.”

“How did they get all of this back here? The yard’s not accessible from the street.”

“They brought everything through the house. They tried to bring bigger trees at first, but they wouldn’t fit through the doors.”

When I shivered, Miller immediately took off his zippered hoodie and draped it over my shoulders. I stuck my arms through the sleeves and thanked him before saying, “I’ve been so distracted by everything that I haven’t asked how your meeting went.”