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Chapter 18

Addie

The garage was barely recognizable.

Before, it had been a collection of dust and debris, surprisingly empty of any vehicles. Instead of cars, the entire expanse had been cluttered with box upon box.

Now, the gray walls were adorned with twinkling lights. A thick blanket was laid out, surrounded by a collection of pillows. Candles were spaced evenly along the perimeter of the room.

Calax sat in the center of the blanket, an anxious expression on his face and a picnic basket before him.

Tears sprang to my eyes, and I tried to stomp down the emotions threatening to leak out.

“Do you like it?” Calax asked. He clasped his hands together, unclasped them, and then put them behind his back. His timidness was adorable.

“It’s perfect,” I breathed, slightly awed. And it was. It was everything I had ever dreamed of. The girls were right. It didn’t matter where I was, as long as I was with someone I cared about.

Someone I, dare I say, loved?

The strength of my feelings dropped me to my knees on the pillow. Before I realized what I was doing, I leaned forward and kissed him. It was a light kiss, the barest brush of lips, but I felt him tremble beneath my touch as if I was straddling him naked. The feeling was empowering.

“Thank you,” I murmured against his lips. I felt, rather than saw, his lips turn upwards.

“I would do anything for you, you know that right?”

I was going to tell him. I was going to tell him that I would do anything for him as well because I loved him. The realization didn’t come as a surprise. I knew it from the very first kiss. He was mine, and I was his. The rest of the world faded away when he was with me.

But the words couldn’t leave my lips. It wasn’t just because said lips were occupied, though they were, but more so a fear that held me back. Three words. Eight letters.

Why couldn’t I say it?

“I would do anything for you as well,” I settled on, like the coward I was.

Sitting backwards, I watched Calax unpack the picnic basket. A can of peaches, already opened. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Two cupcakes with vibrant red frosting.

Calax’s cheeks tinted pink as he surveyed the food. His hand absently rubbed at the back of his neck.

“I know it’s not the greatest spread...”

I shut him up with a quick kiss.

“I love it.” And I love you.

We were silent as we ate, though it was not uncomfortable. He placed his muscular arm behind my back, and I leaned against it as I stuffed my face. I was famished. A few of our bags had fallen into the hole during the earthquake, and we had been forced to ration the remainder of food until we could stop at a store.

Outside, lightning streaked against the windows, and rain continued to plunder the vaulted roof.

Inside, we were in our own peaceful cocoon. Safe.

Calax told me stories about his childhood, skimming over the bad and focusing on the good. He told me how he joined the school, how he befriended the guys, and the moment he fell in love...with his apartment.

At my pressing, he told me more about his parents. His dad had been a drunk, emotionally abusive, but not physically, and his mother had left them when he was a baby. He hadn’t heard from her in years. While his dad wasn’t necessarily a horrible parent, he was often neglectful of his son and used harsh words as a form of punishment.

Calax told me that he had felt like an inept failure when he lived under his father’s roof.

He explained how he decided to get emancipated, and his father had eagerly agreed, relieved to rid himself of his only child. His team helped him throughout the process.

And then he mentioned the first day he met me.

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