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30
Ethan
Ethan: What happened? Is everything okay?
I scrub my fingers across my jaw as I open the text thread one more time. Still no response from Val.
I don’t understand what happened at the Valley Roast. One minute, we were talking about chipmunks and I was basically declaring my love for her. The next, she was running away from me through the crowd.
She told me to let her go, so I did. I sent her this text hours ago, but there’s been nothing.
I have to assume that it has to do with what I told Fran—that I was turning down the job in Montana. That was the reason I went to see Val today—so I could tell her all of my news.
But why would that make her so upset? I wish I knew what she was thinking so we could talk about it and work through it together. How can we do that if she shuts me out?
I can’t help but feel worried. I told Val that I wanted to fight for her, that I wanted to deserve a second chance. But how can I if she refuses to talk to me when she’s upset? We finally got to a place where I thought we were moving forward together. Now, she’s running away.
I shake my head, put my phone down again. I’ve been packing and unpacking parts of the house, straightening things up. Now that the road trip has come to an end, it’s time to officially say goodbye to Pops, but also to move forward. Aside from the truck, he left me a few things in his will, and I’ve been saving the things he left Mom for when she visits next.
It would all be a lot easier if a certain wild-haired lawnmower wasn’t constantly on my mind.
A little while later, my phone dings and I jog through the house to grab it.
Val: Meet me at the treehouse.
31
Val
I shift on my feet, bouncing back and forth in the overgrown grass. My stomach is a ball of nerves and anxiety.
About whether Ethan will come, yes. But also because it’s officially nighttime and I can imagine the lurking spiders that are coming out to play. In the past, I only ever came to the treehouse at night when Ethan was with me.
I just hope that he’ll be here tonight as well.
I feel terrible for running away earlier. After hearing that he turned down the job in Montana, I couldn’t stop thinking that we were heading down the exact same road all over again. Then, I came to a realization: this whole time, I’ve been worried that Ethan is going to give up on us again…
But what if I’ve been worrying about the wrong thing all along?
“Teeny?”
The voice fills me with relief. Because A) my spider chaser is here, and B)—most important of all—he came.
“I’m over here,” I say, then clear my throat. “I’d turn on the fairy lights but…”
“Spiders?”
I chuckle. Shake my head, though he can’t see.
In the darkness, the patch of shadow that is Ethan comes to stand right in front of me. Seconds later, we’re bathed in the warm glow from the fairy lights in the treehouse. His face is illuminated, detailing every angle of his cheekbones, his strong nose. I spot the auburn hair in his scruff, and the freckles across his cheeks.
Ethan’s eyes drop down my body and he smirks as he clocks the tie-dye hoodie I threw on over the skirt I wore to work today. The road trip changed me in more ways than one—including the fact that I don’t feel this relentless, stifling pressure to be so sternly clean-cut and prim. “Adult,” I used to call it. But Ethan’s shown me that I can be easier on myself. That I can be myself.
Which brings me to the crumpled papers I have in my hand.
“I’m glad you texted,” he says, his voice low.
“I’m sorry.” I shake my head. “I was awful. You told me all of those wonderful things earlier, and then I ran away. I didn’t give you a chance to talk, or to say my part. I actually…” I hold up the papers. “I wrote you a letter. I was going to put it in the letter box, but…”
