AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Sorry, um, yes. I haven’t left yet. You were asleep when I got discharged, so I’ve been here waiting for you to wake up.”
My chest floats up as I inhale. “Oh, why?” I ask.
“So, before I found out you were moving back here and assumed you were still with Liam. . .” Zayn pauses the moment I cringe at his mention of Liam’s name. “Anyway, the whole point I’m trying to make is that Summer didn’t think you’d ever move back here, but she knew you’d come to visit after she passed. For, like, the funeral and stuff. So, she gave me these two envelopes to give to you after she died.”
I glare at him, trying to process what he’s just said. “Wait, Summer gaveyouenvelopes to give tome?” My voice squeaks from the shock.
“Yes, that’s right,” he says. “Look, I don’t know why she chose me to give them to you, but she did. She didn’t give a real reason, but as you know Summer, she was adamant with me that I make sure you received them after she died.”
Tears reappear in my eyes again. Summer knew she was going to die, and then she left something—letters, I assume—in envelopes for me to read. I have some of my sister’s last words right here in front of me. That she gave to my ex-boyfriend to give to me. At this point, I’m so relieved to have something more from her that it doesn’t even matter why she made that choice. I’m simply happy she did.
“So, well, uh—here you go,” Zayn says as he places them on the table next to me. Remembering the clumsy fumble I had last night, he moves the table directly over my lap for me to read them. “Alright, well that’s pretty much it. I hope you get out soon.” He starts to head for the door when he stops and says, “Autumn, I know we’re still in some kind of gray area, but I’m here for you—no questions asked.”He grabs the door handle.
“Wait,” I say.Autumn girl, what are you doing? Remember he’s the jackass who broke your heart into a tiny million pieces. A relentless jackass at that.Instead of yelling, I sigh. “Come sit.” I motion towards a spot on my bed, not sure what the hell I’m doing right now. But what happened between us was ten years ago now. We’ve both clearly moved on.
“You sure?” he asks looking as equally puzzled as I feel.
I nod. “I mean, after all, Summer did give you them to give to me, so you may as well be here for support as I open them.”
“Okay, sure,” he says.
I pick up both envelopes. One is labeled with a note in Summer’s handwriting that says,Read me first. I mean it . . . open this one first.
I chuckle a bit because even though it’s writing, I can hear her voice scolding me to make sure I follow her directions. I sigh. “Okay, guess I’m opening this one first.”
Inside the envelope, there are two pieces of paper. One is not-so-new and looks like it was torn from a spiral notebook, but the other is just a plain piece of paper. I read the plain one first:
Dear Tum Tum,
I was never good with words, and I know you were, so don’t judge me. By now you know I’m gone. I hope you threw me the best celebration of life there ever was because despite it ending so soon, my life was a pretty damn good one. I did live it to the fullest every day, and I can honestly say I have no regrets. I hope that one day when your time comes, you feel the same.
With that being said, in honor of my memory, and because I know you’re a big scaredy cat who is afraid of change, I want you to complete our WOLO list. You may already have done a couple of things on it . . . like living your dream career, Miss Teacher, you! But, I KNOW for a fact there are several things on there that you haven’t yet done. Don’t be a chicken. For crying out loud, get buried in the sand by someone you trust. No one will leave you there to die (well, hopefully not). Sushi and food trucks are delicious, and I promise you won’t regret them.
Actually, looking through the list again, I don’t think you’ll regret ANY of them.
So, it’s an order—finish the list. Go chase big dreams, take risks, and imagine I’m right there next to you every step of the way. Because you know what? I will be! My fabulous ghost self will be there cheering you on every time you cross an item off the list. You got this, sis.
I may no longer be living, but you still are. Remember that. We only live once . . . don’t waste your life being too afraid to live.
Love you forever and always,
Summer
P.S. You cannot open the second envelope until the WOLO list is completed. I mean it.
The floodgates of my eyes release all at once, no tear gets left behind.
“Hey now, don’t worry. It’s all gonna be okay. Tissues?” Zayn says as he places a box of tissues down on the tray for me before extending his arm to meet mine for support.
I sob for several minutes. I’m past the expression of “ugly crying” right now. Zayn’s hand leaves my arm to cup my face for a moment. His palm directs my chin, and it stops me a bit in my tracks. I pause as he wipes away my tears with his thumb. “It’s all going to be okay, I promise.” Trust is the last thing he deserves from me right now, but I can’t help but believe his words.
“I just . . . I miss her so much. She really is gone,” I say through the sobs.
He guides me through several deep breaths, and I use some tissues to finally gain my composure back a bit.
“Thank you for the letters, and thank you for . . . you know, helping me,” I say.
“Anytime,” he says.
