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“Only when I’m looking for a birthday gift.”
When would he have had the chance to buy them? Maybe when he spent a weekend with his parents?
It doesn’t matter. What matters is he bought me this gift and I tried to tell him it was too much instead of gratefully accepting the earrings. I hope he doesn’t think I’m rude.
I trace the stones again before I take out the old daisy earring from my ear, then the other, replacing them with the new ones, which are much heavier. I place my enamel daisy earrings into the box and snap the lid shut. “I love them. Thank you.”
His relief is palpable, his gaze lingering on my ears. “You’re welcome. They look good on you.”
I slip the box in my purse, wondering how I’m going to explain these earrings to my father. He can’t see them, and even if he does, I’ll have to lie and say they’re costume jewelry. He’ll believe that.
Probably no one would believe they’re real.
By the time we leave the restaurant, it’s late and the air has turned cold. Arch slips his arm around my shoulders as we head for the parking lot, tucking me into his side and I go willingly, absorbing his warmth.
The entire night feels like a dream and I’m scared to wake up. Face the harsh realities of the day because I’m worried this…whatever it is between me and Arch? It won’t last.
How can it?
“You’re awfully quiet,” he observes, his arm squeezing my shoulders as he steers me toward his car. “You in a beef-induced coma or what?”
I can’t help the giggle that escapes. “Maybe.”
“Or maybe it was the dessert.” We shared a slice of cheesecake drizzled with raspberry sauce and it was delicious. “Too rich?”
“It was amazing. All of it. Thank you.” That’s probably the tenth time I’ve thanked him but I can’t help myself.
I’m grateful for the night. The dinner. The earrings. Just being with him.
“Want to go for a drive?” He pulls his key fob out and hits a button, unlocking the G Wagon.
“Maybe we should get back to campus. I don’t know when my dad will be home,” I remind him, touching one of the diamond daisies again. It’s like I can’t help it. They’re all I can feel, their weight still so obvious.
My words are like a splash of cold water in his face, ruining his mood. “Yeah. Okay.”
On the drive back, we’re quiet and I swear I even doze off at one point, startling awake only when the car swerves right extra hard, jerking me in the seat.
“Everything okay?” I ask, breathless.
The grim look on Arch’s face as he grips the steering wheel tells me that no. Everything is not okay. “Guy was driving extra slow back there so I passed him.” He sends me a look, the tension seeming to ease out of him. Maybe he sees the panic on my face. “It's all good.”
My heart is racing and my body shaky from the abrupt way I woke up. I close my eyes, fighting the thick wave of melancholy that threatens to suddenly swallow me whole.
It’s weird, how fast it comes, seemingly out of nowhere. My head is full of memories of a past birthday where I was a little girl secure in the knowledge that she had two parents who loved and took care of her, and then all of a sudden, I only had one.
I try to keep it together, fighting the grief. The sadness. The tears. I’m not crying at this exact moment, but I’m on the verge and I feel…tense.
I wonder if Arch can sense it.
Opening my eyes, I watch him. How assured he looks driving the car, one hand on the steering wheel and the other resting on his thigh. He’s so handsome and capable and strong.
I’m filled with the sudden need to confess what happened on this day. How that moment changed my entire world.
“Can I tell you something?” I whisper.
He glances over at me, his expression soft. The softest I think I’ve ever seen him look. “You can tell me anything, Daze.”
I believe him. I do.
