29. New Favorites
Chapter 29
New Favorites
Cece
Working with Anna for the last couple of days kept my mind off everything, but as soon as we hit submit, sending our work to Inx, I drop my head on my hands.
Anna screeches, jumping up and clapping her hands, but I can’t drag myself up. There’s this hollowness in my soul swallowing all the emotions. Because if I let myself feel them, I’m afraid I’ll get pulled under. It’s better to be numb.
“Cece. We did it. This is amazing. We need to celebrate.”
“I can’t. I’ve got too much to figure out.” Where I’m going to go when my father kicks me out of this house. What school I’ll end up at next year.
“Cece. I know you’re upset about Dev, and I know you’ve got some things to work out, but I think you should come out with me. Get a coffee or go for a walk to clear our heads. We can brainstorm this together. ”
I don’t even lift my head off my arms, just rock it back and forth in a negative.
“Please. If we’re going to have to leave too, I’d like to spend some time with you before we all lose each other.”
Her words are blanketed in guilt, but I’m not sure I even care. May as well go with her. I’m sure she’ll get sick of my moping ass soon enough. “Fine.”
“At least change your clothes. You’ve been wearing those for three days. What if someone takes your picture?”
Another harsh reminder that I don’t get to live my life like other college students. Someone could take a random photo of me and sell it to the highest bidder. Cecelia Whitaker drunk again. I can’t even just be a heartbroken college student who just lost the two people who mean the most to her in this world.
“Fine.”
I drag myself upstairs to slip into something clean. My arms ache when I reach back to pull my hair into a ponytail. I slap on a pink ball cap as a final measure. The blonde locks have gotten a little greasy.
She drags me out of the house for a walk. The air is chilly, but there’s not a cloud in the sky. It almost matches my insides. But I’m filled with thunderclouds to match the icy air.
She takes me on the long route in spite of my protest, so I’m a little winded by the time we’re walking back down our street.
The sun is glinting off something shiny and silver in the driveway. Is that my.. .
A hint of excitement rises, then explodes into pain again. If my father decided to give me my car back, it’s because he knows I’ll need it to move away.
The roof is smooth under my hand.
“My car?”
“Come on,” Anna says, dragging me away from the vehicle.
“What’s going on?”
Anna fumbles with her key, finally sliding it home and throwing the door open.
My brother is standing in our living room, and... “Dev!” I cry out, racing over to him, but then I stop myself, looking to my brother. What’s going on here?
“I don’t understand.”
I want nothing more than to jump into Dev’s arms. My heart is begging for it, but my mind is telling me to be cautious.
“I hate that I did this to you. I know you don’t need my permission, Cece, but I need you to know that you’re both my family. And if you two want to be together, I’m not going to fight it. I’ll even try to embrace it.”
“Really?”
I take a cautious step toward Dev. He reaches behind his back, pulling out a bouquet. It’s not an ordinary one, though. Yes, there are flowers. But there are also...
“Is that a comic book bouquet?”
“So they say.” He’s looking a little uncomfortable holding it out for me, so I take another few steps to grab it from him.
I stick my nose in the purple and yellow flowers, eyeing the plastic-wrapped comic books. It doesn’t matter if I already own them. They’re going into plastic sleeves and getting put on display. They’re my new favorites. Just like Dev.
Georgia squeals from the kitchen doorway, startling me. I didn’t even realize she was here. But she’s standing next to Blake, and they’re both smiling.
Dev holds out his arms, and I step into them, crushing the bouquet between us.
“Let me take that,” Anna says, pulling it away from me and moving off to join our other friends.
“Hi,” I say to him, tilting my head up. I hope he can’t hear the uncertainty in my voice. It feels like this can’t be real. “Am I dreaming?”
His hands swallow up my face. “I hope not.”
“Dev, I need you to know...”
“Cece, I love you.”
My heart bursts, flooding my body with warmth. My numb limbs tingle back to life, and my heart knits itself back together, stronger than before.
“I love you too, but.”
He places a finger over my mouth. “No buts.”
“I have to leave. I’m going to be gone. Who knows where. How is that going to work?”
“You’re not going anywhere. And even if you did, it wouldn’t matter. I already told your brother I would follow you anywhere. I would wait for you as long as it took. Even if it was years. I’ve never felt this kind of love in my life, so at first, I didn’t understand it, but now. Now I know. It means my heart is yours now. It beats for you and only you. ”
Beau clears his throat. “Luckily, you don’t have to go anywhere.”
“What are you talking about?” I turn to him, confused.
“I talked to Dad. Worked things out. He’s going to let you stay.”
“Even if I’m dating Dev? Because that’s not negotiable.” This man has shown me more love and kindness in spite of everything he’s been through than my father ever could. I’d choose him every time.
“Yes.”
“What did you do, Beau?” I pin him under my gaze, trying out the twin ESP again, and failing. “Dad wouldn’t just let all this slide.”
“I told him I’d pay for you to stay here. To stay in school. I’d buy you another house if I had to. I would have. I’ve got access to grandfather’s trust now. I would have blown it all for you. But he said no. He said he’d let you stay.”
Those shadows under his eyes have deepened. Dealing with our father must have taken its toll on him.
“Thank you.”
I shift out of Dev’s arms to wrap mine around my brother. “Thank you so much.”
“Always. Anything for my twin. After all, we did share a womb. Even though I’m pretty sure you were hogging your side.”
I laugh around the warm tears leaking on his shirt. They’re happy ones now .
“I don’t think so. Now go back to your man. All I ask is you keep the PDA to a minimum around me. Because you’re still my little sister and I can’t handle seeing that.”
“I’ll try.” I’m not making any promises, because when I’m near Dev, I crave his touch more than anything else in the world. And now that we’ve got each other, I’m never letting him go.
Beau gathers up my roommates, dragging them out of the house.
A comforting silence wraps around us after their voices disappear and the front door clicks shut.
“Hi again.”
“Cece. I need you to know that I never should have hid you like that. You deserve to shine. I’ve never been that great with words, but the way you make me feel. It makes my heart ache in the best possible way. When you’re not around, I can’t stop thinking about you. And I want the entire world to know you’re mine.”
“Same. Don’t worry, I’ll tell them for you. I know you don’t do social media.”
His rare smile appears, and he leans down, cupping my cheeks between his.
Our lips meet in a kiss that promises a long future together. Full of love and comics. Hockey, and conventions. I want him by my side through every second of it, because we both deserve this. This consuming love.