Epilogue - Blossom
10 YEARS AGO
“Let’s run away.”
“Run away? Where would we go?”
Bennet shrugs. “I don’t know, anywhere but here.”
I look at him and see the seriousness in his eyes. I would love to run away and start over. If I could erase the last five years of my life, I would. Everything about being in Wintervale used to be perfect. I didn’t know anything but love in my family. I never thought life would crush any kind of dream I had. I never thought anything could happen that would destroy our family in the blink of an eye.
It’s been five years since my dad died, two years since my sister took off, and one year since my brother went with her. It’s just me, Mom, and Meadow left in the house, and it’s the weirdest feeling to go from a full house of six to a lonely house of three. Actually, it’s more like a lonely house of two because Meadow doesn’t come home most nights. I don’t know where she goes, but she isn’t here. Those nights are the worst, because I hear Mom crying, and I have to be the strongest one in the home even though I am the baby.
Five years later, and we’re not any closer to moving on than we were the day it happened.
There’s no one left, so what am I supposed to do?
Thank God for my best friend. He’s been with me since day one, and even when everything crashed around me, he didn’t leave. He’s the only one I can count on.
“What if we ran away and followed January and Lief?” I ask, my voice barely above a whisper.
“Do you really want to follow them? They left. What do you really want to do?”
“Well, at least we wouldn’t be alone.”
“You have me; you're never alone.”
“I can’t leave Mom, Bennett. Meadow is always God knows where, and I don’t know if Lief or January will ever come home. And Dad would hate me forever if I left Mom.”
He takes my hand, tangling his fingers with mine. “You’re right. I wouldn’t want you to feel bad about doing that.”
I sit quietly, looking around the small bedroom. “I miss him so much. I just can’t figure out how to move on from here.”
“We’re sixteen, Blossom. We have our entire lives ahead of us, and we get to write it the way we want it.”
“What do you want from it?”
“I want everything with you.” I pull back, shocked and more than a little confused by his words.
“Well, we’re friends; we're always gonna be together,” I tell him.
He says, “No, I want forever with you. I want to be more than just friends.”
I don’t know how to process this. We’ve been best friends for years, and even though I can admit that he is growing into a handsome guy, it’s never changed the way I thought about him. He’s my best friend.
He pulls me closer, and all of a sudden, I feel a shift between us. The way he’s holding my hand feels different. The way his other hand rests on my thigh gives me tingles in my belly. And the way he’s looking at me then dropping his gaze to my lips and back up makes me realize we’re not kids anymore.
“Bennett, do you mean…” I trail off, and he nods.
“I love you. I’ve always loved you, and I want to be the man to take care of you. I just regret that I will never get to ask your dad permission.”
“Permission for what?”
He gives a shy smile as he says, “Permission to date you or to marry you.”
“Marry me! Bennett, we’re sixteen!”
“I know, I know, but listen. Can we make a pact tonight? Right now? Can we make a promise to each other?”
“Pact?”
“I don’t ever want to lose you, Blossom, but I know things could change if we go away to college or if something happens with your family and you move, and I don’t want to lose you. We have to make a pact tonight that we will come back to Wintervale in ten years, no matter what.”
“I’m not going anywhere. I’m not leaving Wintervale.”
“We can say that now, but we never know what could happen in ten years. We may be seeing someone, maybe it’s serious, maybe we’ll be married. But if we’re not, I want us to come back to this point right now and be together. I want to be the one to marry you and make you happy.”
Thoughts swirl around my mind, my heart flutters in my chest, and I get giddy sitting here listening to him tell me how much he loves me and wants me. I don’t know if it’s just the loss of everyone around me making me feel this way, but Bennett has been my solid rock. Why shouldn’t I agree? Just like moments ago, those feelings are overwhelming, and that has me thinking there’s a lot more than friendship I am feeling right now.
Maybe it was the wine coolers we drank. Maybe it’s being in his small room, in his bed while he holds me that has suddenly awakened feelings I’ve never felt before. I swallow hard, making a quick decision that I want this with him and don’t want to lose it. I don’t wanna lose this feeling we have right now, and I don’t want to lose him. I wanna take him with me for life.
“I’ll agree to the pact if we make it official right now.” His breathing picks up and he rolls his lips inward . I watch his Adam's apple bob in his throat. I sit up, climbing over his body and straddling him. “I don’t know what I’m doing, but I know how I feel right now, and I want to make it official. Tell me you want it too.”
“I want it too, Blossom.”