33. Chapter 33
Six months later
“Sam’s looking really good these days,” Stix said as we skateboarded toward the thrift store several blocks from the grocery store.
“He really is. The therapy has been going great for both of us. He’s finally easing up on his fears.
Sometimes he regresses, but the meds his doctor has him on have done wonders for him.
It’s like he’s a new man. He’s always been amazing, but now he really feels good and happy.
There’s still a lot of work to do, like we can’t get him in to see a doctor for his health yet, but I’m confident we’ll get there. ”
“That’s awesome, man. I’m so happy for you two.”
“Thanks.”
When we jumped off our boards, we walked up to a man smoking and leaning against the building. As soon as he saw me, he dropped his cigarette and stepped on it.
“Nate,” he said breathlessly.
“Hey… Isaiah.” I still had a tough time calling him dad, but we were working on it. Inviting him here today was the first step toward hopefully building something special between us.
“Stix, this is my… father, Isaiah. Uhm, this is Stix, or you can call him Nico.”
They shook hands, eying each other. “How do you do, Stix?”
“Hey, Mr. L.”
Isaiah smiled at that, and then he looked at me. “So, what are the plans for today?”
I hadn’t told him why he was meeting me, only to be here. Hell, I hadn’t told Stix either.
“Well, I need some support while I try to find a ring for Sam… a wedding ring. I’m going to ask him to marry me. Yeah, we’re young, but we’ve been together for seven years now, pushing eight, and will be together for the rest of our lives. I just want to make that promise to him.”
Stix grabbed me and lifted me off my feet.
“Oof…”
“I’m so fucking happy for you, Nach! This is the best news ever. Sam’s going to be so surprised and happy.”
“I think you broke something.”
Stix snorted a laugh as I rubbed my ribs and turned to face my father. Isaiah beamed a smile my way with a hand on his nape. “Can I… give you a hug?”
I nodded. It was tentative and quick, but it was our first hug. Look at me growing . “I invited you here to move forward together, if that’s okay. And Stix is here because we’ve become really close, and he’s been dealing with my pining over Sam since the beginning.”
My father’s eyes watered, and he looked away. “It’s more than okay, Nate. Thank you for… giving me a chance.”
“I’m giving us a chance. Would you come with me to the diner where we first met after this? I’m going to ask him there, surrounded by my family.”
“I’d like that.” He gently clapped me on the back and steered me inside. “Let’s find your special man a ring.”
This store was Sam's and my favorite. It had a huge selection, and it was affordable. Sometimes, we could spend hours here perusing the racks, even if we had only bought one thing.
We made our way to the back of the store, passing clothes, shoes, and home decor to the jewelry cases. There were a surprising number of wedding bands for sale, and even better, I could afford them because I’d been saving up my tips to buy him something nice.
“I tricked Sam a while back. We went shopping for rings, pretending we were getting married just for fun so I could learn his damn ring size. I tried to get an idea of what he liked, but he tried on silver, gold, black metal… So I just need to guess here.”
“Nah, if I know Sam, he’s going to love whatever you get him,” Stix said.
“How about that one?” Isaiah pointed to a ring that really stood out. It had rose gold in the middle, but the outside was gunmetal and hammered, so it had a cool texture.
“That’s actually pretty nice.”
I looked at the salesperson helping us. “What size is that?”
“This is a ten.”
I deflated. “It’s too big.”
“I may have a couple more of these in the back. What size are you looking for?”
“Nine.”
He returned a moment later and set the rings on the counter. “I don’t have this particular one in that size, but I have these, and they’re similar.”
I lifted the one that looked just like the other one, except it was all black. “That’s actually pretty cool.”
“Sam will love it, I’m sure,” Isaiah said.
“How much?” I asked the salesperson.
“Forty-three dollars.”
I nodded. “I’ll take it.”
Fuck, my hands were literally sweating and trembling when we stepped into the diner.
There were several tables pushed together to fit all of us.
I hadn’t told anyone why I’d arranged this other than to show up to celebrate a surprise.
I’d even invited Blaze and Cueball because Sam said he felt they belonged to our family now after they helped him when my betrayal had hurt him.
Shit, what I’d done to him still hurt. Thank fuck he forgave me.
I fingered the ring in my jeans pocket as we walked toward the table, looking like everyone had arrived. Even Stix’s mom and his sister Nova were there.
“It’s going to be great,” Isaiah whispered in my ear.
I smiled up at him. “I hope so.”
“Looks like you gotta good family here, Nate.”
My heart beat a little faster, and my body grew warm from the love of the people who had come. “I really do.”
Nova suddenly rushed at me, and I lifted her in the air. She may have been Stix’s little sister, but she belonged to all of us. Her long brown hair was in pigtails, and she had dark eyes like Stix. She really was the sweetest thing.
“Hi, Nacho!”
“What’s up, little munchkin?”
I tickled her, making her giggle before I set her down, and she ran back to her mother.
After I introduced Isaiah to everyone, we all sat down, and Sam saved me a seat next to him. He smiled at me and leaned in to kiss me.
“Hey,” he said.
“Hey, back.”
“So, are you going to tell us what’s going on and why we’re all gathered here? I mean, even your dad is here, so something must be up.”
I nodded as my stomach turned, feeling queasy. I shouldn’t have been nervous, but this was a big step in our lives. What if he said no? It could happen. It's not that he didn’t want to be with me, but he may not be ready.
Not wanting to embarrass Sam in front of everyone, and why I didn’t say anything about this to our crew other than to Stix and Isaiah, I leaned in to whisper my question to him.
“Sam…”
His brows furrowed, knowing something was off. “What’s wrong, Star?” he whispered back.
“Nothing… Just a little nervous.”
“About?”
“Us… Sam, you’re my life. You're like one of my lungs, keeping me breathing and alive. As I’ve said, you’ve given me purpose and a family that I’d never had. You're mine forever, or so I hope.”
He leaned over and kissed me again. “Always, Nate. We’re in this life together forever.”
“Good, because… uhm…” I reached into my pocket and slipped the ring into his palm. “Because I want to marry you if you want to. We don’t need to rush this or anything. I just want to make you a promise.”
His gorgeous green eyes grew wide. “You… want to get married?”
I nodded. “So much. Like I said, it can wait.”
He looked down at the ring in his hand and slipped it on his ring finger. “It fits. I love it.”
“So… is that a…?”
His smile beamed. “That’s a yes, Star.”
We kissed again, this time with a little tongue, but we tried not to be overly inappropriate.
When we came up for air, Sam looked at everyone with watery eyes. “We’re getting married!”
There were cheers, congratulations, hugs, and pats on the back, but I couldn’t focus on that. All my attention was on my Sam. My future. My everything. But our family didn’t let us be alone in our joy, and I loved them for it.
As we got settled and our food came, I glanced over at my dad, who was talking to Stix’s mom. They sat really close, and both were smiling and chatting. Then she blushed while laughing. What was going on there? Were they suddenly interested in each other?
I shrugged. If so, then Isaiah couldn’t have found a better woman.