Epilogue
Eden
“Watch out!” I scream, leaning across the console to grab Georgia’s arm. “Truck!”
“Mauling me while I’m driving is not helping!” Georgia shouts back. She’s trying to merge into the right lane on the FDR.
“Remind me to never get my driver’s license,” I say. “This is hellacious.”
“You’re the one who lives here! Just be thankful you have such a responsible—” But before Georgia can finish her sentence,
it’s cut off by a loud honk that causes both of us to nearly jump out of our seats.
I look over at her, and we both burst out laughing.
Daisy leans forward from the back seat. “Hey, can you two please keep us all alive? I want to enjoy my last weekend before
you leave me for college and I never see you anymore!”
“Aw, Daisy. You’ll see us on holidays,” Georgia says.
“This weekend is going to be epic, don’t worry,” I tell Daisy. I have a full itinerary for us. Karaoke and my favorite sushi spot and the world’s best outdoor vintage market. And maybe we’ll bring a giant bottle of diet soda and ride the ferry around for hours, until my bladder explodes.
“I just can’t believe the summer’s almost over,” Daisy says.
“I know, I can’t either,” says Georgia.
“No kidding,” I say.
Luckily for us, Mateo decided to go back to Connecticut early so he could fly out to see his mom in Italy. Rhys then spent
pretty much every weekend in the city. And Georgia spent a lot of her days with Benny. She seemed to be having a really good
time, and it made me happy to see her softening, becoming more open to things not being perfect. They plan to keep in touch,
but who knows what that will look like.
As for Owen, he had to leave after the Fourth of July, returning home to his worried parents, who grounded him for the rest
of the summer. He and Daisy have continued sending each other postcards, though, which is just so old-fashioned and adorable. I’m pretty sure she’s totally in love with him—and maybe was all along, but just didn’t realize
it. Ah, youth.
As for me . . . well, I woke up on the morning of the Fourth of July basically wrapped in Leo’s arms. I felt him stirring
awake, and I looked up. “I hope your arm’s not dead from me sleeping on it all night,” I said.
He smiled. “Eh. Who needs a working arm. This is much better.”
But clearly his arm was working just fine, because he wrapped it around me tighter, then tilted my chin up so I was facing him. And without even waiting to find out if I had gross morning breath, he leaned down and kissed me.
With that kiss, it was like something deeply held inside both of us was finally freed. We were still in separate sleeping
bags, but we quickly unzipped them and then laughed as I tried to untangle my legs (why am I so good at getting tangled in
things???). And then we were tangled in each other, and we couldn’t stop kissing. I kissed his whole face, him laughing. “I missed this so much,” he said. “I really missed you,
Eden.”
“Me too,” I said, realizing how true it was, despite everything I had told myself. Despite trying to believe I had moved on.
We lay like that, rolling around in the hot tent, making out until I could barely breathe, his hands finding their way up
inside my loose T-shirt (his T-shirt, which I still have definitely not given back). I swear, we could have taken things a lot further—and I wanted to—but unsurprisingly, I had to pee. A night in
the woods will do that.
So we packed up our gear and trudged back downhill, somehow finding the rest of the group without too much drama.
After Boundless Horizons ended, though, Leo had to return to the city. It was hard, finally making amends and realizing all
those old feelings between us were still there, alive and well, only to say goodbye again. Especially since we’re going to
school on opposite ends of the earth. I’ll be at USC, and he’ll be at UPenn.
Which is why I’m extra excited to be coming home this weekend. I’ll get to see him one last time before he packs up his car
to drive down to Philadelphia. He’s meeting us at karaoke tonight. I can’t wait to make fun of his atrocious singing voice.
I can’t wait to steal the mic all night.
I can’t wait to tell him, again, like I’ve told him almost every night on the phone this summer, that I love him. And that
I really believe now that everything happens for a reason.
But first—I can’t wait to race around the city with Daisy and Georgia, my two favorite people in the world.
“Pull in over here,” I say, pointing Georgia toward the parking garage. We rumble over some cobblestones on the side street
and she makes a sharp left. “Wow, you’ve gotten better at this,” I tell her.
“I’m a fast learner,” she says.
“I’m starving,” says Daisy.
“Here, have some more Sour Patch Kids,” I say, handing a package back to her.
“Thanks. You’re a lifesaver.”
“Are you guys ready to have the best time of your lives?” I ask.
“I think we already did,” Georgia says. “This whole summer was the best time of my life.”
“Me too,” Daisy says between chews.
“Me three,” I tell them. “Best. Summer. Ever.”
And then we dissolve into overlapping chatter, with me directing Georgia through the parking garage and Georgia saying she
has nothing to wear tonight, and Daisy asking incessantly about what’s for dinner—and in the chaos of us, I feel like the
luckiest person alive.