Chapter 38
And then, somehow, it was time to go. She’d been at Gabby’s for two weeks, but her mother expected her back in Philly for Christmas, and then she had to return to Los Angeles. She could only trust Tyler to catsit Dolly for so long. Even now, she checked in with him every day to make sure he hadn’t accidentally left his door open, allowing Dolly to vanish into the night.
Her car all packed up, she hugged Christina and Angus, then held on to Gabby extra-tight. “We’ll see each other soon,” Gabby whispered. Then she gave Natalie a little push. “I think someone wants to walk you out to your car.”
Rob stood at the door, looking at her as if to memorize every detail. She linked her hand in his, and they stepped into the bracing December air. His palm was the one spot of warmth in the world. He drew her in closer as they approached the car, wrapping his arms around her in the driveway. She didn’t want to put an entire country between them. For one wild moment, she thought about saying, What if I didn’t go back to Los Angeles? or What if I got my cat and came right back? But you couldn’t put that much pressure on something new and expect it not to break. So instead, she said into his chest, “Thank you for bringing me a lot of happiness during what was otherwise an incredibly stressful time.”
He drew back and held her by her shoulders. His forehead was furrowed. “I think we should be in a long-distance relationship.”
The serious, no-nonsense way he said it startled a laugh out of her. “You want to be boyfriend and girlfriend all the way across the country, during a pandemic, when traveling is especially tough?”
“Yes.”
“After we’ve only had two weeks together?”
“Well, two weeks. But also, in a way, eight years.”
She felt light-headed. His hands still clasped her shoulders, comforting and solid. She blinked and stepped back, trying to gather her thoughts. “We’ve been in this strange bubble—”
“Yes.”
“And who knows how this will translate outside of it—”
“Sure.”
“And do you know how difficult and annoying all the logistics would be?”
“I do. On the other hand, we would be idiots not to try.”
Her eyes began to sting. She couldn’t tell if it was from the cold or from the pain of saying goodbye to him or because his certainty made her whole body fizz. After so many years of them fighting each other, now he was fighting for her. She was utterly moved and utterly terrified.
“I didn’t realize you’d become such a hopeless romantic.”
“And I didn’t realize you’d become such a cynical realist.”
“Excuse me!” she said, laughing. “I’m not a cynic!”
“Look at the evidence,” he said, deadpan. “Here you have your dream man—”
“Dream man, huh?”
“Yes. And you’re not going to even see where it goes?” He was still deadpan, teasing, but at his sides, his hands shook a little with nerves. Her heart swelled at the evidence of what this meant to him, the effort it was taking to put himself in this position. Rob had spent so much time afraid of failure, and now here he was, insisting that they try something that could very well be doomed.
“Here’s what I’ve been thinking, as a counterproposal,” she said. “No pressure, no labels. We simply call and talk when we want to hear each other’s voices. And we’ll see where it goes. How about that?”
He stared at her for a moment, his dark eyebrows knitted together. “Fine. Deal.”
She held out her hand for a shake. He took it, then pulled her in, startling her into laughter again. “Please stop laughing so I can kiss you.”
She cut her laughter off quickly, and he tilted her mouth to his. This kiss was bittersweet. It could very well be their last one. But it could also be the beginning of many more to come.
When he released her, she gasped, having forgotten entirely about the cold while his arms were around her.
“Goodbye,” he said, and his own eyes were growing shiny too. She reached out and touched his cheek.
“Goodbye for now.”
She got into the car, settling in for a long journey, sneaking glances at Rob in the driveway. He was standing resolute in the cold to wave her off.
At the end of the driveway, as she readied herself to turn onto the road, her phone began to buzz. Rob. She answered on the car’s speakers.
“Hi, did I forget something?”
“No,” he said. “You said I should call when I wanted to hear your voice. I’m simply doing as directed.”