Epilogue - Full Circle Moments
Diana
December
“You sure he’s not gonna see me here?” I ask Jake before stepping inside the closet, along with Lucia and Carly.
“Don’t worry,” he assures me. “It’s dark in there and he won’t see you girls.”
After finishing my finals this morning, a lightbulb lit up in my head and I had to relay it to Jake—because it’s a surprise for Carson. Sure, it requires me to hide in my boyfriend’s bedroom closet, but it will be so worth it.
Everyone else has left for the holidays except for us—me, Jake, Lucia, Carly, and Carson—so I planned this little hurrah to celebrate the end of the winter term. And for the dreaded calculus finally ending.
Thank the fucking gods that Scott’s useless lectures are over. Though I have to give him credit—if it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t have spent all that time with Carson. We still kept up with those sessions—though he started calling them study dates instead.
“Thanks, anyway.”
“So I bring him here and you will attack him with the pie?”
I nod.
“What a full circle moment,” he mutters, mostly to himself.
“Yeah,” Lucia agrees from the other side of the closet. “Nothing says romance like exacting revenge.”
“I’m confused,” Carly says, holding the pie with both hands. “What revenge?”
Jake and Lucia then explain to Carly the day Carson and I met and she chuckles in response. “That does not sound like Carson. I’m supposed to be the troubled twin.”
“Not troubled enough,” Jake mutters. Carly reaches over me to punch Jake’s arm with her free hand. “You know what? I’m going to leave you girls here and not earn any more bruises from Rocky Balboa here.”
Jake slides the closet door closed and the three of us sit alone in the dark. At least, until Lucia speaks up.
“Uh, Carly? Your arm is tangled in my braids.”
“Sorry! I’m trying not to get meringue all over them.”
I pull out my phone from my back pocket and turn on the flashlight, allowing the girls to see better. One of Lucia’s braids is wrapped partially around Carly’s elbow and the two girls untangle it the best they can. I jump in to help but I’m not sure that made the process any faster.
I grab the pie from Carly’s hand with my left hand and try to balance it with one hand while waiting for Carson to take the bait.
Almost instantly, I hear shuffling from the other side of the door and I shush Carly and Lucia.
“Jake, why did you leave Bailey’s gift in my room?” Carson took the bait.
“Because it was easier to hide in your closet! You have all those sweatshirts.”
“When was the last time you saw my closet? Because I haven’t seen half of those things in the past month.”
My cheeks heat up, knowing damn well that half of his hoodies have surprisingly ended up in my room. They’re super comfortable, okay? Especially the red one I’m wearing.
“Fine,” Carson huffs as he slides the closet door open. I don’t give him enough time to react before…
Splat!
The pretty face is now covered in pie. Yes, I finally got him! I jump and laugh in joy and celebrate, while Carly’s head pops out of the closet, taking in the scene. She joins me in my laughter and Lucia follows shortly after.
Carson wipes the filling from his eyes and gives me a questioning look. It’s hard to take someone covered in pie from the neck up seriously. I’m holding back giggles to the best of my ability but—as handsome as he is—my boyfriend looks so fucking goofy with lemon meringue pie all over his face.
I’m still not used to calling him my boyfriend, by the way. I went from calling him an overgrown child back in July to calling him my boyfriend.
“I thought you were Jake right there,” I say. He can’t even get mad at me for this.
Thankfully, he doesn’t. Instead, he just shakes his head while licking some of the meringue from his mouth. My eyes dart to his mouth quickly before moving back up to his eyes. Keep your composure, D.
He chuckles. “Oh, I see how it is, D.”
“How what is?” I ask innocently.
“You can’t fool me.”
I shake my head. “I’m not fooling anyone.”
“Just gloating about your revenge.”
“What does gloating look like?” I question with my chin raised.
That smirk I’ve come to know so well appears. “Why don’t you step closer and find out?”
“Okay,” Lucia’s voice interjects. “I’m going to step outside right now because I refuse to get any pie filling on me with God knows what you’ll do next.”
“Same,” Carly agrees, following Lucia out of the bedroom. Jake is the last one to leave. While walking out, he mutters: “I can’t look at pie the same way since that movie,” but I don’t ask what he’s talking about.
I don’t care, either because now it’s just me and Carson. Alone. In his room.
“How long have you wanted to do that?” He asks.
I grin mischievously. “Since three hours ago.”
He raises a brow, not completely believing me.
I sigh. “Okay, since the day you threw that pie at me.”
“I regret nothing,” he hums, snaking one arm around my waist. “I got to meet you, didn’t I?”
“Yep,” I answer. He leans closer and just as my eyes flutter shut, waiting for our lips to press against each other, something sticky grazes my cheeks. My hands rise to my face and feel the pie filling. I narrow my eyes at Carson. “Oh, it’s on.”
I reach for the pie tin on the floor and grab a handful of pie before smearing it over his face. Some of the goop falls onto the floor, while the rest lies right on top of his shoes.
He retaliates by attempting the same, but I manage to dodge it by ducking under his arm as he attempts to reach for me a second time. Unfortunately, it lands on my hair and I fall onto his bed, with him on top of me, laughing.
With that, Carson brings his hand behind my head and pulls me in for a kiss. Just a peck at first before I place my hand around the back of his and pull him closer, deepening the kiss. I smile against his lips. Even if we weren’t just flinging pie filling at each other, Carson would still taste sweet.
“You know, I’m going to get you back for that,” he murmurs against my lips, causing me to giggle.
I pull away, breaking the kiss. “Nah, you love me too much to tip the scales again,” I joke.
He sighs. “Yeah, you’re right.” His fingers play with my curtain bangs. “I can just call it payback for all my missing sweatshirts.” Carson eyes the one I’m wearing and smirks.
“I think we should just stick to the pies and call it even.” I pat his chest before maneuvering myself around Carson to stand up. I reach for the ceiling, stretching my arms out. “Besides, you promised me another driving lesson.”
Since Marbella Beach, Carson’s made it his mission to teach me how to drive until I feel comfortable enough to take the test. It might be a while until I’m ready but I’m one step closer because of him.
Mom would love that I’m doing this. And she would have loved Carson as much as I do.
“But I also want to spend a few more minutes with my girlfriend,” he insists, taking my hand and pulling me back into his embrace. “While we still have all this space.”
I giggle, resting my head onto his chest. “We’ll still have time later.”
“But we can spare a few minutes before.”
I lift my head slightly to meet his eyes—those pale blues that I’ve familiarized myself with and look forward to seeing everyday because I just know that I’m getting stronger and more confident in myself. And Carson Jameson Ryder will be in my corner.
Granted, I’m a girl who can stand her ground but I couldn’t face a lot of obstacles head-on for years. It helps to surround myself with people who believe in me everyday.
“Alright,” I relent. “Maybe a few minutes.” Smiling, I press my lips to his for only a moment before quickly pulling away, trying to look as serious as I can in the moment. “But then you’re teaching me.”
Carson smirks. “Yes, ma’am.”