Page 115 of The Pinkie Pact

"What?"

"Please, please, pretty please. I'll totally owe you."

Sighing, Kieran scrambled up from all the cushions. "You owe me already big-time," he grumbled. "But sure."

"Thank you, thank you, thank you. You're the best big brother ever."

They both finished getting ready as Kieran gave me a few reluctant looks. And soon, they were off, leaving me alone with a messy room and an even messier heart.

***

The next several days were full of more Gen and Kara drama because now Gen was leaving town for the Thanksgiving holiday and wouldn't be back for ten whole days.

They worked it out mostly, but the roller coaster ride was exhausting because Kara was still mad about the lying, justifiably so. And Gen was trying to make it up to her as well as figure out what to do about her husband that she still hadn't told.

I was so damn tired of the whole thing, especially because of my own issues. With every sweet text or phone call from Kieran, I was reminded of how much I missed him and how much I cared about him.

And I couldn't stop thinking about those three little words I'd maybe heard. But I still wasn't quite there yet.

In the days leading up to Thanksgiving, I didn't see Kieran at all because he said he had some big project he needed to work on. So Kara and I hung out a ton, not really going out, just eating a lot, talking, and watching TV, waiting for Wednesday to come when we'd all fly home.

But Tuesday night, Kieran texted and warned us that a huge snowstorm was on its way and that none of us might be able to fly out the next day. Sure enough, Kara and I watched the never-ending snow from our window all night, waking up to a city covered in white.

And DC had no clue how to deal with snow. Not that I did either. But they didn't seem prepared in the least. So all of our flights were canceled, and trying to get ahold of the airlines was a total nightmare.

My poor parents were really sad about it, and so was I. Kara didn't seem to mind too much that her parents were already in New Hampshire and she was stuck here. And Kieran was actually thrilled about it, and I knew exactly why. He didn't want to spend five days in a house with his dad.

It was all so fucked up, and I wondered what Kieran planned to do about it, or if he'd even thought that far. Whatcouldhe possibly do about it? Would he ever talk to his dad again?

Right now, Kara didn't know or suspect anything about her dad because she was too wrapped up in her own drama. But if they were all in a house together, it'd be really hardnotto notice.

The entire thing made me sick. I knew technically it wasn't my fault. The fault was all with their shitty dad. But I still felt somehow responsible, and I had no clue how it would all play out.

So on Thanksgiving morning, well, more like noon when we woke up, I was depressed and in a funk. As we both began to get ready, I realized we had no plan for the day, and damn it, I really wanted some turkey.

While Kara was in the shower, I searched my phone, looking for a restaurant that might deliver. Maybe Kara and I would have to find our way through the snow and go to the store to see if we could scrounge up some fixings.

But after a few calls that led me nowhere, I gave up and waited for Kara to see if she had any ideas. Playing some Tetris on my bed, there was a sudden knock on our door, and I jumped up to open it.

And there was Kieran, arms loaded down with bags, a huge grin on his face. "Happy Thanksgiving," he said.

"Um, happy Thanksgiving?" I asked, shocked to see him.

I hadn't seen him since fort night, and his beautiful face, tinted pink from the cold, took my breath away.

"Can I come in?" he asked, holding up the bags.

"Oh, right, right. Of course." I opened the door wider, stepping aside. "What's all this?"

He headed straight for the kitchen as I followed.

"You didn't think I'd let you guys go hungry today, did you?" he asked, starting to unload some kitchen utensils from a bag.

"But... but... how did you—"

"I went to the store on Tuesday before the storm hit, just in case."

"That was really smart," I said, thoroughly impressed.

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