Page 18 of Returning to Everton

When I woke up the next morning, it was like I had fallen in love with Harris all over again. I couldn’t understand why I had thought about breaking up with him just the night before. We left Everton that day, and I haven’t been back since.

* * *

After hours of driving,we finally get to Everton. I look around as I drive toward Quinn’s house, following the GPS directions. With how long I’ve been gone, I would have expected a lot more to change. I’m actually happy to see a lot is the same as when I was growing up.

We mostly drive past houses since the majority of the businesses are in the town square. I smile when I see the blue house on my left, it looks like Mr. Henry had it repainted recently. He has this huge flag painted on the side of his house. It’s been there since I was little, every now and then, it starts to fade and he just has it repainted.

Driving past the town square brings back so many memories. That’s where Hudson and I were going to open our bakery. Right in the middle where we could get tons of foot traffic. People would be walking the square and see our bakery and they’d just have to stop in for one of our famous baked goods.

We finally pull into Quinn’s driveway at 6:30 that night, and not a moment too soon. As excited as Violet and I both are to get here, we are ready to be out of the car. I get out and stretch my back, then open the back door and unbuckle Violet. While I’m leaning into the car, I hear Quinn come out.

“Oh my god, you’re here!!” Quinn squeals as she comes running down the walkway from her door.

I stand and back up so Violet can get out and look up at my best friend. I was going to give her a hug but instead, I stand there in shock.

“Oh my god, I love your hair! When did you do that?” My eyes widen in surprise. “Last time I saw you, you were a blonde. But you are totally rocking that lavender, girl!” I compliment my bestie on her new hairstyle. “Is it shorter too?” I ask.

“Yup,” she smiles at me. “I was ready for something new, so I figured since you’re going through this big change, with moving and all,” she laughs. “I could make a change too. You know, support you symbolically.” We both laugh at that. It’s absolutely something she would do. She’s constantly supporting me like that. When I got married, she turned her hair cotton candy pink. Harris wasn’t happy, but I thought she looked great.

“Mommy, can I have purple hair like Aunt Quinn?” Violet asks me.

I look at Quinn like this is all her fault, because let’s face it, it is. Then look down at Violet. “We’ll have to see, honey. I don’t know if your new school has rules about hair color.”

She sighs. “Okay, Mommy. But if the school says I can, you’ll let me?”

Always wanting a straight answer my girl. She hates maybes. “Yes, baby. If the school says it’s okay, Mommy will change your hair color for you,” I assure her.

“Yay! I want pink, Mommy!”

Quinn and I laugh at her excitement. “Okay, Bug, let's get our bags and get inside. I don’t know about you, but I’m hungry.”

“I’m hungry too, Mommy! What’s for dinner?”

I look at Quinn as I open the trunk to get our bags out. “Yeah, Quinn, what’s for dinner?” I chuckle.

“Ummm, takeout?” she suggests. “What are you in the mood for, Violet?”

“Hey, is the Starlight Diner still open?” I ask Quinn.

“Yeah!” she gasps. “Violet would love that. Are you sure you’re up for it though? After spending all that time in the car, you don’t wanna just relax at home?” she asks.

“What’s the Starlight Diner, Mommy?”

“It’s this amazing little restaurant that has the ceiling glamoured to show the night sky. It’s so pretty, and the food is delicious. I think you’ll really like it. Do you wanna go tonight? Or are you tired? We can stay in and order a pizza if you’re not up to seeing the town tonight,” I tell her.

“No, Mommy. I’m not tired. Let’s go!”

I laugh and look at Quinn. “Well, what do ya say? You up for showing our girl a night on the town?” I ask her.

“How can I say no to that?” she chuckles. “Let me go grab my purse. You wanna walk?” she asks.

“Sure, let’s stretch our legs.” With the decision made, we follow Quinn inside and set our bags down in the guest room.

As we walk to the diner, Quinn and I point out things to Violet. We mostly walk by houses at first, then Violet sees a park. I tell her tomorrow after the movers get everything in the house we can walk down and play for a little bit. That makes her happy. Hopefully, there will be other kids there for her to play with.

We start getting closer to the center of town where all of the shops and businesses are. I see a mechanic shop and think to myself I should probably get the oil changed in the car. We’re almost at the diner when I see the bakery for the first time. It is not at all what I was expecting, but it’s absolutely perfect. It looks almost like I designed it myself. I look at the sign to see the name of it. Chocolate Cosmos Bakery. That’s cute. I wonder how they came up with that name.

“Hey, Quinn, have you eaten at that bakery before?” I ask as we walk by. “It looks so cute. I wonder if their food is any good. Maybe I’ll stop by in the morning to get some breakfast before the movers get here. I’m sure they’d appreciate some cinnamon rolls or something. What do you think?”

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