Page 132 of Just My Type of wrong guy

“And what else do you remember?” I cut him off, because I don’t want to be sad right now. This is a happy day.

“You told me your list of impossible dreams.”

“I did?” I ask, confused. “What I… what were they…”

“Are you okay?” A.J. asks, touching my face.

“Tell me, tell me about the list,” I ask, holding his hand in mine, needing something to hold on to.

“You said there were a ton of things you wished you’d done together,” he shrugs. “But some of the things you mentioned before didn’t even come up…”

“Anthony, pay attention. Stop stalling and tell me what’s on the list.”

“How do you want me to explain?” He laughs awkwardly, frowning. “It’s your list.”

“But I don’t know what’s on it, I don’t remember,” I say, my chin trembling. “I made sure to bury those dreams with Mom.”

A.J.’s eyes widen, his brows shoot up, and he understands the urgency. He shifts on the stool, turning to face me, clicks his tongue before speaking:

“The first thing you said was to fly…”

But I remember that. I decide to cut to the chase:

“I already know there was New York, flying, and teleporting…”

A.J. nods with a kind smile.

“Then you gave me the list by difficulty.” He caresses my face. “The first thing was to have a pool table. I don’t know why you never talked about it.”

Before he even finishes, my throat tightens with longing, not just for Mom. But for home, for my dad, for our life.

“There were a lot of family-friendly bars where I grew up, all with pool tables, and I used to play a lot with my dad, so…” I shrug. “In my childish mind, having one was impossible…” I force a smile just to avoid crying.

“Then you said ‘see the most beautiful sunset in the world,’ and I asked if there was a place more beautiful than Rio for that.” He laughs at the memory, and I wait for the rest because I agree. Nothing beats Rio. “Your look at me was like ‘are you an idiot?’” He mimics me, flipping his hair, which makes me really laugh. “Then you explained that, no matter how beautiful Rio is, there was the whole thing with your mom and movies set here, so you made it clear that New York was the ideal place for it.”

“Sounds like something I’d say and do, so I’ll believe you.”

“The next item was to go to the airport and choose a destination there, just like in the movies,” A.J. says, with that little sideways smile showing his dimples, and calmly holds my hand, as if reliving every detail. “You also said you wanted to see fireflies. Not just one, but several… because they almost don’t exist anymore,” he mimics me, and my chest tightens, but not from pain. It’s just that I don’t even remember saying that, but Anthony Fortin remembers it in such detail, and it’s nice to realize that the guy I like really sees me. “Then came ‘go to Disney’ and…”

“A.J.” I touch his hand, and my voice is no more than a whisper. “You didn’t do this…”

The words come straight from my heart, which is beating so fast I’m afraid it might leave my chest.

“Sorry I didn’t tell you, I know I should’ve said something earlier, but I didn’t know how. We were still reconnecting...”

“No, that’s not what I’m talking about.” It’s my turn to touch his face. How can this man exist?! “You took me to see the sunset, skipped an official band commitment to take me to the airport and tell me I could go anywhere, and then you took me to Disney and…”

My chin trembles, and I tighten my abs to try to stop the tears, but it’s impossible. I jump off the stool and fit into his embrace. Letting a few tears roll down while my heart embraces the fact that this incredible guy, who saw me, took care of me, and not only listened to my impossible dreams, but also made them come true.

I caress A.J.’s back in silence, wishing he would speak again, otherwise, I’ll just stay here crying non-stop.

“Can I tell you your other dreams?” A.J. asks, and I almost say no, but I feel like I need to have each of them back, so I nod against his chest.

Anthony Fortin strokes my hair, trying to calm me as he lists a few more silly, childish dreams that no longer make sense to me, and I step out of his embrace to observe my Golden Boy. The guy who snuck in, saw through my pain, knocked down all my walls, and made my dreams come true.

“You know what I’m missing from this list?” I ask, interrupting him, and he furrows his brow.

“No idea, I guess eating every candy in the world without getting cavities is the last one,” he says, brushing his thumbs over my face to wipe away the path of the already extinguished tears.

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