Page 26 of The Love Comeback
But now, sitting beside her on the floor of her new home, surrounded by half-unpacked boxes and the bookshelf we built together, those memories don’t hurt anymore. They feel like unearthed treasures.
“We had some good times, didn’t we?” I say, the words slipping out before I can stop them.
She looks up at me, her expression softening. “We did,” she admits, and there’s no hesitation in her voice. “A lot of good times.”
The moment stretches between us, comfortable and warm. Outside, the last light of day is fading, casting the room in a soft golden glow. Inside, something else is happening—not quite rebuilding, but perhaps clearing away the debris to see what foundation still remains.
Chapter Ten
Ella
I close the yearbook, my fingers lingering on its worn cover as I glance around at the boxes still waiting to be unpacked, evidence of my new life scattered across the living room floor. A life so different from anything I’d imagined back when those yearbook photos were taken.
“We should probably get back to it,” I say, setting the yearbook aside. “I’ve got about a million more boxes to go through.”
Kade nods, stretching his long legs out in front of him before standing and reaching for another box, this one smaller than the others. He opens it carefully, pulling out a stack of framed photos wrapped in newspaper. He unwraps the first one, and I watch as his expression changes, softening intosomething like reverence.
“This is a great photo. When was it taken?” he asks, holding up a black frame containing a photo of me and my sister, our arms around each other, laughing at something off-camera.
“That’s from Colton’s fifth birthday party. Just a couple months before the accident,” I reply, a familiar ache blooming in my chest.
Kade looks at the photo more closely, his thumb brushing over the glass. “She looks so happy here. You both do.”
“We were,” I say softly, taking the frame. “It was a good day. Colton was over the moon because Brett had built him this elaborate dinosaur-themed obstacle course in the backyard.”
“I bet that was something to see,” Kade says, his voice gentle.
“It was ridiculous.” I laugh. “Brett spent three days building it, and Colton ran through it exactly twice before deciding he’d rather play with the box it came in.”
I set the frame on the mantel, adjusting it slightly until it sits just right. My throat tightens with emotion, but I push past it as Kade unwraps another frame, this one a portrait of Katie and Brett holding newborn Colton between them, their faces glowing with a joy so pure it’s almost blinding. He looks at it for a long moment before passing it to me.
“I remember this day,” he says simply.
I nod, unable to speak for a moment as I stare at my sister’s face. She was radiant, exhausted but exhilarated. I remember standing next to Kade in the hospital room our senioryear, watching as Katie placed tiny Colton in my arms for the first time. Kade held him shortly afterward and was a complete natural.
I run my finger along the edge of the frame. “I keep these photos everywhere, even though sometimes it hurts to look at them. Colton needs to see their faces. He needs to know who they were, how much they loved him. I can’t let him forget.”
“That’s important.” Kade nods in agreement. “But I can see how that could be hard.”
“Yeah … when I first got custody of him, I packed all the photos away,” I admit. “It was too difficult to see their faces every day. But then, one night, I found Colton sitting in his closet with a picture of them he’d hidden under his pillow. He was just … talking to it. Telling them about his day.” My voice catches. “That’s when I realized how selfish I was being. My grief didn’t matter more than his need to remember them.”
“You’re an incredible person, Ella. Most twenty-two-year-olds would’ve crumbled under that kind of responsibility.”
I shrug, uncomfortable with the praise. “I did what anyone would do. He’s family.”
“No.” Kade shakes his head firmly. “Not everyone would’ve stepped up like you did. Not everyone could have handled it.” Kade looks down at his shoes. “I’m so sorry you had to go through all that. I wish I had known. I would’ve been there.”
“We weren’t exactly in touch,” I say, swallowing the hurt.
“I should’ve been,” he says firmly. “After everything we went through together, I should’ve checked in on you. I could’ve found you again on social media. I could’ve gotten your new number from a mutual friend. I just … I thought you were happy with Landon. I didn’t want to intrude.”
I bark out a bitter laugh. “Well, that didn’t work out quite like I planned.”
Kade hesitates, then asks, “What happened? If you don’t mind me asking.”
I sigh. “The short version? He wasn’t prepared to be a parent. We were newlyweds when Katie and Brett died and I got custody of Colton. Landon stuck around for about a year before deciding it was all too much for him. Too much responsibility, too much grief, too much … reality, I guess.”
“What a jerk,” Kade says with surprising vehemence.
