Page 15 of Holly Jolly
This could be my opportunity to plan something special. If this was our second chance, I needed to do it right.
Holly: Already missing me, are you?
Holly: Just joking. Of course. See you tomorrow.
I locked my phone and put it back on my nightstand hooking it back to the charger, contemplating everything that had gone on since coming back to Michigan.
There were so many things to consider. Moving back from Texas was the right move, not only to rekindle things with Holly, but to be closer to my mother. If I was happy in Texas, it would be more of a struggle to make a decision, but with Veronica gone, there was nothing holding me back besides my job, which I should be able to do remotely.
I grab my phone one last time to draft an email to my boss, letting him know that I was planning on moving back to Michigan to be closer to family and if the option to work remotely was still an option and hit send.
For the first time since that altar, my heart was determined to let Holly in. Our history remained embedded and that was something I couldn’t just brush off. The fact that my feelings were just as strong now as they were the day we broke up, that must mean something.
Holly might just be myone.
13
Ethan
December 28th
My heart fluttered thinking about our date tonight. It was nice to be able to come back here and be able to pick up almost right where we left off. That was just the relationship we had. We were both comfortable in our skin, and showing one another who we truly were. There was no need to beat around the bush, or pretend to be someone else.
My phone vibrated against the nightstand.
Holly: So, you really aren’t going to tell me where we are going? How am I supposed to know how to dress?
I laughed, shaking my head. Typical girl.
Me: Just dress for cold weather. It’s a surprise. ;) See you in fifteen.
For so long, I dreamt of this moment. All those days, weeks, months, and years since Holly and I last set eyes on each other, every single one felt like a lifetime. Even though we didn’t keep in contact, she crossed my mind frequently. She held a special place in my heart as my first love, so having her come back into my life was miraculous. After all these years, our feelings were just as strong. As much as what happened with Veronica wrecked my life, sometimes things happened for a reason. Now, looking back, she wasn’t the right person for me, and thankfully we didn’t end up married. How awkward would that have been to come here for Christmas and run into Holly with my wife?
Tonight was going to be special, and instead of going out to dinner, visiting somewhere that was important to both of us seemed like a better pick. Had she been back there since she had been back in town?
I threw on a white t-shirt, dark jeans, and ran a comb through my hair before walking out the door. There were so many things that we needed to discuss, but tonight should focus on our bond. I hoped she liked the thoughtfulness of tonight.
After I grabbed my keys and jumped in the car, I headed to Holly’s house to pick her up. When I pulled in the driveway, she was already outside waiting for me in a sweater dress and knee high boots. Beautiful as always.
I waited for Holly to climb into the car. I watched as she walked towards me, and my heart filled with love. She smiled as she opened the car door and slid into the passenger seat.
“You could wear a plastic bag and still look radiating.”
She blushed and strapped herself in, ready for the ride. “So, where are we going? You were pretty vague.”
I started the car and pulled out onto the road.
“You still hate surprises, huh? I promise this will be a good one. Don’t stress.”
As I drove through our town, I pointed each significant spot of ours. Being a small town, there wasn’t a whole bunch of them, but oh well.
I brought down my speed as I passed in front of the high school. “This is where I asked you to be my girlfriend…”
“This is where I asked you to Prom…” I pointed to the diner bustling with patrons.
Our history was going to help us in the long run. We could skip all the awkward getting to know you stage, skip past the fake persona, and just be ourselves. Even though many didn’t take her seriously in high school, I did. Holly was a generous, caring, and extremely motivation person who would go to prison for murder if you hurt someone she loved. The problem was she could count on one hand how many people she would that for, because of how her life went. I was very grateful to be one of those people.
One of the things I loved about this, without a doubt, I knew she would make an amazing mother and that was very important to me. Some men were iffy about having kids, but I wanted a basketball team. The more, the merrier. Her childhood would have an effect on how she wanted to raise her kids and we had talked about that decades ago. The most important thing to her was for her children to not grow up in a broken home, which I respected to my core. No one went into having kids thinking they weren’t going to be together long term, but things happened.
