Page 109 of To Love or to Lose
She finally makes eye contact with me as I join her on the stairs. “I’m glad the feeling is mutual.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
131 days until graduation
I wake up to Gwen standing over my bed, her hand shaking my shoulders.
“Gwen, it’s Sunday.” I groan, pulling my comforter over my face.
Sundays are the only days I allow myself to sleep past seven a.m, so not getting the few extra hours would be detrimental to my sleep schedule for the rest of the week. I am a creature of habit and I thrive off schedule, which makes it difficult to deviate from my norms.
“Mom and Dad are home!” Gwen tells me. “Get up, get up!”
She’s like a kid waking her parents up on Christmas, except in this case, her parentsarethe present.
How pathetic does that make the two of us?
I sit up, sliding my feet into the slippers on the edge of my bed. I stand, and before I can even think about how badly I want to make my bed, Gwen is pulling me out of my room and down the stairs.
It’s straight out of a movie, the way Mom and Dad are standing in the foyer, their luggage dropped hazardously at their feet. One where they are the heroes.
“Genny! Gwen!” Mom shouts, as we reach the bottom steps. “Oh, I’m so glad to see you both! How are you?” She grabs our arms, pulling us into an embrace.
“Good, Mom.” I smile tensely into her hug. “We’re good.”
The joy on Gwen’s face makes my stomach sink, because it’s the same one I used to have on my face everytime our parents came home, but now I’m old enough to know it’s temporary.
“What are you doing back already?” Gwen asks, a bright smile gracing her soft features when Dad hugs her.
“We have exciting news,” Mom says, “But first, we have gifts.”
She opens the smaller of her two suitcases, pulling out two small, purple gift bags made of expensive cardstock. Gwen and I immediately recognize the logo from our favorite boutique in Venice.
We both hop off the steps as she holds out the bags, one for each of us.
Gwen takes hers first, squealing as she takes the tissue paper out.
“Wait, wait, wait.” Mom stops her. “Open them together.”
Gwen glares at me impatiently as I carefully unwrap the jewelry box from the tissue paper. We take the velvet boxes in our hands, opening them at the same time to reveal two nearly identical necklaces.
That’s when Mom moves her own hair behind her shoulders, grabbing the chain around her neck and presenting the pendant to us. “Ta-da!”
All the necklaces are small and heart-shaped, the only difference between them is the color in stones outlining them.I recognize the purple amethyst on mine, and the white topaz on Gwen’s. Our birthstones.
“Look at the back.” Dad says, making Gwen and I flip the charms.
On the back, are the letters ‘A.F.L.’
“Your dad came up with it,” Mom tells us. “Alderidge for life.”
“Alderidge for life?” Gwen looks up at our mom, “Is this our version of a purity ring?”
I laugh under my breath, trying to ignore the chill that runs up my spine at the reminder.
It’s not something I choose to think of often.
“Considering I birthed both of you, I don’t think Dad’s intentions had anything to do with purity,” Mom jokes, and Gwen looks at me while she gags, making the two of them laugh.I’m still trying my best to keep my discomfort from engulfing my face.
