Page 23 of Infatuated as They Come
I leaned my head on Sawyer’s shoulder, hoping that everything his dad had said had gone in one ear and out the other. I felt his soft lips kiss my forehead as I pressed up to him, wanting to stay right there in that motelroom with him forever, but before I knew it, he was shifting beside me.
“We better leave now. I’ll drive you home,” he said.
My eyes landed on the clock. I had almost forgotten about my curfew. “Yeah, I should probably go back.” We all got off the bed, and I turned to Sawyer’s cousin with a shrug. “I guess this is it, Brodie. I won’t be able to see you the next few days, and then we’ll both be gone.”
“Aw, this night went by so fast.” Brodie stood up, his arms wrapping around me in a big, tight hug. “Not fair.”
“I’m gonna miss you.” I sighed. “Good luck with everything. Send me all the stuff you write, okay?”
“I will, I will. I’ll try and make it for a game or two so I can see you cheer. Oh, I’m gonna miss you guys!” Brodie pulled back one of his arms and circled it around his cousin, drawing us both in close.
“I’m coming back,” said Sawyer. “I’m just taking Holly home.”
“I know, but this is gonna be the last time the three of us are ever gonna be together,” Brodie said.
“You sound like my mom,” I said. “Why is everyone convinced we’ll never see each other again?”
“It just feels like that,” Brodie said. “It’s so sad.”
“Don’t be sad.” I kissed him on the cheek. “College is gonna be really exciting, right? And you’re gonna do a lot of really great things and make lots of friends.”
“I don’t want new friends. I want you guys. Man, I’m gonna start crying,” Brodie mumbled. “Holly, make sure you keep my cousin out of trouble. I’m sure you’ll manage; you seem to be the only one who can get him to be good.”
I let out a little laugh. “I’ll do my best.”
“I guess I’ll let you go,” Brodie said, circling his arms back around me. “Goodbye, Holly. I hope everything works out for you in New York.”
I gave him a big squeeze. “Thank you. Good luck in Boston. You’re gonna do so great over there.”
With one last big hug, I bid farewell to Brodie. I was going to miss him far too much and the teary look on his face pained my heart, but I was excitedfor him and all the adventures he was about to have. I gave him a little wave from the doorway before Sawyer’s fingers tangled with mine.
We were cutting it close with my curfew as he guided me down the stairs of the motel, leading me to the half-filled parking lot. Sawyer stayed quiet as he held the door open for me to get in, and I could feel the gloomy encounter we had with his father still hovering heavy above the both of us.
The drive was silent as Sawyer drove me back to Highland Park, one of his hands on my thighs the whole time. Part of me wanted to tell him to just turn around and take us back to that motel room, but before I knew it, we were pulling up in front of my home, and like always, he walked me to the front door. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to him just yet. My hands quickly settled on his shoulders as my eyes found his, and I hated that the light that had been there during the day looked like it was gone.
“You know, I really like it when we do stuff like today,” I said, but I quickly realized how bad that sounded. “I mean… Not like in the afternoon, when your dad showed up. That wasn’t fun. I mean after and before that. When it’s just us spending time together. I just like being with you no matter where we go.”
One of Sawyer’s big hands found the small of my back, drawing me closer to him. “You like staying in crummy motels watching oldLooney Tunesepisodes?”
The word almost made me flinch. “I didn’t think it was crummy. I had a lot of fun just being with you. I also liked watching you hit the side of that TV until the picture stopped being all fuzzy. I didn’t know you were so innovative.”
“That’s an old skill I have.”
“Well, you’re very good at it. I’ve never seen Woody Woodpecker so crystal clear.”
“He’s a menace to society.”
“Like someone else…” I let my fingers graze over the back of his neck. “But I mean it. I have so much fun when we’re just… together. Those kinds of moments are really special to me. Like all those times we made dinner together, or when you took me to all those pretty places and you painted andItriedto paint and we talked until the sun set, or when we went to those nice lookouts so we could go stargazing. That’s the kind of stuff I won’t ever forget, ‘cause it’s the stuff I love doing with you.”
A tiny, little smile graced his lips. “Me too.”
“You don’t have to take me to some fancy restaurant or event or anything like that. I just want to be with you. Just being with you is special, and I’m so excited for New York, because we’ll get to have more moments like we had here.” My fingers kept playing with his hair, hoping he was internalizing everything I was saying. “You’re being quiet. Are you okay? What did your dad say to you when I was in your truck?”
His eyes closed for a brief moment. “Nothing.”
“I love you. I love all of you, every part. I’m not going anywhere, I promise you that. And whatever he said when I left… I don’t know what he said exactly, but please don’t take it to heart. He has no idea how special you are to me. How much you mean to me. How much I love you. And I love you so, so much.”
“I love you too, sweetheart. And I’m okay. Just… wasn’t expecting to see him today,” he said, eyes on the ground before he cleared his throat. “But I loved doing all that stuff with you as well. This was a really great summer. Every day was special.”
