Page 36 of Hunt for the Roses
I can feel myself grinning like a teenage girl. “I’m glad you did. But I have two questions for you. Do you have a name? And can I get you something to drink?” I ask.
“Blake, and I’ll take whatever you’re offering me,” he says with a grin.
Feeling my cheeks blush from his insinuation, I distract myself by grabbing a Corona from the cooler and handing it to him. We “cheers” to take a sip of our respective drinks, and then I gesture with my head in the direction of my friends standing around the fire.
“Come on, I’ll introduce you.” When we reach Trent, Kate, and Dane, I take it upon myself to introduce Blake. “Hey, guys, this is Blake. Blake, this is Kate, Trent, and Dane,” I say as I point to each of my friends.
“Nice to meet you,” they all say in unison as they throw a wave.
I turn to Blake. “I’m assuming you plan on being out late tonight like the rest of us?”
“It’s the only proper way to celebrate.”
“Awesome, us too,” I say. “We brought cornhole to set up later, and I can use a partner if you’re interested?”
“I can’t promise a wipe out of the other team, but I’m pretty decent,” Blake jokes.
“I’ll take my chances,” I laugh out. Then I take a sip of my seltzer as I contemplate my next question to keep the conversation moving. “So how old are you?”
“Twenty seven, you?” he says.
“So am I. Did you grow up in Crestside?”
“I actually grew up in Plainstone, but moved out here after I finished college. I have a few friends that live out here and once they gave the recommendation, I had to see what the hype was all about.”
I look at Blake as he praises Crestside, thinking of all the ways this town has changed my life for better and for worse. Even though I’ve spent such a small part of my entire life here, it’s the only place that truly understands who I am and knows all of my secrets.
“Yeah, this place is special to me,” I finally draw out.
Blake smiles back before taking a sip of his beer. “So what do you do,” he asks after he swallows.
“I’m a teacher.”
“That’s awesome, what grade level?” Blake asks.
“Middle school. Seventh and eighth grade,” I answer.
Blake makes a face. “Yikes. You deserve an award.”
I laugh. “Everyone says that, but middle school is my niche. I couldn’t picture myself teaching high school students.”
Blake shrugs. “Hey, you get the summer off so that’s reason enough to deal with everything you deal with, right?”
I raise my can of hard seltzer to him. “Eyy, someone who appreciates teachers! Can’t find many of those these days.”
Blake laughs as he clanks my can with his beer bottle, and we both take generous sips of alcohol to christen the night we’re about to endure together. I think back to my first few therapy sessions with Dr. Connelly, and maybe this is what she was talking about. Meeting new people, inviting new adventures into my life spontaneously, and finding reasons to smile again.
No matter how small.
An hour passes amongst everyone’s conversations and the music, and Blake and I fall into easy conversation. He’s actually really funny, and that goes a very long way in my book. But at some point, Kate and I are three White Claws deep when we hear “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” by Cyndi Lauper, and we give each other thelook.
“Oh boy, here we go,” Trent says as he looks at Dane.
I’m feelinggood. Yes, it may be alcohol-induced, but I embrace the feeling as I grab Kate’s hand and drag us away from everyone. Off to the side, we start singing along to the Cyndi Lauper classic and twirling each other around as our feet sink into the sand. I can’t remember the last time I had this much fun or laughed this many times, and I’m not about to let the night slip away from me.
I’m holding on tight.
I take a sip of my beer as I watch Kate and Aria dance to the music. It’s clear they’re starting to feel buzzed, and Aria’s laughter rings in my ears well after the sound has left her mouth.
