Page 66 of In For a Penny
“I don’twantto go,” he says, taking a seat next to me. “It’s late, and I want a sleepover.”
I know why he’s staying, but he won’t say it. He knows I hate being babied.
I shake my head as I pull the letter from the envelope. “Nope, I need you to leave.”
“No,” he says seriously. “You really don’t.” He holds my gaze and reaches out for the hand holding the letter. “Talk to me. What is this?” I know him. He won’t rest until I tell him, because he’s a good friend, and I know he cares.
So, I tell him. I tell him about the Instagram post, and I tell him about the phone call, and I tell him about the fucking letter.
I gaze down at the letter, not really reading it, but some sentences pop out at me:
Penny, I love you. First and foremost, I should say that. I. Love. You.
I don’t know if this is something you would have done if we had stayed together, but it’s something you need, babe. Something we need.
You need this time to mature, and I need this time to organize myself and figure out how to grow professionally so I can take care of ourselves and our future.
I snort.
I love you?
Something WE need?
Mature?
OUR future?
Wow.
“Can I read it?” he asks.
“Nope.” I hold the letter in one hand and the cigarette in another, bringing it to the corner of the piece of paper.
I. Watch. It. Burn.
And I drop it out the window into our building complex’s courtyard. Once I’ve made sure that I haven’t burned the whole place down, I put out the cigarette on the windowsill and lie back in bed, staring up at the ceiling.
Oliver lies down next to me, and I can feel him staring. He doesn’t say anything, thankfully.
“Oliver?” I close my eyes.
“Yes?”
I take a deep breath. “Please don’t make fun of me, but…can we break the no-cuddling policy just for tonight? I think I could really use a hug or something now.”
He’s like lightning—I’m cuddled up in his chest before I even know it.
“Don’t worry, Penny. We’ll make an amendment. Cuddling is okay while wearing clothes or during a state of emergency. And I think we meet both rules right now.”
And once again, I cry myself quietly to sleep. This time, in a friend’s arms.
