Page 28 of A Lot Like Adiós
“Itwasbecause we were best friends. I trusted you. I was closer to you than anyone else outside of my family. And I thought the attraction was just... a natural offshoot of my affection for you, as my friend. I didn’t really think about it more than that.”
“Oh, I sure the hell thought about it. A lot.”
“It did cross my mind, but as a... future thing. Like maybe someday we’d take that step, but I didn’t need to force it. You were a constant. My hot best friend. It didn’t bother me that we dated other people. You were still mine, and I was yours. That was all I needed. And then...”
“And then.” He knew exactly what she meant.
“I didn’t know it would be like that. Likethis. And once I knew...”
“It changed things,” he agreed.
“It didn’t have to change as much as it did.” Her eyes shone with emotion. “You really hurt me, Gabe. By lying, by leaving, and then by completely ignoring me. I know I didn’t respond well to your decision, but do you know how hard it was to reach out to you after that? Every single time, only to receive nothing. But I kept trying. That’s how much you meant to me.”
Meant.Past tense.
He lifted their joined hands to his lips and kissed her knuckles. “I’m sorry. I needed...” Space. To escape. To forget. “I needed to start over.”
“I get it. And I want to be angry at you. Iamangry at you. But...”
“But?”
“I’m just so damn happy to have you back.” Her tone was raw and wistful. “And it feels better to forgive you than stay mad.”
A slight pressure eased in his chest. “I’m not sure I deserve it.”
“I’m not sure you do either. But here we are.”
Michelle slipped her hand out of his and got off the bed. “I’m going to shower,” she said in a quiet voice. “I’ll leave towels out for you.”
It was on the tip of his tongue to suggest they shower together, but if she’d wanted that, she would have said so. So Gabe just nodded and watched her leave.
Sixteen years ago
Windows Messenger Chat Transcript
Celestial Destiny: Episode 2 Planning Session
Gabe:
Holy shit. I can’t believe so many people read the first chapter.
Michelle:
Fucking amazing. We need to get started on chapter 2!
Gabe:
I have science homework to do.
Michelle:
You can copy mine.
Gabe:
You don’t even take notes in science class.
Michelle:
