I laugh.
"But you're actually okay?"
I think about it. Am I okay? Liam and I will never be best friends again. That part of our lives is over. But the weight that's been sitting on my chest for months feels lighter now. "Yeah. I'm actually okay."
"Good. Because Harper would kill me if you came home miserable again."
I laugh. "She really would."
When I get home that night, the smell hits me before I even open the door. Cookies. Actual baked cookies, which means either Harper has magically learned to bake or the smoke alarm is about to go off.
I walk into the kitchen and find my roommate, Finn, sitting at the table, looking mildly concerned, while Harper stands at theoven pulling out a tray of what actually look like real chocolate chip cookies.
"Don't get too excited," Finn warns. "I haven't tried one yet."
Harper glares at him. "They're fine. I followed the recipe exactly."
I walk over and wrap my arms around her from behind, pressing a kiss to her neck. "They smell good."
"Don't patronize me."
"I'm serious. They smell amazing." I reach for one, and she smacks my hand away.
"They're still hot."
"That's never stopped me before."
She turns in my arms and kisses me. "How was practice?"
"Good. Really good, actually."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah. Liam and I... we're good."
Her eyebrows raise. "Good as in you're not going to murder each other, or good as in you're friends again?"
"Good as in we shook hands and moved on."
She studies my face, trying to figure out if I'm okay with that. "And you're happy with that?"
"I am. It's what we both need."
She nods slowly, then kisses me again. "Okay. Then I'm happy too."
"Are these cookies actually edible?" I ask, eyeing the tray.
"Why does everyone keep asking me that?"
"Because your track record with baked goods is not great, babe."
"I followed the recipe."
"You said that about the brownies too, and those somehow came out liquid."
Finn reaches for a cookie, takes a cautious bite, and his eyes widen. "Holy shit. These are actually good."
Harper beams. "See? I can bake."