Page 33 of Love on the Brain
She’d not expected to make a friend so quickly, especially not a male friend. Ryan was sweet, charming, helpful, and easy to talk to. They’d bonded over their experiences growing up in the church, their struggles to be publicly perfect, and their shared interest in helping people recover from illness, injury, and hardship. The following summer, they’d gone back to school early to go on a mission trip and stayed on to help with freshman move-in. They’d been back on campus for one day when Jane received the call that her mother had been killed.
Ryan had held her, insisted on making her travel arrangements, booked himself on her flight, helped her pack, and paid for everything. He’d slept on their couch, helped out at the church, and asked her constantly what she needed. After the funeral, he was looking for the vacuum and found her hiding in the utility closet and offered to sit with her in the dark. When she shook her headnobut confessed she was worried about her sister, he hugged her and reassured her that Shelby was okay, explaining how he’d heard her talking to Kat about their mothers being friends in Heaven. Then he pulled out the brooms, mop, vacuum, and other cleaning supplies and staged them outside the closet so she wouldn’t be disturbed if anyone else came looking. Jane had cried harder, and he’d hugged her again, more tightly, until she’d stopped crying and she’d assured him she’d be okay and just needed to be alone for a bit.
He’d always been a light to her, even when she was enveloped in literal darkness.
Later that year, Ryan introduced her to Casey. He’d flown to Florida ahead of his baseball team so that he could spend spring break with Ryan. Due to a nor’easter, Jane hadn’t been able to fly home, so Ryan invited her to hang with him and his childhood bestie.
Casey had always told her it was love at first sight for him. After listening to Ryan talk about her for almost two years, he felt he knew her, and they fell into a fast friendship. There was no awkwardness, and Jane felt like she knew him better than she actually did for the same reason. By the end of break, Casey had taken her out on a date, and by the end of the tournament, they were officially dating. During her summer visit, he gave her a promise ring, and the following summer, he proposed. They planned their wedding for right after graduation, and Casey moved to Maine to teach elementary school PE and coach the Acadia High junior varsity baseball team.
She later found out that the Astros had scouted him and offered him a tryout, but he’d passed. When she asked him about it, he told her what he most wanted was to marry his girl and start a family. He’d already missed her too much living away from her for college, and a pro career would keep them apart more than together.
As Ryan held her, Jane thought of all these things and all the ways Casey had shown her that he had chosen to put her first. To find another man like that should be impossible.
But Ryan was showing her it wasn’t.
* * *
Ryan closedthe door to Noah’s room and hightailed it for the staff lounge, where he hoped he could spend the last ten minutes of his dinner hour undisturbed. He needed to get his mind off Jane and Noah and back into work mode.
When the elevator doors opened, though, another idea struck him. He should get Jane a card. With any luck, there’d be one in the gift shop that said all the right things, none of which he’d been able to put to words as he’d held her.
“Dr. E! Do you know it’s after seven? Last-minute date gift?” Ms. Robie, the sweet older lady who ran the gift shop, made it her business to know all the staff in the hospital. She was as nice as she was curious, and over the years, she’d pried out his whole life story.
Ryan shook his head. “No date for me, but Noah’s mom could use some cheering up.”
She adjusted her glasses and “humphed” at him. “I can think of about a million ways for you to do that,” she said with a long, knowing look. “But I suppose you’re still in the friend zone, am I right?”
Ryan blinked at her, caught off guard. “’Cause … she’s myfriend.”
“Uh-huh.” She pushed up the long sleeves of her purple sweater and walked out from behind the counter, gesturing for him to follow her. “We have a card for that.” She tossed a grin over her shoulder and winked. “We have a card foreverything.”
Ryan was suddenly regretting his decision to shop instead of meditate.
Ms. Robie paused in front of the circular card rack. “There it is.” She plucked a pink card from the rack and handed it to him. In white lettering over a red heart, it simply said, “A Valentine for a Special Friend.”
Okay, that didn’t sound too bad. He opened the card.
For years, you’ve had my back
For years, I’ve had yours, too.
Ups and downs, outs and ins
When it’s quiet and over the din.
You and I are kindred through
Besties forever, me and you.
Together or apart, far or near
We’re here for the laughs and the tears.
For a truer friend I’ve never had
And for this, I’m super glad.
She was right. It was the perfect card. “This … works,” he said, his voice thick with emotion.
