Page 82 of The Parkers' Handsome Holiday
“My name is Kelli. I’m your best friend.”
I blinked. “Really?”
She nodded but looked down at her lap. What was that expression? That frown? Shame? Guilt? When she lifted her gaze back to me, she sighed. “Yes. We grew up together, Lina. We’ve been inseparable since childhood. When your mother and father passed away, it was my family you came to live with. My mother’s name is Judy. My father’s name was Neil.”
“Cal told me.”Kelli tucked her hair behind her ears. “I guess he told you that my dad passed away in the spring?”
“I’m so sorry.” And I was. Even though I couldn’t remember him.
“I know.” Kelli smiled sadly. “You called me from New York when you heard what happened, and you stayed on the phone with me for three hours until I stopped crying and you got me laughing. You were the only one who knew what to say to me to make me feel better. The only one who didn’t just tell me over and over that everything would be all right.”
My throat tightened. “I wish I could remember.”
“Me too. But you will. I know you will, Lina. You have to. We have too many good memories together for you to just let it all go. One day, all the pieces will settle back into place, and you’ll remember.”
I knew that what she told me was the truth. She was my best friend. No other person would have been able to ease my mind the way she just had with just a few words. “Thank you.” I rubbed my hands up and down my thighs. “Why haven’t I seen you before now, Kelli?”
Kelli bit her bottom lip. “Something happened between us. Something bad. And I wasn’t ready to see you. I was mad at you. If I’m being honest, I still am.”
“What did I do?” I asked, but as soon as the words left my lips, I knew the answer. I knew the cost of the mistake I had made. “Oh God. I did this to you.”
“It was an accident.”
“How long are you in the chair for?” I asked. I felt ill, like something sharp had made a home in my stomach, and every breath I took made it move, pricking at my insides.
Kelli didn’t look me in the eye. “Forever, Lina.”
The sharp creature inside me stretched, and pain unlike anything I had ever known shot through me. I covered my face with my hands. I didn’t dare look at her as my walls crumbled and I broke down. How could I have been the sort of person who would jeopardize my best friend’s safety like that?
“Lina, please don’t cry. This isn’t why I came to see you. I didn’t want to make you feel worse. Accidents happen. I see now that you weren’t trying to hurt me. I just needed time to come around and wrap my head around everything.”
I shook my head. “I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry.”
“I know, Lina, but listen to me.” She reached out and put her hand on mine. “I forgive you. Do you hear me? I forgive you.”
“You shouldn’t.”
“But I do,” she said. “And that’s my decision to make. I was really, really angry. And sometimes, that anger comes back with force. But I need my best friend to help me through this. And I think I can help you, too.”
I shook my head. “I don’t deserve that.”
“Stop it,” Kelli said firmly. “What you didn’t deserve was to be abandoned by your best friend because she was so wrapped up in her own self-pity that she pushed you away when you needed her the most.” Kelli’s eyes were glassy. She licked her lips and swallowed. Her hand closed in a fist over my fingers, and she gave me a reassuring squeeze. “We both should have been there for each other. We both made mistakes. I want to rectify them. Please come home with me, Lina. You shouldn’t stay here by yourself. Let me help you.”
I blinked away tears. “You really want that?”
She nodded. “I really do. I promise. We can help each other through this, Lina.”
Nothing sounded better than that. It also sounded too good to be true. “Are you sure you’re not just going to drive me out to the middle of nowhere and leave me? I’d deserve it.”
Kelli laughed. She actually laughed. The sound was like music to my ears, and it was a familiar song, too. Maybe she was right. Maybe she was the person I needed by my side to help me remember my old life, a life that Kelli was apparently a big part of. “I won’t leave you, Lina. Never again. I swear it.”
I swallowed, and then I nodded. “Okay. Yes, please. I want to get out of here and go with you.”
“Good, because my arms are tired, and I need you to push me back out to the car.”
We both smiled at each other. I got to my feet, packed up my things, and changed out of my robe. When I was ready to go and about to open the door, I looked back at her. “Kelli, may I ask you something?”
“You can ask me whatever you need to.”
