Page 28 of The Forever After Bet

“I don’t know, Gran. I just don’t know.”

“Can I get you anything?”

“You’ve done enough. I don’t know how you got Hannah here—I can’t put into words how grateful I am for what you’ve done.” I hurry and wipe the tears out of my eyes.

Gigi smiles back at me. “You’re welcome. I want both of you to be happy.”

“I ordered some food. Will you grab the door when it gets here? I’m going to let her sleep a little longer.”

“Of course.”

After my grandma leaves, I text Ty to tell him I’m not going to make it over, and I’ll explain everything to him later. He texts me back one word. Hannah?

Yes. Will you fill Jack in when he gets off work?

Finally! And yes, he’s coming over after his shift. I’ll talk to you soon.

The food shows up, but Hannah doesn’t even stir. It makes my gut twist with worry. After about fifteen more minutes of holding her, I decide to wake her up. I’m not sure if her parents know where she is, and we need to talk about things before she leaves.

“Hannah,” I whisper, tipping her back and brushing several wayward curls off her forehead. “Hanny, it’s time to wake up.” I lean down, kissing her cheek, and she lets out a little whimper. “It’s okay,” I soothe, rubbing my hand along her arm.

Hannah’s eyes flutter open, and she looks at me. Her eyes get round and big, and she tries to jerk upright, but I hold her tight against me. “Hey, it’s okay.”

She buries her head in my chest. “It wasn’t a dream.”

“No, it wasn’t.”

I help her sit up, and she rubs a hand across her eyes. “What time is it?”

“It’s around six-thirty.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Are you going to get in trouble?” I ask.

“No. I gave Leah my phone. I told Beth I was going over to her house and hanging out after practice, and that I wouldn’t be home until late. She hasn’t been checking up on me like she used to.”

“Wow. I’m sure that’s nice, but why the sudden change?” I ask.

She shrugs, avoiding eye contact. “She thinks you moved on and don’t have feelings for me anymore.”

“Well, that’s total horse shit!” I laugh humorously.

“After that night, I thought I’d wrecked us. I didn’t know.”

I put a finger under Hannah’s chin and tilt it so she’s looking at me. “Now you do. I ordered some food. How about we go eat and talk?”

“Yeah, okay. I better text Leah, so she doesn’t worry,” Hannah says.

We stand up, and I stretch my back and legs out. Hannah keeps her hand twisted in my shirt, almost like she’s afraid I’ll disappear if she lets go. I grab her hand, entwining our fingers, then kiss the back of it. I can tell she’s apprehensive. She keeps clenching her free hand into a fist and worrying her bottom lip. There’s a tension radiating off her. I turn her to face me and pull her close, cupping a hand around her cheek. “You need to relax.”

“I don’t know if I can.” Hannah glances at me, then looks away. “These last two months have been awful. I’ve been awful. I keep waiting for you to yell and tell me what a horrible person I am.”

“You did what you had to, to survive; and so did I. We’re not going back to that. No matter what it costs us in the long run. We’re in this together. Tell me you understand.”

“We’re in this together,” she repeats. “No matter what. I can’t go back—I can’t—”

I place my thumb over her lips, silencing her. “We won’t. I promise.”

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