“I won’t. I promise.”
“You should tell them at some point. I’m not saying now, but explain it to them. Explain it to Adam. Maybe he’ll forgive you.”
“Do you think he’ll forgive me?” I ask.
“No, probably not any time soon. He’s a hard-headed asshole but someone else will piss him off worse and he only has so much capacity for being angry so he’ll get over it.”
“What?” I laughed at the idea, relaxing a bit after the hug.
“I’m not kidding. He can only be mad and ban a certain amount of people from the bar. So as more people get slotted into the angry list, lesser annoying people drop off. I’m not saying it’s normal but it’s the truth.” Aiden’s eyes were big and he seemed serious.
“I’m not sure if you’re pulling my leg.”
“I’m not at all. Some fucked up part of his sunshine personality. He’s too nice. So there is only so much room for anger.”
“He is the mailman’s baby,” I muttered, Aiden and I had talked about it a few times while catching up.
“YES!” Aiden said. “It makes sense. He’s not like the rest of us. He’s not sarcastic. He’s happy all the time even when the sun hasn’t been out in weeks.”
“It is odd,” I said. “That’s how I should get Mom and Dad back for the intruder bit. Ask them if mom had an affair.”
“Good luck with that.” Aiden scoffed. “They’ll probably tell you yes, just to fuck with you.”
“Dammit....” I was about to go on, but my phone started to buzz.
I didn’t recognize the number but opened the message.
Text: I want to see you again.
It had to be Danny.
Avery: How’d you get my number?
Danny: I texted myself from your phone while you were dealing with your parents.
Avery: You really are a stalker.
Danny: I want to see you again.
The text made me way happier than it should have.
Danny: Tell me that wasn’t a one-time thing. Please.
Was it?
What future was in this if I was leaving in a few days?
Seven
AVERY
I typed and erased. Typed and erased. I couldn’t come up with the right thing to say. I didn’t think there was a right thing.
Avery: What did you have in mind?
Danny: Only took you an hour to reply.
Avery: Forty-seven minutes.
Danny: I was starting to think you were going to type forever.
He sent me a skeleton drinking coffee GIF with the message and I smiled in spite of myself. I forgot how much he used to make me laugh.
Avery: I wasn’t sure what to say.
Danny: Don’t make me break windows again.
Avery: You better be sending someone to fix that. Otherwise, Ellie and I are going to freeze tonight.
Danny: Like you’ve frozen my heart for the last decade and a half?
He added a sad face emoji.
Avery: Whoever taught you to text was dangerous.
Danny: You don’t even know my skills!
Avery: What are these skills you speak of?
Danny: I will unleash my sexting skills on you later.
Avery: And who taught you those?
I laughed as I sent it—however, a pang of jealousy hit. I’d been married, there was no way I could’ve expected him to remain celibate while I was gone, but it didn’t mean I’d ever like the thought of anyone touching him. Even when I left again.
Danny: No one had to teach me. I’ve always known how to turn you on.
Avery: Cocky, so cocky.
Danny: You like my cock.
Avery: How do you know?
He was right but I didn’t want to over-inflate his ego.
Danny: You seemed to be begging for it pretty hard earlier.
What did I even say to that? I wasn’t used to dating or flirting. It was true, but it was so much more than his cock.
Danny: Did I scare you off? You've been ‘typing’ for a long time again.
Avery: Tell me when I get to see you again.
Danny: I think I’ll save that message forever.
My heart swelled. How could I all of a sudden feel like I was a teenager again? Be so head over heels for the guy who’d ripped me apart. It was a head fuck.
“We have one kid sexting and the other is smiling at his phone like an idiot,” my mother said.
I looked up, remembering I was sitting in a room with my parents.
“I’m not sexting!” Aiden said, looking a bit red in the cheeks. “I was talking to Avery last time you thought I was doing that.”
“Who are you talking to now?” I asked him. “Since it’s not me.”
My mother laughed when Aiden didn’t say.
“They’re all wondering who I’m talking to but they know who I’m seeing, so who are you talking to?”
“Friends.” I glared at him because he knew.
Danny: Did I scare you off again?
Avery: I don’t think so.
It wouldn’t be him who scared me off. It would be me. I knew my head and heart. That would be my biggest battle.
Danny: About seeing you tonight?
Avery: Maybe…
I felt bad leaving it like that.
Avery: It’s not you. I’m wondering if I should leave Ellie with my parents that long. She’s only spent a few days with them.
Danny: You realize you’re going to offend them if you put it like that.
I snuck a glance at my dad teaching Ellie to needlepoint. Who even needle points anymore? They’d totally be angry. It might be better to not bring it up at all and stay in.
Avery: Might be better to not ask them at all.
Danny: In the morning?
I smiled at my phone again, knowing I was risking being called out by my parents.
Avery: Let me talk to them.
I sat there going back and forth about the best way to bring it up, but I got a big old nothing.
“What’s the plan for tonight?” I asked.
“I’m leaving you all to this, and going to Jensen’s,” Aiden pushed to his feet. “See you later.”
With that, my younger brother was out.
Better to not have him around adding sarcastic comments now that he knew about Danny and me, anyway.
“We are going to watch a movie! Grandpa rented Trolls.”
My face changed to a horrified expression. “Why would you do this to me?”
Ellie laughed and my parents seemed baffled.
“What’s wrong with it?” my dad asked at length.
“Only the worst movie in the history of movies,” I shuddered at the memory of sitting through it in the theater. “Those things haunt my dreams.”
“It looked cute,” my dad said before turning to my mother. “You know I think we have some of Avery’s trolls still in the attic.”
“I’m leaving!” A joke of course, but I didn’t want to sit through it again.
“Trolls?” Ellie sprung to her feet holding her hand out for my father. “Show me!”
“You might as well go out,” my mother said as Ellie tugged my father up the stairs towards the attic. “See some of your old friends. I’m sure they miss you.”
More like none of them will forgive me for my disappearing act.