With kindness,
Ash
NOVEMBER, 2027
Dear Asher,
Or should I say Hunt, since now that I know your full name, I was also able to find you. Huntswimsforyou? Cute as fuck handle. Why did you let me call you Asher if everyone calls you Hunt? Or Hunter? Was I not worthy of knowing your last name?
I appreciate you finding me, and maybe it was a little stalkerish, but nothing a public search wouldn’t give you. Congratulations on graduating! That sounds amazing. I know nothing about rescue swimmers, but I will read my heart out about it so we can chat in December.
Yes, I’m still single, and yes, I’ll be your date. I doubt I’ll get a boyfriend in the next month or so, considering I’m writing this in November. Truth is, your letter caught me off guard, and I slid it into my bag. I forgot about it until it was time to clean it out. Not that I forgot you, but there’s just been a lot going on.
I also work saving lives. Not like you, but with children. It’s been a tough year as a peds trauma nurse, and it’s been even harder to balance it all. I actually don’t know why I’m sharing all of this, but maybe you’d understand, since you have a servant heart too.
Also . . . you’re only twenty-two? You should’ve said something! I’m almost ten years older than you. Does that make me a cougar? I’m a cougar now, aren’t I?
Can I tell you a secret? I’ve been looking forward to this gala all year. I hope I do get to see you in a month or so.
Stay safe out there.
Xo,
Hales
3
NEW YEARS EVE 2027
Maine by Noah Kahan • Northern Attitude by Noah Kahan Feat. Hozier • Unwritten by Natasha Bedingfield
Hailey
Why am I so nervous?It’s not like this man hasn’t seen everything and licked it too, or like there’s anything on the line other than a good time. We’ve been clear. Neither of us is in a position to have a relationship with anyone. Do I want a relationship? Yes, but my life has gone to shit this year, and adding anything to my never-ending list of things to do just doesn’t seem possible.
He offered to pick me up, and because he already knew where I was staying in Amelia, I said yes. He’s picking me up early enough to be my date to the dinner portion of the event, and I’m nervous as fuck. I’m wearing the red dress I wore the year I met him. If he remembers, he’ll see how special I think it is that our paths are crossing again, how special I think this whole thing is. The electric feeling coursing through my veins is something Ihaven’t felt in years, not since I had a crush on Timmy Mcfair in ninth grade, actually.
The quiet knock on the door startles me. He’s early.Hot.Nothing I love more than punctuality.
Okay, Hailey. It’s show time.
The sight waiting for me on the other side of the door steals my breath away. There, as handsome as ever, is Asher—or Hunt, I should say—in the same khaki suit combo he had on two years ago, his mustache back on his face alongside his slutty little glasses. It’s almost as if we were suspended in time two years ago. I’d love to imagine that’s the reality, considering the wrinkles around my eyes and my never-ending backache reminding me I’m not in my twenties anymore.
My mother always acted like she was breaking when my siblings were little. I thought it was a defense mechanism to get me to pick up and do more chores, since I’m ten years older, but now that I’m in my thirties, I get it. Shit’s hard, and we’re all just trying our best.
“Well hello there, Hunt.” Ugh, I hate how that name rolls off my lips. He seems to think the same, because he looks like he’s gonna throw up.
“Don’t call me that.”
“Well, that’s what most people call you, no?” I stay in front of the door as if I have no manners, but somehow, my feet are superglued to the ground, and he’s a fast drying fan blowing straight my way.
“But you’re not most people.”
He doesn’t finish his sentence, and I don’t know if it’s the distance or the time, but does he look even more handsome now? It's unbelievable how much someone can change in two years. Like rougher or edgier? Or am I just horny and my body remembers exactly what he felt like last year as if it was yesterday?
I shake myself. “Do you need to come in? Use the restroom? Something?” So much for not showing him my nervousness.
He shakes his head. “I’m okay.”
