It was hard for me to leave her with him. There have been plenty of times when Kevin has been nice, but other times he's a complete ass.
I start up a conversation to keep myself from worrying about Amari too much. “I can’t believe it’s been a year.”
“Look at how far we’ve come.”
I take a sip of my Dr. Pepper. “It’s been a crazy year. I can’t believe this time last year you were asking me to be your girlfriend.”
“I’ll be asking you to be my wife one day.” He winks at me.
A shy smile plays on my lips, and I tilt my head downward. “I hope we make it that far.”
“We will. Rememberforeverand—” He pauses.
“Ever,” I say, finishing the sentiment we have always told each other.
Looking back, I can vividly recall the first time he whispered those words to me.
“Arewe going to be together forever? Because I don’t want to be one of those couples that have sex and then they break up. This has to be for forever if we’re going to do this.”
“It is forever.”
I reach back in and wrap my hand around his neck. “And ever.”
“Forever and ever,” he whispers against my lips.
I’m happy that I’m still with the same guy that I lost my virginity to. So many girls never end up with the ones they lose it too. I’ve never wanted that. Even with our ups and downs, I know we will work out.
“Where do you see us in ten years?” I ask.
He leans back against the booth with a smirk on his face. “Living in a house with maybe one more kid.” He stays silent for a minute. “Oh, and having my own welding company.”
“Why only one more kid?” We’ve never talked about how many kids we each want. I always wanted my kids close together in age. But because I had Amari so young, I can’t see myself having another one in a couple of years. In a couple of years, I’ll only be nineteen. I always saw myself starting a family at twenty-five. But here I am with a baby at seventeen. It’s crazy where life takes you.
“Kids are expensive and hard.”
I chuckle. “I told you.”
“You’ve had more experience from having a little sister. I’ve never been around babies or little kids.”
The server comes and places our filet mignon steaks on our tables. I paired mine with mashed potatoes and a side salad. Kai got lobster mac & cheese and broccoli.
“Even with having a little sister, I never realized how hard it was going to be.”
“Do you regret it?”
“Having Amari? No. Never. I love her so much.” I take a bite of my steak. “It would have been easier if we were older. Everything happens for a reason. I believe this is where we’re meant to be.”
“I agree.”
After dinner, we drive to the park we used to go to together when I would sneak out to be with him. “Wow, I can’t believe we never come here anymore.” There is a trail that wraps around the whole outer edge of the park. We begin walking through it with our hands clasped together.
There are kids still playing with their parents, and some watching their children from the benches they sit on. Summer has ended, and the sun is setting earlier. This brings back déjàvu from when we first started coming here. It was around the same time.
A small breeze blows through my hair.
We both come to a halt, our eyes drawn to the tree before us. A chuckle escapes our lips, an unspoken understanding passing between us as we stand in front of this tree, giggling.
“This is where Amari was conceived. Should we make another?”
