I left the door open when I left to look for Bas. I found him with everyone else in the kitchen.
“You sure there’s nothin’ you want in here?” he was asking Arlo.
Arlo shook his head. “I’d like some photos,” he said. “Old school shit and the stuff I packed up from our room. Uh, and if you don’t care, the sun catcher in the front window.”
He’d said it like he was afraid to ask.
“Take it,” Bas replied immediately. “You sure that’s all?”
“Yeah, I’m sure,” he said quietly. “I think I’m going to take off, if that’s cool.”
Bas nodded slowly.
Arlo said a group goodbye and left the house, grabbing the box he’d packed and the sun catcher on his way out the door.
“It’s a lot,” Bas said apologetically. “I get it.”
“He came,” I said, wrapping my arms around his waist. “Did you tell him we’ll set aside any photos we find?”
Bas nodded.
“Oh, my god,” Myla said, lifting a yellow colander over her head. “My mom has one of these, too. Does every woman of a certain age own one of these?”
“I’ll start searching for one,” Frankie said, grinning. “Your next birthday present.”
Bas walked away as I started helping pack up the kitchen. If we could just get everything into boxes and storage, we’d be able to get the house cleaned from top to bottom.
We’d discussed selling it, but property was always a good investment, so Bas decided to hire a management company to rent it out instead. I thought it was a good idea. I didn’t want him to sell it and regret it later when things weren’t so raw.
We’d moved into the living room and weren’t sure if Bas wanted us to leave any of the photos out of storage, so I went looking for him.
I found him in Josie’s room sitting on the stool in front of the vanity.
“Hey, handsome,” I said quietly. “Decide to do some primping?”
“Yeah,” he said with a small smile. “Couldn’t decide if I should part my hair on the left or right.”
“Your hair isn’t parted,” I reminded him.
“Shit, that’s right.”
I stopped in front of him and ran my hands through his hair.
“I was afraid it would feel like she was still in here or somethin’,” he said, dropping his head forward to rest against my chest. “But she’s not.”
“No.”
“Just feels…nostalgic in here. Same with my mom’s room.”
“They’ve moved way beyond us,” I said gently. “And they’re together if you believe in that kind of thing.”
“Do you?” he asked, tilting his head back to meet my eyes.
“Yeah, I do,” I replied.
“Yeah, me too.”
“I came to find you because we were wondering if you want to pack the photos on the walls or take them home with us.”
