Hair that my father adored.
Shaking the onslaught of nerves away, I watch as Sage and Eden hug their goodbyes, and we all promise to see each other again soon.
Eden walks around the back of her buggy but stops just short of her door.
“I almost forgot! Amira, what’s your number?”
I stop with my hand clutching the handle, stunned, emotions jumbled into a chaotic mess as I turn around to address Eden.
“What?” I ask, trying to clear up the mistake I surely heard.
“Your phone number, bitch. What is it? I need to be able to text you.”
I don’t know my number by memory, so I pull my phone out of my bag and tell her to add her contact to it, promising to text her later. I can feel the dubiety written on my expression, still in a state of shock, as I watch Eden add her contact into my phone before hopping in the car and driving off.
“Did you have fun?” Sage asks once we begin pulling out of the driveway.
“I did, thank you,” I respond, playing with the feathered ends of my new hair tickling my collar bone.
A shrill ringing comes from within my bag. A crooked smile is pulling at my lips as I stare down at the glowing screen, but underneath the excitement I get whenever I see his name is a strain of tension puddling inside me.
“Yes, Roman?” I ask, trying to conceal the apprehension in my tone with my pure adoration for this man.
“When are you coming home? It's almost seven-thirty,” Roman grumbles. I can hear the pout in his voice, making my bubble of nerves turn into flutters of joy.
“We’re on our way home now,” I say, still fidgeting with my hair as I stare at the darkened sky above me.
“Okay. See you soon, angel. Love you.”
I love you too.
We pull up to the house an hour and a half later, the traffic slowing us down by thirty minutes.
I’m about to hop out of the truck when a wave of emotions crashes over me. Shooting my hand out, I latch onto Sage’s bony wrist, stopping her from moving any farther out of the car.
“For the longest time, the only person I had was myself… and then Roman came back into my life and connected the missing pieces of my heart, but it-it wasn’t until today that I realized how badly I missed having friends. So… thank you, Sage. Thank you for including me in today…. Thank you for being my friend.”
I don’t miss the tears that gently fall from her eyes, and I don’t pull away when Sage reaches across the seat to pull me into her arms, giving me the tightest hug she can.
It takes an immense effort, but I feel as though I’ve broken past one of my barriers when I sense my body slacken, arms lifting higher to wrap around her shoulders to hold her in return.
“I got you a present,” she whispers in my ear, barely containing her excitement when she pulls out of my hold, her beaming smile splitting her face in two.
Wiping away the tears I didn’t know I shed, I watch her reach behind my seat and bring up two brown paper bags. Sage drops them both down in my lap, hands clasped, resting under her chin as she waits for me to peer inside.
Her delighted look fills my body with stress, but I don’t deny my curiosity for much longer. Reaching inside, my fingers graze velvety soft fabric, and my heart stutters as I realize what she bought me.
Pulling out the black cocktail dress, my heart plummets to my stomach, but not before a monsoon of gratitude engulfs my senses.
“Sage…” I breathe, running my fingers over the material until I memorize every stitch and pattern.
“There’s a little something else in there for you too… I hope I got your size right,” she says, shaking in her seat with anticipation as I stick my hand back inside the bag.
My eyes lock on the lacy, black lingerie, and I can’t stop the strangled cry from seeping past my lips. It isn’t a gasp of beauty but a choke of fear.
“Amira?” she calls, worry burdening her tone when she sees my unease.
“Thank you, Sage. It’s-they’re lovely….”
