“There’s nothing for you to figure out.” She scooted closer to me so that our thighs were touching. “I don’t think you could get rid of me now. Because I like you and I love you.”
Did my heart just fucking soar at those words?
Yes. And I was not ashamed.
I wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer into my chest, feeling the warmth of her body against mine. “I love you, Scribbles.”
She rested her head against my chest, her voice soft and teasing. “I love you, too. But I hope you don’t mean I can’t leave you in a physical sense.”
“Of course not,” I murmured, my fingers gently stroking her arm. “I’m never going to stop you from going places. I want to bethe person in your corner, cheering you on, confident in the knowledge that you’ll come back.”
“We’ll always come back to each other.” She shifted slightly, pulling back just enough to rest her head against the tree trunk. Her eyes softened as she looked at me. “So where does that leave us now?”
“In a real relationship, of course,” I said, feeling a smile spread across my face as I brushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
“Right.” Her smile mirrored mine as she leaned into my touch. “I can’t believe it took us so long to get here. What do we do now?”
I cocked my head. “What do you mean?”
“Logistically, we don’t have to keep up with fake dates now. Do we say anything publicly?”
“Nah,” I said, my hand moving down to rest on her leg, giving it a light squeeze. “Let people think what they’re going to think.”
Her eyes searched mine for a moment before she asked, “Are you happy?”
I blinked, taken aback. “This is literally the happiest moment of my life. Why would you ask that?”
“Not just about this, but in general.” She bit her lip, her brows knitting together. “You’re taking a social media break, you’re going back to school to change careers, you’re in a new relationship. That’s a lot of change.” Her voice softened, tinged with hesitation. “Are you happy with how everything turned out?”
I paused, considering her question. “Truth is, I’m still not sure what I’m doing.” I pulled her closer, our foreheads nearly touching. “I think it’ll take me a while to get there and feel completely happy and confident in my decisions. But this? Me and you?” I pressed my lips gently against her forehead,lingering there for a moment. “It will always be the one thing I’m confident in and happy about. What about you?”
Macey smiled, her hand resting on my chest. “Me?”
“It’s not like you haven’t had a lot of changes, too. Are you happy?” I asked, my fingers lacing with hers.
“Yeah.” She nodded, her grip tightening around my hand. “I’m actually a lot happier than I thought I was going to be. Getting fired sucked, but it made me realize how ready I am for the next stage of my career.” She leaned forward, her face inches from mine, her smile widening. “Starting my blog made me feel like I was in control over something I loved. Not to mention, I get to do it all with a hot boyfriend at my side.”
Boyfriend.
The word sent a thrill through me, new and unfamiliar but in the best possible way. I tilted my head, my heartbeat quicking as I leaned in to brush a soft kiss on her lips. “Speaking of doing it all…” I couldn’t hide the grin that spread across my face. “What are you doing this summer?”
29
MACEY
The Burrow Bitches
Kira: What am I going to do without you??
Macey: I’ll only be gone 3 months!
Ariadne: A lot can happen in 3 months.
Britney: a lot ;)
Ariadne: What does that even mean?
Macey: Guys, don’t do anything crazy without me this summer.
