“Toby, get back here so I can finish killing you,” Seth called out.
“Wait!You promised not to start it!”Toby ran so fast back down the stairs that I was about to call out in warning before he fell.Luckily, he made it down safely to the bottom step and disappeared into the living room.
Reluctantly, really wishing I could join them, I went to my studio.After leaving the door open, I returned to the piano and looked at the Christmas song I was currently working on.It was becoming a social trend now to have a song done about your significant other and share their reaction on social media.I practically had a cookie-cutter template for them at this point since I’d had to do so many.
I imagined it was going to be the same thing for Valentine’s Day.
After blowing out a breath, I got back to work, wanting to at least finish this song and maybe get a good framework going for the next one before I called it a day.It was Friday.I wanted to enjoy my Friday with the others.
Even Justin didn’t have a meet to run off to today, so he was going to come by after practice.I was told these moments with him were rare until swim season ended.
So I forced myself to work even though it’d be so easy to ignore it.I was just uploading the song for the client to approve when Toby knocked on my door.
“What’s wrong?”I asked, taking in his expression.
He looked a little pale and anxious.
“Someone is here to see you.She says she’s Janice.”
“Wh-what?”I stumbled over the word, feeling a bit dumb.And confused.
“Your friend Janice.She’s outside with Seth.She wants to talk to you.”
He barely had a chance to finish speaking before I was running down the stairs.Toby called after me, but I didn’t care if I fell.
Was this some kind of sick joke?There was no way she’d come back.
No way.
I practically pulled the door off its hinges when I yanked on it and stared at the woman I hadn’t seen in nearly two years.She was eighteen then, and now she was twenty.
And absolutely beautiful.She looked at me with warm blue eyes, the corners crinkling as amusement danced within them.She had lost a lot of weight before she left, but now she held a spark of life I’d never seen in her, making her practically glow.
Her wavy brown hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and she wore clothes that fit her for once.I knew her as someone who stood ready to take a punch.But now she stood tall and confident.
This was what healthy and happiness looked like.
“J-Janice?”I stumbled out.
“Cadence!”Before I could say anything else or wrap my head around the reality of her being here, she pulled me into a big hug.“It’s been too long.I can’t believe it.”
She said more, but my brain wasn’t about to keep up with her.I was still trying to wrap my head around the fact that she was here.Right here.In my arms.
“Okay,” Seth spoke up.“How about we get out of this freezing cold before Cadence gets frostbite?”
Janice pulled away and looked down at me.That was when I realized I was definitely not suited to be outside, even with Janice’s body heat to keep me warm.My feet were already frozen, and it was traveling up my body.
“Oh, I’m so sorry.I didn’t mean to drag you out in the cold.I got too excited.”Janice laughed.
I grinned at her, my cheeks hurting from how big my smile was.“I still have a bunch of hot chocolate, want some?”
Her eyes widened in pure delight.Before she’d left, we had plenty of nights where we sat outside, sipping on the warm drink.It had easily become our thing as we both used those moments to escape the lives we’d been stuck in.
Janice practically dragged me inside with her.
“That way,” I directed and we went into the kitchen.
Seth grabbed everything we needed for the hot chocolate while Janice stared at me, taking in every little bit of my existence.I returned the favor, noting all the changes in her compared to her past.Good changes proving how good her life has been.
