Mae opened her mouth, closed it again. Her thoughts were running in too many directions at once, like a dog strapped into roller skates.
‘I told you I loved you and I meant it. But you… You’re Callie. You don’t do this. Love is a joke to you.’
‘I’m not laughing now,’ Callie told her.
For a few seconds, both of them had the good sense to shut the hell up. But the peace couldn’t last.
‘I don’t know what I’m doing,’ Callie said. ‘But I know I went on that date last night, and I was determined to kiss Emma. And the whole time I was there, all I could think about was you. Upset with me. Possibly done with me.’
Mae's hands tightened into clenched fists. ‘And you didn’t…’
‘No,’ Callie said quickly.
Mae swallowed. ‘That doesn’t mean you—’
‘I think it does actually,’ Callie said, almost sadly. ‘I think that’s exactly what it means. Because I can’t imagine any place I’d rather be than sat on this linoleum, next to you.’ She paused thoughtfully. ‘I wonder when it happened. When we were little? Or more recently? What was the exact moment I fell in love with you?’
The word hit Mae like a physical thing.
She turned her head slowly. ‘Don’t say that.’
Callie blinked. ‘What?’
‘Don’t say “love” if you don’t mean it,’ Mae warned Callie. ‘Don’t say it on a whim. I’m in far too deep for that. You’ll break me, and I won’t glue back together. I know it.’
Callie took a breath, then another, then gave up pretending she wasn’t shaking. ‘Mae… has it occurred to you thatyou’rethe reason everyone else has been a joke to me? I mean, we’ve known each other since we were five. That’sbone-deepknowing. Like, Iknowthat you will save me the sunny seat in the library. Iknowthat you’ll complain about coming to the hairdresser's with me, but you’d never not come. Iknowyou’ll give me the last crisp from your packet of salt and vinegar.’
‘Yes, we’ve established that I would do anything for you,’ Mae said miserably.
‘It’s not just the things you do for me,’ Callie said quietly. ‘It’syou. The way you get this spark in your eyes when you’re arguing about something you care about. The way you laugh like it surprises you every time. How you’rethemost sarcastic person in the world, but when someone needs kindness, you give it without hesitation. How you go soft around animals but pretend you don’t. I like who you are when you don’t think anyone’s looking.’
Callie sighed, deep and long. ‘I think all that has been a problem for me for some time now. Because it turns out,apparently, you’re not supposed to compare every single person you meet to your best friend.’
Mae shut her eyes. It was too much. ‘Callie…’
Callie slid her shoulder closer and leaned her head on Mae’s shoulder, electrifying every nerve in Mae’s body. ‘And if you tell me to stop, I will. I’ll never bring this up again. I’ll go on dates with boring people and pretend I’m not thinking about you the whole time.’
‘Callie—’
‘But if youdon’ttell me to stop…’ Her voice dipped, soft and terrified. ‘Then I’m going to kiss you again. Properly this time. Because I want you more than I’ve ever wanted anyone or anything.’
Mae’s pulse roared in her ears. ‘I don’t want you to kiss me again,’ she breathed.
Callie’s head jerked up, eyes wide and wounded. ‘Oh.’
Mae swallowed, leaned in, and placed her hand on Callie’s jaw. ‘I want to kissyou.’
Mae closed the distance, kissing Callie like she’d been holding back for years. Because she had. Her fingers slid into Callie’s hair, pulling her closer, and Callie sighed into her mouth.
The world dropped away. The cold linoleum, the ticking fridges, the humming lights—all of it disappeared.
Callie kissed her back with the same urgency, like she’d been waiting just as long. Their foreheads bumped, breath tangling, and Mae didn’t care.
She was kissing the love of her life.
Twenty-Two
Now
