I reach for it slowly, my fingers trembling slightly as they trace the embossed letters.
The Princess Bride.
Maybe reading a chapter will help me think about something other than Scotty Hendricks and his stupidly genuine smile and the way his arms felt around me…
I crack it open, and freeze.
There, on the first page, is handwriting.Hishandwriting.
Laura,
My mom read this to me when I was ten. I pretended I was too old for it. I wasn’t. Still read it every year.
I hope this makes up for ruining your copy, even though I know it probably never will.
I’m sorry again, Princess.
Scotty.
I flip to the next page, and there are more notes scattered in the margins. His handwriting is everywhere, some ink faded, some fresher.
Inigo’s dedication is everything.
Another page:
Buttercup gets a bad rap. She’s not weak—she’s stuck.
I flip through slowly, taking in each note. His thoughts. His reactions. Things he wanted to write down.
Read this scene 20 times. Still gets me.
Westley and Buttercup prove that some things are worth fighting for, even when everyone tells you it's impossible.
True love is the greatest thing in the world. There’s a reason dad quotes this entire scene every anniversary.
I keep reading, page after page, full of his notes. He’s everywhere in this book, and not the arrogant hockey player I thought he was when I first met him. Honestly, I’m not sure I ever believed he was that. It was just easier than knowing he was this.
A guy who loves to read. One who hides his unfiltered thoughts here and gave them to me.
I skim through the book, excited to read his notes, but as much as I want to do it all tonight, that won’t do him justice. I need to take my time, just like he did.
As I get to the final pages of the book, I see a note:
This is what love should be. Brave and true and willing to risk everything.
And then, on the very last page:
Laura,
You didn’t know who I was when we met. You just saw some naked idiot who knocked you into a fountain. And yeah, I’m probably the worst thing that’s happened to you since you got here… but meeting you? That’s the best thing that’s happened to me in years.
I don’t know if you’ll ever forgive me for that, but I hope you’ll at least give me the chance to prove I’m more than the worst first impression in history.
As you wish,
Scotty
Something slips out from the back of the book and lands on my comforter.
