Our line leader got up, and it was the quickest they ever got into formation as we headed toward the gym. Christopher wore a bright blue-and-purple shirt, along with his class, and his sunglasses were the extralarge kind clowns wore, and it softened my anger at him. He was such a goofy, good man.
“So?” he said as he got closer to me. His fingers brushed against mine, and that that small contact sent a ripple of electricity all the way from my head to my toes and I sucked in a breath.
All from our fingers touching.Get a grip.
“Can’t wait to see the float.” I shrugged, looking at the kids and back at him. “Guessing it’s a barbeque or Hawaiian theme.”
We got outside, but before we took a step, he held my hand and waited until I looked him in the eye. “Here it goes,” he said, his usual confidence gone. “Our theme isthe beach.You told my sister you never got to have a normal childhood with all the mission trips, and well, I know that’s why you are so good at what you do. You want every kid to have memories—good memories—that last a lifetime, so we wanted to give you a good beach memory.”
My heart lodged in my throat, and I blinked back my emotion. He guided me toward our float, and there was a sandcastle, fake palm trees, and a little pool with ducks. The kids jumped on the trailer, and one student pushed play on a boom box. Beach music started playing, and all the kids shouted my name.
“Ms. Carter! It’s your first beach trip! You need to get on!”
“My mom says you need sunscreen.”
“And you shouldn’t get sand in your butt!”
Emotion overload. I froze, but a soft hand pressed on my back and moved us closer to the float. There was a large sandcastle right in the center and a little bench that went around the whole trailer so kids could sit. They were covered in beach towels, and one of the pools had water balloons filling it.
“What do you think?”
“It’s a beach,” I said, stating the obvious as I took in every detail. The seashells from earlier were on the ground. The kids laughed and danced, and Christopher’s voice was smooth and really close to my ear.
“Part one of my plan was talking to my dad. I carried that wound for far too long and let his mistakes mess up my personal life in more ways than one. We talked it out and are finally in a better place, but I amso sorrythat I let my issues get in the way of us, Gilly,” he said, spinning me to face him. He didn’t seem nervous anymore.
He looked hopeful, excited even with a small smile and soft eyes. “Part two was doing this float with every bell and whistle I could. Your story stuck with me, and I wanted to bring it to you.”
“I love it,” I said, taking in the scene. The other grades were released, and tons of kids and teachers were heading to their respective floats. Parent volunteers were all around, but they all faded into the background. Christopher’s handsome face with long lashes and love swirling in his eyes had my own eyes stinging. “I can’t believe you brought me the beach.”
“It’s part one of my apology.”
“What’s the next one?”
“This.” He took a breath and moved us to sit down on the bench and took my hand. “I love you, Gilly. Your personality, your creativity, your smile. I want a life with you. Kids, you telling me I’m boring and me telling you that you use too many colors. I want it all, with you.”
“What?” I said, damn well hearing him, but his words going too fast through my mind.I love youkept repeating over and over, somehow erasing all the tears and hurt from the past week. “You love me.”
“Yes, God,” he said, cupping my face and his brows coming together in a hard line. “I don’t give a crap about your money. I really don’t, and I’m so sorry I assumed you stole…looking back, there were so many reasons why you didn’t. I just…I reacted without thinking, without talking to you. I willneverdo that again.”
My fingers shook as he clasped them in between his large hands. He took another deep breath, his minty breath hitting my face, before he said, “Okay, this is from the heart here, so bear with me.”
“Okay,” I said, absolutely on edge about what he would say.
“Sandcastles are a lot like relationships. As we built one all week, I realized they are beautiful but vulnerable. Easy to break. One lie, misunderstanding, one small wave can wash it away, but as long as there is sand and water, love and trust and devotion, it can be built again. I’m also a lot like sand. Kinda boring, nothing too fancy, but paired with something like water—like you, a breath of fresh air and fun and full of life—it can become something pretty damn special. I want that with you. I’ll wait until you’re ready though. I broke us, so it’s up to me to fix it, and I will. I’ll do whatever it takes, okay?”
I nodded as he reached over and briefly ran his finger over my bottom lip, and my pulse doubled at what I saw in his eyes. Determination. Love. Promise for more. I breathed in his clean scent and had a million thoughts on how to respond, but I never got the chance.
“Ms. Carter! Ms. Carter! We’re starting!” Tyler shouted.
Sure enough, the parade was starting, and the kids all cheered. We were required to stand on either ends of the trailer to make sure kids didn’t jump off—because they would try. We moved to opposite ends, and while he didn’t touch me, I could still feel the ghost of his finger on my mouth.
He made this float for me.
He told me he loved me.
He apologized to his dad and admitted that was an issue.
All of this…was for me. I sat on the corner as the parade started, the band playing the high school’s fight song and the drums banging echoed down the street. It would take at least twenty minutes to go around the block at the pace we were moving, and I kept glancing at Christopher. He high-fived a student, looked up at me, and winked.
