“Why did we wait so long to do this?” Ariana asks. My heart squeezes at the sound of her voice drifting out of the closet.
“Because you said it was a bad idea.”
“I say that about most of our ideas, but we do them anyway."
Lil laughs. “True. And they’re usuallyyourideas.”
“Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Anyway, those gummies pair better with vodka than I expected.”
“Luca’s going to be pissed when he finds out I got you high and drunk at the same time.”
Ariana snorts. “To be fair, it was a last resort because nothing else was keeping me from freaking out or crying for more than like fifteen minutes, tops. This has worked for over an hour. I call that progress.”
“Maybe we shouldn’t tell him about all the crying.”
“He’ll know even if we don’t tell him.”
“Because he looooooves you,” Lil sing-songs.
I’ve been standing in the doorway for most of what I’ve heard, simply watching Ariana. Lil’s sitting with her back against the island in the middle of the closet with her legs straight in front of her. Ariana is lying on her back on the floor, her head next to Lil’s leg. They both have their eyes closed.
I stumble in and lie down, resting my head on Ariana’s stomach. Her hand immediately goes to my hair, her fingers running through it over and over. I could stay here forever if she keeps doing that. I reach up and take her other hand in mine.
“It’s my fault Ari’s drunk. And high. All my idea,” Lil claims.
“It’s your dad’s fault I’m drunk,” I say with a shrug. Ariana giggles and digs her fingers into my hair a little more.
“So, we’re all drunk, Ari and I are high, and we’re just chilling on the floor in my closet. It would be so much cooler if we had a dog to hang out with us in here…”
Ariana sighs. “There was a dog there. When I was little. He growled at me, chased me all the time… he hated me. He always had food, even when I didn’t. I tried to take some once, even though he scared the shit out of me. I was just so hungry. He bit my leg all the way to the bone. They laughed. So did their friends. Didn’t take me to the hospital for three days and only did because it got infected. They always took him and his food when they disappeared for a few days.”
“You told me you were too young to remember how you got that scar…” Lil says quietly.
“I lied, Lil. I was hoping I would get over it so you could have a dog someday, but they still freak me out.” I squeeze the hand I’m holding and she squeezes back.
“It’s okay, Ari. I can live without a dog. Can’t live without you.”
Lil glances at me with sadness in her eyes and takes a deep breath. “We should go watch something stupid on TV. I’ll start scrolling.” Lil leans down and kisses Ariana’s forehead before climbing to her feet and leaving the closet.
Moving so I’m next to Ariana, I wrap my arm around her waist. She turns to face me, but her eyes are still closed. I brush a lock of hair behind her ear and caress her cheek.
“Nothing will ever lessen how I feel about you, Ariana. Nothing. Not scars. Not nightmares. Not a goddamned thing. You hear me?”
Ariana opens her eyes. There is a sheen of tears covering them. “Yeah, I hear you.” Her lips turn up into a sassy smile. “Not even stealing your French fries?”
“Nope. Not even when you have your own but still eat mine.”
“Yours taste better.”
“They’re the same fries.”
She huffs. “I beg to differ. What about when I steal your shirts?”
“They look better on you, anyway.”
“Again, I beg to differ.”
I chuckle and lean in, pressing my mouth against hers gently. She kisses me back before dragging her thumb along my lower lip.
