“I think you’re right. I’ll talk to them,” Ava conceded.
Summer beamed and tugged Ava into a hug, which really just smooshed Ava’s face against her boobs.
“Great idea,” Morgan said brightly. “We also need to talk about getting you into therapy, but one step at a time.”
Chapter 16
The Renovation
Face down, ass up was not Ava’s preferred position first thing in the morning, but when there was only one activity your two best friends had in common, you sucked it up. She lowered herself from downward dog to plank on the yoga mat at Summer’s instruction. Morgan fluidly moved, her back in a straight line, whereas Ava could feel her butt sticking up too high in the air.
They finished their sunrise salutations, and Ava breathed a sigh of relief when they pushed back into child’s pose for a rest. Placing her head on the squishy yoga mat, Ava took several deep breaths to calm her heart rate. All too soon for Ava’s liking, Summer called out for the class to change position into dolphin pose so they could practice headstands. She had a suspicion Summer only called for this pose to show off in front of Morgan, who, of course, would take the bait.
Knowing any attempt at a headstand wouldn’t go well, Ava settled on her mat and grabbed her phone instead. She swiped away thejust checking intext from Alec and opened the group chat with her brothers.
Noah: Landed in Boston. Waiting for you at gate A21 when you get here, bro.
Lucifer (Lucas): Boarding my flight. ETA 10:25.
Noah: See you soon, Ava!
She typed a response.
Ava: Pick you up at noon
After the minor intervention from her friends earlier that week, Ava called her brothers. Noah readily agreed to come help, apologizing profusely when he realized how much Ava had been struggling on her own. Lucas, to her surprise, also agreed after a few passive aggressive comments about how hard it would be to rearrange his schedule.
With the help of Summer and Morgan, they’d cleared out her brothers’ shared room at the cabin. Even though she was relieved to have them coming to help, Ava already dreaded Morgan returning to New York that afternoon. She’d gotten used to sharing the queen-sized bed with her friend and the slice of normalcy that came with Morgan catching her up with work and the reality tv shows Ava couldn’t watch at the cabin with its slow internet.
She closed the group chat with her brothers and hovered over the text thread with Owen. They hadn’t seen each other since her dad’sashes arrived at the cabin, but he’d sent her a few texts, including a picture he received of Avery from summer camp grinning ear to ear. Each time his name flashed on her phone screen, she couldn’t deny it made her giddy, like she was a teenager again.
“Who are you texting?”
Ava locked the phone screen and looked at Morgan, who was still in headstand. Her body was a perfect line from head to toe, not a bead of sweat on her forehead.
“Just checking in with my brothers,” Ava said. She placed the phone screen-down on the floor and straightened up on her mat.
Morgan gracefully lowered her legs to the floor and unfolded herself from headstand like it was a normal occurrence and not a feat of athleticism. “That’s not how I smile when my siblings text me.”
Summer's call for the class to assume their final poses saved Ava. Minutes later, they left the recreation center together, agreeing to meet Summer at the café when she finished straightening up the yoga space.
Morgan linked her arm through Ava’s as they started walking the few blocks to the café. In the distance, a delivery truck parked next to the Agatha Building unloading a large dumpster on the property. Her stomach dropped at the thought of someone renovating her dream, and she pushed it from her mind to focus on her last couple of hours with her friend.
“So what do you think of Cedar Falls so far?”
“It’s cute …” Morgan trailed off.
“But?”
Morgan waited until they passed by an older couple on the sidewalk going in the opposite direction.
“There are a lot of white people here. I get it’s a small town, but, babe, there’s like no diversity,” Morgan said.
Ava let out a surprised laugh and looked around them. Sure enough, she picked up on what Morgan was saying. “You’re not wrong. It’s definitely not like New York,” Ava conceded. “I’m glad you’re here.”
“Me too, even if I stick out like a sore thumb. And now that I know you’re not on the verge of a breakdown anymore, I won’t worry so much when I get back home. To our home. Because you are coming back to New York, right?”
Morgan playfully bumped her hip against Ava’s, sending her off-balance. Before she could right herself, Ava tripped on a piece of pipe extending from a pile just off the sidewalk. Her arm slipped from Morgan’s and she pitched forward.
