At this, Anne, who’d been staring off into space, suddenly snapped to attention. “Wait. What did you say?”
Kasey looked at her. “Bellflower?”
“Moonakis.” Anne peered at the last bucket, which was full of tight, bright pink buds. “That’s what those are?”
“Pretty, right?” Kasey nodded. “Wait until they open up.”
“I thought you never knew,” Anne said. She reached out, touching one. “When they bloomed.”
“You don’t.” Kasey wrapped some thin wire around a completed bouquet. “But when it happens, it’s worth the wait.”
Hearing this, Anne sniffled, then pushed herself, shakily, to her feet and into the bathroom. Lana sneezed again. “I love her,” she said quietly. “Butsomuch crying.”
A breeze blew over the house then, whistling through the screen door. Outside, the wind chimes began spinning and clanking. Then I heard something else.
“Anne?” It was coming from the direction of the Woods.“Anne?”
Kasey put down the roll of wire. “What the hell?”
“Anne!”
Lana got up, walking over to the door. “Oh my God,” she said. She turned, a hand over her mouth, then said through it, “It’s Jonathan.”
“What?” Kasey said. “I can’t understand you.”
She dropped her hand.“Jonathan,”she hissed. “He’s—”
“Anne!”The voice was getting closer. “Lana! Is she in there?”
Lana looked at us. “He’s almost here. What should I do?”
Kasey was back wrapping up flowers. “Open the door, I guess.”
She did. A moment later, there was the sound of feet hitting the steps, rapid, and then Jonathan appeared. Although honestly, I barely recognized him. Every other time we’d crossed paths, he looked like the handsome fraternity boy he was, everything effortless and in place. As he stepped into sight now, though, his eyes were red, hair was sticking up sideways. The blue oxford tee he wore had a visible stain.
He quickly scanned the room, then looked at us. “Please. Tell me where she is. I know she was at our place today.”
“I think she just needs—” Lana began.
“She took the tickets!” he wailed.
We all just looked at him. Then Kasey said, “The what?”
“The tickets.” He pulled a hand through his hair: Now it was all on end, giving him a mad-scientist look. “We keep them tucked in the mirror in the bedroom. The one she gave me, the night we met. And the one I proposed with. They’re gone.”
Nobody knew what to say to this. Luckily, he continued.
“I don’t care about the wedding, my mother. The planner and stupid bridesmaids’ dresses.” Frantic, he scanned our faces. “I don’t care what comes next. I just want us to do it together.”
“Hey,” Kasey said to him. “Take a breath. You’re going to pass out.”
“Ticket for ticket,” he went on, his eyes moving again around the room before landing on me. Pleading, like I could fix this. “It’s what we always say. Once that’s done, you’re—”
There was a soft click. The bathroom door opened and Anne came out, another wad of tissue balled up in one hand. “All in,” she said softly.
The rest of us were totally still. Even Kasey had stopped winding wire.
And then, motion. Anne moving toward him, tears spilling down her cheeks. Her arms around his neck. Him fumbling to kiss her lips, then forehead, then lips again before I finally got embarrassed and looked away.
