“I don’t care if it was called a “December only” tree. If it makes people happy, who cares what they do with it!” Her voicewas rising. I loved it when they did this because neither of them was angry, just passionate.
“Fine. I’ll give this one to you because you are right. It isn’t hurting anyone, so why not?” I’m surprised he gave in so quickly, but she made a good point.
As we pulled into Harp’s driveway, she let out a small gasp. “You guys didn’t.” The car barely stopped before she swung open the door.
“Let me put it in park first!” Knowing my luck, I would’ve run over her foot or something. I turned off the car, and we followed her out.
“Like it, Sugar?” Tuck asked, wrapping an arm around her waist. I walked around to her other side, ignoring the cold snow melting into my shoes.
“It’s fucking Christmas candy land. My house is candy land themed. Where do you guys find pink Christmas lights? When did you find the time for this?” Her voice sounded like she were holding back tears.
Her house was decorated in pastel colors. A lot of what we bought was handmade. She ended up with handmade massive suckers, light-up candy canes that started where the driveway met the walkway and went up to the porch. There was a massive pink blow-up Christmas tree in the center of her yard and an archway full of garland and fake massive pieces of candy that we would have to walk through to get inside.
“Harp, this isn’t all of it. Come on, trouble, it’s cold out here.” I said, grabbing her hand and dragging her inside. The way she looked at her house was how a kid in a candy store would look. She was in heaven, and it was adorable.
We kicked off our shoes when we got in and helped each other out of our coats. Harper finally took off her graduation gown, revealing the prettiest white dress. It was form-fitted, showing off her perfect figure, and stopped right above the knee. The top plunged low between her breasts and was held upby the tiniest straps on her shoulders. I got a glimpse of her before she put on the graduation gown, but I was more focused on easing her nerves than checking her out. But now? Fuck, I could barely look away.
“You look so beautiful, Harper,” I said softly, stepping forward to kiss her cheek.
“And we are so proud of you,” Tucker added, placing a kiss on her temple.
She immediately started crying. “I love you guys so much. Thank you for doing this.”
“It’s not over yet, love. C'mon," Tucker took her hand, leading her to the stairs at the back of the house. I never understood why the stairs were so far from the front door, but I kind of liked it.
They walked hand in hand, Tucker a few steps ahead of her, and I trailing behind. She was absolutely not ready for what she was going to see. There was a light switch at the bottom of the stairs that turned on the light that was placed in the hallway upstairs, but he purposely kept it off.
“Are you ready?” Tuck asked, already leading us up the dark stairs.
“Not even a little bit.” You could hear the smile in her voice as she spoke.
When they got to the top of the staircase, he told her to turn on the lights, and slowly she did just that.
“Did… did you guys paint?” She looked around, taking in the freshly painted walls. We wanted to keep things light, so we went with a soft cream color. It was Tucker's idea to hang pictures on the walls as well.
Tears streamed down her face as a hand flew over her mouth. She walked from picture to picture, staring, almost like she were reliving the memories from each. We made sure to include some of her and Wren, her and her brother, us, and even an old childhood one of when her parents were together.
She stared at that one the longest, resting a shaky hand on the frame. In the photo, Harper was around four while Reed was around eight or nine. She sat on her stepmom’s lap, holding a pink stuffed duck. Her hair was in two little curly pigtails, and her Christmas pajamas were green and decorated with presents that matched her brother’s outfit. Reed sat between his mom and stepdad, holding a toy car above his head, smiling so big his eyes seemed closed. And there was her dad, smiling at the family he loved instead of the camera.
Tucker and I stood there behind her, waiting for her to be ready to see what was next. She was trembling, but I knew she just needed a minute. Eventually, her hand fell from the picture frame as she wiped tears from her eyes. She let out a loud breath, turning to us, looking absolutely wrecked.
She smiled at us and softly said, “Thank you, guys.” Before we moved towards her, wrapping her in a hug together.
I was the first to pull away, allowing Tucker to resume leading her to her room.
Tuck twisted the doorknob to our right, letting the door swing open. He walked into the dark room, waiting again for Harper to turn on the light. December in Michigan meant it was dark by five in the evening, and now it was closer to seven.
She turned on the light, looked around, and burst into tears. Harper sank to her knees and cried into her hands. Tucker and I shared a glance. This wasn’t the reaction we expected. I immediately dropped to my knees next to her, rubbing her back. I looked back at Tuck, who had a smile plastered on his face. I waved my hand around in the air in a silent plea for help. He continued to smile while shaking his head.
He sank to one knee in front of her, uncovering her hands from her face. “Hey. Look at me, Harp.” She shook her head, tilting her head to the ground, sobs still wracking her body. As I continued to rub her back, willing her to calm, he gently took her face between his hands, tilting her face to look at him. Afterdrying a few tears, he spoke to her, and I don’t think I have ever heard him be so serious yet so loving. “Harper Rayne. Look at me, baby.”
She looked up at him, face still in his hands. “Atta girl,” he whispered, voice unsteady as he cupped her trembling jaw. “You deserve this. More than you know. I know what this place has been for you. How you’ve been pushing it down, pretending it doesn’t ache every time you think about him. I just… We couldn’t watch you carry that anymore.” He looked around the room—the walls that held echoes of a man she barely could remember—and he swallowed hard.
He drew her forehead to his.
“I know walking into this house feels like opening a wound. I know you never got the closure you deserved. And I know you’ve been trying to lock all of it away just to survive.” His voice broke. He pulled away from her, his gaze meeting her tear-filled one.
“So, Cameron and I stepped in. We built your furniture; we found pieces that made the room feel like the one at Cam’s because Wren told me that’s the only other place you ever really felt like yourself. And we brought this house, this room, back to life… not for his memory, but for you.” He swiped his thumbs over her cheeks, wiping away the last of her tears before standing to his feet. “We wanted to give you somewhere safe enough to feel everything you’ve been running from. A place where grief doesn’t swallow you—where it can finally let you go.” As Harper watched him stand, he stuck out a hand, helping her up, and once she was up, he held out the same hand for me.
