“She was crying… like…realcrying. Not that fake stuff,” he continued, watching me closely for my reaction.
I leaned back, propping myself up on my hands, fully invested in his recounting.
“Are you still mad at her?”
“Yes. I got a right to be.”
“I’m not saying you don’t, but Jo… you gotta forgive her.”
My brows knitted together in confusion, frustration simmering beneath the surface. “Kyrin—”
“Listen,” he cut in gently. “I ain’t saying what she did was right. It wasn’t. It was messed up. But I don’t think she was trying to hurt us. I think she just made a bad decision… a real bad one.”
I exhaled slowly, the tension in my body loosening slightly, but I couldn’t shake the feeling of betrayal.
“That ‘bad decision’ could’ve cost you everything."
“I know, but it didn’t. She ain’t take my heart. I still got one… a new one at that. And Jo, she’s still our mama.”
I huffed a quiet breath, but I listened.
“I forgave her,” Kyrin announced, taking me by surprise.
I blinked. “Just like that?”
“Nah,” he shook his head. “Not just like that. I was mad too. But I was laying in here thinking…” he went on, tapping his chest lightly, “I just got another chance… like… a real one. And if I can get another chance, why she can’t?”
I didn’t answer right away because part of me didn’t want to hear that or accept it.
“You don’t gotta forget what she did, and you don’t gotta act like it didn’t happen, but holding on to it like that, it’s just gonna mess you up.”
I swallowed, my throat tightening. “I’m not holding on to it,” I grumbled.
He shot me a dubious, knowing look. “Yes, you are.”
This boy was too smart for his own good.
I rolled my eyes, trying to muster some defiance, but there wasn’t much fight left in me.
“Jo…” he said again, his voice dropping in volume, almost like a whisper meant just for me. “She was wrong without a doubt, but you have to understand, she was doing what she thought she needed to do at the time.”
“That doesn’t make it okay,” I responded sharply, desperate to cling to my anger.
“I know,” he nodded. “But it makes it human.”
Memories began to flood my mind—the anger that had consumed me, the deep betrayal that left scars, the paralyzingfear of losing something precious—and then… there he was, the person before me who steadied my soul.
I let out a slow, shaky breath, feeling a mix of relief and weariness washing over me.
“You’re strong, Jo,” he added. “But you don’t gotta be hard all the time.”
I let out a small, tired laugh. “Since when you get so wise?”
He smirked. “New heart… new mindset.”
I shook my head, smiling.
Of course, it was only him who could reach this part of me.
