Page 456 of Call Me Baby 2: Side B

Silence falls.

He shifts in place,

but he doesn’t take his eyes off me now.

They bore into me with a fierce farewell.

Not an ounce of doubt left,

he’s made up his mind,

stopped fighting himself.

Seconds pass,

my heart standing on the edge.

His inhale is so fucking loud.

“It’s real pretty back here⁠—”

“Why are you here?” I interrupt.

He rubs a hand over his mouth,

glancing over at the box.

“I had an hour,” he says. “Whole fuckin’ hour to find the words. And I still don’t know what to say.” His hand settles on the lid. “This is—” His gaze falls to the ground for a beat. “This is the best gift I ever got, Allison. Not ‘cause of the price tag or even the fact these are impossible to find… that ain’t it. It’s what they mean to me.

“It’s you knowin’ what they mean to me… It’s you knowin’—” He blows out a heavy breath. “It's you just... knowin' me.”

His thumb scrapes the corner.

“Which is why I can’t accept them.”

The world turns mute.

I stare at him.

He stares at the box.

The box stares back, probably wondering why it got dragged into the middle of this.

“You can’t keep them ‘cause they mean too much…” I repeat it out loud ‘cause maybe if the words hear themselves, they’ll realize how stupid they sound.

They don’t.

He really is ending this, he doesn't even want to accept a Christmas present.

And the longer I stand here,

staring at him,

the faster this actually fucking hurts.

“Alright, Drew.” I swipe the box off the roof and pop the trunk to drop them inside. “Might as well get in the car,” I say, circling to the driver’s side. “Ride with me to the penthouse, so you can grab all your shit.”

He pushes off the car, hands gripping his neck as his eyes follow me.