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They’re an item, going steady, boyfriend-girlfriend, baes—” “What the fuck is a bae?” I interject. “One of the stupidest internet trends,”
“Really though, how much shit am I going to be in with her dad?” I ask them, steering the topic away. “When he finds out you’re procreating as soon as possible,” Connor muses. Lo rephrases, “When he finds out you’re impregnating his youngest daughter as we speak.” Connor arches a brow. “When he finds out you’re actively having sex with the hope of your sperm meeting her egg.” “When he finds out you’re—” “I got it,”
“Can’t a guy appreciate romance? Will there be tissues at the wedding because I’m a crier. I’m not against using cloth napkins.” He pauses. “That’s if I’m invited.” His eyes ping between us. “I’m invited, right?” “No,” Ryke deadpans at the same time that I say, “Yes.” Sully points at his friend. “Traitor.” “Loser.” Sully gapes. “Toad-face.” “Ginger root.”
“If we were the last two people on Earth, do you think we could survive? Just you and me. No doctors around to save us.” “Seeing you hurt in any capacity is not on the fucking agenda. Doctors or no doctors. Last people on Earth or surrounded by millions—I don’t give a fuck.”
“Seriously? I thought you were the smart one, love. I told you I was fine.” He rubs Moffy’s dark brown hair. “Paul O’Hare was just being a helpless dickhead.” “Dickhead!” Moffy laughs excitedly and shoves the letter L into its correctly-sized slot. Lo cringes. “I should’ve seen that one coming.”
I have this theory. Relationships that take the most effort and the most time become the mightiest, most resilient bonds in the end.
“Knock knock.” My small smile lifts my cheeks. “Who’s there?” “Fuck.” He tucks my hair behind my ear. “Fuck who?” I play along, my lungs lighter. He leans his head down, lips to my ear as he whispers, “Fuck me.”
Lo gestures from his older brother, then to me. “I’ve heard that people spend a really long time finding their soul mates.” I squeeze Lily’s shoulder. She’s been in her soul mate’s arms since she was little. “It took you two long enough, didn’t it?” Lo says. “No thanks to me.” He pauses. “But I want you two to know—from the bottom of my black, decaying heart—I love you both, and the only perfect world has Ryke standing beside Daisy and Daisy standing beside Ryke. Anything less is fucked up. Remember that, will you?”
“You always cared about me. You were always there for me, but this time felt different. You wrapped your coat around me, picked me up in your arms, and said, ‘When life gets fucking hard, you can always turn to me. You need to run? I’ll run with you, Calloway. Just put on some fucking shoes first.’” She smiles, tears streaming down her cheeks, and I feel another one roll down mine. “I realized then that I’d never want to be vulnerable with any other man but you. Someone who understands me. Respects me. Loves me—so wildly. You were the only one. You are the only one.”
“I knew,” I say slowly to her, “that you were the only girl that I’d ever fall in love with—could ever fall in love with—in Cancún, Mexico, on the boardwalk of a bungee jump.” She begins to sob, shaking her head. I cup her face between my hands. “I knew back then, Daisy Petunia Calloway, because you were the only girl I’d ever met that was as deeply caring and as fucking lonely as me. If anyone was going to fill my heart, it was you. Only you.”
“I never thought I’d be with you.” I feel hot trails scald my face. “I was fucking content with the idea of being alone for the rest of my life.” I said as much to my brother at one point. “You want to know what I am now?” She nods. “I’m more than fucking happy, Dais.” I lean down to her and whisper, “Thank you.”
His casted leg is stretched out with curse words scrawled in black Sharpie. He didn’t care what we wrote, so I suggested our Favorite Sayings from Ryke Meadows. My favorite: I fucking love you. Willow’s: I don’t fucking understand Tumblr. Lo’s: Fuck you, you fucking fuck. Lily’s: Fucking fantastic. Rose’s: No means no. Better yet, fuck no. Connor’s: Connor Cobalt is a fucking narcissist.
I love him in every moment. In every smile. In every frown. And I will love him after every long way down. He can mourn. He can grieve. He can be upset for the rest of his life. And still. I will never give up on Ryke Meadows. Like he never once gave up on me.
Friends might not be forever, but maybe friends that you view as family have long-lasting powers, destined to stick around.
“Classic Ryke Meadows.” “You give him a compliment,” Connor chimes in, “and he says fuck you.” “Fuck you,” Ryke actually says to Connor. All the guys laugh, and the rest of us join in too.
