“Weird for you?” Cali crossed her arms, “I found out that humans can turn into giant wolfs, and that I was destined to be with one of them.” She snorted.
“This isn’t a weird competition,” I shot back smiling, “But you’re right, your life has completely changed. Completely.” I couldn’t even imagine.
“It has,” Her smile widened as she twisted the ring on her finger, “It is everything I didn’t dare to even dream of, and it happened.” Her voice was soft, wistful and it made me happy.
“Beer?” I asked, one of our study beverages when the coffee was hitting too hard.
“Celebratory beer?” She asked, flipping her long curls over her shoulder, “Always.”
She popped up from her chair and went into the kitchen behind her to grab some beer from the fridge. I wondered when Caspien started stocking it, it didn’t seem like his drink, and I didn’t remember seeing it in there when I first started coming over. “I asked him,” Cai said setting down our favorite cheap beer in front of me, “To stock this,” She added giving me a smile answering my unspoken question, “He’s not so bad you know.”
“You’re right. You really sold him.” I met her wry smile.
“Cheers,” I tapped my beer to hers, “We did it.”
“Some of it,” I amended, scowling at my notes.
“This is worse than I remember,” Cali frowned at her beer, “I love it.”
“Reminds me of a simpler time,” I joked, but even back then nothing was simple.
Caspien came into my life and he turned it upside down. He showed me how a mate, a partner, and an equal should act and he let me fall in love with him in a way that felt comfortable for me. If he would have been anyone else, I don’t know if I would have accepted a second chance, especially if they tried to push me like Nolan often did. I was lucky that it was him.
“Nothing in my life has been as easy as it is now,” Cali’s voice dropped, “I’m thankful that Holden and his family, your family, and even Caspien’s stepped in.” I swallowed.
“I’m happy that I have you, I’m d.amn lucky that I met you,” Cali said her fiery stare met mine but I could see it misting over, “I don’t know what I would have done without you.” She shook her head blinking.
That floored me, I didn’t know what I would have done without her. My dark firecracker fairy godmother that helped me find a job, took care of Emmett and pulled me back from myself when I was internalizing. “You saved me,” I whispered.
“That is not the truth. You saved yourself.” Cali said, her voice hard now, “I might have been there but just as a witness.” She gave me her signature smile.
“Okay, fine, but you helped me more than you could have known.” I amended.
“So did you.” She nodded towards me lifting her beer, “To family.”
“To family.” I raised mine.
I felt like I was actually in college, cramming for days. Everything blended together, my eyes felt hot and stung at some points when I opened a page. I wrote and re-wrote the same essay, and even though I got sleep I still felt overwhelmed. It was kind of nice.
Stressed over something that wasn’t life and death for once.
It felt almost normal.
“Ready?” Caspien held his hand out to me, and I scooped my notes into a purse.
“Sure,” I placed my hand in his and he helped me stand.
I ran my fingers through my hair. Why was I so nervous? Did it even matter?
But it did. To me, it did. I wanted to finish this, the first thing I might have started myself for myself.
I wouldn’t condemn myself if I failed, in the grand scheme of things it didn’t matter, it wouldn’t change the course of things that I had set in motion. But I was nervous. It did matter to me. I had to prove to myself that I could.
“Good luck, but you don’t need it.” Caspien raised my hand to his lips and kissed it before sliding out of the car and opening the door for me, “I’ll be here when you’re done.”
“Thanks.”
I took a long look at him. Unwavering confidence, as always. He was fixing the sleeve of his Immaculate suit, looking picture-perfect, but I no longer wondered if I could match up to that.
He was mine, and I was his, and we balanced each other, completed each other perfectly.
I turned away with a glimmer of confidence, and I hoped it was all I needed to help me get through these finals.
Cali stood by the computer, refreshing our grades, I knew she wasn’t as worried for herself. She excelled at her courses and was keeping up with them. I appreciated her anxiety for me, at least.
I needed 72% on my final to pass this class. The others I passed. If barely. But the business one was my hardest, for me at least.
“Oh my gosh!” Cali jumped up and grabbed her face.
“What?” I couldn’t contain my shock and excitement.
“You got a seventy-three.” She jumped up, and I joined her, I grabbed her arms.
“Holy c.rap did I pass?” My voice was high-pitched, and we danced around the kitchen before bumping into the island and falling over it laughing.
“I don’t have to ask that you passed, right?” I looked at her.
“I got it of course I did,” She flipped her hair over her shoulder but fixed me with a smile.
“I never doubted you,” I said. She raised an eyebrow, “No, really, not with this, at least.”
“B.itch,” She slapped my arm before leaning over the counter.
“So now what?” We conquered summer classes at community college; where are we going next?”
Cali sat up, “The world is our oyster.” Her eyes gleamed, and in some way, it was.
“Come here, Mama.” Emmett tugged at my arm, Cali and I were sprawled on the couch the day after our results.
I didn’t care that I would probably never see the inside of a classroom again. All that mattered was, for some reason, somehow, I passed. Like everything else recently, I did it, but I accepted the help of others.
I think they call that growth
I rolled my eyes and looked at Emmett. He was wearing a little black tie suit, and his hair slicked back.
“Emmett, whats going on?” I asked.
I had a ring, the title, the royal crowning ceremony, or whatever was being planned. Maybe I slipped on an event? That wouldn’t be surprising. “Mommy,” Loreli came up in a little floor-length green dress.
Cali looked between me and her daughter and I shrugged, she looked just as confused as I was.
Was this something for both of us?
“You look lovely,” I said to Emmett and his smile widened, “So do you, Loreli,” She did something that looked like a bow.
“She learned that from Holden,” Cali shrugged, smiling down at her daughter, “Where are we going, Lor?”
“Shh,” She put a finger to her mouth, and I tried not to laugh.
We followed them out and to the elevator.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.