I’d more than achieved what I’d intended by coming tonight. Connor gave me a wave and a “nice to see you” as we walked away. I doubted I’d ever run into him again, but it heartened me he wanted to act right. It gave me hope for Fel, that not all kids who were little dicks at age sixteen remained that way.
We were almost in the hallway when I heard, “James. Wait!”
Panting at having to move quickly within the confines of her long, fitted dress, Darby came up behind us. I laced my fingers with Marley’s as I turned to her.
Darby had been so cruel to me once, ruthlessly shutting down my crush and embarrassing me in front of the entire school. I could no longer see any of the drama geek she’d once been, just the woman she’d grown into. I’d dismissed her earlier in the evening as a run-of-the-mill trophy wife type. But maybe there was more there. Her eyes grew stormy.
Nodding slightly at Marley, she said, “I’d hoped you’d come tonight, James. I feel terrible about what happened in high school. How everyone was to you then. Including me.” Her sincere regret radiated from her. “Anyway, that’s why I sent all those texts. I’m on the organizing committee and I got your number from my husband. He does IT security and knows how to find these things—well, I guess that’s not important. But I wanted you to know. I’m glad you came. It probably doesn’t mean much to get an apology now, but I really want to say I’m sorry. I wish I had done things differently. And you can tell me to fuck off or whatever you need to do, because I get that it’s not about making me feel better. But I just wanted to say sorry.”
I sighed, feeling Marley give me a fortifying grip. “I’m not going to tell you to fuck off. I accept your apology.”
“Thank you.”
“Can I ask why this was so important to you? To get me here? Just to apologize?”
She paused for a moment, and I saw a flash of pain across her features before she stepped back. “My husband and I had our second about a year ago. He was born with a huge strawberry mark covering one side of his face.” She smoothed down the front of her dress. “I worry about him, about what…might happen. And it made me think about things.”
“Ah.” I tried not to grimace. Unless her son was extremely lucky, or the world became a very different place, she was right to be concerned. But it didn’t have to mean everything. “Darby, things were bad for me in high school. You said it yourself. But I have a great life now.” I raised Marley’s hand, kissing the back of it. “Understand?”
“I do,” she said. “I’m so glad you came.”
“So am I.”
Chapter thirteen
Marley
Jamesemanatedsubduedjoyall the way to the car. Nights like this didn’t happen very often. He’d won. It had gone better than he could have possibly hoped for. And I’d been by his side for all of it. I felt giddy picturing the women ogling James, the dumbfounded men, and the look of pure satisfaction on his face once he’d recognized how little their opinions mattered. Watching Will tell off Jonas and getting Darby’s apology were simply frosting.
As we headed north on I-5, James reached across the console to grab my hand.
“I don’t even know how to thank you, Marley. And before you tell me, ‘No thanks necessary,’ I’m cutting you off. I won’t let you underplay how much this meant. What an amazing thing you did by standing by me for this.”
My neck heated at his effusiveness. He was right that I would have told him not to thank me. “It was my pleasure. Truly. I’m sure I enjoyed tonight almost as much as you did. Maybe it’s the teacher in me, but it’s nice to see a little justice in the world when it comes to bullies.”
He let go of my hand, drumming his fingers against the steering wheel. The excited energy in the compact car enveloped me.
We were almost at his parents’ house when he spoke again. “I realized something, Marley. When we were talking to Will.” He turned up the heater to fight the fog on the windows as he blew out his own heavy breath. “Everything in my life has been better since I met you. It felt risky coming to this reunion, and four months ago, I wouldn’t have even considered it.”
“That’s a really sweet thing to say.”
“I mean it. I’ve been thinking about what Leo said yesterday. That I’ve never been a fighter. But tonight, I faced my past head-on. I wouldn’t have been able to do that without your encouragement.”
I thought he might be overstating my influence. I’d just been his friend.
“What are you thinking?” he asked.
“Honestly? That I didn’t reallydoanything for you. Not intentionally anyway. You’re giving me this tremendous compliment to say I’ve made such an impact on your life. Is it nice to hear? Sure. Who wouldn’t be flattered? But it doesn’t feel earned, you know?”
“That’s just it, Marley. Don’t you see? You didn’t have to do anything. Work at it. Just you being you, and letting me be in your life—it’s enough. Enough to make a difference.”
“Oh,” I said dumbly, trying to reconcile his words.
We pulled into his parents’ driveway as he declared, “This conversation is to be continued. For now, I’m betting my mom and dad will want to know how tonight went.”
James was rightabout his parents.
The hesitant smiles Chris and Deanna greeted us with grew wider as we relayed the events of the reunion. James opened up about his high school days more than he ever had before, so they might fully appreciate how monumental the night had been. They’d known, of course, but it was one thing to have a vague awareness and another to hear the details of how their son had once been pantsed in front of the girls’ cross-country team during P.E.
