She gasped and pointed. “Did you see that?”
I did. But all I could focus on was her, the way her lips were still parted, the way she was still close enough to kiss again.
And for the first time in days, maybe even years, I felt something other than worry.
Hope.
*
Iwas sitting at Grandpa'skitchen table, sipping my coffee when my phone buzzed—it was a text from Grandpa.
I frowned, tapping the screen to open it.
A picture of Grandpa, grinning from ear to ear, standing next to Mrs. Henderson outside the Chapel of Love in Vegas. In the background, the neon lights of the casino glowed like something straight out of a cheesy rom-com. Grandpa was wearing his old fishing hat, and Mrs. Henderson, well, she looked like she’d just won the jackpot.
The caption read:We got hitched.
I blinked, staring at the phone. I must've misread it. I tapped the screen again to zoom in, but no, the words were still there.We got hitched.
I did a double-take, then checked the timestamp. It was only sent five minutes ago. I jumped to my feet, my heart racing. I shook my head in disbelief, the world momentarily tilting. I grabbed my jacket off the chair, barely thinking. This was too big to process alone.
I slammed my door behind me and jogged over to Mrs. Henderson’s place, making my way down the gravel path. The sun was just beginning to rise, casting a soft pink glow over the yard.
I reached her door and knocked, not bothering to wait for a response before pushing it open.
“Clare!” I called. “You won’t believe this.”
Clare stumbled out of her bedroom, blinking at me with a sleepy frown. “What? Is everything okay?” Dressed in a pair of silky baby-blue pajamas, she looked adorable with her bed-head hair and makeup-free pink cheeks.
I held up my phone, showing her the picture. Her eyes widened as she squinted at the screen.
“No way!” she gasped. “That’s where they’ve been? Vegas? Together? What happened to the nursery?”
I nodded, my mind still trying to make sense of the fact. “Apparently, they had more important things than peach trees on their minds.”
Clare let out a small laugh and clapped her hands together. “Well, I guess that explains their disappearance. Guess we’ll have to throw them a party when they get home!”
I grinned. “Yeah. We’ll need to figure out when they’re coming back.”
Just then, the lights flickered overhead, followed by the hum of the house's electrical system kicking back on. The television across the room flashed to life, and the refrigerator buzzed as it powered back up. I looked around, blinking at the sudden brightness. It had been days since we’d had electricity, and for a moment, I didn’t know whether to be relieved or more on edge.
“Well, that’s a surprise,” Clare muttered, rubbing her eyes.
I quickly grabbed my phone again, still trying to process the text from Grandpa. I sent him a quick reply:When are you two coming home?
The reply came almost immediately:We're traveling around the world for a bit first. Need Clare to take care of Mrs. Henderson's place.
I stood there for a moment, processing.
“So, they’re leaving the renovations to me?” Clare asked, with amazement.
“Looks like it,” I said, texting back:Got it. Safe travels.
The moment the message sent, both our phones buzzed simultaneously, the notifications pinging in harmony. Clare grabbed hers first. She glanced down at the screen and raised an eyebrow.
“From Mrs. Henderson,” she said. She read aloud, “Hope you're doing well. Don’t worry, I trust you to do whatever you want to the basement. Don’t worry about the cost. We’ll be in touch soon. Take care, both of you.”
I frowned, quickly reading the text that had popped up on my phone.
