Page 33 of Written in the Stars
Valerie turns to face her with a huge grin. “Yay!” She jumps up, pulling Serenity from her seat. “Come on, girl!”
I turn my head and look Serenity square in the face. I can’t believe those words came out of her mouth. Is she that certain about riding this crazy ride with Val? “Are you sure, Serenity?” I ask anyway.
Valerie slides her arm underneath Serenity’s, and somehow, they look like lifelong friends and not like they’ve just met minutes ago. I can’t deny the fact that I’m kind of really loving the fact that this is going so well. Not that it would change my mind or the way I feel about her, but this just makes it that much better.
“I’m totally sure,” Serenity finally answers, and before I can get up and give her a kiss, Valerie whisks her off and they go to stand in line.
* * *
“She hasn’t mentioned it?” Matt asks as we sit back against the fence, watching Serenity and Valerie on the ride in front of us. I still can’t believe she went with no hesitation. She’s so beautiful.
I shake my head. “No. And I’m thinking if she knew, she would have said something to me. But she hasn’t.”
He nods in agreement. “Yeah, if I were in her shoes, I’d definitely confront you about it.”
Shit. I hate being in this position, but how could I have possibly known any of this was going to happen or go down the way it did. Maybe if from the first moment I saw her, I would have remembered her, and then I wouldn’t have tried to see her again.
But I didn’t remember who she was or how I knew her. I just knew I had to talk to her.
“Do you think she’s going to hate me when she does find out?” I ask.
Matt turns to face me. “Not if you tell her soon. If you wait too long, then probably. But she doesn’t come across as a person who could feel hatred toward anyone, not even you. I mean, I know you blame yourself for what happened that day, but it’s really not your fault. I don’t know how many more times I can tell you that.”
I shrug. “I wish I could feel like it wasn’t, but it sure as hell feels like it is.”
I turn and my eyes take in the sight of Serenity. She makes me forget about the past as she whips her head back in laughter with Valerie. In this moment, she’s carefree, capturing all the beauty the world has to offer.
“I think I’m falling in love with her, Matt.” The words come out before I have a chance to stop them, but I don’t even care because they’re true. I’ve had it on my mind for a little while.
But now, watching her like this? Everything feels right and like it’s supposed to be.
“For real?”
I turn to face him once more and I nod.
He smiles widely at me and slaps an arm on my shoulder. “That’s great, man. Now that I’ve talked to her, she seems like a really nice girl, and I like her. I think she’ll be good for you.”
I smile. It’s so good to hear that Matt feels this way because I really meant what I said about falling in love with her. And I know I probably shouldn’t have let my heart go before I even told her the truth, but I couldn’t stop it.
I look back over at Serenity, and we exchange a look. I wave and she waves back, and I know right in this moment that I’m absolutely sure about how I feel about her. I smile harder.
“It’s nice to see you smiling again, too,” Matt says, bringing my attention back to him. He chuckles and I can’t help but laugh along with him.
I shrug. “I’m really happy, man.” I am, of course. The way she makes me feel inside, I haven’t felt this way in so long.
He nods. “That is awesome, and I’m thrilled for you, bro. You deserve all the happiness in the world.”
Minutes later, Valerie and Serenity hop off the ride, and make their way over to us.
Val walks up to Matt, and in an instant, he embraces her and then pushes her up against the fence like they’re two high school sweethearts who can’t keep their hands off of one another. He whispers something in her ear and then kisses her softly.
As Serenity comes to my side, my arm naturally wraps over her as if it’s something I’ve been doing for years. I sure as hell wouldn’t mind it, though. “Did you have fun?”
She giggles. “The most fun I’ve had in a long time.”
I place a kiss on her cheek and we walk ahead, leaving Matt and Valerie making out in their corner.
“Zander?”
