Never give up. Sometimes in any survival situation, all hope is never lost.
I’m losing track of time.
Sometimes the days go by so slow and I think about Dylan all day.
Other times, they go by so fast and I find myself shocked that it’s already been a month since the funeral. Thirty days since I lost a friend and Sadie lost a love. Four weeks since my world was once again turned upside down.
Knowing Al is finally behind bars where he belongs is comforting.
I’m finally safe.
Now, I can go wherever I want. And I never have to look over my shoulder again.
Even though he’s put away, Mom still ended up selling the house and I don’t blame her. Our life there is over.
Now we can begin a new one, here with Birdee.
Rex has had a tough time with Dylan’s death. Feels guilty. His sister, Dylan’s mom, is back in South Africa with no plans to ever visit the Everglades again. It’s hard to return to the place where you lost everything.
Mo and I sit on the back deck and watch the tourists go through the channel in their loud airboats. I take a sip of Birdee’s homemade lemonade topped with a sprig of mint.
I watch Mo play with the straw in his mouth.
Lucky straw.
It’s been so nice having him around. But it’s also been hard not getting much alone time with him. Birdee practically follows us around the house, making sure we don’t get too much private time together. Our make-out sessions are minimal, always being interrupted by an overprotective mom and a nosy grandma. But they are always awesome.
As we sit on the porch swing, a warm breeze floats by.
Mo pushes a tuft of hair out of my face. “You look beautiful today.”
“Thank you,” I say, smiling. He grins. “Why do I feel like you’re buttering me up for something?”
“I can’t tell my girlfriend, the one I love, how gorgeous she is?” He smiles but shifts slightly on the chair, enough for me to notice. I have memorized his movements and can pick them out a mile away.
My stomach drops. “Wait, are you leaving?”
“Not today.” He takes a sip of his drink. I watch a drop cling to his lips. Exactly what I would do if given the chance.
“What does that mean?”
I watch the moisture slide down his glass and fall into his hand. I put my glass down, feeling sick. I don’t like how awkward he appears. Not to mention, he won’t meet my gaze. “Well, I’m sure Birdee doesn’t want me crashing on her couch forever.”
“Don’t put this on Birdee. What’s going on?” The last time this conversation came up, Al was hunting me down and Mo left me in the Everglades so I’d be safe.
“Nothing.” Mo turns toward me and relaxes when he sees my face. “Blossom, don’t worry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
I swallow hard. I will not cry. “Come on Mo, I can tell something is going on.”
Mo kisses my hand and tries to rock the swing again. “I talked to Sweeney. He found a nature reserve for the monkey and Cat.”
“Good.” I keep both feet planted so we don’t move any more. “And? What else? Does he want you to go back to North Carolina?”
“Not exactly,” Mo says. He pushes his hands through his hair. The nervous twitch.
Please don’t let this be bad. Please don’t take him away from me.
“And?” I push him harder. I need to know. “Why are you being so vague?”
“I told him that I’m done helping him. It’s not what I want to do anymore. This is over now and I need to move on.”
I sigh a little. Maybe this means Mo will stay right here. With me.
“I’ve decided to take an internship at the Florida Fish and Wildlife.” Mo glances down at my hand and plays with my fingers. Like he’s afraid to see my expression when he drops a bomb.
All the possibilities race through my head. What could he possibly be doing that is so bad? “Thought you were already doing that? With Sweeney?”
“Yes, but I need to get away from this whole case.” Mo says. “Find something different.”
“I hope I’m not included in all that.”
“No!” Mo practically shouts it in my ear. Then he drops his voice back to normal and smirks. “I mean no. I’m talking about Al. I paid a debt to my dad. And yours. But it’s time to do something different. Something just for me.”
The word hits my gut. I wish he had said ‘us’. Do something for ‘us’. ‘Me’ is singular. “Oh. So when do you leave then?”
“Not for a couple weeks. I wanted to spend more time with you.”
Nausea ebbs and flows deep down. If Mo moves away then that means we won’t see each other much. Maybe a weekend here and there, but how long does that last? I throw out my fear. “What about us?”
“Well...what about it?”
That hurt. I can practically see the imaginary dagger sticking out of my heart as it deflates. “Oh.” That’s all I can say. Tears threaten to reveal my fake composure. I look out at the airboats humming by so he doesn’t see I’m upset. I’m sure it’s written in big letters all over my face. I’m not good at hiding things. Especially my feelings.
Mo jumps off and squats in front of me to grab my attention. “Blossom...don’t worry. I’m not giving up on you. Or us. That’s why I’ve accepted the job in Miami. We’ll be closer than ever.”
“Wait, Miami?” At first, the word doesn’t register. Then I realize what he means. I smile. “Oh! Miami?”
“It’s the closest office I could find. Only one hour away.”
I wrinkle my nose. An hour is still too long as far as I’m concerned but it’s better than nine or ten.
“I can come see you every weekend once school starts.” I groan. “You know, I have one more year.”
Mo reaches behind him and pulls out a brochure. “Or...maybe you could do an internship.”
I snatch the brochure and study it. “The Marine Mammal Center?”
He grabs it back and flips to a certain page. “Here. Look. It’s perfect.”
I read the internship section. Working with whales. Studying dolphins. My heart skips. “Oh my God.”
Mo’s smile sags. “What? You don’t like it?”
I jump up and accidentally knee him in the chin. “Oi!”
I fall onto his lap and hug him, kissing his cheeks, eyes and nose.
He talks between kisses that I peck on each part of his face. “So you like the idea?”
“Abso-bloody-lutely! This is awesome. I can’t believe it. Maybe Sadie can come with me. Of course I have to ask Mom first and make sure it’s okay with my school. But I bet I could get ahead in fall and come down for the work program in the spring.”
“I’ll wait for you,” Mo says. “Forever if I have to.”
“Ah, I’m so relieved! I thought you were going to break up with me or something.”
He appears hurt. “Grace Wells, I love you. Why in the world would you think that?”
I shrug. “I love you too. I thought maybe you....”
Mo cups my face and pulls me closer. He kisses me on the lips. Our mouths touch and struggle passionately as we smother each other with our breath. I can taste the lemon and lick a piece of sugar off his bottom lip.
“You think too much.” He taps the tip of my nose. “I love you and want you to come with me. I don’t ever want to be away from you again. Got it?”
I can barely breathe, lost in his eyes. “Sounds perfect to me.”
As we sit staring at each other, taking each other in, Mo lightly traces my lips with his finger like he’s painting a masterpiece. Every place he touches electrifies.
I love this guy and want so much to be with him. Like I’ve never been with anyone before.
The thought of moving to Miami. Working at a Marine facility. Doing what I love. And being close to the guy I love more than life is so exciting, I almost want to burst inside. Implode.
Finally, things are looking up.
Finally, I can live my life without being in fear.
Finally, love wins in the end.
And today, for the first time in a long time, I feel unstoppable.
** The End**