“Here, this came for you while you were out this morning.” She tossed a box on to my bed, and I eyed it as I laid a stack of sundresses down. It was addressed to me, but there was no return information. I had a feeling I knew who it was from.
Tyler was right when he said Teddy wasn’t going to give up so easily. A couple of weeks had gone by since the day that I had left Tyler at the cafe, during which I started getting random little notes—on my car door, on my to-go cup of tea from the little café I liked to stop at. All were from Teddy. All had ended up in the garbage.
I mean, he was being thoughtful. Each note said something he loved about me, words that I really hadn’t heard when we were together, but they didn’t mean anything to me now. They didn’t mean anything at all the minute he touched another girl.
“Why don’t you open it? I really don’t care what it is.”
“Um…okay.” Remy gave me a confused look, plopping down on my bed to pick at the tape. “Do you know who it’s from or something?”
“Unfortunately,” I groaned, holding up a strapless maxi dress, and quickly throwing it back towards my closet. Nick was a leg-man, and while he never told me what to wear, I knew he loved to see them. “It’s most likely from Teddy.”
“Teddy?” Remy repeated back to me as she popped the box open, and pulled out two smaller boxes. “And how do you know they’re from him?”
“He’s trying to win me back or something, I’ve been getting things from him nonstop lately. He’s actually in town, but I haven’t seen him.” I dropped down onto the bed next to Remy, and she placed a box in each of my hands.
“Ally, I swear you are like the queen of keeping things in. Why haven’t you mentioned anything about this before?” She crossed her arms tightly, her lips forming a straight line. “I thought he was going to leave you alone, seeing that you’re divorced and all. But now he’s here? Do you think you need to get a restraining order on him or something?”
I muffled a laugh with my hand at Remy’s very serious expression, and the suggestion of a restraining order. Teddy wouldn’t hurt a fly. Sure, it was annoying, but he would eventually get a clue and leave me alone. “No, Remy. I think that would be a little extreme. It’s not that big of a deal, so I didn’t think to tell you about it.”
I pulled open the first box, and couldn’t help but smile at the single cupcake that was in a clear plastic container with bubble wrap surrounding it. I knew exactly where it was from: the best bakery ever, which I had found while being out on the road with the band. I couldn’t even remember what the place was called, but it was in a tiny town in Tennessee.
Every time we passed through the state, I made sure Bobby made a beeline just so I could get a single cupcake. Each one always had an intricate design, and this one was no different. The icing looked like it was a white lace overlay, and there were different sized hearts in various shades of red surrounding a date in the center.
I was puzzled by the date since it hadn’t even happened yet, so I set it aside and opened the second box. Inside was another note.
Great.
“Here, I don’t think I can read this.” I shoved the paper towards Remy who was eyeing the cupcake, so I opened the container, and broke it into two. “You’re so lucky you’re one of my best friends, or I totally wouldn’t be sharing this with you. Best. Cupcake. Ever.” I stuffed my half into my mouth, and closed my eyes, savoring the richness of my favorite flavor, banana nut, with a cream cheese frosting.
“That is amazing,” Remy said around a mouthful. “Are you sure this came from Teddy? Because I really can’t see him remembering something like that.”
“Trust me, I’m shocked too. Read the letter, I can guarantee it’s from Teddy.”
“Alright.”
Ally-Cat,
I know I’m probably annoying the shit out of you with all of these notes, but I really don’t care. You said I never cared to know your favorites, well this is me proving you wrong. Yeah, I might have made some mistakes in the past, not giving you the attention you deserved, but I’m going to make up for that now. You might be a little confused by the date on the cupcake, that I’m sure you’ve probably eaten by now ‘cause they’re so damn good, but you’ll figure it out soon enough. I want a new beginning with you, and that’s what we’re going to have, even if you don’t know it yet.
I love you more than you’ll ever know,
Teddy
P.S. That cupcake was just the first of a dozen, there’s more to come.
“Oh, wow. He really is trying, isn’t he?” I frowned at Remy as she handed me back the letter, and I read it again. He was starting to slowly chip away at the ice around my heart I had up as a blockade when it came to him, but that didn’t mean I was going to run back into his arms.
I loved Nick.
Nick was different. Nick had never hurt me. He didn’t need to prove that he knew me, or cared about me, or how much he loved me, because he showed me that every day.