Hunter pulls out his phone and begins scrolling. “Yes, but you and I are working out the details of this arrangement tomorrow.”
“No problem!” I say goodbye then race down the hall, running faster than I have in my entire life. Even faster than when I broke into school to save Noah from being arrested. I burst through the door of the patio, and Noah turns away from studying the night sky to focus on me.
“Meredith’s in the program, and I’m in the program and oh, my freaking gosh...” It hits me like a tidal wave, and my heart stalls. “I’m going home with you.”
Echo
Noah waits outside the car in the gallery’s parking lot as he gives me space to talk to my father, and I’m holding my breath in the passenger seat. I’ve told my father everything, from Noah and the charges being dropped, to my conversation with my mother, to my success tonight at the gallery, to the agreement Hunter and I reached.
Now there’s silence. It’s been silent for so long I look at the phone to see if the call was dropped. It wasn’t. Seconds are still ticking away on the screen.
“Dad?” I nudge. “Are you there?”
“Yes,” he says. “I am. I don’t know where to start or what to say. That was a lot to take in.”
Yes, it was, and now if he could only imagine me living through it, maybe he’ll find some compassion.
“Are you okay?” he asks. “After talking with your mother, are you okay?”
A relieved breath escapes my mouth. I guess I’m not the only one who’s been learning things this summer. A year ago, my father would have lost his mind if I merely mentioned her, and now Dad appears to be letting the tyrant side of himself go.
“I survived,” I say. “It was weird and emotional and I’m a little scared of where we go from here, but it was good.”
“I’m here.” Concern ravages his tone. “If things get rough with her or if you need someone to intervene on your behalf—I’m here.”
And that’s all I’ve ever wanted from him. “Thank you.”
“No need to thank me—protecting you is my job.”
I glance over to Noah, who’s watching the stars above. Maybe it was Dad’s job and, because he’s human, there are a few times he messed up, but somehow that job seems to belong to Noah now more than it does to my father. It’s also my job to protect myself as I’m hardly a damsel in distress. I’ve proven I’m capable of fighting some of my battles on my own, but it’s nice to know I don’t always have to.
“When you get home,” Dad starts, and now the disapproval is back in his voice, “I think we should sit down and discuss this opportunity in Colorado. I’d also like some further clarification on this situation with Noah.”
I wince. The urge is to lash out and let him know that I don’t need his advice, but for the millionth time I remind myself I’m no longer a child, which means I should act like an adult. Children yell. Adults talk. At least that’s the theory.
“We can talk, but just to let you know, my decision is made. I respect you, Dad, but this is my life, and these are my choices...not yours.”
A weighted sigh and a creak from the chair he’s sitting in. “You were easier when you were five.”
My lips immediately lift up. “Really?”
“No, but with the passing of time, it sometimes feels that way. At least then I could pick you up when you stomped your foot. I’d probably throw my back out if I tried that now.”
I laugh, and Noah must catch the sound as he turns to look at me. He grins at my expression then turns back around.
“I love you,” I tell my father.
He clears his throat. Words like that from me are still hard for him to process. “Be safe on the way home.”
“I will.”
“Don’t speed.”
“I won’t.”
“Tell Noah I’m still having a conversation with him when he returns. That’s nonnegotiable.”
I sigh. “Still doesn’t change how I feel about him.”
“I’m aware. And Echo?”
“Yeah?”
“I love you, too. I should go. Alexander’s waking up. Call me when you get to your next stop.”
“I will.” And then my father is gone. I stare at the phone, thinking about how much things can change in a year.
I lean forward and knock on the windshield. It’s time for Noah and me to move forward.
Noah
I open the trunk of Echo’s car, and she appears beside me, reaching in for a blanket. “We don’t need the tent.”
It’s late, past midnight. Echo changed out of her blue dress and into a cotton skirt and tank top. The type of top that teases me with peeks of her black bra strap. The moment we got in her car, Echo told me to return to the campsite where we jumped off a cliff. Happy as I could fucking be that Echo’s going to be chasing her dream plus be beside me for the next year, I didn’t ask one question. I turned onto the freeway and drove.
“It’s late, baby. I have a feeling neither one of us is going to want to put it up later.”