For the weekend, she wouldn’t think about the future. She ordered another drink—the same as Gavin’s that time—determined to live in the moment and enjoy their time.
An upbeat eighties song played throughout the room. People got out of their seats to dance between tables. A group of friends sang in the microphones, but the whole room joined in for the main chorus.
Gavin jumped up, telling her to do the same. She took a long drink before getting to her feet. He whirled her around, and she stumbled into him. They danced and laughed with the strangers around them. Despite the fast tempo, Gavin pulled her close. She didn’t fight it. Instead, she leaned into him and held on tight.
As they made their way back through the streets to the hotel, she still held on to him, dreading the moment she’d have to let go. She made faces at him in the mirror of the elevator and laughed as she failed to get their door open.
“Give it to me,” he said, taking the keycard.
He swiped it through the lock, and she giggled as it lit up green. Inside, she twirled around before falling back on the bed.
“This was fun.” She propped herself up on her elbows to watch Gavin close the curtains.
“You’re drunk.” Grinning, he moved to the end of the bed and removed her shoes. “Do you think you can manage changing clothes without falling over?”
She sat up with a hand out. He shook his head but went to grab her bag. After setting it beside her, he took his own into the bathroom. The world tilted as she searched through her suitcase. Somehow, she managed to pull out a t-shirt and shorts. With a sigh, she pulled her dress off and the shirt on. She looked at the shorts with pursed lips.
“Okay, I can do this,” she whispered to herself as she sat on the edge of the bed. The floor loomed up to meet her face when she leaned over to put her feet in. “Ow!”
“You all right out there?” Gavin called as he cracked the bathroom door open.
“No…”
He came into the room, and she could see the effort he put into not laughing at her sprawled on the floor. His arms slid beneath her, picking her up easily. He sat her on the bed then knelt down to pull her shorts up over her feet and knees. When he reached her thighs, he lifted her hands to his shoulders and had her stand while he pulled them up the rest of the way.
Fire engulfed her cheeks, but she was grateful for the help. She lowered her hands to his chest as he held her. “How are you not drunk?”
His laugh stirred her hair. “I stopped after the second one, and you drank most of my first. One of us needed to stay alert.”
“Why didn’t you stop me?” The soft fabric of his shirt muffled her words as she laid her head against him.
“Have you ever tried to stop you?” He reached behind her to pull the blankets down before guiding her back in bed. Her eyelids grew heavy as he tucked her in and said, “Besides, you were having fun.”
With closed eyes, she smiled. She heard him shuffling around, moving to pull the couch out. She opened her eyes. “Just stay here. The bed is huge.”
He slowly turned to face her. “Are you sure?”
She flipped the covers down on the other side of the bed and patted the mattress. “You’re too tall for the couch. And it’s not like we’ve never slept together before.”
She laughed with a loud snort escaping, and he quirked up an eyebrow. He slid under the covers and clicked the lamp off while she covered her mouth. In the back of her mind, she noticed he’d left the bathroom light on with the door opened just a sliver, but she couldn’t focus on it. She still laughed about her statement.
“You know what I mean,” she added between breaths, unable to stop. “We haven’t slept together. We’ve just slept together. I haven’t slept with anyone, though I’m sure you have.”
The words tumbled from her mouth before she could think them through. She clenched her jaw, reached up behind her, and pulled the pillow out to smother her face. The mattress dipped close to her and gentle hands removed it.
Her lungs refused to function as Gavin lifted her head to put it back under her. She closed her eyes, not wanting to see her own humiliation mirrored in his. Soft fingers brushed her hair back as his lips pressed a light kiss to her brow. “Goodnight, Lila.”
She wanted to say something. She wanted to continue living in that fantasy world where he didn’t hate her—where it felt like anything was possible. But her breathing slowed and the world faded, and before she could make a decision on what to do, she drifted to sleep.
Lila’s Summer Bucket List
Sleep under the stars
Attend a party
Get a tattoo
Use fake ID to sing karaoke in a bar
Stand under the lights on the football field
Go on a date
Sneak out of the house
Visit the baby goat farm
Go to Chicago
Midnight swim
Spend a day in bed watching movies
Stay up to watch the sunrise
Be kissed in the rain
Run through the halls of the high school
Conquer a fear
Paintball
Try something new
Dye hair pink
Sneak into movie theater
Climb water tower
11
Sunday
Warmth encompassed Lila. Surrounded by fields of flowers, she ran through the tall grass as he chased her. Laughter filled the air. She hadn’t felt so light and happy in years. He caught her wrist and pulled her around to face him.
Her hands slid up his chest as his locked behind her back. Staring up at his matching smile, Lila grinned. He bent down close, erasing the distance between.
As their breath mingled, she whispered, “Gavin.”
His grip tightened around her. “Lila.”
Just as their lips brushed, she heard an odd buzzing. She looked around, wanting to stop whatever was interrupting
