Her friend gave her an amused look. “I asked where you got the new dress.”
Lila cleared her throat. “It was an early birthday present.”
Gavin’s thumb rubbed circles over hers, and she bit the corner of her mouth to keep from grinning.
“Well, I love it. It reminds me of Tangled,” Beth Ann said.
“Me too,” Lila agreed, this time smiling wide as she looked over at Gavin. “It’s perfect.”
As Beth Ann and Dylan talked about the trip he was already planning, Gavin asked Lila quietly, “Are you feeling better?”
She nodded and leaned into him. “Thank you.”
“Time to dance,” Beth Ann said as an upbeat song filled the air.
Many of their classmates danced in the sand near the edge of the water. Others splashed around in the shallows. Gavin threw their empty plates away, and they joined in. Beth Ann grabbed Lila’s hands and pulled her in a circle. She waved their arms in the air to the beat.
Lila spun around, stumbling. Strong hands caught her by the waist before pulling her close. She placed her hands on Gavin’s chest as they swayed back and forth. Sliding her arms around his center, she laid her head on his shoulders. His hands crossed behind her back.
“It’s time,” Dylan shouted over the music.
Lila stepped back and saw Beth Ann staring at her and Gavin. She shrugged, making her friend laugh. As Beth Ann walked by them, she said something that sounded like another “about time.”
Gavin took Lila’s hand and pulled her toward the far end of the beach. Her parents stopped them when they reached the edge of the crowd. Lila’s mom hugged her then looked down with a smile at her hand still linked with Gavin’s. She tucked a red strand behind Lila’s ear. “Be happy, sweetheart.”
Lila hugged her mom again then watched in amazement as her dad clapped Gavin on the shoulder. Mrs. Miller waited by a small rowboat lingering in the shallow water a few yards away. She put a hand on either side of Lila’s face and kissed her forehead. When she straightened, she looked at Gavin and nodded.
“Thanks, Mom,” he said, giving her a quick hug before leading Lila to the boat.
He stepped in gracefully, the boat barely rocking, then turned to face her. Her chest tightened. Her lungs refused to take a breath. Gavin held out a hand and asked, “Do you trust me?”
At that, Lila laughed. “Yes.”
She put her hand in his outstretched palm and let him help her into the boat. She sat down, self-consciously pulling at the hem of her dress. Their parents approached and pushed the boat out into the deeper water so that it could fully float above the sand, and Gavin began rowing.
“Are you going to tell me what this is all about?” Lila asked.
“You needed a decent view.”
“For what?” Then his words hit her. She looked down at the dress and back at him. He stopped rowing as they neared the center of the lake. “Gavin, what did you do?”
“You’ll see.” His smile was contagious.
“More fireworks?” she asked.
Gavin laughed. He locked the oars in place and took her hand again. It felt so natural, like they’d held hands their entire lives. She looked around, trying to figure out what was about to happen. The dress fit perfectly. She looked like a princess in it, which was the point.
“You look beautiful,” he told her. Her cheeks turned red, and she gave him a shy smile. He decided his new mission in life was to get her to look like that as often as possible. It was so much better than her angry, embarrassed face.
She cleared her throat and said, “Thank you for the dress. It really is perfect.”
He nodded. “Did you read the note?”
She pulled a folded envelope out of one of the pockets. It was still sealed. He looked up at her in surprise.
“You came without reading it?” he asked once he found his voice. She seemed to be struggling with words too and shrugged. He gently took the envelope and opened it, pulling out the folded paper. “Why didn’t you read it?”
“Because I’m scared,” she whispered.
He knew she meant more than just reading the letter. She was scared of them, of her upcoming surgery, of the future.
“Lila.” He moved closer to kneel in front of her and pulled her into his arms. Against her barely-pink hair, he said, “Please don’t be afraid.”
She sat up and wiped away a tear.
“You can be afraid of the surgery, that’s understandable, but don’t be afraid of us,” he begged.
With a quiet laugh, she said, “My mom said almost the exact same thing.”
“Smart woman.” He pushed himself back up to his seat.
“What if something happens, Gavin?” Lila whispered after a moment. “What if I really don’t remember you?”
Her quiet words struck him in the heart. The thought of losing her was pure agony, but his mom’s words came back to him. “Then we start over.”
When her blue eyes snapped to his, he saw the confusion slowly fade to understanding then wonder. She covered her mouth with one hand. “Gavin…”
“I’m not going anywhere,” he said, taking her hand. “If you forget me, I’ll reintroduce myself. We’ll become friends again.”
And he wouldn’t mess it up again.
“You’d be okay with just being friends?”
He grinned. “No, but I’ll win you over again.”
“So confident.” Her playful eye roll filled him with joy. The sorrow and fear were gone, and he was glad. They had no place in his plans for the evening.
As if on cue, someone changed the music and turned up the speakers they had strategically placed throughout the sand. She let out a soft gasp when she recognized the song. The water was calm around them, and the crowd on the beach quieted. Gavin lifted up his letter and unfolded it.
“Can I read this to you?” he asked. When she nodded, he looked down at the familiar words. He re-wrote them a dozen times before finishing. “Lila, my earliest memory is of you grabbing my
