What I Wish You Knew | ꪜ

Chapter Thirty Six

To Landon and Drayton,

36. I wish you knew how much I valued these moments.

Longer chapter ahead.
Hayley's POV

I now understood why Parker and Jingyi's relationship is so strained. He did something to his brother who once saw it as an unforgivable act. But listening to him now, it seems as if he's ready to give Jingyi a chance to redeem himself. . .however, I think his father will remain his worst enemy.

I'm proud of him for taking that step. As someone who only has her brother left, family is one of the most important things to have in life. You don't know what you have till you lose it. I can't persuade Parker to forgive his father because it's not my place, but the most I can do is advise him on learning to forgive even the worst of things.

Whether I've forgiven my parents or not doesn't matter, they won't be here to see nor hear it. But Parker still has his father, that's got to mean something. "Thank you for telling me that, Parker. I'm sorry you had to go through that and I don't wanna be that person who acts as if she has all the answers when I'm still searching for some myself, but I think you should talk to your dad. Tell him how you feel. . .

It's easier said than done, and I know you won't jump at the opportunity just because I asked you to consider it. But just do, whether it takes a week, a month, a year, just promise me that one day, even if we aren't in each other's lives by then, you'll talk to your dad. Because when he's gone, your hatred will turn to regret.

And your regret will then turn to sorrow until you've lost your grip on your emotions entirely and there's no one left to pull you out of it but yourself. And if you hate yourself, why would you want your own help? Don't become that person, Parker."

He swivelled his head towards me and began to nod slowly, his eyes swirling with so many emotions, it was difficult to grasp onto one. "I know, it's just hard," he replied softly. Just as my lips parted to respond, something wet trickled down my forehead. Frowning, I gazed upwards, only for the droplets to grow more excessive.

"It's drizzling," Parker said, and within that same second the tiny droplets began to grow heavier. The sky clapped with thunder as darkness suddenly blanketed the sun that was once blazing down on us. Parker hopped off the hood of the car and outstretched a hand towards me, taking it in his grasp without waiting for my response.

Soon enough, we were barrelling across the junkyard towards our stuff, grabbing them frantically as the rain began to pour down onto us like a waterfall. Parker's hand had never left mine, instead, his grip tightened as we ran through the rusty gates towards his car. But before we could get in, I grounded the heels of my feet into the ground, halting him in his footsteps.

"Hay Bear, what are you doing!?" He inquired incredulously. I peered up at the sky and sighed in content as the water washed over my face. We were both soaked from head to toe, but I didn't care. This felt nice, in a weird way it felt peaceful. If I weren't here right now, I'd be curled up in my bed, under my duvet binging something on Netflix, enjoying the comforting sound of the rain.

"There's something I've always wanted to do in the rain!" I shouted over the loud sound of droplets slamming against the pavement rapidly. I flickered my eyes open, only to find Parker peering down at me.

He had a look that appeared to hover between astonishment, disbelief, adoration and dare I say, love. His grip on the bat suddenly loosened and he took a step forward, his wet palm coming to rest around the nape of my neck, his finger flexing under my chin.

I stood there breathless, staring up at him, eyes interlocked, words unable to escape my lips as his free hand slipped around my waist and he closed the space between us. Then he dipped his head to accommodate my height and pressed his lips against mine in a soft kiss. My flesh burnt as his skin brushed against mine.