West [ COMPLETED ]

XXXVII

My dad and I talked and talked for a long time, and after a couple hours I  went to the kitchen to get a drink.

When I came back to the living room he was conked out in his chair snoring. I smiled and decided not to wake him, and went to look at my old room.

It was still so full of my things, I hadn't taken very much to my cousin's house and I'd taken an almost nothing with me to Colorado.

I ran my hand over all my books, sifted through my closet, went through my drawers.

It was exactly the way I'd left it, the bed neatly made, which I never actually did, and the rest of the room hurriedly tidied.

I found one brand new Nike tennis shoe on the floor near my dresser, and I remembered it was from the pair I had bought just before going to my cousin's, but I'd forgotten to pack them and so I'd never even worn them. I don't know why but this made me sad, and my eyes were moist as I picked it up.

They would still fit me, I hadn't grown any in the last two years.

That was just the crazy part for me, that it had been two years since I'd left this room.

My gaze stopped on the album I had on my dresser, and I opened it up and looked through the entire thing from cover to cover. Halfway through, I began to cry, silent, hot, swelling tears that spilled over and soaked my jeans.

I realized as I looked at the pictures of my mom that I couldn't remember her voice anymore.

I sat on my floor for a good hour and cried, but finally, I took a deep, shuddering breath and stood to my feet, putting the album back on my dresser. Suddenly I grew very tired so I layed down on my bed and closed my eyes, falling into a deep sleep.

I woke with a jolt several hours later, and looked around for the time.

I had a little less than an hour and a half before Dego was going to be back and I was supposed to be ready.

I stretched and set about dressing. I decided on wearing the new dress I'd bought, and went and got it from my bag from the living room.

Looking in my closet, I found a pair of heels that I used to hate, but realized that they were actually very elegant, and so I paired them with my dress. I put my hair into a low, artfully messy knot, and applied light makeup and some simple hoop earrings.

I stood before my full length mirror and admitted that I looked rather grown up, a lot more grown up than I felt. I headed down the hall and into the living room to wait for Dego to arrive.

My father was still snoring.

I wandered into the kitchen and grabbed a glass of water, gazing out the window as I rinsed it back out.

A black german shepherd lounged on Weston's front porch, and I recognized it as Matt's, or at least it looked just like the one he'd brought with him several years ago.

I was just about to turn away when I saw the front door open, and Matt came out, clipped a leash onto the dogs collar, and led her off the porch.

The door opened again and my breath caught as Weston followed Matt down the steps and toward his truck.

He looked nearly the same as the last time I'd seen him, dressed in boots and jeans, a t-shirt and an old hat, but he looked like he had filled out more, he wasn't as slim as he used to be, but most of all, he had grown a beard, and that changed how he looked completely. Older, hotter.

Matt must have said something to him because he threw back his head and laughed, and even though I couldn't see from this distance, I knew how he looked when he laughed like that, and my heart stuttered at the remembrance.