Stay With Me ✔

43.

"She is going to lose her mind when we tell her." Rave couldn't keep the smile off of his face or keep the green color of his eyes from shining as if the sun was reflecting in them. He had been pacing the living room floor for the past hour, pure joy radiating from him as he waited for his sister to arrive home from her sleepover. 

Unlike the sleepover that Rave and I had to pick her up from months ago, Ever texted me last night on her new phone to tell me that she was having fun and no one was being mean to any of the other girls. I was happy for Ever, she seems to have finally found a group of friends that value the quality of the person and not the quality of the things those people have - which is rare in girls their age. Ever isn't like other kids her age, she's rare, she's mature, and she is finally happy. I've met Ever's best friend, Haley, a few times since Ever and Rave have been living with my mom and I, and that little girl is amazing. At ten years old, I know I wouldn't have been able to be there for my friend in the way that she had been all these years, I hope their friendship lasts a lifetime. 

"How are you going to tell her?" I ask from my spot on the couch, enjoying Rave's reaction to the news almost as much as I did the news itself.

 Ever since we graduated last week, Rave and I have both been working a lot more to save up money for the fall - when we move to the next town over, where I will be attending college and Rave will be helping manage a garage that his boss also owns there. Today however, we both took the day off and had spent the entire morning waiting for my mom to call from the courthouse downtown, where she was with the lawyers working on Rave's dad's case, asking him to sign over his parental rights to Ever. 

We hadn't told Ever about today, if things didn't go the way we hoped, we didn't want her to have to deal with that disappointment. My mom had called us half an hour ago to tell us the news, that after an hour long discussion with his lawyers, he signed the papers. Rave was right though, at first his dad out right refused to sign the papers, saying that he's not giving up his kid - that he's her father, blah blah blah. However, in the end, something was said to change his mind and I don't really care what it is since Ever is now open to be adopted. 

"I don't know, I don't want to just blurt it out, but I don't know if I'll be able to stop myself." He takes a seat beside me on the couch, "I'm just so excited for her, Ky."

I've never seen Rave this happy, this excited, or this animated. It's a whole new side of him and I love it, I love seeing new sides of him, learning new things, and being reminded that I made the right choice in giving him another chance. His mood his contagious, amplifying my own excitement. "I know, so am I. I'm happy for both of you." 

We both turn towards the door when we hear a car pull into the driveway. I'm not sure if it's my mom or Ever, but my question is answered moments later when I hear Ever shout goodbye to her friends and open the door. Rave practically leaps from his seat on the couch, dragging me with him as he clamps my hand in his. 

With her duffel bag in hand, Ever comes walking in to the room, stopping when she sees her brother and I standing in the middle of the open area, staring right at her with big grins plastered on our faces. 

"Are you guys okay?" 

Rave nods his head as I verbally answer her question, "Yep. How was your sleepover?" 

Ever sits her bag down on the floor gives us an odd look as she walks past and takes a seat on the couch we had just vacated. "It was great, we baked cupcakes and watched movies all night after we put on face masks. Haley even-" Ever stops talking at looks from me to her brother, and then back to me, "Are you sure he's okay?" 

I look to my right and see why Ever is questioning me about Rave. He's about to bust, I can see it written all over his face. He's trying to hold back his smile and the way he's looking at Ever, as if he's about to tackle her - in the loving big brother way, not in a malicious way. "He's fine." 

"He doesn't look fine. Rave, what's wrong with you?" 

"You're getting adopted!" He blurts out, releasing my hand as he throws his arms in the air out of excitement and steps towards Ever.

"What?" Her eyes flash between the two of us, her brows meeting in the middle as she gets more and more confused. 

"You're getting adopted, Ev!" Rave repeats, waiting for his words to sink in and for Ever to jump up and join in on his excitement. 

"I'm...what? How?" 

I take this as my cue to intervene, "My mom had some lawyers give your dad a paper to sign this morning, saying that he will basically not be your parent anymore." 

"So that means that I can be adopted now?" 

"Yes." Both Rave and I answer in unison, keeping our eyes on Ever as a smile finally makes its way across his lips. 

"By your mom, right?" 

"Yes, by my mom." 

Then Rave gets the reaction he's been waiting all day for. Ever jumps off the couch and lets out a shriek, throwing her arms around Rave as tears fall freely from her eyes. I watch from the sidelines, crying myself as I watch them hold each other tightly and share this moment. "Ky, get over here." Both Matthew's siblings open their arms and pull me into their embrace, doing the same to my mom when she walks in the room seconds later.

Last year I was having nightmares and waking up covered in sweat as I relived the worst day of my life, night after night. Now, I wake up next to Rave, happy and reminded of how much good there is in my life - despite the hole that will forever be in my heart because of my dad's absence. 

My dad is physically absent from my life, but thankfully, he is no longer absent from the walls and topic of conversation in my home. My mom and I have been talking about him and our memories with him more and more, she even shares stories with Rave and Ever about my dad and has shown them old family photo albums, full of pictures from vacations and school plays. 

Last year Rave and I weren't speaking and I was trying to force myself to not think of him or miss him. Now, he's my boyfriend and we've been there for each other in so many ways over the past year that I can't imagine my life without him. We're moving in together in a few months and starting a life together - separate from my mom and his sister, who are the only family that we've had for the past few years, up until now. I'm excited, but also nervous for this chapter in our lives. Rave though, is totally calm and has everything sorted out. He's been paying bills and budgeting since he was twelve years old and it definitely shows. 

My family has grown this year, both by the addition of Ever and by the relationship with my mom. Work is no longer her top priority, she's no longer working long hours or hiding out at the hospital. She spends more time at home, and we talk more - about everything. 

I learned a lot about myself this year, and I learned a lot about everyone else in my life as well. I learned about Rave, Ever, my mom, Erin, Whitley, Andy, Kyle, Cade, and even Lexy. Everyone has their own reasons for how they act and how they treat others. Everyone has their own secrets and insecurities, flaws and strengths, trials and tribulations. 

Everyone has their own story, and this was mine. 

The End.