Caraphernelia

epilogue

"Hey, babe?" Matteo calls from mine and Cara's old room, "What's in this closet?"

I move through the house to where Matteo is, maneuvering my way through the maze of boxes in each room. "Hm?" I mumble as I wrap my arms around him from behind. He turns his head sideways and grins before leaning forward to press his lips against mine, his lip ring tickling my own lip. Fuck, I'm a sucker for that lip ring.

After returning home from California and dumping Cara, Matteo and I started dating. When he announced to Camille and Elliot that he would be moving in with me, Camille squealed and started fangirling so hard that she accidentally fell off the couch she was sitting on; Elliot, on the other hand, smiled warmly and then gave us a lecture about using protection.

Great, right?

But, I've decided I don't want to live in a house that also shelters the memories of a girlfriend who never cared for me when I now have an amazing boyfriend who always has. So, we're renting an apartment together, just off campus.

Matteo pulls away just enough to see my face, much too soon for my liking, then gestures towards the huge, closed closet inside of the old bedroom. "I asked, what's in this closet?"

I pull away completely, rubbing the back if my neck awkwardly. "Uh, that's. . ." I begin, and Matteo takes one of my hands, "that's all of Cara's stuff. All the shit she left behind." I'd shoved it all in there as soon as we'd gotten home, shoving away all the thoughts I had left of Cara with them. (Thoughts like how pretty she'd look, with her cold eyes shut, all dolled up laying on her deathbed, but, you know, that's not important).

Matteo gives my hand a squeeze, nodding. "What were you planning on doing with all of it?"

I shrug. "Leave it here for whoever moves in after us? I mean, there's a fucking laptop in there! If anything, I'm being incredibly generous by leaving it."

Matty rolls his eyes. "No, that doesn't do that bitch justice. . ." His eyes take on their mischievous gleam, a gleam I'd grown to love over the months we've been together.

He continues, "How about. . . we destroy it?"

➳ ➳ ➳

That night, just as the sea of stars are starting to take over the sky, Matteo and I drive to this clearing behind Camille and Elliot's yard, every last morsel of Cara's belongings in tow. A hammer and a mallet lay in the trunk of Matteo's van along with a container of gasoline, and a lighter shuffles in my pocket.

➳ ➳ ➳

We stand before a pile of shattered glass from Cara's electronics - we'd smashed them to bits with the mallet and hammer, taking out all the anger from how she treated us that we were oblivious to before in each swing - watching the flames rise higher.

A mound of clothing, her purse, and everything of hers that can burn, is alight, set off by the sparks between Matteo and I, from the ashes of Cara's.

I steal a glimpse over at my boyfriend. His face is illuminated in orange light, yellow flares igniting in each eye and reflecting off his glasses and lip piercing.

He leans into me. I smile and kiss his temple, draping an arm over his shoulders.