New Beginnings: A Hessa Story (2)

Chapter 29: Tessa

Putting on a fake smile isn't as hard as I thought it would be. I am my mother's daughter when it comes to faking my emotions. It's been a couple hours since my mother told me she's sick, and I haven't broken down since. I am proud that I am able to sit here and act like everything is okay.

"So are things okay between you and Hardin?" Noah asks as he takes a sip of his wine.

"Yeah, everything is fine. We just can't go two seconds without arguing, but yesterday, everything was put out in the open, so there are no secrets between us anymore. I think once we get married, things will settle down a little bit."

"I'm glad." He smiles. I kind of want to tell Noah about my mother's diagnosis, but I don't know how to. He will understand, since he has known me for more than half of my life, and he knows my mother pretty well. I can't even think about it for too long though or else I'll start to cry.

"Are you and Shannon excited for your wedding? I mean, it's coming up in less than two months!"

"Yeah, I am. I'm really happy with her, and I love her."

"I am really happy for you, Noah. You deserve all the love in the world." I reach out and hug him, almost crying at how comforting his hug is for me right now.

"Thank you." He rubs my back, the way he used to back when we were dating. The room suddenly grows quiet, and a cough is heard from behind me. I look up at Noah. He is looking behind me, his eyes wide.

I turn around to see Hardin with a beautiful woman standing next to him. In her arms are some wine and pie. Hardin's gaze is on me, as well as the woman's, but I don't know why they're looking at me. She does look oddly familiar though.

"Is that..." Noah begins to say before the woman speaks up.

"Hi everyone, I brought some wine and pie." She smiles nervously as she holds up the items in her hands. "My name is Josette, but my friends call me Josie."

Josie? It can't be. There is no fucking way. I look back at Noah, and his reaction is making it clear that we are both thinking the same thing.

"Hi Tess." She smiles, and her voice sounds just like it used to. Could this really be Josie, my best friend from high school who moved away before my senior year?

"Surprise." Hardin says nervously behind her.

Everyone is staring at me, so I get up to walk closer to her. "Josie?"

"Yeah, it's me." She smiles. She sticks out her hand, and I know exactly what she wants me to do. When we were in school together, we learned the handshake from Parent Trap, since it was our favorite movie. We did it every single time we saw each other. As we are going through the moves, I'm surprised I remember how it's done, but it's like muscle memory. We laugh as we bump hips, then finish by shaking our hands.

Hardin is giving us a horrified look as I cheer. "Oh my goodness, it is you!" I give her a hug. I haven't seen Josie in years, since high school. "How are you here?"

"Well, Hardin here wanted me to surprise you. He invited me to the wedding, but since that got postponed to tomorrow, he invited me to Christmas too so I wouldn't have to spend it alone."

I look at Hardin, whose face is flushed. "You did this?" I ask, and he nods.

"It was all his idea. I'm surprised you ended up with someone like him... no offense." She laughs to Hardin, who surprisingly returns the gesture. "I thought you would always end up with..." She looks behind me.