Without A Doubt

Chapter 55.

4 months later

"You look beautiful." Liv gave me a tired smile. I know this is hard for her, but she said she needed to be here, which means I needed to be here.

After everything went down with Liv and her mom Liv decided that she couldn't leave things the way they were. A few days later, when things had settled down with her parents she decided to call her mom. They met in person, just the two of them this time, and talked through some things. Liv didn't give me the details, but things went a lot better this time around. Although there was still some yelling and screaming, it wasn't as bad as the first time. Liv said that she felt like her mom was finally starting to understand where she was coming from and why Liv had such a hard time of it when her mom just sprung Savannah on her. Liv and Savannah had a few meetings of their own after. Like Liv said before, it's not Savannahs fault, but that doesn't make it any easier on Liv. She said she was still somewhat hostile towards her at first, but soon the two came to a mutual understanding. Maybe a friendship one day.

"Thank you." She just looked down at the plates in front of us. They had little cards on them with our names on them. I looked down at my own dress. I really hate wearing dresses. But this one is okay. It's not puffy or irritating. Its slim and a comfortable material. Liv was wearing one of the bridesmaid's dresses. It was a soft neutral sort of color. Liv hated it. She said the color made her look too white. I thought she looked beautiful.

"Are you hungry?" I know she is. She hasn't had time to eat all day. She just looked at me and nodded her head. I don't know when they're supposed to be servicing the food but it should be soon.

Liv fixing things with her mom was sort of a long drawn out process. Of course, it still wasn't perfect. They've gotten into some arguments here and there. Every time they'd get into it I would pick Liv up and we drive around until she either tells me what's wrong or decides she's okay.

Even though Liv's family life has been difficult lately, our relationship has been doing great. Liv has been coming to all of my track meets. She stays with me the whole day, even though I told her that she doesn't have to. I like that she stays with me. Emma has been going to my meets too. Sometimes Liv would drag the whole club to the meets with her. They'd leave after I ran or jumped or whatever.

Jackie actually got put on my relay team. One of the girls on our team, I don't remember her name, hurt her ankle. At around the same time Jackie had decided to run track. She'd run in previous years but had decided to take a break junior year. Either way she was on the team now. And if I'm being honest I preferred it. I was still our anchor but Jackie was now our first leg. She gave us a great lead and it made my job easier.

When they finally served the food, Liv was already getting to the point where she was too tired to eat, if that makes sense. The rest of the reception was rather uneventful. We sat and talked. We watched as people danced. Liv refused to dance. People were under the impression that we were just friends. Liv's mom's preference. Liv said that she didn't care what they thought, but that it was something her mom would care about. Her mom never actually told her this, but it was something Liv just understood. Liv's family would come up to us and talk to us, but it was always awkward. I assumed Liv didn't see this side of her family very much. I met some of her cousins. After each of them would leave she'd give me a summary of them, or some side commentary. It was funny.

"Can we leave now?" Liv asked me. I had been ready to leave for the past hour. I didn't say anything though. I just waited until she told me she was ready. She said her goodbyes while I followed her around.

As soon as we got in the car and had been driving for about 15 minutes Liv fell asleep. We were only about 30 minutes away from where we live. I couldn't help but look at her. She's just so, beautiful. Liv can be course sometimes. I know when we first met she didn't take to my liking right away. She's stubborn. Especially when she's made up her mind. But I love her. Flaws and all. Because I know she loves me. Flaws and all.

I drove us home. As I did I let my thoughts wander. I thought about Emma. It still amazes me that I lucked out to have a friend like her, and to think that for a whole year, maybe more, she knew about my anxiety but never said anything. Not until I was ready. It made me happy that she and Jason are so happy together. Jason is one of the best guys I know, if not the best.

I switched my thoughts over to Jackie. I know she's brutal. Sometimes cruel even. Even though she may have done some messed up things I understood it. To an extent. She was hurting and she was fighting with herself. I just so happened to get caught in the middle of it. I don't hold any resentment towards her. We've actually become pretty good friends. Track will do that to people. Especially the relays.

The club have been doing great. Jane and Carter are going strong. They have even been talking about going to the same college. Nothings decided yet, but they're making plans. Peter is getting things ready for his transfer from high school to college. He's nervous for it, but he's also really excited. A lot of his papers have been about his major, and college and so on. As for David, he's doing great. At least he hasn't told me otherwise.

Despite all the ups and downs, and all the circles I've been running in, I feel like they're worth it. We're all running in circles. And sometimes no matter how fast we run, no matter how hard we push, it seems like we'll always just be running in circles. But every once in a while, there's a moment. A moment where you're okay, where you can breathe. Those are the moments when running in circles doesn't seem so bad.