The day before my birthday, I knocked on Cambria’s bedroom door. I sensed a million ants crawling in my viscera as I took a seat on her bed. She was sitting at her desk, texting on her phone. When she set it down and looked up at me, she said, “Guess what?”
“What?”
“I’m done with Summer Term. Finally!”
“That’s awesome. Do you know your grades yet?”
“Doesn’t matter. Because . . . I’m attending a cosmetology program this fall!”
“Seriously? That’s amazing, Cam.”
“And I told Mom and Dad.”
“What did they think? What did Dad think?”
“I’m not sure. I only talked to Mom on the phone, but I heard her telling Dad the news. But Mom seemed happy for me.”
“I’m happy for you.”
“So, what’s up with you, almost-birthday girl? Did you want to tell me something?”
I inhaled and let out the breath as a sigh.
“It’s actually kind of about my birthday. You know how we’re doing that party tomorrow at Mom and Dad’s?”
“Yeah.”
“And it was just going to be the four of us.”
“Right.”
“But, now it’ll be five.”
“Oh?”
“Yes. And the fifth person is David.”
She looked at me blankly.
“David . . .”
“Valentine.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. The look she was giving me transformed into a glare.
“I know,” I started to explain. “But things are different this time. He asked me to be his girlfriend a couple months ago, so everything’s been straightforward. Nothing confusing this time. No fights or tears.”
“A couple months ago? And you’re just now telling me?”
“I’m sorry, Cam. I should have let you know. I just don’t want you to worry. I’ve been happy. Things are good.”
Her arms remained crossed. She scrunched her lips from side to side.
“He’ll be at the party tomorrow. You can see for yourself then. Just try to give him a chance, okay? Can you do that for me?”
“Okay. I will do it. For you, not for him. But understand this: I will be watching him very closely tomorrow.”
I stood up and clapped my hands together.
“Thank you, Cam.”
“Very closely,” she repeated.
◈ ◈ ◈
The birthday party at my parents’ house was lowkey, held in the backyard, which didn’t hold a candle to Nick and Tiffany’s exquisite European garden. David didn’t seem to mind, though. He complimented my mother on the strawberries she was growing in a raised bed. He asked my father pool maintenance questions, wanting to know how he kept the water so crystal clear. It didn’t take long before my parents were telling David that he could call them Kim and Bryan, rather than Mrs. and Dr. Caldwell.
I could see they were falling for his charm, just as I had. Charm had become a good word in my mind—one that summed David up and reminded me of all the good things about him.
Cambria was keeping her distance from David, but just as she had assured me, her eyes followed him wherever he went. She stayed outside and watched as David and my dad talked together near the pool. Things appeared safe enough for me to go inside and see how I could help my mom in the kitchen.
“He’s a very nice young man, Drew.” My mom declared her approval as she threw spoons into various bowls of food. She handed the bowls over to me. “And he’s a lawyer—that’s great. And I think I heard him tell your dad that he wants to be a state senator one day?”
“That would be a long way off,” I said. “But, yes.”
“Very impressive. Can you take those bowls outside and set them on the table?”
Everyone seemed to get along well during dinner and the strawberries-and-cream cake that came after. Even Cambria joined in on some of the conversation and answered David’s questions about cosmetology school. I looked over at my dad when that topic came up, but I couldn’t read the flat expression on his face.
After opening gifts from my family, Cambria made an early exit. She explained that she needed to work on a makeup portfolio that would be required for her program. She hugged me before leaving and whispered, “He passed this test. More to come.”
Just the four of us remaining, I thanked my parents again for the gifts and declined a second piece of cake from my mom. My parents proceeded to talk to each other about errands they had to run the next day. I was thinking about how well the party had been going when David leaned in toward me and said in a low voice, “Can I talk to you about something?”
“Sure.”
“Maybe we can talk and walk at the same time?”
“Okay.”
We got up from our chairs and David took my hand. He walked leisurely with me around the pool and through the grass.
“Where are we going?” I asked him.
“This looks like a nice spot.” He stopped just under a wooden archway in the far corner of the lot. My mom had grown roses there that climbed up to the very top of the wooden beams. They were pure white, like the ones I’d noticed at the Valentines’ home.
“What did you want to talk about? Is everything okay?” I glanced in the direction of my parents, but they were still engaged in conversation with one another, not seeming to notice that David and I had relocated.
“Everything’s great,” David said. “Excellent.” He flashed me a smile; my insides fluttered on cue. “I just didn’t want you to think that I forgot to get you a gift.”
It hadn’t even occurred to me that David might get me a birthday gift.
“That’s okay. I don’t need anything.”
“I have to disagree with you there. I think there’s something you might need. See, I did get something for you.”
When he lowered one of his knees to the grass, my mind went blank. When he slid his hand into his shirt pocket and pulled out a sparkling diamond ring, I became dizzy, the world beginning to whirl around me.
“Drew Caldwell. I know it’s only been two months. Although, counting our time together in college, it’s been closer to eight. And anyway, I don’t care if it seems fast. I know how I feel about you. I know what I want. And I don’t want to lose you ever again. Would you do me the honor of marrying me? Of being my wife?”
The world pirouetted around me even faster—a merry-go-round ride with the intermittent flashing of the oversized diamond extended before me.
Chapter 16
Asilence swept over the backyard. It started from where David was, kneeling under the wooden archway, and made its way to where my parents had just a minute ago been making plans at the patio table.
I didn’t have to look in their direction to know what the silence meant. My parents had finally noticed what was happening. I could feel their eyes glued on me and David—a tangible milestone occurring right there in their presence, just yards away.
I imagined that David and I looked like a sculpture. It felt like we had been stuck in our respective positions for hours. My vertigo had subsided, but I was still processing the ring in David’s hand, like my brain was trying to decide whether or not this moment was a dream.