Meet You There

Meet You There - Chap 47

Chapter 47

I texted Bennett before I went to bed. The next day, I would  wake up an adult. Eighteen. So, I figured I had to do this now.

   I JUST NEEDED TIME TO THINK.

   My phone buzzed only a few minutes later.

   OKAY. I GET IT. IM SO SORRY.

   He had already told me he was sorry. More than once. In my heart, I knew he was. I knew that he hadn't been the one who had done anything wrong - besides the fact that he didn't tell me right away. I had to figure out if I was okay with that or not.

  DO YOU WANT TO COME OVER TOMORROW? I asked him, finally.

  YES, OF COURSE, YES. SEE YOU IN THE MORNING?

  OKAY.

  

"Happy birthday!"

   My eyes went wide as I walked out into the living room the next morning, a bit after 9A.M. I hadn't exactly slept well and I was feeling nervous to see Bennett. Yes, it was my birthday. And I'd been expecting to go out for dinner with Caleb and Fox. But I hadn't been expecting the balloons, the streamers and the confetti. Not to mention the yelling.

   Caleb was laughing now, likely at the sight of my expression. Fox was smiling, and clapping her hands.

   "Wow," I managed to say. "Thank you."

   "We figured you deserved a real birthday celebration," Caleb told me, coming over to hug me.

   I hadn't had a true birthday in a few years. The last one was spent alone in my bedroom, wishing I'd never gone to California. My heart break was still fresh. My dad tried, he really did, but he didn't know how to make it better. So he bought an ice cream cake and brought me in a piece in the evening. I remembered thanking him, but that was it.

   The year before was when I had just arrived in California. It was just my dad and I that day, too, but we had gone out for tacos and ate cake that evening. We hadn't been together in over and year and we were just trying to figure each other out. I didn't have any friends yet.

   So now, being with Caleb and Fox felt so right. Especially since they had done all of this for me.

   "Thank you," I said again, crossing the room to hug Fox, too.

   "Did you talk to Bennett?" she whispered to me, before pulling away.

   I nodded quickly, then looked at Caleb again and noticed he was wearing an apron.

   "I'm making pancakes and bacon," he grinned, turning to go back to the kitchen. "Also, we made a reservation at Pop's for dinner!"

   I looked back at Fox and raised my eyebrows.

   "He loves celebrating birthdays. And he's missed a lot of yours," she told me, squeezing my arm. "So, Bennett?"

   "Um, I texted him last night. I invited him over today," I told her, keeping my voice quiet.

   "I'm sure there will be lot of breakfast," she grinned, nudging me.

   I nodded, and sat down on the couch, pulling out my phone.

   CALEB IS MAKING BREAKFAST, IF YOU WANT TO JOIN US.

   Fox smiled at me again and left the room, to see if Caleb needed any help.