Written In The Stars: Book Two

CHAPTER FORTY: SERENITY

Madeline wore a long dress to cover her cast for the party, similar to the one she wore out to dinner with his friends. It wasn't too long a drive, only a little under an hour, and damn easy to spot with the big ass 'welcome home' banner hanging off the pillars in front of the door.

Elijah let out an audible sigh, guessing Mitch and Mary were getting a good chuckle out of it in the vehicle behind them. "Fucking hell."

"They're just excited, Elijah," Madeline spoke beside him. "Let them be excited, and don't you dare be a killjoy."

Easier said than done. Elijah was already craving a drink, and he hadn't seen a single soul yet. As much as Elijah wanted to keep driving, he pulled to the side of the road, put his truck in park, and turned the key, not bothering to take it out of the ignition. "How about I just send Mitch and Mary in, and you and I can just make out for two hours?"

Madeline shook her head at him as she unclasped her seatbelt. "I don't think my parents are the guests of honor. Plus, this truck is not third base friendly in my condition. Or in any condition, realistically."

"So you're saying I need to trade this in for an SUV?" Elijah teased.

When Madeline reached for the handle, Elijah relented and stepped out of the truck, grabbed her wheelchair out of the bed, and set it up on the sidewalk. She was already waiting for him to lift her, but Elijah stepped between her legs, careful not to hit her cast. "Have I told you how absolutely gorgeous you look today?"

Her cheeks flushed, and Madeline looked down for only a moment before bringing her gaze back to him. "I believe you may have mentioned it before we left. But I don't remember telling you how gorgeous you look."

Elijah pressed his smiling lips to hers. Since kissing her again at the beginning of the week, he'd been waiting for some sort of doom to fall on them. Johnny boy showing up at his front steps, his house burning down after he forgot he was cooking, her taking a fall. But so far, nothing had gone wrong or threatened to tear them apart. Even Mitch had given up on his lectures and appeared lighter.

After this party, they'd be going home together- just the two of them.

Madeline tried to deepen their kiss, but Elijah resisted once he heard more vehicle doors close. He took solace in the fact that Mary and Mitch were going home tonight. As much as he loved those two like they were blood, he looked forward to being able to kiss her uninterrupted.

After he had Madeline in her wheelchair, Elijah felt a hand squeeze his shoulder.

"You ready for this?" Mitch asked.

Mary took over the wheelchair, leaving the two men behind them. Appearance wise, he was about as good as he was going to get. Clean black button-up shirt, brand new jeans, clean shoes. There was some stubble on his face, and he was wearing his glasses rather than contacts, plus a baseball cap to cover the strand of hair that wouldn't lie flat; all because he'd run out of time and attention.

Mentally, Elijah wasn't certain there was a way to get ready for something like this. His uncle and grandfather were probably the hardest part, though Jeremy was a little too enthused for his taste, given the sign. But if Elijah was going to avoid these people, he shouldn't have opened the door to begin with.

"Not really, but it'd be a dick move for me to run away now, and I'm trying to be less of a dick."

Mitch gave his shoulder one last squeeze before dropping his hand and placing it in the pocket of his slacks. "And we're all eternally grateful for your efforts, son," his dad teased, before the lightness in his voice faded. "But seriously, if this gets to be too much, it's fine to take a break. Go for a walk, have one of your damn cigarettes, whatever. Just come back. You've been doing well with all the stress you've been under. Better than most would be in your situation, but you don't have to bite off more than you can chew."

"'Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference, living one day at a time; enjoying one moment at a time; taking this world as it is and not as I would have it.' I know the words, and do my best to live by them, as annoying as they were to say at the beginning.

"I accepted that some things in my life were out of my control. Things I wanted, but couldn't have. Things I had that I was stuck with. It wasn't always easy, especially with M&M, but I managed. The things I could change, I did, even when it seemed damn near impossible. Found a new job, made a home for myself, and did my best to build a life scratch. I got through the hard days, enjoyed the simple ones , and took things as they came.

"But this," Elijah admitted, scratching at the stubble, "this is a big change for me. For a long time, the only family I had was the one I created for myself. Now there's all these people who want to know me, and I don't know how to deal with that, because you know I'm not the guy who lets people in easily."

"No, you're not," Mitch agreed, "but the people you choose to let in know what kind of person you are, and it makes it that much more special. I remember when you were just this emo kid who my daughter used to follow around like he was the next messiah, bible joke absolutely intended. Took me a while to even trust you, but once I did, I never stopped. Even when you faltered.

"You're a good man, Elijah, and you have faith. Maybe not in any God, but in yourself, and in the ones you loved. When I tried talking to you about Maddie, it wasn't because I didn't want the two of you together, but because I was scared of what it could do to you both if that love wasn't enough. You were the one who had faith in that, when all hoped seemed lost.

"Now it's time to have faith in your family, Elijah. Have faith they'll love you, because once they get to know you, it's impossible not to."