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Finally, I force my feet to start moving. My skin is probably red from the cold, but I’m not thinking about something so trivial right now. I’m too focused on the door ahead of me and what I’m about to say. My pulse is racing, and my palms feel sweaty as I knock.
At the last second, I shove the package into my pocket, not ready to reveal it yet.
There’s a pause, and then the door creaks open. Madison stands there. I immediately notice a difference in her. It’s only been a week since I’ve seen her face-to-face. I’ve caught a few glimpses of her as I head to my shifts, but nothing up close.
Her eyes have dark circles under them like she hasn’t slept since things with us took a sour turn. She looks so exhausted and fragile. What’s been going on? Surely it isn’t because of what’s happened between us. Have the dogs been giving her a hard time?
“Ethan, you’re…here.”
“Hey, can I come in?” Surprisingly, I sound casual, like there isn’t much riding on this conversation at all.
She hesitates for a moment, then a dog scurries up and tries to slide out, forcing her to make a quick decision.
She picks the dog up and cradles it to her chest. “Come in before anyone escapes.”
I push my way inside and shut the door behind myself,surveying the dogs she’s currently taking care of. There’s one bigger one that looks like a pit/lab mix and the small one in her arms that definitely has some chihuahua in it.
It’s warm in her house, and the warmth makes my skin come alive again, burning as it slowly warms up.
Madison leads me to the couch, and she sits way in one corner of it, the smaller dog settled in her lap. Samson comes over and sniffs at the dog, then seems to lose interest and moves away.
I sit on the other side of the couch, trying to give Madison the space that it looks like she needs. I try to ignore the fact that it feels like forever since I’ve been here. Since we’ve been…together. The silence stretches out between us as Madison scratches the dog’s ears, and I know I can’t keep putting this off.
“Madison, I came over to talk to you.”
“About what?”
“I know things between us have been…complicated. And I know we agreed to end things because of Aurora, but I can’t accept that.”
She looks at me with her tired eyes, her eyebrows raised. “But I told you that we have to.” I hear something in her voice, though, something sad that gives me hope. It sounds like she’s doing what feels right, not what she wants to do. Maybe I can convince her that “rightness” doesn’t matter if it doesn’t make us happy.
“Here’s the truth, Madison. I care about you. I’m not here because I’m horny or… whatever. I mean, yeah, sex is great, but I actually…enjoy spending time with you.” My speech isn’t nearly as polished as I had planned.
Her face softens, and she finally meets my eyes. But I can tell that she’s still hiding something from me. I just have to keep digging until I figure out what it is.
“I’ve been thinking a lot, and I don’t want to just let you go. I want to be a part of your life. For real.”
I pause, watching her reaction, but she stays quiet. I reach into my jacket and pull out the envelope with the pictures.
“There’s something else, and I’m just giving this to you because…I’ve been thinking about it for a while.”
The dog hops off Madison’s lap, and she stares after it for a moment before turning her attention back to me.
I pull the package out and shove it in her direction, but she doesn’t take it right away. Instead, she stares at it for a few moments like she’s trying to figure out what it is just by the shoddy wrapping job. She finally takes the small package but still doesn’t open it.
“I know how much opening your surf school means to you, so I found a place. It’s yours if you want it.”
She blinks, clearly taken aback, and finally starts tearing into the package. She opens the box inside and stares at a key. It’s the key to the place, but I know she can’t get the full picture of the place without seeing what it looks like.
When she looks up, there are tears in her eyes.
“Here’s the actual space,” I explain, pulling my phone out.
She flips through the pictures silently for a moment. Then, she looks at the key and back at my phone. There are definitely tears running down her cheeks now. Big, silent tears.
“This is…for me?”
“For you. I want to help you make your dream come true. I believe in you, Madison.”