Page 106 of Intermission

Tonight, for just a little bit longer, I have Noah, and he has me. Even knowing the peace of these stolen moments won’t last, evenknowing I might face severe consequences when I get home, I’m overcome with a desperate,desperate,gratitude for this moment.

Thank you, God. Thank you, God. Thank you.

Noah loosens his grip just enough to lift my chin. “You’re crying.”

“I am?” I release my hold on him to brush a hand across my wet cheeks. “Sorry. I’m just so happy you’re... that I...”

My voice breaks, and my face crumples. I bury it in that perfect place where his neck and shoulder meet.

“I know. Me, too,” he whispers into my hair. “Me, too.”

We stand like that for a long time. “I know it seems like forever right now,” he says at last, “but it’ll go fast.” His voice lacks confidence, and I’m sure he knows it, too, when he sighs, gives me a squeeze, and releases me. “Let’s sit.”

He waits for me to pick my spot on the ledge and then takes the place beside me.

“You’ll be eighteen in just a little over a year. For a while, I thought maybe we could try to start fresh then, but... that won’t work. You might be legally an adult, but you’ll still live with your parents until you graduate, and you’ll still be under their authority. Until you’re out on your own, you have to respect them and follow their rules.”

“Yeah. But they’re stupid rules.”

“Agreed.” He smiles, but the sadness in his eyes cuts my heart open. “But as their daughter, you’re called to honor them. And if I’m ever going to be accepted by them as part of your life, so am I.” His deep breath shakes on its way back out. “Faith, I think... I think we need to stay out of contact until you go to college.”

My heart jolts in my chest, as if a hawk’s talons have closed around it and yanked. “But—”

Noah stills my argument with a shake of his head. “They’ve told you to stay away from me, right?”

“But we could still chat, see each other, online.”

“How would your mom react if she knew we were?”

His question has a painfully easy answer. “She would confiscate my computer.”

“Exactly. I’m off limits, right?”

“So they say, and yet...?” I shrug. And yet here we are.

“If they’re ever going to accept you and me being together... I hate it, but I think it’s the only way.”

I groan.

“It’ll go by faster than you think. Before you know it, you’ll be at college.”

“And you’llstillbe in London.”

“Yeah. Maybe.” He sighs and pulls up his legs, resting his elbows on his knees. “I’ve been thinking about this from every possible angle, but every angle comes up with more questions, more ‘what ifs’ than answers. What we have is something special, but... we have to admit that we’re young. What if... what if we’re not each other’sonlysomething special?”

I swallow. It hurts. “You want to see other people.”

“No, I donotwant to see other people. I loveyou. That hasn’t changed. I can’t even imagine that changing.”

His voice is firm, and his words ring true, which pinches my heart even more than the thought of him wanting to date someone else.

He takes a deep breath. “But I think, especially if we’re out of contact for the next two years, we have to consider that either one of uscouldmeet someone else—could evenlovesomeone else. You have two years of high school left. Homecomings, proms... It would be cruel of me to ask you to commit to a relationship and then jet off to London, knowing we can’t even talk to each other without you getting in trouble with your parents.”

“I’m already committed, Noah. But you’re right. A year ago, if you would have asked who would hold my heart now, it wouldn’t have occurred to me to say your name. Last August, Noah Spencer was just some guy who was really awesome inGuys and Dolls. And now...”

He’s everything.

Everything.