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“Your parents are lining up services for you. You’ll have medical and less traditional options available to you soon. It was suggested that you wait a few weeks before trying to push. You need time to heal.”

Tension filled him. “I don’t deal well with problems I can’t fix.”

Well, at least, he’s self-aware. I hesitated to speak on his struggle since I’d never been in a situation anything like what he was navigating.

“Dylan, I’m neither a doctor nor a psychologist. My understanding of how the brain works is rudimentary at best. So, take what you find useful from what I’m about to say and disregard anything that doesn’t ring true for you.

” Breathe. “This is where my head is. It’s tempting to keep looking back and asking myself why I made every mistake I did, but that doesn’t serve me anymore.

I should have been braver back then. Okay.

I accept that. Now what? Well, now I choose to stay and risk rather than run.

So, maybe, instead of beating yourself up for what you can’t remember, you should use this time as a chance to learn how to deal with things you can’t fix. ”

He growled, “Are you suggesting I grow up and start accepting that some shit is not under my control?”

I caught the irony hidden beneath his irritation with himself. “I wouldn’t phrase it exactly that way, but...”

A smile transformed his face. “Next, you’ll expect me to talk issues out.”

Losing a battle to contain my mirth, I chided, “It’s a goal we could both work on.”

The way he looked at me, like not only was that possible but I was all that mattered to him, was addictive. Dylan1.0 had loved me, but he hadn’t allowed me to see this side of him. I’d held back a part of my heart from him, afraid of being hurt. Had he done the same?

I looked at the frog again. “I never put a wish in there.”

He blinked. “You didn’t?”

I shook my head. “I was too scared to fully believe in the frog. In you. In forever.” The words came out quieter than I meant them to. But I didn’t take them back.

Dylan picked up the frog and cracked it open. The hinge creaked softly, and he read the inside, then said, “I remember writing this. I wanted you to see that all the dreams you were afraid to let yourself reach for were possible.”

“And I heard you. At least as much as I was capable of at that time.” I sniffed and nodded. “Because of you, I followed my dreams. I built a career I’m proud of.”

“As did I.” He grimaced.

The air was heavy with regret, so much so it was nearly suffocating. Was moving forward possible?

Dylan turned the frog in his hand. “Someone suggested I use this time to learn new skills. I couldn’t have believed in the frog, you, or forever either if I didn’t fight for us. So, believing is something I might need to learn how to do.” He met my gaze. “Would you like to work on that together?”

I shook a little before answering and laid my hand over his and the frog. “Yes.”

“Let’s get some paper.”

Emotion clogged my throat. I nodded. “I have Post-its in my purse.”

He chuckled. “Sounds perfect.”

I rushed off to get them and pens. When I returned, he had the frog in the middle of a table.

Before writing, we spent a good amount of time simply looking into each other’s eyes.

The ring on my finger was a promise to give us a second chance, but this.

.. the decision to believe in each other. .. it was a vow.

He took a Post-it and paused, “I say we both write a wish. No peeking. No sharing. And we put it in and choose to believe it’ll happen.”

Breathless, all I did was nod and take a slip of my own. We both bent to write. I didn’t overthink it. I asked my heart what I wanted from this and wrote what it answered: Forever. Then I folded the paper and placed it inside the figurine.

Dylan folded his paper as well, placed it with mine, then snapped the top of the frog closed. When our eyes met, he joked, “If I kick your ass at every card game from now on, my wish will be obvious.”

I tossed back, “When your feet begin to smell better...”

“Ouch,” he said with a laugh. “That was low.”

I shrugged. “Someone likes to wear leather loafers without socks.”

He shook his head, but amusement never left his eyes. “Part of what I missed about you is how humble you keep me.”

Feeling playful, I joked, “They’re beautiful feet. Only Fans quality. Just a little ripe when you take your loafers off.”

Dylan set the frog back on the shelf, in full view now, not hidden. His hand lingered on it for a second longer than necessary. He turned back to me. “Taking time away from your work can’t be easy.”

“This is more important,” I said honestly.

He nodded, something in his face softening. “You don’t have to choose between me and what you love doing—your work, your interviews, talking to strangers on backstreets and charming them into telling their life stories. I’d hate knowing I took that from you.”

A lump formed in my throat. “It’ll still be there a few weeks from now.”

“I’m not bedridden. Let’s get you out there.”

I blinked. “What?”

“I can walk. I can sit. I can listen. And if I need a break, I’ll take one. But I’d rather be beside you watching you do what you love than sitting here waiting for memories that might not return.”

“Thank you,” I said breathlessly. “And getting out into the world might be good for you.”

“Poor Steven, how do I tell him I’d rather he not drive us everywhere?”

“He does take his job seriously.” I thought about what Steven had said about us potentially not being safe. “And we wouldn’t want to hurt his feelings.”

“Okay, then he’ll drive us around.”

I wrinkled my nose as a thought occurred to me. “What if, hear me out, you said you’d feel more comfortable if you had a private nurse with you while out and about.”

The second he understood the wickedness of my idea, a grin spread across his face. “There’s only one nurse I’d trust with a job like that.”

“Imagine if she agreed to it.” I chuckled behind a hand I brought to my mouth. “She couldn’t, though. She has a job.”

“People take time off, and I could make it worth her while.”

“Is that meddling?” I asked, thoroughly amused.

“Only if it goes badly.”