BrookLyn's Journey (46 page)

Her
brother and sisters treated Gabby like she was family. They embraced her just as her family did
BrookLyn
. They were happy that
they
had chosen to go to Charlotte since
BrookLyn’s
sisters
had
relocated to Durham. They’d just be a few hours away.

Before long, Gabby and
BrookLyn
managed to sneak upstairs to steal some quiet time.

“Gab
riella
Michaels, I am so proud of you,”
BrookLyn
said
,
as
they
hugged.

She shined her blue eyes
at BrookLyn.
“I’m beyond proud of you.
You’ve been through so much.
I thought you were going to give up
or hurt yourself
. You didn’t.
You pushed through the pain.
”

They
didn’t need any
more
words to tell each other how
they
felt.
BrookLyn
held onto
Gabby’s
warmth and felt
her
fears drift away.
In
silence
they were
one.

Eventually, they
returned
downstairs
to the party. Max lifted his glass and offered a toast. He said, “I’m proud of my cousin and equally proud of BrookLyn. You both had to face some tough circumstances
,
which you successfully managed to rise above. You deserve all that life has to offer and I know you’re both going to excel. I love you both.”
Everyone
applauded.

B
oth
girls
hugged and thanked him. As
BrookLyn
pulled away
,
he pulled
her
closer
.
“My cousin loves you
,
and I hope you’re able to love her in return. I hope you found your peace
.
”
H
e smiled
,
offering up his clear blue eyes
that
match
ed
Gabby’s
.

BrookLyn was
surprised.
Max had
only spoke
n
to
her
a few times
,
but
each time
it was powerful. “Max
,
I will love her with all of my might. It’s still a process for me but I’m further
along
than where I used to be. I plan on doing my best.”

They
hugged again and
BrookLyn
walked toward Gabby.

“I hav
e a gift for you in the garage,”
Gabby said.

“I didn’t get you anything,”
BrookLyn felt her cheeks
blushing.
She
was still broke until
her
work-study
job started
in the
summer.

“I don’t need any gifts. You’re my gift.”

BrookLyn
grabbed Gabby so tight that
she was
sure
that she
took her breath away.
“Why is my gift in the garage?”

“I was trying to keep it a surprise.”

As
they
walked
toward
the front door
,
Gabby directed everyone to come outside.
BrookLyn
felt the cool summer breeze,
and
the garage door went up.
Her
mouth
dropped
open as
she
saw a sky
-
blue SUV with tinted windows.
Since
they
only needed a license plat
e on the back of
the
car in North Carolina, there was a plate on the front that said
S
WEETS
.

BrookLyn
jumped into Gabby’s arms as she stood
there
looking like Oprah on her
favorite things
show. At that very moment,
BrookLyn
took the deepest breath
she
had ever taken and kissed Gabby in front of everyone. No one judged
her
in that moment. Not even
her
self.

It was then
BrookLyn
realized that
she
truly
owned
her
peace
.

Chapter Twenty
-
O
ne

It’s a New Day

June twenty-seventh will always be one of my favorite days. It was the day I completely embraced who I am and who I love. I’m not sure if I’ll ever be completely comfortable with our relationship. I’m willing to try every day. Gabby and I have grown into something wonderful and I want us to continue to grow. Now today, August seventeenth, after a night of little sleep we are setting off on a new journey togethe
r
.
This entry is called this because that is exactly what it is. A new day.

***

BrookLyn
closed her
journal
, stuffed it into her bag, and ran off to help
get ready
.
Their new day had officially begun
.

They
loaded up the cars preparing for the twelve-hour drive to North Carolina. Max was going to be behind the wheel of
BrookLyn’s
new SUV because
she
didn’t have a license yet. He
would be
flying back to New York in two weeks.

Gabby and
BrookLyn
hugged tight before
they
left the house armed with
the last few things that
would fit in the car. The movers
would
meet
them
there in two days and
they
’d put the rest of
Gabby’s
stuff in storage until
they
found a house.
T
hey
didn’t know exactly where
they
’d be in four years
, but they
were eager to settle into
their
apartment
today
.

They
took one last look around
and climbed in
to the car
,
ready to venture off on
their
journey.
BrookLyn
looked at
Gabby
before
they
pulled
away,
noticing her beauty. The sky was the bluest
she
had seen it in a long time and
Gabby’s
blue eyes were equally as stunning. There wasn’t a single cloud in the sky.
What a perfect day
.

“Do you still want to drive past Patio Road before we get on the highway?”

“I don’t think it’s someth
ing I
want
to do, but I have
to
do it
.”

They drove to the
dark house where she was held captive for eighteen years.
She didn’t really want to go
,
but
BrookLyn
knew she had to close the door on this chapter of her life.
They pulled slowly onto Patio Road. It was still as dark as when she left and it was
broad
daylight. The clouds she remembered
still
hung over it
a
nd the smell of fear blew in the wind.

“Are you okay?” Gabby reached over
,
touching her hand. She was always protecting
BrookLyn,
but despite how much her heart fought it, BrookLyn’s mind knew she had to drive by once more.

“Closure doesn’t come by running away from things
,
”
she said.

There was no one outside and it looked
completely
still inside. Her father’s car wasn’t in the driveway.
She stared at the house that
brought her pain in almost every
waking moment
that she lived there
. Just as she nodded
,
to tell Gabby to
drive away,
she noticed her mother coming out from the side of the house.

“BrookLyn. BrookLyn.”
Her mother
waved and called.

She put her window down and looked in her
mother’s
direction.

“I am sorry
,
”
her mother said.

She wanted to answer but couldn’t. She didn’t have anything nice to offer.

Her mother looked directly into her eyes,
and yelled, “I’m sorry.”

“You’re eighteen years too late for sorry.”
She couldn’t resist.

Her mother hung her head. BrookLyn thought she actually saw her crying. She never had before.

“Let
’
s go
.
”

“Are you okay?”
Gabby
pulled off
leaving
BrookLyn’s
mother alone in the front yard.

“
Yeah.”

As
they
drove down the road toward the highway,
they held hands and
prayed for a
safe and
successful trip.
BrookLyn
saw Max and Gabby’s two other cousins in
her
rearview mirror.
This is it
.

“I love you,” Gabby said
,
squeezing
BrookLyn’s
hand.

“I love you
,
too
.
I will give you my best, Gabby. I still can’t promise that my feelings won’t waver. I can only promise you that my love is very real.”

“I can accept that.”

“I was talking to Max before we left
,
about life. An interesting question came up. Do you want to live forever?”
Gabby
asked.

BrookLyn
thought for a few seconds then said, “Only if you’re going to be there.”

“That’s exactly what I told Max,” she said. “Only if you’re there would I want to be.”

They
continued to hold
hands
and then BrookLyn
felt
something. She looked down to see
a small blue box in
her
hand.
Her other hand flew to
cover
her
mouth in surprise.

“Open it,”
Gabby encouraged.

BrookLyn eased the box open, her heart positively beating out of her chest.
“It’s beautiful,”
she
cried.

“Don’t cry, Sweets. It’s no pressure. It can be just a friendship ring until you’re ready for it to be more.”

It was white gold with diamonds.
She had
no idea how big it was
.
A
ll BrookLyn
knew was that it was beautiful.

“Well, I had to get something beautiful enough to compliment those gorgeous nails of yours
.
” Gabby stroked BrookLyn’s perfectly manicured
hands
. “I still can’t believe it.”

“I know,” BrookLyn replied. “
If you abuse something long enough and it has a chance to heal, it’s always stronger because of it.”

“Nails and people,” Gabby added. “You’re stronger too, BrookLyn.”

She couldn’t take her eyes off of her hand. The ring looked really nice.
She
was so happy
she
was ready to burst.
“Well, thank you for my ring of nothingness,”
BrookLyn
said.
They
both laughed as
she
wiped
her
tears.