What the Heart Knows (18 page)

“Are you ready?”
Juni
asked. 

Her eyes sparkled in the sunlight and he nodded as they clasped hands.

“Yes,” Oliver said.

She nodded her head and let go of the bunch of white balloons that symbolized the trying ordeal they’d been through,
along with all the hurt and anger that occurred because of it. Oliver watched as the white cluster got smaller and smaller, until they were swallowed up by an expanse of blue sky.
It was done
.

“Do you feel better?” Juni asked.

“Actually, I do.” He wrapped an arm around her shoulder and pulled her to him. “How about you?”

“I feel lighter. I know we worked through it, but somehow, it still felt open ended.”

“Speaking of open ended
,
are you ready to finish your list?” he asked. He was doing his best to feign excitement, but he was terrified.

“Yes! I never thought I’d see this day.”

She grabbed his hand and pulled him down the hill toward the car.

****

           
“Speak now or forever hold your peace,” the man clad in black said.

He turned to Juni, ready to follow her lead.
She laughed and shook her head
no
.
He swallowed down his nervousness, and prepared himself to take the biggest leap of his life.

“On the count of three. One, two, three.”

With one giant step forward
,
t
hey launched
themselves
o
f
f the ledge of the platform and into the air. The wind rushing by
as he plummeted
made him feel weightless
,
and Juni’s exuberant scream made him laugh.
I can’t believe she got me to do this.
It was a sentence he used a lot in their relationship. Life with Juniper Blossom was never dull, and he couldn’t be happier. Their journey had been rocky, but the bliss they’
d received in return for the
hard work rendered all of their struggles worthwhile. The bungee cords pulled tight and they bounced back upward before they were lowered onto the inflated blue mat below.

“Oh my god
,
that was awesome!” Juni said.

“I can’t say I share the sentiment,” he said.

His head still reeled from the jump, and he decided he preferred to keep his feet firmly planted on the ground, thank you very much.

Two workers arrived to unhook them from their harnesses, and they stood to make their way on to the sidelines to watch others take the plunge.

“That was the last item on my list,” Juni said. An almost wistful emotion crossed her face. “I’ll miss all the adventures it brought us.”

“I have to admit, I’m a bit sad to see it go too, but now we can make our own list together.”

She grinned. “I like th
e sound of that,
”
she said.

“You’d better.”

He kissed her, and found himself grateful once more for
whatever
had led him to Cupa that stormy night over a year ago. He
’d
had no idea what life had in store for him when he
first
laid eyes on Juni, but his heart had known.
The same way he knew she was his forever.

The End

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