Page 49 of Resisting the Fall

“With Carson gone, I can’t stop thinking how different it feels. And then to know I’ll be leaving for college next fall. Everything’s going to change.”

“The University of Vermont is a thirty-minute drive from here. We’ll see each other all the time.”

She didn’t respond immediately. “What if I go somewhere else?”

My heart gave a small thud. “Where else would you go?”

“My violin teacher wants me to apply to the Cleveland Institute of Music. It’s where she went. It’s an incredible school for orchestral musicians, and she thinks I could get a scholarship.”

“Cleveland?” I whispered.

“I’m not sure I’d even want to⁠—”

“You should apply.” I knew her mom didn’t have the money to put her through school, so I could see the appeal. Though the thought of her being in a different state was something I refused to think about until I had to. “And when you get in, because you will, we’ll make it work.”

“Do you really think so?”

I ran a thumb across her cheek. “I love you too much to not make it work.”

She placed a hand on my chest and lifted herself slightly above me. “You love me?”

“I thought I’d made it pretty obvious.”

I could see the white of her smile in the darkness. “Just for future reference, telling me would have made it even clearer.”

“Well, then, in that case, I love you,” I said again. “And I’m going to do whatever it takes for us to be together.”

She snuggled back into me, contented. “I suppose I should tell you I love you back?”

“Don’t feel obligated,” I said, chuckling quietly. “I already know.”

Her hand came to my face, her smile gone. “I do. I love you. I’ve loved you half my life.”

My whole body warmed at her acknowledgment, and when I pressed my lips against hers, they were warm and soft and welcoming.

“Congratulations, you two.” Tate’s raspy voice made me startle. “Mind celebrating later, though? I’m trying to sleep over here.”

I chucked his pillow back at him.

Maven covered her giggles with a hand. “Sorry, Tate,” she whispered before resting her head against me again and placing her arm over my chest. “We’ll behave.”

In the quiet, with Maven in my arms, I could no longer prevent my mind from considering what it might be like when Maven left next fall. She had not only become a central part of my life, but she’d become the focus of it. She was everything. A day didn’t pass when we weren’t together, and the thought of that changing gutted me.

I’m not sure how long it took for me to drift off to sleep, but when I woke up, with early morning sunlight streaming through the tree outside, Maven was already gone.

Maven

I started into a fit of coughs, fanning the air with my hand. The steak had gone from sizzling to smoking, and despite the open windows, a visible haze lingered in the trailer. I searched the drawers for something to flip it with, trying not to get frustrated with myself for the obscure places I’d put everything.

Not that I was worried about the steak burning. It was kind of the point, but I wanted to make sure I’d pressed out every drop of moisture inside it. Whereas the broccoli was the opposite. I’d boiled it, without adding so much as a pinch of salt or a touch of butter, until the florets had disintegrated and most of the water had evaporated. But not all of it.

“The drawer under the oven!” I said aloud, remembering where I’d put the silverware. With a spoon and fork soon in hand, I flipped my steak, pressing it down again, and stirred the broccoli until it resembled a greenish-yellow watery mush.

Perfect.

Maven: Dinner is ready

Ben: On my way