Page 104 of Go Back to December

Luiza says something that makes them all laugh, and Sofia suddenly stiffens, as if noticing Baz isn’t in her direct line of sight.

She glances back, finds us, and sighs deeply.

“Fuck, it’s freezing.” Baz curses as he pulls me closer to siphon my body heat.

A crowd gathers in front of a red ribbon woven through with evergreens that frames the bridge. The selectwoman of Money Honeyville greets everyone with a booming welcome. She invites Baz’s parents over and hands them a giant pair of scissors. Peter puts his arm around Sofia, like they’re cutting their wedding cake instead of a ribbon. A lump rises in the back of my throat.

The ribbon snaps. Gloved hands clap muted applause as phone cameras flash. Then Sofia and Peter summon us over to cross the bridge. Luckily, I don’t have to drag Baz by his brace. He settles his arm at my waist, and we follow the rest of the Johnsons across.

We pause next to a small iron plaque that reads Alejandro Torres Bridge, and the date. Baz slips his hand out of his glove to run his fingers across it. He’s quivering from more than the cold temperature. I tighten my arm around him as we fall into step with his family.

On the other side of the bridge, we pause and look back at the people crossing.

“Tell me something about him,” I ask Baz. “About Allie.”

“You could hear him belch from half a mile away.”

We laugh, and Baz shakes his head. “He inhaled anything salty, used to eat olives straight out of a jar and chase them with orange soda. He could drive a golf ball over three hundred yards, but he was a shit poker player.”

“You must have enjoyed hustling him.”

“Too much,” Baz admits. “He would have made an amazing doctor.”

Sofia turns to us, eyes full of unspent tears. Baz makes a garbled sound, and she folds both of us into her arms.

“Thank you,” she whispers before passing us tissues.

I withdraw to attend to my tears, leaving Sofia to hold Baz until his shoulders stop shaking. They murmur together in Spanish before offering each other the same wide, white smile.

When she slips away, Baz draws me back into his arms.

“I’m proud of you,” I whisper. “Your family is too.”

He mumbles his disagreement into my hair. “Let’s go back to Sybil’s car and steam up the back windows.”

He’s only half joking, and I would drag him back over that bridge and hold him to that promise if I didn’t need to get him to the concert. “Show me the carnival.”

“There are other places I’d rather give you a tour of.”

The heat in his gaze makes me shiver. “Take me to the carnival, and I’ll be able to offer some attractive incentives.”

As his expression lights up, I clench my hands to keep them from quaking.

We meet the rest of the Johnsons at the bottleneck of people lining up at the entrance.

“What time does the concert begin?” I ask.

“In an hour,” Luiza says.

Annabel hangs up her phone and whoops. “The installation is lit!”

Sofia claps her hands. “Let’s go see it.”

Baz snarls, and everyone roars at him.

“Okay, okay, he’s probably right.” Annabel tosses him an annoyed glare. “Food first.”

“Let’s split up. It will go faster,” Luiza says. “Annabel and I will hit the Bookmobile, Mamá and Dad take Red Cross. Baz and Mel can do Hospice since it’s the closest.”