“Willa,” he calls out.
The way he says my name makes hope bloom in my chest.
He stops in front of me and the two of us stare at each other, neither of us knowing what to say.
“I’m sorry,” he whispers. “I’m so sorry. I was so hurt that you didn’t confide in me, not when I’d shared so much with you, and I … I snapped. You asked if I could forgive you, but can you forgive me?”
I nod, fighting tears, but for the first time in two weeks, it’s happy tears.
“Of course.” It’s not even a question I could possibly answer no to. While I was hurt and upset, I’m not stupid enough to not see why he felt the way he did.
He cups my cheeks in his large hands and presses his lips to mine. My arms twine around his neck and I kiss him back, standing on my tiptoes.
Cheers and claps reverberate around us from the passengers waiting to board. Jasper smiles against my lips and I can’t help but laugh.
I lay my head against his chest, hiding my face as I blush from all the attention.
“I love you,” he whispers, pressing his lips lightly against mine again.
Hearing those words leave his lips sends my heart soaring up into the heavens.
“I love you too.”
Though, he already knew that. And if I’m honest, I knew he loved me too, because it’s love that makes us react in the most irrational of ways, since the one’s who we love the most can hurt us the most.
As I cling to him, I can’t help but smile. Once upon a time I dreamed of making it to the other side of tomorrow, a time when I’d finally have a transplant and life would truly begin, and now it’s here.
Eight Months Later.
“Given enough time, things start to make sense.
“Like the whys of why certain things happen.
“The whose of who’s most important to you.
“Everything clicks into place like pieces of a puzzle, forming a picture you couldn’t see at first, one that creates the image of your life.
“Decisions become easier, and you find yourself growing and changing in unexpected ways.
“A year ago, I was lost. I didn’t know who I was or where I was going in life. Not much made sense. I’d been through more in the three years before than most people go through in a lifetime, and it changed me. Sometimes, I thought it changed me for the worst, but I was wrong. It changed me for the better. It taught me more about myself than I ever would’ve learned otherwise. I got know people who lit up my life and impacted me in unexpected way. People who I would’ve never met if my kidneys hadn’t failed.
“You see, I’ve always believed everything happens for a reason.
“This … this was no different.
“Even if you can’t understand something at a time, even if you’re angry, that’s okay because one day it’ll all make sense.
“That’s why I’m up here speaking to you guys today. I want you to understand it’s okay to be afraid. It’s okay to fight for what you want. It’s okay to follow your dreams no matter what they may be. And it’s always—always okay to be true to yourself.”
Clapping echoes around the high school auditorium and I press my lips together fighting back tears as my first motivational speech comes to a close.
When Jasper and I went to Japan, I did a lot of soul searching and I finally decided I wanted to talk to people about what happened to me, to give them hope, because you don’t have to have gone through the same thing to need hope. But more than that, I finally figured out what I’m most meant to do in this world. I think I knew all along but I was scared. Come the fall, I’ll start medical school and several years down the road I’ll be a transplant surgeon, giving people a second chance at life just like I got.
“Thank you, guys.” I wave to the high school students, my heart filled with happiness and pride as I exit to stage right where my family and Jasper wait.
Jasper wraps his arms around me, grinning from ear to ear. “I’m so proud of you.”
“You were so good,” Harlow takes my hand and squeezes it.