“Aw, you missed me?”
“You know it.”
“So, when are you moving out?” she asks casually.
“What?” My brow furrows at her question.
“Come on, Paisley. You stay most nights at his place. It makes sense.” She nods.
“But we have this lease until the summer.”
“And I make more than enough to cover this place on my own.”
“I know.” I nod. “I don’t know what I want to do. He’s been asking me to, and I keep putting him off.”
“What does your heart tell you?” she asks.
“It tells me that I love him so much that it scares me.” It’s the first time I’ve ever admitted that out loud.
“I imagine that is scary,” Willow agrees. “To hand your heart over to another person, expecting them to hold and cherish it. That’s heavy stuff.”
“Right?”
“I imagine that holding back is just as scary.”
“What do you mean?”
“Think about it, P. The way you feel about him, and he you, if you keep holding back, you might never know the depth of the love that you share. I know you love him. He knows that you love him, but denying yourself what you really want and not giving it your all, think of what you could be missing out on. That’s scary.”
“When did you get all philosophical?” I ask.
She shrugs. “I’m on the outside looking in. It’s easier for me to see it and to describe it than it is for you. I’m sure if I were in your shoes, I’d be feeling the same way, and I know without a shadow of a doubt that you’d be sitting right here telling me the same thing. To forget about my fears and take a leap into the unknown. If it doesn’t work out, you know you have a place with me always.”
“I feel like I’m just abandoning you.”
“It’s fine, Paisley. I know that neither of us had the expectations that we would be roommates for the rest of our lives. We both wanted to fall in love and one day start a family. Life comes at you when you least expect it, and sometimes you just have to take a leap of faith.”
“Yeah,” I agree. “I love him so much, Wil.”
She reaches over and places her hand over mine, where I sit across from her on the couch. “I know you do. He loves you too. You’d be blind not to see it.”
I let her words take root, and excitement bubbles up inside me. I want to take this next step with him. “I want to take the leap,” I tell my best friend.
“Of course you do. And when he pisses you off, you can use your key to come stay with me.”
“Like he would let that happen.”
She laughs. “That man would go crazy not having you next to him.”
I don’t argue because she’s right. I feel his love for me deep in my soul. I’ll tell him tonight. “Maybe I’ll take a few things over while he’s gone,” I tell her.
“I’m down to help.” She smiles.
I know she is. Willow has been my best friend forever. She knows everything about me, and I her. I’ll always be here for her, just like she’s offered to be here for me. That’s just what you do for your best friend.
“So, what’s going on with you and Travis?” I ask.
She blushes. “I don’t really know to be honest. Nothing? Something? He asked for my number that night we all had dinner, and he texts me all the time.”