I can't take my eye off of her hand.436Please respect copyright.PENANAMPtbCQYp5b
We're back at the bar where we first met, each with a bottle of ginger ale.436Please respect copyright.PENANAeQQSKUceF0
The ring... it fits her finger perfectly. Its as if her finger was destined to wear that ring as a symbol that she is mine, and I am hers. Forever.436Please respect copyright.PENANAWVugkmTz0E
"Caleb, if you could get a pet, what would it bue?" she asks.436Please respect copyright.PENANASmzJSX7mlG
"A parrot," I reply almost immediately.436Please respect copyright.PENANAgF4rsgCPZi
She smiles. 436Please respect copyright.PENANAEoBqiKbjQY
436Please respect copyright.PENANAk9VIrAkyp2
436Please respect copyright.PENANA3NYL9ou8kp
"Me, too."436Please respect copyright.PENANAc1L9NadHDU
436Please respect copyright.PENANA3A66ght1Cf
436Please respect copyright.PENANAiho1epNrNc
"Why?" I ask her.436Please respect copyright.PENANAKiKoBIUwlh
436Please respect copyright.PENANAKPIsTjIiEr
436Please respect copyright.PENANAGu0wD1Q4WJ
"They're loving and they live long."436Please respect copyright.PENANAAKJXSL4fF9
436Please respect copyright.PENANAiYeXuNtDxE
436Please respect copyright.PENANAmS5W7QdVOa
436Please respect copyright.PENANA2Pzv2nW0xk
436Please respect copyright.PENANAx38tRTjmIw
"That's my reason, too," I grin.436Please respect copyright.PENANAeFiKtjFfjs
I have a love for animals, and I know how hard it is for an owner to watch their pet die; I don't want to go through that. 436Please respect copyright.PENANAsswEY7mHuP
At my age, if I get a young Macaw or African Grey, it would probably outlive me. Problem solved.436Please respect copyright.PENANAltrEqa0IvE
"What's your favourite type of parrot?" I ask her.436Please respect copyright.PENANAqh6P6ja8fg
"Military Macaw," she responds with a giggle. "It's probably because I've watched 'Rio'so many times."436Please respect copyright.PENANA6X9HKPBJxn
I smile at her.436Please respect copyright.PENANAl6OzfKBsWo
"They can also be very aggressive," I mutter to her, wincing as I recall a Blue Macaw tearing its beak into Eli's flesh.436Please respect copyright.PENANAVnLnoWN0VY
That wasn't fun.436Please respect copyright.PENANAcrownSiEmh
"True," she mutters.436Please respect copyright.PENANAY7qyzRp2tv
I look at her for a few seconds.436Please respect copyright.PENANA7Pv0oMhN96
"You want one."436Please respect copyright.PENANAJpQkAOPMu9
She looks back at me.436Please respect copyright.PENANAyUlw0YSLG9
"Yeah, I've been thinking about it," she says with a smile.436Please respect copyright.PENANA02jGabsTJ9
"Well, lets do it then," I say to her.436Please respect copyright.PENANA7rEplJvQ2w
"Really?"436Please respect copyright.PENANA9AMtbKt7aQ
"Really."436Please respect copyright.PENANAM93jEtyPpH
She awards me with one of those heart melting smiles again.436Please respect copyright.PENANAg1reGhd0nL
"I hope you can teach me how to take care of it, because when it comes to that shit, I suck."436Please respect copyright.PENANA5sreeNu4Cg
"Of course," I retort, smiling to myself.436Please respect copyright.PENANAhcNcMUElm5
"Do you know where to get one?"436Please respect copyright.PENANAdWGKSICa40
"I can find out," I reply.436Please respect copyright.PENANAaxfNCGV1St
She looks down at her ring finger, and smiles, then looking up at me.436Please respect copyright.PENANA03zEgGw4gd
"So, when are we gonna do this?"436Please respect copyright.PENANAniWtPoQdtO
"Huh?"436Please respect copyright.PENANAhXrnYXlSWJ
"Get married," she clarifies.436Please respect copyright.PENANApqBW8frFx6
I hadn't even thought about the wedding yet, to be honest.436Please respect copyright.PENANAIJPhkydZvq
"I don't know. When do you want to do it?"436Please respect copyright.PENANAMehb70n5Ah
"July," she mumbles, but I know that she wants to say more.436Please respect copyright.PENANAlR7JHDWikT
"What is it?" I ask.436Please respect copyright.PENANAzjzNe8Cg0B
She chews her lip, and then exhales. 436Please respect copyright.PENANAMAwaMlqsSv
"I want to get married in Jamaica."436Please respect copyright.PENANAWsMeHkCMUV
I hadn't even thought about that, but the truth is that it would be fantastic; I've never been to Jamaica, never seen her family, her childhood friends, looked into that part of her life.436Please respect copyright.PENANAIRBULYdNjz
"Never mind—"436Please respect copyright.PENANA0cEWnUtvhT
"That would be amazing," I breathe.436Please respect copyright.PENANAvsvuj9ZfSr
"Really?" she asks, a huge smile spreading over her face.436Please respect copyright.PENANA8yBED1GpdP
"Yes! I'd love to see that part of your life."436Please respect copyright.PENANAD6uSyi0kOy
She reaches over and hugs me.436Please respect copyright.PENANAVaRxBf0qWZ
"Thank you," she whispers.436Please respect copyright.PENANAmIKixo8RD7
"You're very welcome, Eve."436Please respect copyright.PENANAhYy7T48cRH
***436Please respect copyright.PENANAD8OtSbIbMm
We got a female Military Macaw; she's one year old, and Evetta named her "Jade", because of the colour of her body.436Please respect copyright.PENANAeRxpT8Wdjm
Right now, she's scratching the bird's head, and it's leaning into her hand. I don't know why this looks so beautiful to me; then again, everything she does looks beautiful to me.436Please respect copyright.PENANAVteNSccCLa
She looks over at me, and her brow furrows.436Please respect copyright.PENANAcjI56m57NA
"What?" she asks.436Please respect copyright.PENANATWNYHrtjNg
"Nothing. It's just that... you're really beautiful."436Please respect copyright.PENANAZMzQxDF7z0
She smiles at me; sometimes, I wonder if she knows what that smile does to me.436Please respect copyright.PENANAbS3JrGvylT
"Same," she replies.436Please respect copyright.PENANAYWgvxboUh7
I move over to her, and rest my head on her shoulder. She leans her head on my head.436Please respect copyright.PENANA3YJB7FXsxW
Recently, I've been thinking about... everything; bout me being in a coma for over a year, about how I did remember her when I woke up, or for the weeks that followed, about the fact that she could have just gotten up and left my ass.436Please respect copyright.PENANAyLiyL8SUZ9
But Evetta stayed.436Please respect copyright.PENANAaBks6n6LLB
And for that, I will forever be grateful.436Please respect copyright.PENANA4gWFHzBKZ0
"Thank you," I mumble into her neck, and she pulls back and gives me a questioning look.436Please respect copyright.PENANAbpOHRBDMP6
"For what?" she asks, looking and sounding puzzled.436Please respect copyright.PENANAKtir4H33pU
436Please respect copyright.PENANAdUqMZKJElc
436Please respect copyright.PENANAKDSFtA82CM
"For not leaving," I clarify.436Please respect copyright.PENANA1UjRK6QVhr
436Please respect copyright.PENANAATX65a3ptN
436Please respect copyright.PENANAyfAWxf8CS1
She looks straight into my eyes, then drops her gazes and sighs.436Please respect copyright.PENANA0voyzRpZfQ
436Please respect copyright.PENANAqMTjExIQuU
436Please respect copyright.PENANA07zeNu21dJ
"I love you more than you could ever know," she whispers.436Please respect copyright.PENANA4vjVS2liwq
436Please respect copyright.PENANA96OCC4OBNa
436Please respect copyright.PENANAPaoJ9Xp0pT
"If it's anywhere near as much as I love you, " I start, tilting her head up so that she will look at me.436Please respect copyright.PENANASfvAu41OKK
436Please respect copyright.PENANA5VKiWhi4ny
436Please respect copyright.PENANARfcybbRCfi
"—then I think I have a pretty good idea," I finish.436Please respect copyright.PENANA7bELPntDBD
436Please respect copyright.PENANAnWoqer3pzG
436Please respect copyright.PENANAuYBUalOfl4
I kiss her, and she moans into my mouth, not expecting it.436Please respect copyright.PENANAt9JYxj36y8
436Please respect copyright.PENANA6FYpvjd6Zt
436Please respect copyright.PENANA29YVbB1ZWh
"Don't do that," I grunt, pulling away from her.436Please respect copyright.PENANAGUNKRo7hEn
436Please respect copyright.PENANAMhJIagETBx
436Please respect copyright.PENANAor8IcIN1nl
"Sorry," she says, not sounding sorry at all. The bird which is on her lap gives a loud shriek, as if trying to revert the attention back onto herself.436Please respect copyright.PENANAXXYAjvxETc
436Please respect copyright.PENANAtrvH7wwXBg
436Please respect copyright.PENANAGNMhEJRs1Y
"I think Jade is jealous," Evetta says with a chuckle.436Please respect copyright.PENANAFYVSqjWQ8Z
436Please respect copyright.PENANAmPS3VsKaak
436Please respect copyright.PENANAsfUtz9jnzm
"Well, shell just have to learn to live with it," I reply seriously.436Please respect copyright.PENANAaY8JjDq2zj
436Please respect copyright.PENANATGiVvZTxpv
436Please respect copyright.PENANAx6Tu8QY5h5
She laughs, probably not realising just how serious I am. There is no way that I'm going to allow a damn bird to get between us.436Please respect copyright.PENANA4vlaJxZXxP
436Please respect copyright.PENANAwE4yntR2oG
436Please respect copyright.PENANAOBnSRTJWzu
"So... about that wedding," I start.436Please respect copyright.PENANATIvz32wVa1
436Please respect copyright.PENANATny2fgOnXr
436Please respect copyright.PENANACosnVUwGEv
"I was thinking we should have it at my mother's house," she replies.436Please respect copyright.PENANAgUzWSTjtOQ
436Please respect copyright.PENANAlUHjQDgvD8
436Please respect copyright.PENANALBfh4tLUud
"Really?" 436Please respect copyright.PENANAwKgaXR456c
436Please respect copyright.PENANA3AgiaZHww2
436Please respect copyright.PENANAdbmokgYjkQ
"Yeah. Not like I want many people there, anyway," she states.436Please respect copyright.PENANAnQpCWbylVF
436Please respect copyright.PENANA0FIKR0U4Vg
436Please respect copyright.PENANA4S45bEWjkX
"Who would be there?"436Please respect copyright.PENANAPrzLNOiOMQ
436Please respect copyright.PENANAENA3dJWXiS
436Please respect copyright.PENANAK74Do28YGr
"My friends and close family," she says, putting emphasis on the word 'close' and bringing back some embarrassing memories. I just hope that Evetta doesn't use her borderline mindreading powers on me and bring it up.436Please respect copyright.PENANAj0gwGJarkL
436Please respect copyright.PENANAK0PQnDo8ZG
436Please respect copyright.PENANAWhbzHrM3AO
"Thinking 'bout Uncle George?" Evetta asks with a grin, causing my cheeks to redden. I will never forget the day that my mother's brother showed up at our house drunk and unannounced, and asked for a place to stay. Of course Evetta was staying there, and of course, he had to say something when he saw her.436Please respect copyright.PENANAGiO9qn52gi
436Please respect copyright.PENANArazAo1DMxW
436Please respect copyright.PENANA1fiqwATDUS
"So Caleb, I never knew that you were into the darkies. I mean, they're good to shag, but not to keep."436Please respect copyright.PENANAnI6ReVsDWC
436Please respect copyright.PENANAlCJgzQox7k
436Please respect copyright.PENANAQdScVXYFtj
Now, most people would get upset, right? But Evetta... Evetta just started laughing. She laughed so hard that she had to bend over and clutch her stomach.436Please respect copyright.PENANAUQMNRcLKhT
436Please respect copyright.PENANAemv6Qu9cBD
436Please respect copyright.PENANAFLnrwrB7nJ
"What is it, girlie?" he asks.436Please respect copyright.PENANABJA0AdIjk5
436Please respect copyright.PENANAKJ7VmshYNb
436Please respect copyright.PENANAJ59ZPRs3uI
"You're a drunk, you smell like piss, you've probably never had a girlfriend, I doubt you've had sex with anyone who wasn't paid or on drugs in the past year... and you're giving relationship advice? You're like those catholic priests who tell people not to use condoms."436Please respect copyright.PENANAjMKQ1oljZ7
436Please respect copyright.PENANAGkyVs6oFaD
436Please respect copyright.PENANA1XFjfJSEvA
Needless to say Uncle George wasn't too pleased. He was even angrier when my parents kicked him out.436Please respect copyright.PENANA5sU4EpfnQP
436Please respect copyright.PENANAZituJfZCld
436Please respect copyright.PENANA7bV7fNWWen
"Caleb, sometimes your mouth is really too big," he said.436Please respect copyright.PENANAX10c9AjBC5
436Please respect copyright.PENANAfeSKP9bw8k
436Please respect copyright.PENANAti1w4MQ9F5
"You don't have to do—"436Please respect copyright.PENANAgJo8CCjl2C
436Please respect copyright.PENANAqzqhVye7l7
436Please respect copyright.PENANAnOxS2pXvdE
"Evetta, its fine," my mother reassured her.436Please respect copyright.PENANA6ghLHX2Ego
436Please respect copyright.PENANA3RhrWyYYmI
436Please respect copyright.PENANA35HS3ANbcx
So with that, Uncle George was exiled.436Please respect copyright.PENANASV8WPoiUQL
436Please respect copyright.PENANAM2KkSMFl3Q
436Please respect copyright.PENANAv3B8ykLigJ
"Please don't bring him up," I say to her.436Please respect copyright.PENANADei7h7oP5s
436Please respect copyright.PENANAUea3c7u0bc
436Please respect copyright.PENANAonEEfz2ID4
"She giggles, and puts her head against my chest.436Please respect copyright.PENANATqs84AftWV
436Please respect copyright.PENANALGaKrkgmt9
436Please respect copyright.PENANATpgw7NNrKv
"This is going to be amazing," she says, cuddling up to me with a huge smile on her face.436Please respect copyright.PENANAQyRWcR0BYy
436Please respect copyright.PENANAJubu1rWonm
436Please respect copyright.PENANAmu2GMzXLot
"I love you, Evetta Maji."436Please respect copyright.PENANAvjdLG3xlIY
436Please respect copyright.PENANAT3EkENcA3q
436Please respect copyright.PENANAbXUNzjlpNE
"I love you too."436Please respect copyright.PENANA8uMuDronqL
436Please respect copyright.PENANApOzDJyeTwT
436Please respect copyright.PENANAlzdmv4pXcn
In this moment, with the most beautiful woman on earth giving me a heart warming smile, giving me all the love that I will ever need, I realise something — I'm truly happy. I'm at peace. All of the resentment towards the universe, the self-hatred... it's gone.436Please respect copyright.PENANAPkCtzx6Rql
436Please respect copyright.PENANAciXvk3xTp9
436Please respect copyright.PENANAoMoWx2oa1Y
"You look like you're having an epiphany, or something. What's up?" she asks me.436Please respect copyright.PENANAgbQxn6Cw6J
436Please respect copyright.PENANA56TTc2P5cp
436Please respect copyright.PENANAwZj71O8IIo
"You just make me... happy. I'm not angry anymore," I reply. 436Please respect copyright.PENANAHZAuCKJma5
436Please respect copyright.PENANAmlYY2gi3mL
436Please respect copyright.PENANAR6hklED3Tn
"I've realised," she states. 436Please respect copyright.PENANAO2YrPLCvTY
436Please respect copyright.PENANAzadeVuQXpB
436Please respect copyright.PENANAyMr6z89gmL
"So I'm the same old Caleb?" I ask her jokingly, but I can guess what she's going to say before she says it.436Please respect copyright.PENANAvSp0qMoJCn
436Please respect copyright.PENANAE6txn1ur3j
436Please respect copyright.PENANA8l5LnrgUoR
"No, not the same... something this dramatic has to have a lasting impact on you. The core aspects of your personality are still there... but... it's as if you have a greater appreciation for life."436Please respect copyright.PENANAZmKcRBOC2M
436Please respect copyright.PENANAH5UxtNBKL1
436Please respect copyright.PENANAVddl5itvRc
"So I wasn't grateful before?" I ask her.436Please respect copyright.PENANAlE9BVzh7V4
436Please respect copyright.PENANAZlr4i9I3mv
436Please respect copyright.PENANAuRgdxEOJ7U
"That was just me not wanting to tell you that you're fucking whipped. Won't last forever though. Shut up and listen," she scolds when I open my mouth to interrupt her. "Being in love is fantastic. It's fun. It's the most amazing feeling ever. It's also the worst thing to depend on when trying to keep a relationship. Loving someone, and being in love with someone are two different things. I've seen it with my parents. Sometimes it's as if they're the only two people in the world; they can only see each other. Sometimes, they're completely pissed with each other, for days, even weeks... but every night, my father comes home with a fresh cupcake for my mother from Sugar and Spice, and my mother sets dinner for my father. And sometimes, there are no fireworks... but the sparks are still there. You feel me?"436Please respect copyright.PENANAUuYIjbbmKS
436Please respect copyright.PENANAl29HC2nN71
436Please respect copyright.PENANACjrrY2Takk
"Yeah," I say, taking it all in. I've never thought of it that way.436Please respect copyright.PENANAWxvW76pahN
436Please respect copyright.PENANAsXBma12pVZ
436Please respect copyright.PENANAnEiQ7VhLhP
"Remember before the accident, how we had that huge fight over–"436Please respect copyright.PENANAmqTik20Qyp
436Please respect copyright.PENANASYGh4VogvU
436Please respect copyright.PENANAcMirlKC5XK
"—me telling you what to wear. Yeah."436Please respect copyright.PENANA5sR1CThSPU
436Please respect copyright.PENANA04hsZxVtOI
436Please respect copyright.PENANATP0447nEFa
"It took forever for us to get over it, but every night—"436Please respect copyright.PENANAiXHxx0rCHv
436Please respect copyright.PENANA48yXMcSzRs
436Please respect copyright.PENANAkTjpljL5FB
"—we would text each other. I remember."436Please respect copyright.PENANAncFAwbQmue
436Please respect copyright.PENANAUfIo4KeYpb
436Please respect copyright.PENANAavbwQSSmOv
She smiles, and kisses my jaw.436Please respect copyright.PENANAbf6SRakeUZ
436Please respect copyright.PENANAffC41JT5Kf
436Please respect copyright.PENANAZKjunzsXrv
"That's when I realised how much I loved you, because at that moment, there were no fireworks—"436Please respect copyright.PENANAtUi2QrilQ1
436Please respect copyright.PENANA1nbfLeUddg
436Please respect copyright.PENANAsxVRdGGFkd
"—but the sparks were still there." 436Please respect copyright.PENANAwAUgCuKWvD
436Please respect copyright.PENANA1v6iXy9OOi
436Please respect copyright.PENANAbScD2gqirl
"And they always will be."436Please respect copyright.PENANADEcnM9UdCa
436Please respect copyright.PENANADYmls8sKwd
436Please respect copyright.PENANAZVpprnshr7
She doesn't know how true that is. I will never stop loving her. Not even when I'm pissed at her beyond words. Not even when she fùcks up. Not even when she hurls hurtful words at me as she pushes out my child, because let's be honest, Evetta is exactly the type of woman to do that shit in the moment.436Please respect copyright.PENANAVY4JcP3FnN
436Please respect copyright.PENANAMLgR8aOZmi
436Please respect copyright.PENANAea8dCFOYck
I will always love this woman.436Please respect copyright.PENANAaOTfaAo0Gj
436Please respect copyright.PENANAlgHxTKfn8j
436Please respect copyright.PENANAIKooloMXFq
"Yes," I say reassuringly, "they will."436Please respect copyright.PENANA7oyv3tAAYc
436Please respect copyright.PENANA0uPoqaGabs
436Please respect copyright.PENANAcVSTXY6umt