Member-only story
Peppermint Candy
Just a little something special.
Tell me, love, that we’ll last a lifetime. If you say it just right, I might believe you instead of trying to wallow in past miseries.
But those are just sentiments from a past life, aren’t they? You’re someone else’s now.
Merry Christmas — the words flow free, and your cheeks are flushed even in the dim light of your brother’s cabin. I open my mouth to repeat the phrase back, but then I glimpse past your shoulder and see the face of your new girlfriend. She looks even prettier than the pictures I saw on Facebook. Her hair is a fall of golden ringlets as if she slept with curlers in to get the effect just right. I almost hate her — just a tiny bit — for being a slice of perfection.
But I play the good girl and offer her a smile. Then the words manage to slip past my lips — Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas — before I lean in for a hug that feels like a breath from another life. I almost sight with relief when you let go, but then my eyes are all on her again, trying to tease out any flaw in the picture. But there is none. She’s the kind of girl who looks like the right puzzle piece set in place next to you.
I retreat and go back to being just your brother’s old high school friend. You don’t have any more time for me as you greet friends and family members you…
