I can't take my eye off of her hand.559Please respect copyright.PENANA95Jm1MsvtG
We're back at the bar where we first met, each with a bottle of ginger ale.559Please respect copyright.PENANAMNiD26sucT
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.559Please respect copyright.PENANAa2iWMF3w1F
"Caleb, if you could get a pet, what would it bue?" she asks.559Please respect copyright.PENANAueh1dDPYxi
"A parrot," I reply almost immediately.559Please respect copyright.PENANAxhYvY1JHqp
She smiles. 559Please respect copyright.PENANA25CbeuYuu5
559Please respect copyright.PENANAUhDUF0hLJw
559Please respect copyright.PENANAELgIUq50O0
"Me, too."559Please respect copyright.PENANACWWajO9s5R
559Please respect copyright.PENANAgPzDMzoGkk
559Please respect copyright.PENANAI1KpeGHHtO
"Why?" I ask her.559Please respect copyright.PENANAtXON2Xsndk
559Please respect copyright.PENANAkmj7JdYLR3
559Please respect copyright.PENANAoNijLl6kGl
"They're loving and they live long."559Please respect copyright.PENANAXukatTY6jo
559Please respect copyright.PENANAWLnrdaRez6
559Please respect copyright.PENANAuHetRjBo87
559Please respect copyright.PENANAAwOCniMS1h
559Please respect copyright.PENANAB6zA4xAXXL
"That's my reason, too," I grin.559Please respect copyright.PENANA9kbqDkQNzV
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. 559Please respect copyright.PENANAF9dUmZojac
At my age, if I get a young Macaw or African Grey, it would probably outlive me. Problem solved.559Please respect copyright.PENANAkWroGtp5tI
"What's your favourite type of parrot?" I ask her.559Please respect copyright.PENANALlSpBBWEbd
"Military Macaw," she responds with a giggle. "It's probably because I've watched 'Rio'so many times."559Please respect copyright.PENANAaEMn98wl6x
I smile at her.559Please respect copyright.PENANADIvYcFducv
"They can also be very aggressive," I mutter to her, wincing as I recall a Blue Macaw tearing its beak into Eli's flesh.559Please respect copyright.PENANArLOXY2pa8J
That wasn't fun.559Please respect copyright.PENANAJX3l5ir1FH
"True," she mutters.559Please respect copyright.PENANAV9kSKSPFJl
I look at her for a few seconds.559Please respect copyright.PENANAfLWNGhBHWz
"You want one."559Please respect copyright.PENANAdbikOFuRWR
She looks back at me.559Please respect copyright.PENANALFLRNJp2ju
"Yeah, I've been thinking about it," she says with a smile.559Please respect copyright.PENANAZbDHMjI0MJ
"Well, lets do it then," I say to her.559Please respect copyright.PENANAT9UIYPW7mg
"Really?"559Please respect copyright.PENANAplZN3qUaos
"Really."559Please respect copyright.PENANAIHfDHkTekc
She awards me with one of those heart melting smiles again.559Please respect copyright.PENANAnIvV7Qbo3P
"I hope you can teach me how to take care of it, because when it comes to that shit, I suck."559Please respect copyright.PENANAcy4F6TKIuq
"Of course," I retort, smiling to myself.559Please respect copyright.PENANAGZSag05Ga4
"Do you know where to get one?"559Please respect copyright.PENANAseRZKyVQqC
"I can find out," I reply.559Please respect copyright.PENANAvp7NRpKiam
She looks down at her ring finger, and smiles, then looking up at me.559Please respect copyright.PENANAH0HKPI43IP
"So, when are we gonna do this?"559Please respect copyright.PENANAET85rWupJt
"Huh?"559Please respect copyright.PENANAJqJhWHMQVX
"Get married," she clarifies.559Please respect copyright.PENANAgbWGaTI8cb
I hadn't even thought about the wedding yet, to be honest.559Please respect copyright.PENANAcT8asCW8py
"I don't know. When do you want to do it?"559Please respect copyright.PENANAllea1EqVDC
"July," she mumbles, but I know that she wants to say more.559Please respect copyright.PENANAisuKkqFrO7
"What is it?" I ask.559Please respect copyright.PENANApIXlRN2Pxz
She chews her lip, and then exhales. 559Please respect copyright.PENANAB6EHo09mY3
"I want to get married in Jamaica."559Please respect copyright.PENANAZuXdLgJmPe
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.559Please respect copyright.PENANAuytEnH4PHs
"Never mind—"559Please respect copyright.PENANABrpLFPYSlH
"That would be amazing," I breathe.559Please respect copyright.PENANAGh1AQZsf1c
"Really?" she asks, a huge smile spreading over her face.559Please respect copyright.PENANA0Igffr97WB
"Yes! I'd love to see that part of your life."559Please respect copyright.PENANA2ecnXEl5ap
She reaches over and hugs me.559Please respect copyright.PENANAw9PquNyXnF
"Thank you," she whispers.559Please respect copyright.PENANATwIOd7DLGC
"You're very welcome, Eve."559Please respect copyright.PENANAqCxbH1ytp0
***559Please respect copyright.PENANA5SoGIJRZK6
We got a female Military Macaw; she's one year old, and Evetta named her "Jade", because of the colour of her body.559Please respect copyright.PENANAsUS8k1XZRC
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.559Please respect copyright.PENANAgus4PeXlDd
She looks over at me, and her brow furrows.559Please respect copyright.PENANAEK9gLeSAY6
"What?" she asks.559Please respect copyright.PENANAqPlFFlEA5U
"Nothing. It's just that... you're really beautiful."559Please respect copyright.PENANASQrr0CHB81
She smiles at me; sometimes, I wonder if she knows what that smile does to me.559Please respect copyright.PENANAaZ6isjLIeX
"Same," she replies.559Please respect copyright.PENANAcM7WNJXoc5
I move over to her, and rest my head on her shoulder. She leans her head on my head.559Please respect copyright.PENANAFs6UNzHpab
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.559Please respect copyright.PENANA17hsNx4k6q
But Evetta stayed.559Please respect copyright.PENANAMAt4dxZSDe
And for that, I will forever be grateful.559Please respect copyright.PENANAEJofcPB1U6
"Thank you," I mumble into her neck, and she pulls back and gives me a questioning look.559Please respect copyright.PENANAlMStLV4YV1
"For what?" she asks, looking and sounding puzzled.559Please respect copyright.PENANArr08AVStJP
559Please respect copyright.PENANA9dOqmSLwaQ
559Please respect copyright.PENANALHFznWGEtP
"For not leaving," I clarify.559Please respect copyright.PENANAhqrCWNqAp6
559Please respect copyright.PENANAvUTOseeWsq
559Please respect copyright.PENANAiNw4plNv9f
She looks straight into my eyes, then drops her gazes and sighs.559Please respect copyright.PENANAlpfKJTiP7l
559Please respect copyright.PENANA0jb2Kjujbe
559Please respect copyright.PENANAnw9UNTu6Wk
"I love you more than you could ever know," she whispers.559Please respect copyright.PENANAplLXrAbcXL
559Please respect copyright.PENANAaAyqrI1NaZ
559Please respect copyright.PENANAVOMdpcq2gY
"If it's anywhere near as much as I love you, " I start, tilting her head up so that she will look at me.559Please respect copyright.PENANAesQrXqCxm8
559Please respect copyright.PENANAl1qvSxMA6g
559Please respect copyright.PENANAQvg3426OY2
"—then I think I have a pretty good idea," I finish.559Please respect copyright.PENANAUr1yJUhvLn
559Please respect copyright.PENANAg0ML0ZIhUG
559Please respect copyright.PENANAeASXGGluxU
I kiss her, and she moans into my mouth, not expecting it.559Please respect copyright.PENANAjVDqrGgGls
559Please respect copyright.PENANA5cvmNFerAr
559Please respect copyright.PENANAk6zDpYM18w
"Don't do that," I grunt, pulling away from her.559Please respect copyright.PENANA1AOUqSA0Vd
559Please respect copyright.PENANAZXm9neTAHP
559Please respect copyright.PENANAXS8DvWh4Uv
"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.559Please respect copyright.PENANAFzW6YcGOOl
559Please respect copyright.PENANAInjWn2OIUI
559Please respect copyright.PENANAlUHFiCdmMG
"I think Jade is jealous," Evetta says with a chuckle.559Please respect copyright.PENANAY2rm6jxg9N
559Please respect copyright.PENANAIxAkEadbuh
559Please respect copyright.PENANAFMGBBTqwZK
"Well, shell just have to learn to live with it," I reply seriously.559Please respect copyright.PENANAny8emZOzmW
559Please respect copyright.PENANAG7J9cIEljC
559Please respect copyright.PENANAeHeybFtfdf
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.559Please respect copyright.PENANA5Qz1qdWSZs
559Please respect copyright.PENANA5EIz2qrsNH
559Please respect copyright.PENANAjZDP7fQQCX
"So... about that wedding," I start.559Please respect copyright.PENANA72qc85LNbz
559Please respect copyright.PENANAo5ZtUJhxYS
559Please respect copyright.PENANAa5dwXwsvHt
"I was thinking we should have it at my mother's house," she replies.559Please respect copyright.PENANALzVIXsaXUI
559Please respect copyright.PENANAnEZIFjBDyG
559Please respect copyright.PENANAXHy5KKLlNv
"Really?" 559Please respect copyright.PENANA5UsQvIClSy
559Please respect copyright.PENANAmgEZ0dcslC
559Please respect copyright.PENANAnmK6Fy89Oh
"Yeah. Not like I want many people there, anyway," she states.559Please respect copyright.PENANAR4ybHPWoWO
559Please respect copyright.PENANAIo7JYfBSwU
559Please respect copyright.PENANArBu2BryGbf
"Who would be there?"559Please respect copyright.PENANAfFNR0Xpoxt
559Please respect copyright.PENANAf3hghRoqEh
559Please respect copyright.PENANAlihwdwSGHK
"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.559Please respect copyright.PENANAEejl8G8zBE
559Please respect copyright.PENANANMwlivorR5
559Please respect copyright.PENANA8oWyMcHTa8
"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.559Please respect copyright.PENANAddqWKZ8pGz
559Please respect copyright.PENANA3EGiYjmKIN
559Please respect copyright.PENANAnMtQgXlL90
"So Caleb, I never knew that you were into the darkies. I mean, they're good to shag, but not to keep."559Please respect copyright.PENANApivnj9zuzC
559Please respect copyright.PENANAouFOlXDUJ9
559Please respect copyright.PENANAY3uiF797et
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.559Please respect copyright.PENANAPmufzbdXJp
559Please respect copyright.PENANAzSuJB8LqCP
559Please respect copyright.PENANAornV1euRIm
"What is it, girlie?" he asks.559Please respect copyright.PENANAFSPXfQWcum
559Please respect copyright.PENANA3tPUGkmUHL
559Please respect copyright.PENANAJpaf9xrY6f
"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."559Please respect copyright.PENANAvd9UhYqeVF
559Please respect copyright.PENANAf0nU412hvi
559Please respect copyright.PENANAJBql3Ilwm8
Needless to say Uncle George wasn't too pleased. He was even angrier when my parents kicked him out.559Please respect copyright.PENANAzPvorU7X1a
559Please respect copyright.PENANAECNppBSqPv
559Please respect copyright.PENANA9Ad5XVytL5
"Caleb, sometimes your mouth is really too big," he said.559Please respect copyright.PENANARTL6FRWF0T
559Please respect copyright.PENANA45hBwvCEKg
559Please respect copyright.PENANAPPbCWwJPHx
"You don't have to do—"559Please respect copyright.PENANAtPAavtgWSs
559Please respect copyright.PENANAkyczgI3WJ1
559Please respect copyright.PENANACFNRXzQaOe
"Evetta, its fine," my mother reassured her.559Please respect copyright.PENANAq0SIKd3LN5
559Please respect copyright.PENANA15ZAkzrmTb
559Please respect copyright.PENANAJgr02d1rBr
So with that, Uncle George was exiled.559Please respect copyright.PENANAwc5JSkc5KM
559Please respect copyright.PENANAPeo23Z1gHp
559Please respect copyright.PENANAAqnd4Uxkwb
"Please don't bring him up," I say to her.559Please respect copyright.PENANA6chzPjjmjQ
559Please respect copyright.PENANAPsnTsxeUjy
559Please respect copyright.PENANAb5WYC3yHbb
"She giggles, and puts her head against my chest.559Please respect copyright.PENANAHpag981P9t
559Please respect copyright.PENANAi1Kg1IyLtP
559Please respect copyright.PENANA6U1l36Ckjc
"This is going to be amazing," she says, cuddling up to me with a huge smile on her face.559Please respect copyright.PENANAhDtSHErqYw
559Please respect copyright.PENANADtWhc0Jw9x
559Please respect copyright.PENANAgpKUJ2Bfvr
"I love you, Evetta Maji."559Please respect copyright.PENANAHCMI9mwLcJ
559Please respect copyright.PENANAjQeq8MoZYW
559Please respect copyright.PENANAGAYZLdq50c
"I love you too."559Please respect copyright.PENANAi4UTdV3yH0
559Please respect copyright.PENANA2F3ppgBGJM
559Please respect copyright.PENANA7YyDuLqrQX
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.559Please respect copyright.PENANAQ77N5N7GPt
559Please respect copyright.PENANAdX97yrKy6T
559Please respect copyright.PENANAVeJ418gzy8
"You look like you're having an epiphany, or something. What's up?" she asks me.559Please respect copyright.PENANA6LFmnbJsRM
559Please respect copyright.PENANALwfOhGjMag
559Please respect copyright.PENANABtVPuko4rq
"You just make me... happy. I'm not angry anymore," I reply. 559Please respect copyright.PENANAi7V0mNMCQP
559Please respect copyright.PENANA4aB15vTpph
559Please respect copyright.PENANAy1QY7fHH51
"I've realised," she states. 559Please respect copyright.PENANAtXWwy0XZq4
559Please respect copyright.PENANAi7MTYXSix8
559Please respect copyright.PENANAOcpCT3sq17
"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.559Please respect copyright.PENANA2sVAvILBUZ
559Please respect copyright.PENANAhuk1G5KIJE
559Please respect copyright.PENANAyaLUBeL1zX
"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."559Please respect copyright.PENANAgDHZi23gzQ
559Please respect copyright.PENANAPs5JdQmhCE
559Please respect copyright.PENANAybIJugWD2k
"So I wasn't grateful before?" I ask her.559Please respect copyright.PENANA1ODZnOB61w
559Please respect copyright.PENANAGJtAZF2oTv
559Please respect copyright.PENANASPXX1EBDPX
"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?"559Please respect copyright.PENANAubWEBXkDzj
559Please respect copyright.PENANAE6EWsimhiN
559Please respect copyright.PENANA7ZM1o0i6dX
"Yeah," I say, taking it all in. I've never thought of it that way.559Please respect copyright.PENANAoxWhRK3YMt
559Please respect copyright.PENANA6dOJRkPSlN
559Please respect copyright.PENANAii3sPLLF8B
"Remember before the accident, how we had that huge fight over–"559Please respect copyright.PENANAlAn6IB04ez
559Please respect copyright.PENANAGZphw2GHDK
559Please respect copyright.PENANAwA3uOKJ2TO
"—me telling you what to wear. Yeah."559Please respect copyright.PENANAYAJbE5hAKC
559Please respect copyright.PENANAGZTOTntKKp
559Please respect copyright.PENANA65pDCbGOTE
"It took forever for us to get over it, but every night—"559Please respect copyright.PENANAcG8LIVaDyZ
559Please respect copyright.PENANAlhotOLOnNp
559Please respect copyright.PENANAykdpWU5C29
"—we would text each other. I remember."559Please respect copyright.PENANAZ6wTG4ooJO
559Please respect copyright.PENANAajdl9mOXEL
559Please respect copyright.PENANAtm1d40ZOHE
She smiles, and kisses my jaw.559Please respect copyright.PENANANKm7Cy7P4K
559Please respect copyright.PENANAJ8PZhjoFEL
559Please respect copyright.PENANAUYc6ep5cKF
"That's when I realised how much I loved you, because at that moment, there were no fireworks—"559Please respect copyright.PENANAjcwMEIvArg
559Please respect copyright.PENANA74wJ5YgYVw
559Please respect copyright.PENANABdEpE4yhx5
"—but the sparks were still there." 559Please respect copyright.PENANAjc5aV9qLWp
559Please respect copyright.PENANAGLNYBe1dmG
559Please respect copyright.PENANA32KX2OCuv9
"And they always will be."559Please respect copyright.PENANAG10vUxwF3j
559Please respect copyright.PENANAf4eKS5TgcU
559Please respect copyright.PENANAQVZQ8noWOb
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.559Please respect copyright.PENANAd3mdbDbx20
559Please respect copyright.PENANAW04y1c0oMe
559Please respect copyright.PENANA56RByVlcNj
I will always love this woman.559Please respect copyright.PENANAn2wH1gZcxy
559Please respect copyright.PENANACHHvBdOvxi
559Please respect copyright.PENANAFLKvQBirx3
"Yes," I say reassuringly, "they will."559Please respect copyright.PENANAa4eBbp1h93
559Please respect copyright.PENANAm5H9sBSzwM
559Please respect copyright.PENANAMPp2nc6IXC