“Good.”
He hugged me tightly, and I felt his muscles relax in my arms. “Still feeling okay, baby?”
“Yeah…I am.” I smiled. “Really.”
“That makes me so happy.” He kissed me, moaning under his breath. “Let’s hit the road. I can’t get you in that hotel room tonight fast enough.”
“You better pray he sleeps then.”
“I’ll be spending the entire four hour drive praying for that, believe me.”
Since it was a Saturday, there was no rush hour traffic, and we made it to New York in under four hours. Jake held my hand the entire car ride, sneaking side glances more than usual, apparently waiting for the ball to drop, for my mood to change. It amazed me how his mood often depended on mine. If I was happy, so was he. It was just another testament to how strongly he loved me. At one point, he smiled and said, “Please tell me my baby is back.”
Looking down at his hand squeezing mine reminded me of our plane ride home from Chicago over a year ago. It was hard to believe how much had changed between then and now. One thing that was exactly the same though, was how it felt when he touched me. It gave me the same goosebumps right now, as it did then. I was really looking forward to our long-awaited “reunion ” later tonight.
Before we could get to that hotel room in the city, we had a very important stop to make just over the George Washington Bridge in Jersey; it was the main reason for our New York trip.
***
I couldn’t believe how beautiful the strapless white dress was, as I pulled it up…absolutely breathtaking.
It wasn’t so much the dress but the person inside of it.
“Skylar…you look so beautiful.”
“Thanks, Sissy.”
I loved her nickname for me. She deemed me her honorary sister, since neither of us had one. We promised to fill that role for each other during all of the big moments in our lives. She was too sick to come to Boston when A.J. was born but was feeling a lot better now that her treatments were over for the time being. It once dawned on me that cancer had taken away my brother, but in a strange way, it had given me a sister. If she hadn’t been in the hospital that day, I would have never met the person who’s inspired me more than anyone ever had.
So, as her big sister, I was here to perform my sisterly duties.
“Grab the duct tape. You’re gonna bind my boobies together,” she said.
“What? Why would you want to do that?”
“Instant cleavage. Come on…it’s over there.”
I pulled a long piece of tape out as she held her medium sized breasts together. “I can’t believe I am doing this,” I said as she twirled around.
“Well, not all of us are lucky enough to be as boobiferous as you. Although, I have to say, that situation is getting a little out of control.”
“It’s because I’m breastfeeding A.J.”
“A.J. and a small third world country, apparently.”
“Shut up.” I laughed. “Jake likes them.”
“Well, if he ever goes missing, I’ll make sure to send the authorities straight to your boobie trap.”
We were both cracking up now. She always put me in the best mood with her sense of humor. I lifted the white dress back up over her new cleavage as she looked in the full-length mirror.
“Much better,” she said. “Can you grab my wig? It’s on the top shelf of the closet.”
Even though her hair was starting to grow back, it was still very short, so she opted to wear the long auburn wig I had gotten her. When I placed it on her head as we looked in the mirror, her expression brightened.
I was smiling so wide, my mouth hurt. She looked like a supermodel. “Mitch is going to die.”
My phone vibrated, and then I heard Love in an Elevator by Aerosmith, which Jake programmed in as the ringtone for his calls. Classic Jake. I picked up. “Hey, babe…yeah, she’s just about ready. You guys can come over in like five minutes, okay?”
Jake had A.J. with him across the street at Mitch’s house. They were hanging out there while I helped Skylar get ready. Mitch and she were still best friends, but Skylar had it bad for him. They hadn’t crossed that line yet, and I was hoping things wouldn’t get out of control tonight, because she was still too young. But I knew how strong her feelings for him were, so we had a talk about being careful in the event that something were to happen.
Mitch had asked her to accompany him to his junior prom several months ago when she was still sick in the hospital. For a while, we weren’t sure if she was going to be able to go. He told her if she couldn’t go with him, he wasn’t going either. Thank goodness, she is feeling better and was able to make it, because this was one of her dreams come true.