I can't take my eye off of her hand.584Please respect copyright.PENANAqgzjd5ARN8
We're back at the bar where we first met, each with a bottle of ginger ale.584Please respect copyright.PENANAWqZYlgm6tL
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.584Please respect copyright.PENANAo2LyqJFnXr
"Caleb, if you could get a pet, what would it bue?" she asks.584Please respect copyright.PENANAMcd1nlcTtV
"A parrot," I reply almost immediately.584Please respect copyright.PENANAwVEdAEQZ0E
She smiles. 584Please respect copyright.PENANAj8xbgoRKna
584Please respect copyright.PENANA5FCR1XAja3
584Please respect copyright.PENANAq2yo2606uc
"Me, too."584Please respect copyright.PENANAqy17SPFywf
584Please respect copyright.PENANAz41POfoNK1
584Please respect copyright.PENANAUA3IaiOyIy
"Why?" I ask her.584Please respect copyright.PENANAWD6xQMshVM
584Please respect copyright.PENANA0LHmlOmpf3
584Please respect copyright.PENANA0ZYc3iTtSi
"They're loving and they live long."584Please respect copyright.PENANA6kEhmFu71A
584Please respect copyright.PENANAaukqlttKxM
584Please respect copyright.PENANA1eGHquC7Ia
584Please respect copyright.PENANAiDgIxnu6BX
584Please respect copyright.PENANAwhG3tnfSDp
"That's my reason, too," I grin.584Please respect copyright.PENANARG9spVrlgZ
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. 584Please respect copyright.PENANAM2TR6HPetd
At my age, if I get a young Macaw or African Grey, it would probably outlive me. Problem solved.584Please respect copyright.PENANAFP5p9wABc6
"What's your favourite type of parrot?" I ask her.584Please respect copyright.PENANATDxIabtKnu
"Military Macaw," she responds with a giggle. "It's probably because I've watched 'Rio'so many times."584Please respect copyright.PENANA7rx7nP1B6Z
I smile at her.584Please respect copyright.PENANAlnhvRasXf5
"They can also be very aggressive," I mutter to her, wincing as I recall a Blue Macaw tearing its beak into Eli's flesh.584Please respect copyright.PENANAdpoDDEO5Za
That wasn't fun.584Please respect copyright.PENANAlZIlCEFcqk
"True," she mutters.584Please respect copyright.PENANAKxX0tnoNii
I look at her for a few seconds.584Please respect copyright.PENANAqqyFqiFv76
"You want one."584Please respect copyright.PENANAJllQv5j0zZ
She looks back at me.584Please respect copyright.PENANANeMKotgZvP
"Yeah, I've been thinking about it," she says with a smile.584Please respect copyright.PENANAVDWDAbcI8a
"Well, lets do it then," I say to her.584Please respect copyright.PENANAW42JUtWkF7
"Really?"584Please respect copyright.PENANAJXf8FxRbOR
"Really."584Please respect copyright.PENANA7tNwj4KRdT
She awards me with one of those heart melting smiles again.584Please respect copyright.PENANAvUbYBLw2bD
"I hope you can teach me how to take care of it, because when it comes to that shit, I suck."584Please respect copyright.PENANAy5pt7sjzcg
"Of course," I retort, smiling to myself.584Please respect copyright.PENANAO1Z6x9nRGo
"Do you know where to get one?"584Please respect copyright.PENANALwXwcUehfu
"I can find out," I reply.584Please respect copyright.PENANAjSOfEbpDb0
She looks down at her ring finger, and smiles, then looking up at me.584Please respect copyright.PENANA27fABM6Hfe
"So, when are we gonna do this?"584Please respect copyright.PENANAhNesLMu4lE
"Huh?"584Please respect copyright.PENANADI0N0J5ZZk
"Get married," she clarifies.584Please respect copyright.PENANAiZZSnX1IvB
I hadn't even thought about the wedding yet, to be honest.584Please respect copyright.PENANAXGaAxTxtlH
"I don't know. When do you want to do it?"584Please respect copyright.PENANArjZ6HQowq7
"July," she mumbles, but I know that she wants to say more.584Please respect copyright.PENANAckmTwBv3xN
"What is it?" I ask.584Please respect copyright.PENANAjYfOvTa81k
She chews her lip, and then exhales. 584Please respect copyright.PENANAc9CnmMGZ2w
"I want to get married in Jamaica."584Please respect copyright.PENANAPQC7iGQs1b
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.584Please respect copyright.PENANA2Pa4IukpWu
"Never mind—"584Please respect copyright.PENANAeJiba5Ce8Z
"That would be amazing," I breathe.584Please respect copyright.PENANArytHGbzSpO
"Really?" she asks, a huge smile spreading over her face.584Please respect copyright.PENANAczlyXgktDD
"Yes! I'd love to see that part of your life."584Please respect copyright.PENANAIq0h5601At
She reaches over and hugs me.584Please respect copyright.PENANAp4Bak2sWIm
"Thank you," she whispers.584Please respect copyright.PENANA2CU2W0rUYi
"You're very welcome, Eve."584Please respect copyright.PENANAkL9yKBbSVQ
***584Please respect copyright.PENANAa8FpqbGF4Y
We got a female Military Macaw; she's one year old, and Evetta named her "Jade", because of the colour of her body.584Please respect copyright.PENANACQOudwrSkc
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.584Please respect copyright.PENANAXi5EycETgf
She looks over at me, and her brow furrows.584Please respect copyright.PENANAnlaLNpHxCi
"What?" she asks.584Please respect copyright.PENANA0eZMOre28b
"Nothing. It's just that... you're really beautiful."584Please respect copyright.PENANAMfQ85j8Mlt
She smiles at me; sometimes, I wonder if she knows what that smile does to me.584Please respect copyright.PENANAWPcgo1lfYv
"Same," she replies.584Please respect copyright.PENANAZLPYK30CGR
I move over to her, and rest my head on her shoulder. She leans her head on my head.584Please respect copyright.PENANAZYJ3GPOJo8
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.584Please respect copyright.PENANAUxmqeVi4oe
But Evetta stayed.584Please respect copyright.PENANA7RcGYnkShy
And for that, I will forever be grateful.584Please respect copyright.PENANAibnOK0Ioly
"Thank you," I mumble into her neck, and she pulls back and gives me a questioning look.584Please respect copyright.PENANAmop21X3la1
"For what?" she asks, looking and sounding puzzled.584Please respect copyright.PENANA0vHq4sICkm
584Please respect copyright.PENANADt397umAaj
584Please respect copyright.PENANAZJmhsmb3kn
"For not leaving," I clarify.584Please respect copyright.PENANAS6o0OmAySX
584Please respect copyright.PENANAvgwfIBwE8H
584Please respect copyright.PENANA3GdzrnY6LQ
She looks straight into my eyes, then drops her gazes and sighs.584Please respect copyright.PENANAZkH5nhhMs2
584Please respect copyright.PENANAj5yL90hvcy
584Please respect copyright.PENANAdN9U3f7QL5
"I love you more than you could ever know," she whispers.584Please respect copyright.PENANAGu6OqgHeNq
584Please respect copyright.PENANAfBSfVhWtz3
584Please respect copyright.PENANADv74olewVl
"If it's anywhere near as much as I love you, " I start, tilting her head up so that she will look at me.584Please respect copyright.PENANAlzwFxPUX2p
584Please respect copyright.PENANAA2nGch85Wp
584Please respect copyright.PENANArkfEeV6JnN
"—then I think I have a pretty good idea," I finish.584Please respect copyright.PENANA6smvmvD2H0
584Please respect copyright.PENANARimzXhjmiz
584Please respect copyright.PENANA0stQErSkJe
I kiss her, and she moans into my mouth, not expecting it.584Please respect copyright.PENANAV3cqTAIgql
584Please respect copyright.PENANAc6977rR6pM
584Please respect copyright.PENANABStkdRdRFd
"Don't do that," I grunt, pulling away from her.584Please respect copyright.PENANAa7kcE45xT8
584Please respect copyright.PENANAjn6NmLVicj
584Please respect copyright.PENANAq255k12RYC
"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.584Please respect copyright.PENANArnhatPPs3b
584Please respect copyright.PENANA8s3UPoIDta
584Please respect copyright.PENANAGpBLQR3eV4
"I think Jade is jealous," Evetta says with a chuckle.584Please respect copyright.PENANAWkKNkr6ex9
584Please respect copyright.PENANAlg8y6koKtR
584Please respect copyright.PENANAZpJbeItC5X
"Well, shell just have to learn to live with it," I reply seriously.584Please respect copyright.PENANAHnR0VxS6je
584Please respect copyright.PENANA54yxccbm0v
584Please respect copyright.PENANA6LakJIPApu
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.584Please respect copyright.PENANA3njRFmSMvu
584Please respect copyright.PENANA4xvD6ifHgi
584Please respect copyright.PENANAx8YrrDKfqP
"So... about that wedding," I start.584Please respect copyright.PENANAmlxUnphtXU
584Please respect copyright.PENANAubogRvzU3t
584Please respect copyright.PENANAf7ihjpQiHo
"I was thinking we should have it at my mother's house," she replies.584Please respect copyright.PENANA2Qm0sOxe7n
584Please respect copyright.PENANAA1Ex2pGUP0
584Please respect copyright.PENANA2mxwW5maxo
"Really?" 584Please respect copyright.PENANAF7RgImwGTx
584Please respect copyright.PENANArVkrLz7MOU
584Please respect copyright.PENANAqndd6WHadr
"Yeah. Not like I want many people there, anyway," she states.584Please respect copyright.PENANAxgMGUbTVzM
584Please respect copyright.PENANAZcEJpYqjv8
584Please respect copyright.PENANAkAgtkYfaRj
"Who would be there?"584Please respect copyright.PENANApnRkVMvX9z
584Please respect copyright.PENANATtkz36QFC4
584Please respect copyright.PENANA8PHuPWqSBX
"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.584Please respect copyright.PENANAwLfHT1zTp4
584Please respect copyright.PENANAHzL16w3c2U
584Please respect copyright.PENANASYLXcmbDt2
"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.584Please respect copyright.PENANAJcsemiJSdu
584Please respect copyright.PENANACke399pInG
584Please respect copyright.PENANAAEQsgjhKzx
"So Caleb, I never knew that you were into the darkies. I mean, they're good to shag, but not to keep."584Please respect copyright.PENANAXvQrSnri4Y
584Please respect copyright.PENANArBV5WON5dv
584Please respect copyright.PENANAaIFHADfag2
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.584Please respect copyright.PENANAgT2XcUnGuN
584Please respect copyright.PENANAr8UQ9ucka6
584Please respect copyright.PENANAaKJdLeRGpK
"What is it, girlie?" he asks.584Please respect copyright.PENANAxwlVMUedtL
584Please respect copyright.PENANAiQyM1rx4jw
584Please respect copyright.PENANAr8HKbkKrpv
"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."584Please respect copyright.PENANArjnQuKHTlr
584Please respect copyright.PENANA85NlfXLjiG
584Please respect copyright.PENANAjtbtDGizzy
Needless to say Uncle George wasn't too pleased. He was even angrier when my parents kicked him out.584Please respect copyright.PENANAp9AJ8C6nGA
584Please respect copyright.PENANAFmHwnmI5sh
584Please respect copyright.PENANAVKYojZMgLT
"Caleb, sometimes your mouth is really too big," he said.584Please respect copyright.PENANAH22MjDClVI
584Please respect copyright.PENANA1k6XcETQoX
584Please respect copyright.PENANAc8RT8HjtuI
"You don't have to do—"584Please respect copyright.PENANApDDSDE6IIe
584Please respect copyright.PENANAVPBMCKTe9G
584Please respect copyright.PENANAYwjS61PZG3
"Evetta, its fine," my mother reassured her.584Please respect copyright.PENANAx8qPoaNTZq
584Please respect copyright.PENANAlEJjI8khZR
584Please respect copyright.PENANAcByHugSNfZ
So with that, Uncle George was exiled.584Please respect copyright.PENANAMS5BZRniFg
584Please respect copyright.PENANAaQnagLCQC4
584Please respect copyright.PENANADiAyUrVVUM
"Please don't bring him up," I say to her.584Please respect copyright.PENANAJsbakahjOR
584Please respect copyright.PENANAcIXmTztWBM
584Please respect copyright.PENANAhVISEiB51Z
"She giggles, and puts her head against my chest.584Please respect copyright.PENANAEK0emxjYJl
584Please respect copyright.PENANAmpJrrp3STj
584Please respect copyright.PENANA4enfbukr28
"This is going to be amazing," she says, cuddling up to me with a huge smile on her face.584Please respect copyright.PENANAyOT7EsmVJJ
584Please respect copyright.PENANAOiuXJPGB3h
584Please respect copyright.PENANApWCLATMnJB
"I love you, Evetta Maji."584Please respect copyright.PENANA4d41Ca2WwZ
584Please respect copyright.PENANARpGT3QdOKp
584Please respect copyright.PENANAiwNJa1iZvp
"I love you too."584Please respect copyright.PENANAmI7z9TySHC
584Please respect copyright.PENANAe51Ox80MiL
584Please respect copyright.PENANAvX7Nnqxgl0
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.584Please respect copyright.PENANA9kdOK0Hfog
584Please respect copyright.PENANAf7jA0rwjkj
584Please respect copyright.PENANA2baVK0q0RV
"You look like you're having an epiphany, or something. What's up?" she asks me.584Please respect copyright.PENANAN4DTXPTrrH
584Please respect copyright.PENANAIDiOUI53YI
584Please respect copyright.PENANAaaqzB72wEL
"You just make me... happy. I'm not angry anymore," I reply. 584Please respect copyright.PENANAUAiJs0k94A
584Please respect copyright.PENANAUwcd3aEIxA
584Please respect copyright.PENANAi5HRTfvlSR
"I've realised," she states. 584Please respect copyright.PENANAaRFpA1hAOY
584Please respect copyright.PENANAXCxke2w2gq
584Please respect copyright.PENANAqrvZlZnT38
"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.584Please respect copyright.PENANAse9FwJe6Tt
584Please respect copyright.PENANAsjqvAYmTLV
584Please respect copyright.PENANA83xAleBfxz
"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."584Please respect copyright.PENANAbAA3b8ytxa
584Please respect copyright.PENANApEtxY6d8A5
584Please respect copyright.PENANAQWEYpwdBfz
"So I wasn't grateful before?" I ask her.584Please respect copyright.PENANAKod5yxvYF3
584Please respect copyright.PENANAbnYUs4auiX
584Please respect copyright.PENANAECCD9dj2h9
"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?"584Please respect copyright.PENANALka6FtObwl
584Please respect copyright.PENANAvXg7RBvytj
584Please respect copyright.PENANAIbbNDrcCBG
"Yeah," I say, taking it all in. I've never thought of it that way.584Please respect copyright.PENANAaOWWxV9hEI
584Please respect copyright.PENANAHUNspjt576
584Please respect copyright.PENANAOEurfd8pxj
"Remember before the accident, how we had that huge fight over–"584Please respect copyright.PENANAFVbJGCuKWP
584Please respect copyright.PENANAHH08x0OBLn
584Please respect copyright.PENANAuTE7MtPVyu
"—me telling you what to wear. Yeah."584Please respect copyright.PENANAHfzgVqxP34
584Please respect copyright.PENANAI99Au7bvL0
584Please respect copyright.PENANAQ1ayxeSwav
"It took forever for us to get over it, but every night—"584Please respect copyright.PENANA6di7rANP5h
584Please respect copyright.PENANA13XDPpumbA
584Please respect copyright.PENANAUdmZgRoygL
"—we would text each other. I remember."584Please respect copyright.PENANABhNJfjGqxO
584Please respect copyright.PENANA3u1cfW9U5C
584Please respect copyright.PENANAW6r3IzHnse
She smiles, and kisses my jaw.584Please respect copyright.PENANAVzPOHFm15B
584Please respect copyright.PENANAJYHqqvTeUM
584Please respect copyright.PENANAax6vpMgrmu
"That's when I realised how much I loved you, because at that moment, there were no fireworks—"584Please respect copyright.PENANAQHkNOloV6S
584Please respect copyright.PENANAL3tEqn1JpA
584Please respect copyright.PENANAydgrB5WwvW
"—but the sparks were still there." 584Please respect copyright.PENANA5b6ShI1ATS
584Please respect copyright.PENANAxPSC3kRjXM
584Please respect copyright.PENANA6rBIE9sJO6
"And they always will be."584Please respect copyright.PENANAsg2YdAiyq6
584Please respect copyright.PENANAcrLz2KUSxU
584Please respect copyright.PENANAORX43MKKYv
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.584Please respect copyright.PENANAlq7MbNIPK4
584Please respect copyright.PENANAx54ahJ2o0Z
584Please respect copyright.PENANAi94b5CUSnz
I will always love this woman.584Please respect copyright.PENANA4ZzgzPtU7P
584Please respect copyright.PENANAkf2CCLDdt4
584Please respect copyright.PENANA4eompJaE8i
"Yes," I say reassuringly, "they will."584Please respect copyright.PENANAfWeeO3Vj5M
584Please respect copyright.PENANAUJ00e9Kjfr
584Please respect copyright.PENANAWH09p8RydL