I can't take my eye off of her hand.541Please respect copyright.PENANA2RWLtYThou
We're back at the bar where we first met, each with a bottle of ginger ale.541Please respect copyright.PENANAH5G6xzHdf0
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.541Please respect copyright.PENANAZWJceEJmOe
"Caleb, if you could get a pet, what would it bue?" she asks.541Please respect copyright.PENANAchJHK2R9zF
"A parrot," I reply almost immediately.541Please respect copyright.PENANAIsTh1jzrhX
She smiles. 541Please respect copyright.PENANADGpvMNHG6e
541Please respect copyright.PENANAuY5C10HmFh
541Please respect copyright.PENANANjeFDwFuxX
"Me, too."541Please respect copyright.PENANAnCs9BoiyCl
541Please respect copyright.PENANAfq7dmKa1lA
541Please respect copyright.PENANAiH7TqRrgR5
"Why?" I ask her.541Please respect copyright.PENANAZEoeWI4jwQ
541Please respect copyright.PENANAAw6GzfYtAd
541Please respect copyright.PENANAIhTISGqHeE
"They're loving and they live long."541Please respect copyright.PENANAHy8EaNHIbK
541Please respect copyright.PENANAtdmcqqq8Fr
541Please respect copyright.PENANAXRKS4uTsoh
541Please respect copyright.PENANAjyTIiDIXOR
541Please respect copyright.PENANAmSzXzGDCVX
"That's my reason, too," I grin.541Please respect copyright.PENANAeoyNtcAH3R
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. 541Please respect copyright.PENANAam8p57An4f
At my age, if I get a young Macaw or African Grey, it would probably outlive me. Problem solved.541Please respect copyright.PENANAiqxFBbZlWh
"What's your favourite type of parrot?" I ask her.541Please respect copyright.PENANA15OlJh9QHR
"Military Macaw," she responds with a giggle. "It's probably because I've watched 'Rio'so many times."541Please respect copyright.PENANAZTcYFAusNa
I smile at her.541Please respect copyright.PENANAH87nTiWmd3
"They can also be very aggressive," I mutter to her, wincing as I recall a Blue Macaw tearing its beak into Eli's flesh.541Please respect copyright.PENANAEtlvSIucXG
That wasn't fun.541Please respect copyright.PENANAplExssdzJC
"True," she mutters.541Please respect copyright.PENANAN1emoXM1xI
I look at her for a few seconds.541Please respect copyright.PENANA0ddb8lzePK
"You want one."541Please respect copyright.PENANAlfHnsr8KqF
She looks back at me.541Please respect copyright.PENANAOOY5ddzbEf
"Yeah, I've been thinking about it," she says with a smile.541Please respect copyright.PENANANxfqxCfr8o
"Well, lets do it then," I say to her.541Please respect copyright.PENANA7W7SUxjOoe
"Really?"541Please respect copyright.PENANAcwAqEbmTQa
"Really."541Please respect copyright.PENANA25X4Qnyowj
She awards me with one of those heart melting smiles again.541Please respect copyright.PENANAHahIvGZVem
"I hope you can teach me how to take care of it, because when it comes to that shit, I suck."541Please respect copyright.PENANA1UXV9ibNrP
"Of course," I retort, smiling to myself.541Please respect copyright.PENANAcgGm9xwABc
"Do you know where to get one?"541Please respect copyright.PENANADVM67HdBGr
"I can find out," I reply.541Please respect copyright.PENANA2KB5gmK83V
She looks down at her ring finger, and smiles, then looking up at me.541Please respect copyright.PENANAiNt9hJ3PEQ
"So, when are we gonna do this?"541Please respect copyright.PENANA3ikW6s6xhn
"Huh?"541Please respect copyright.PENANAbRamLhWRyU
"Get married," she clarifies.541Please respect copyright.PENANA0EpCmGCYhW
I hadn't even thought about the wedding yet, to be honest.541Please respect copyright.PENANANcBD4WL0mf
"I don't know. When do you want to do it?"541Please respect copyright.PENANAbQ2WesAvGN
"July," she mumbles, but I know that she wants to say more.541Please respect copyright.PENANAoczDcN8cfy
"What is it?" I ask.541Please respect copyright.PENANAxw9vDn7bER
She chews her lip, and then exhales. 541Please respect copyright.PENANAaA3sRdN4ka
"I want to get married in Jamaica."541Please respect copyright.PENANAKGneNHIDWW
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.541Please respect copyright.PENANAq5Bn5VA0F1
"Never mind—"541Please respect copyright.PENANAW8QAMkT6dn
"That would be amazing," I breathe.541Please respect copyright.PENANAMNK2lhG8U7
"Really?" she asks, a huge smile spreading over her face.541Please respect copyright.PENANA2csbMxuSrJ
"Yes! I'd love to see that part of your life."541Please respect copyright.PENANAcU5rhauxTs
She reaches over and hugs me.541Please respect copyright.PENANAp7DceSYqxB
"Thank you," she whispers.541Please respect copyright.PENANArygx1aGwMV
"You're very welcome, Eve."541Please respect copyright.PENANAMAxB1gWAy3
***541Please respect copyright.PENANAfY6Ejreki2
We got a female Military Macaw; she's one year old, and Evetta named her "Jade", because of the colour of her body.541Please respect copyright.PENANAWVIwElkacU
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.541Please respect copyright.PENANAw6mi342SRR
She looks over at me, and her brow furrows.541Please respect copyright.PENANABN5Pa73h7N
"What?" she asks.541Please respect copyright.PENANADQalEapaMe
"Nothing. It's just that... you're really beautiful."541Please respect copyright.PENANAfFZIibKIqo
She smiles at me; sometimes, I wonder if she knows what that smile does to me.541Please respect copyright.PENANAMA00kYGgLi
"Same," she replies.541Please respect copyright.PENANA4mS5x7pvvA
I move over to her, and rest my head on her shoulder. She leans her head on my head.541Please respect copyright.PENANA6OwZ0b2fjn
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.541Please respect copyright.PENANAg2XMnttdtD
But Evetta stayed.541Please respect copyright.PENANAqPYoMXqAqh
And for that, I will forever be grateful.541Please respect copyright.PENANAP6qrvT1ZY7
"Thank you," I mumble into her neck, and she pulls back and gives me a questioning look.541Please respect copyright.PENANAsftKYro4ag
"For what?" she asks, looking and sounding puzzled.541Please respect copyright.PENANAhsxdebJAnl
541Please respect copyright.PENANAv7QoKltLB2
541Please respect copyright.PENANALKGf6t1EZm
"For not leaving," I clarify.541Please respect copyright.PENANAtGaKufGifX
541Please respect copyright.PENANA3gS8m7v6Zq
541Please respect copyright.PENANAvdyDlWBy3a
She looks straight into my eyes, then drops her gazes and sighs.541Please respect copyright.PENANAwKQhVqLT38
541Please respect copyright.PENANA7SeklIe6Xj
541Please respect copyright.PENANAUQMjMXlDqd
"I love you more than you could ever know," she whispers.541Please respect copyright.PENANAwgmiwK0TMA
541Please respect copyright.PENANA5WcJKWhgat
541Please respect copyright.PENANAjlWRzV1auX
"If it's anywhere near as much as I love you, " I start, tilting her head up so that she will look at me.541Please respect copyright.PENANAoTvlc74GFA
541Please respect copyright.PENANAmbUICuYeso
541Please respect copyright.PENANAwQxtDVQWbg
"—then I think I have a pretty good idea," I finish.541Please respect copyright.PENANA3b8CGT5pO2
541Please respect copyright.PENANAvuOl8d1cPm
541Please respect copyright.PENANAIOL8VbNnz0
I kiss her, and she moans into my mouth, not expecting it.541Please respect copyright.PENANABIACn7yn2o
541Please respect copyright.PENANALzR1hetbGu
541Please respect copyright.PENANAWhwqB5lGjG
"Don't do that," I grunt, pulling away from her.541Please respect copyright.PENANARz7MB76uZR
541Please respect copyright.PENANAtP5Gz98lIc
541Please respect copyright.PENANAlfEJ2fgBbK
"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.541Please respect copyright.PENANAgdly7b99UK
541Please respect copyright.PENANAypgq788l5h
541Please respect copyright.PENANAx6HkWZSKd4
"I think Jade is jealous," Evetta says with a chuckle.541Please respect copyright.PENANANdI1ObdPx6
541Please respect copyright.PENANAdjO9IcL9hL
541Please respect copyright.PENANA8NcSfcC4gE
"Well, shell just have to learn to live with it," I reply seriously.541Please respect copyright.PENANA2ASayZCm6w
541Please respect copyright.PENANAje3CiokKc7
541Please respect copyright.PENANAxKfBArzY0C
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.541Please respect copyright.PENANAQlI6zbqgqG
541Please respect copyright.PENANASu6TU2xBTw
541Please respect copyright.PENANAvHnyLWHDHS
"So... about that wedding," I start.541Please respect copyright.PENANAntRWP23gUr
541Please respect copyright.PENANAk6APaAP0oD
541Please respect copyright.PENANA5Vkec2oPlW
"I was thinking we should have it at my mother's house," she replies.541Please respect copyright.PENANA5blEUKQmfM
541Please respect copyright.PENANAaBronvly2D
541Please respect copyright.PENANAYTsAx5gzo6
"Really?" 541Please respect copyright.PENANAMqUtMqwr0K
541Please respect copyright.PENANAkJ54WibC9X
541Please respect copyright.PENANAJHQoeBfRQX
"Yeah. Not like I want many people there, anyway," she states.541Please respect copyright.PENANAGxy4vL4wBd
541Please respect copyright.PENANA8f08YFjywZ
541Please respect copyright.PENANA0Zqc5OGCW2
"Who would be there?"541Please respect copyright.PENANAx3R0vvZiEj
541Please respect copyright.PENANAyPzP5l0CKn
541Please respect copyright.PENANAWjzWQIMEXL
"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.541Please respect copyright.PENANATpAddyOGMT
541Please respect copyright.PENANAa3FB8fvZfe
541Please respect copyright.PENANAIyKDIhLh5I
"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.541Please respect copyright.PENANAFb4K3M4azG
541Please respect copyright.PENANABIT9l5RlGr
541Please respect copyright.PENANAAc0TeHaPy5
"So Caleb, I never knew that you were into the darkies. I mean, they're good to shag, but not to keep."541Please respect copyright.PENANAJfCr7n5y7H
541Please respect copyright.PENANA3PpSk2LMq1
541Please respect copyright.PENANAjFvoRhK8xl
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.541Please respect copyright.PENANAudeIgndxnR
541Please respect copyright.PENANAa8TF3dzLhR
541Please respect copyright.PENANAF6XNC3JlfL
"What is it, girlie?" he asks.541Please respect copyright.PENANAVddyqMN90e
541Please respect copyright.PENANANx2VJhlPTE
541Please respect copyright.PENANAC5Ro8WNuIu
"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."541Please respect copyright.PENANAYM3Ee1HgD1
541Please respect copyright.PENANAlGqj7JWrf8
541Please respect copyright.PENANAQlxjumJUdq
Needless to say Uncle George wasn't too pleased. He was even angrier when my parents kicked him out.541Please respect copyright.PENANA7OaFUB4BJl
541Please respect copyright.PENANAkpWzs9NCBU
541Please respect copyright.PENANA2tXUdpcA0i
"Caleb, sometimes your mouth is really too big," he said.541Please respect copyright.PENANAKEw1PgK8yA
541Please respect copyright.PENANAoK0lIZPXRD
541Please respect copyright.PENANA4D1Pk4OPSy
"You don't have to do—"541Please respect copyright.PENANAF2untFQpfw
541Please respect copyright.PENANAMb56ffPyw3
541Please respect copyright.PENANAkoR5i1SG2f
"Evetta, its fine," my mother reassured her.541Please respect copyright.PENANAFuVs839GwR
541Please respect copyright.PENANAhWxjkiAjAx
541Please respect copyright.PENANAscxIU003eB
So with that, Uncle George was exiled.541Please respect copyright.PENANA2lJ9bo4NSD
541Please respect copyright.PENANAQS3wXsVEqA
541Please respect copyright.PENANAsg9ZZobqtp
"Please don't bring him up," I say to her.541Please respect copyright.PENANAvnVA4HfKMo
541Please respect copyright.PENANAiax8XUN5RP
541Please respect copyright.PENANAdU3eNDOUdn
"She giggles, and puts her head against my chest.541Please respect copyright.PENANAOFY2DIRTbC
541Please respect copyright.PENANAp1XaqsS9AL
541Please respect copyright.PENANA5MatBXCYkk
"This is going to be amazing," she says, cuddling up to me with a huge smile on her face.541Please respect copyright.PENANAuEJn9pdPSY
541Please respect copyright.PENANAuUTwvAJJWj
541Please respect copyright.PENANAjSLg4OuhOl
"I love you, Evetta Maji."541Please respect copyright.PENANAGTtGX29Ohl
541Please respect copyright.PENANAGDdg4Xkxbf
541Please respect copyright.PENANArrzDsE9Wte
"I love you too."541Please respect copyright.PENANABaDjiyXpWp
541Please respect copyright.PENANAolejwiuAsy
541Please respect copyright.PENANAqWCRgfXIwP
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.541Please respect copyright.PENANAugYKTY8uV6
541Please respect copyright.PENANAnJuGYic7Vp
541Please respect copyright.PENANAoryPOA6S95
"You look like you're having an epiphany, or something. What's up?" she asks me.541Please respect copyright.PENANAaVN9KmNwkd
541Please respect copyright.PENANAVzBxzc7npF
541Please respect copyright.PENANA13WPwwG5Su
"You just make me... happy. I'm not angry anymore," I reply. 541Please respect copyright.PENANAtJID9F4jfJ
541Please respect copyright.PENANAil1Zpho6Yd
541Please respect copyright.PENANAopMTwqediq
"I've realised," she states. 541Please respect copyright.PENANAZLGk1gbjol
541Please respect copyright.PENANAwJGVycDED8
541Please respect copyright.PENANA0fiVlfAdD6
"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.541Please respect copyright.PENANAAwcFKeGmQj
541Please respect copyright.PENANATxqPvIra4q
541Please respect copyright.PENANAwwcvZu2ymT
"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."541Please respect copyright.PENANAuCRDRfzncq
541Please respect copyright.PENANACoyLodX9fs
541Please respect copyright.PENANA9SrW6kfWfX
"So I wasn't grateful before?" I ask her.541Please respect copyright.PENANARRDXKipab9
541Please respect copyright.PENANAxiqbEC4uIm
541Please respect copyright.PENANADyaWkcVhxa
"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?"541Please respect copyright.PENANAMlYdnqaoje
541Please respect copyright.PENANAWRpEicErbE
541Please respect copyright.PENANAyZvPgn2H3m
"Yeah," I say, taking it all in. I've never thought of it that way.541Please respect copyright.PENANA95XIAIxuN3
541Please respect copyright.PENANAKU46QYCx5o
541Please respect copyright.PENANAnLad6CTAul
"Remember before the accident, how we had that huge fight over–"541Please respect copyright.PENANAv6knLdaZAH
541Please respect copyright.PENANAD9UKVJ0W5h
541Please respect copyright.PENANAV5bEIGtlYr
"—me telling you what to wear. Yeah."541Please respect copyright.PENANAKgpau6d1IB
541Please respect copyright.PENANAJNbQNhTpdV
541Please respect copyright.PENANARXCOajuMAp
"It took forever for us to get over it, but every night—"541Please respect copyright.PENANAMhEnPbJiCD
541Please respect copyright.PENANAvpKRZvCZDA
541Please respect copyright.PENANAmSH4ogNnKl
"—we would text each other. I remember."541Please respect copyright.PENANAy0aPn2OXJl
541Please respect copyright.PENANAZCWSw2HMhl
541Please respect copyright.PENANAyumCE0bEJs
She smiles, and kisses my jaw.541Please respect copyright.PENANAYVnigfjT8l
541Please respect copyright.PENANAE42JIGmUOe
541Please respect copyright.PENANAWKug8Fn1xk
"That's when I realised how much I loved you, because at that moment, there were no fireworks—"541Please respect copyright.PENANAD1Fu18XTFF
541Please respect copyright.PENANAyZogxQcJdp
541Please respect copyright.PENANAtmu9HJRelO
"—but the sparks were still there." 541Please respect copyright.PENANAIpwJgonYmJ
541Please respect copyright.PENANAd73p7VbbX8
541Please respect copyright.PENANAy6PVxB8f3z
"And they always will be."541Please respect copyright.PENANA2NCgXxkgt3
541Please respect copyright.PENANAMCrWzqI11J
541Please respect copyright.PENANATX6dh2sS4X
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.541Please respect copyright.PENANAL4HVz9HIV1
541Please respect copyright.PENANAhZZg3tlXav
541Please respect copyright.PENANArvKz5nsgyC
I will always love this woman.541Please respect copyright.PENANA5U2VKUWeID
541Please respect copyright.PENANAASWNAkUzjp
541Please respect copyright.PENANAIdCWKIuMe6
"Yes," I say reassuringly, "they will."541Please respect copyright.PENANAJlzOKGpMTp
541Please respect copyright.PENANAaYAIOK7vfC
541Please respect copyright.PENANAvCDlI6wg4X