Finally My Forever Read online

  "Maybe a little." I said cringing and scrunching my face up.

  She laughed. "Who knows, it might actually work in your favor."

  "He already mentioned trying again."

  "Oh snap," she said, covering her mouth. "So was that it? You talked, you kissed, and you came home?" She gestured to my face. "There must have been face painting somewhere in there."

  "Oh there was a ton of stuff. Micah went off to play flag football with some of his friends while Thomas and I hung out. There were tons of things to do. You really should come with me if I go next year." I glanced at her with a sideways smirk. "I didn't even tell you the best part."

  "What?"

  "They had this huge bonfire. There were like fifty people sitting around it once the sun went down, you know, roasting marshmallows and everything. Micah brought his guitar and sang for everybody."

  "He just busted out into a song?" she asked.

  "It sounds cheesy, but it was amazing. He's hilarious, and he started by playing and singing an impromptu song about fall. He talked about specific things and people at the festival, calling people out and making everyone crack up. It seemed like it was impromptu, but I have no idea how he could have made up something that good on the spot. I'd seen him play with his rock band a long time ago, and I knew he had a good stage presence, but I'd never seen him like this. He had everyone's undivided attention, and he never for a second seemed awkward or nervous. Everyone just laughed and clapped along like he was the best thing since sliced bread. It's amazing to watch someone with that much talent. He was like a hot Jack Black with the most perfect singing voice."

  "You are soooo in love," she said.

  "I am not," I said. "I just can't believe how talented he is. His talent's magical or something. I wish you could see him play and sing. You'd agree with me."

  "Is he still playing in a band?"

  "I was asking Thomas about it, and from what I gather, I think Micah's doing Christian stuff now."

  "Really?" she asked wrinkling her nose again as if Christian music might be second rate.

  I shrugged. "I don’t know for sure," I said. "Thomas started bawling in the middle of telling me about it, so I didn't get the whole story."

  "Why'd Thomas start crying?"

  I shrugged. "He does that when he gets touched. It's usually when he talks about God."

  "So they're big time Christians?"

  "Yeah. I think so. I'm not sure about Micah, but Thomas is for sure."

  "What do you think about that?" she asked.

  I shrugged. "I don’t know. I've been thinking about it some lately. Sometimes I'm drawn to the idea."

  "I love God," she said, surprising me.

  I raised an eyebrow at her. "You do?"

  She laughed. "Thanks a lot. Is it that hard to believe?"

  "No, I've just never heard you mention it."

  She shrugged. "I'm probably not as good a Christian as I should be, but I did get saved when I was in high school, and I do believe Jesus is the way and everything."

  I almost told her we should try the church the Bennett's went to, but I decided to save it for another day. I didn't say anything for a minute or so. I just put my hand on Roscoe's belly and stared at the ceiling as I contemplated everything.

  "Are you gonna see him again?" she asked, breaking the silence.

  "I'm sure I will; I just don't know when," I said, still staring upward.

  I stayed out there for a few more minutes before telling her I was going to take a shower. She said she was going to stay in the living room to finish her movie, and I said I'd probably be back out for a snack. Roscoe came with me into my room even though she protested and begged him to stay.

  I was thankful that he seemed content in our new house. I did too. It was a comfortable place, and judging from the state of the common area, my roommates were all neat freaks. It was the first night in my new room, and I slept like a baby. Perhaps it was that I felt at home there, or perhaps it was the memory of Micah's kiss. Either way, I was content and comfortable, and Roscoe was too.

  The next day was Sunday, and it took me just about the whole day to get everything put in its place in my new room. My week at work was busy as usual, and my Wednesday evening science class snuck up on me. I was doing the experiment about density with oil, water, and syrup, and I smiled as I brought my supplies in the house, remembering how I explained it to Micah.

  My smile faded the second I stepped foot in the door. Gina was standing in the living room talking to Claire Bennett. Both of them looked at me when I walked in. Claire was wearing her usual smile, but Gina didn't hesitate to look me over from head to toe as if she was sizing up the competition. That's how I took it at least. Maybe that was just the face she made all the time, but it sure felt like she had distaste for me. I wanted to scowl back at her, but I remembered Claire was looking at me, so I smiled and tried to seem genuinely happy to see them both.

  "Hey Carly!" Claire said. "Do you need help?"

  "No ma'am, I've got it."

  She gestured to Gina. "Did you get the chance to meet Gina the other night at the fall festival?"

  "Yes ma'am, we met," I said, not looking at Gina.

  "Carly does a science class every Wednesday," Claire told Gina.

  "She told me all about it," Gina said, with that syrupy sweet smile.

  Was I the only one who could see through that thing? I had to tell myself to chill out and not let her presence bother me.

  "Oh, I didn't realize you two got to know each other already," Claire said.

  "Oh, we didn't really. She asked me how I knew Thomas, and I told her about doing the class. That was really all we said."

  "Well, Gina decided to volunteer with us," Claire said as if that was exciting news.

  It took great effort on my part not to let frustration show on my face. I was holding a canvas bag full of supplies in one hand and a big glass container in the other, and I gripped them both tightly as I squeezed out a forced smile. I was sure mine looked as fake to Gina has hers looked to me.

  "Great," I said. "I'm gonna go ahead and get set up." I tilted my head toward the hall letting them know which direction I was headed before I glanced at Gina. "It was nice seeing you again."

  "Likewise," she said.

  I groaned inwardly and rolled my eyes when I had my back turned to them. Everything about this girl irked me. It even frustrated me that she said the word likewise. I never used that word, but I always liked it when I heard someone else say it, and I wanted to try it one day when I had the opportunity.

  It didn't help that she was beautiful and extremely well put together. I cringed as I made my way down the hall toward the art room wondering if she'd be there every Wednesday.

  All my resentment melted away the instant I saw my students—especially Thomas. They were excited to see me. I felt a sense of unconditional love when I was around them that made me happy right down to my bones. I wasn't sure if it was volunteering in general, or if it was these students specifically, but I loved it. I regretted that it took me so long to find this beautiful outlet in my life.

  I helped them clean up the mess created by the art class before setting up my experiment and giving the students their handouts. I started off with a speech, giving them the basics of density and matter. A few of the students stared at me the entire time as if I wasn't making any sense, but I had learned to ignore it since that was the face they made week after week, and they always told me how much they enjoyed it afterward.

  I was 15 minutes into the class and just starting the actual experiment, when a shadow darkened the doorway. I assumed it was Mrs. Bennett since it was a regular occurrence for her to peek in on my classes. I assumed Gina would be with her even though I hoped that wasn't the case and she'd already gone home.

  I glanced at the door with a smile, and my heart leaped into my throat when I saw Micah Bennett standing there.

  "My baby brother is here!" Thomas yelled. I looked at him to find his a
rms raised above his head as he beamed at Micah. I looked back in Micah's direction to find him smiling at Thomas with a finger over his mouth, telling him to keep it down.

  "It's okay," I said. I looked at the class. "Does everybody know Thomas' baby brother?"

  They murmured around the table, most of them nodding but some shaking their head.

  "Well, this is Micah." I looked toward the door. "We were just about to do an experiment if you want to join us?"

  Chapter 14

  "I'd love to," Micah said without hesitation.

  He entered the classroom and went straight for one of the extra chairs that lined the wall, only he didn't sit in it like I assumed he would. Instead, he picked it up and carried it to the table so he could sit with the students. He made Thomas scoot over and squeezed into the empty space between his brother and Benji.

  Thomas was thrilled with the new addition to the class, and he put his arm around his brother, before turning to beam at everyone. I tried in vein to contain a smile as I passed Micah one of the handouts and a pencil.

  One at a time, I poured the water, oil, and syrup into the glass container. Everyone reacted in amazement at the way they separated and formed visible layers.

  Once the liquids settled completely, I dropped items into the container one by one. Before I added each one, I asked them what they thought would happen.

  "Okay, so I have a rock," I said. I held the small stone up for their inspection before holding it above the glass container full of liquids. "What do you think the rock will do?" I asked.

  No one answered right away, so I continued, "It might float on the top, or it might sink to the bottom. Do any of you have an idea?"

  Several of the students yelled out what they thought the rock would do. I carefully dropped it, and we watched as it penetrated all three layers of liquid and sank to the very bottom.

  Everyone cheered. "I heard some of you say you thought it would sink," I said. "If that was your guess, you were right. I want all of you to take a second to mark your handouts. You can just draw a rock on the bottom of the container you have on your paper. A rock's just a circle, so don't stress about getting it perfect."

  I watched as Thomas marked his paper and then peeked onto Micah's paper to see how his brother was doing.

  I then added an ice cube, a grape, and a cork to the container, pausing between each one so they could watch the results and mark their papers. The rock sank to the bottom of all the liquids, resting on the bottom of the glass container. The grape sank to the bottom of the oil and water but floated on the syrup. The ice cube sank to the bottom of the oil but floated on the water. And the cork floated on top of everything.

  You could clearly see the layers of liquid and the items floating on each one, but I walked around with the container so everyone could see it more closely. I wasn't sure all of them quite grasped the concept of density, but they seemed to love the experiment, and couldn't get enough of looking into the container.

  I asked if any of them had questions, and Benji raised his hand. "When are we gonna do the Coke spraying thing again?" he asked.

  "You guys have already seen that," I said. "Do you really want to see it again?"

  They started elbowing each other and murmuring excitedly. I got enough sounds of approval that I said, "Shhhh, okay I'll take a count and we'll see about doing that one again sometime. Show me by raising your hands. How many of you want to see the Coke and Mentos experiment again?"

  Every single student's hand shot into the air faster than I could blink. Micah's hand was right there with them. I let out a little laugh. "Okay, it looks like we'll have to do that one again," I said. "Maybe I'll bring it next week."

  Samantha raised her hand and I called on her. "I think Coke Zero will win," she said. They all started agreeing with her, so I cut in telling them I'd be bringing new challengers for Coke Zero next time.

  I told them all goodbye and to have a great week, and they started packing up their things and heading for the door. I went to the adjoining bathroom where I fished the items out of the container and disposed of the liquids. By the time I turned to head for the classroom again, Micah was standing in the doorway, leaning casually on the frame.

  I secretly hoped he'd be standing there, but I still acted surprised to see him. I smiled. "Did you finish your handout, Mr. Bennett?"

  "That's Micah!" Thomas said, popping his head around the corner when he heard my formality.

  I inched toward the door but stopped before I got too close. "Did you finish your paperwork, Micah?" I asked, smiling. He stared down at me with a totally unreadable but intent expression. His appraisal made me antsy. "Did you like it?" I asked, feeling the need to fill the empty space between us with words. He looked at me for several more seconds before the corner of his mouth turned up in a grin. It was an irresistible sight. He was dressed in fitted khakis and a button up shirt, looking every bit the male model. I was helpless to do anything but stare into his intense green eyes. "Did you enjoy the experiment?" I repeated.

  "I've enjoyed every single experiment I've ever done with you." Thomas had been facing away from us, watching his friends leave, but he turned to chime in at Micah's words. "This is your first time to Carly's class," he said.

  "Yeah, this is your first class," I said, looking at Micah with challenge as I walked past him.

  "Let me take you to dinner," Micah whispered, reaching out to barely touch my arm as I passed.

  I glanced at him with a curious expression.

  "Carly can come to dinner at our house," Thomas said. Micah thought Thomas hadn't heard his whisper, but obviously he was wrong.

  "I can't tonight," I said talking to mostly Thomas since I wasn't sure if Micah meant tonight or not. "I should really get back home to see Roscoe. I'm not sure if any of my roommates are home to let him out of his kennel."

  "Why don't you call them?" Micah asked.

  "Why didn't you bring Roscoe?" Thomas said.

  I was overwhelmed. It was a dream come true for Micah to ask me to hang out with him, but I didn't want to seem to eager.

  "He stayed home this time since I had my hands full with all my supplies," I said, looking at Thomas. I shifted my attention to Micah. "Were you referring to tonight?" I asked.

  "Yes," he said. "I was thinking we'd leave from here."

  "Are you coming to my house?" Thomas asked.

  "Probably not this time, brother," Micah said, tenderly reaching out to mess with Thomas' hair. "I was hoping you'd let me take Carly out this one time since you get to see her more than I do."

  Thomas looked a bit annoyed, but went back to packing up his things.

  I got all of my supplies together and the three of us went into the living room to meet Claire. Gina was nowhere in sight, a fact for which I was grateful. One family was lagging behind everyone else, so they ended up walking out with us when Claire locked up.

  "Did I tell you Gina's volunteering with us," she informed Micah as we made our way outside.

  "Gina Young?" he asked, looking surprised.

  "Yeah, she came in earlier to ask what she could do to help. She left just before you got here."

  Claire obviously had no idea what sort of crush Gina or I had on her son or she would have never said something like that in front of me.

  "What'll she be doing?" he asked.

  Claire shrugged. "She's coming in for a couple hours a week—probably on Monday or Wednesday. I told her we always needed help with cleaning, and she said she'll just do whatever's needed."

  "That's cool," Micah said.

  Don’t you dare begrudge them the help they need just because a girl rubs you the wrong way. That is so selfish. Volunteers are good. Smile. Just smile.

  Micah was helping me out with my supplies or I would have probably turned tail and run home during that conversation.

  "What are you doing for dinner?" Claire asked, thankfully changing the subject.

  "I'll probably stop at that little Greek place," he
said. "I'm trying to get Carly to let me buy her a sandwich."

  "Oh!" she said. There was a lot implied by that one word. It was laced with such surprise that it was obvious that she never considered Micah wanting to take me somewhere. Or maybe that's just how I took it and it wasn't what she meant at all. I was probably just annoyed that she brought up Gina.

  Micah and I told Claire and Thomas goodbye, and he walked me to my car. "So what do you think?" he asked, standing there while I stashed the supplies into the backseat of my two-door sedan. "Will you let me buy you dinner? I promise I won't make you do any scientific research with me."

  His reference to scientific research was obviously code for kissing, and my gut clenched at his mention of it even though he was saying he didn’t want it to happen. I went from sick with anticipation to sick with disappointment within a matter of seconds. Just keep smiling.

  I sighed as I straightened to stand next to him. "I guess," I said. "As long as you promise not to make me work. I'm officially off the clock."

  He held up his hands in surrender. "Just a bite to eat," he said. "You want to ride with me? It's not that far, and I can bring you back here to get your car afterward."

  Micah had a nice truck. I rode in the passenger's seat, imagining that was my regular spot. I pictured us as a couple and thought about what it would be like to ride with him places all the time.

  We talked about his job the whole way to the restaurant. He was in construction like his dad, but he'd gone out on his own and started a business specializing in concrete. His expertise was with staining and finishes, and his business did mostly commercial jobs. He was really humble about the whole thing, but I could tell by the way he explained it that his company had really started to take off despite the fact that it was so new.

  The restaurant was a tiny, casual place where you order at the register and they call you up to get your food once it's ready. Micah ordered a Gyro and I ordered a Greek salad, and we sat across from each other, looking down at the delicious food. I noticed that he closed his eyes for a second before he dug in. He didn't make a show of it, but I assumed he was praying.