“Until now,” she smiles at me and pulls me closer to the bonfire.
“Hey, Eva. You finally came,” a young girl hugs her.
“Hi, Moon,” Evangeline smiles shyly. “We brought some sandwiches. Where do you want us to put them?” she asks.
“Eva… you didn’t have to bring anything,” Moon says, smiling gratefully.
“I know. I just wanted to,” Eva says.
"Okay. I know how you are," Moon says and turns to me, "We have a big table where we put drinks and snacks on."
With bags in my hands, we head for the table. Eva helps me unpack the bags and put them in some order only women can figure out.
Moon grabs two red Styrofoam cups from the stand next to her and hands them to us.
“Enjoy your day here. I’ll go take care of the music and set the volume up a little,” Moon hugs Eva and says once more. “I’m really so glad to see you here after everything you’ve done for all of us in The Sanctuary.”
Evangeline smiles and hugs her back.
These people love my girl, but she's so full of self-doubt she can't see that. I want to punch everyone in her neighborhood that makes her think she's unworthy of love. Starting with her parents.
With our beers in one hand, we walk around the crowd hand in hand and sit on the grass where we can see the bonfire. Some people are dancing while others chat and laugh with their friends. I watch Evangeline watch others. She has a content, calm look on her face I've never seen in her own neighborhood. She's always guarded there, even when she's alone; there's some veil around her, but here she's just herself.
“You like spending time here, with them, don’t you?” I ask.
She nods. “Being with them gives me hope.”
“Hope for what?”
“Happiness,” she says with a small smile.
We sit in silence for a while. Macarena, a song from my childhood plays and people, stands up to join the dance with its comical choreography I barely remember.
“Look at them,” Eva says, chuckling to the old woman who nails the dance figures. “These people have nothing I take for granted. They don't have designer clothes. Hell, they don't always have a roof over their heads or food in their stomachs, but they're happier than I've ever been. They're strong and know what's important in life so much better than we do.”
Jesus. This girl is perfect. If I didn’t know her, and believed what they say about her, I’d think she was a rich brat. But she can’t be further from that.
“You’d get along so well with my family,” I blurt out. “You’re a people person just like them. I’m the only who thinks people suck, though you’re changing my mind pretty fast.”
Her eyes widen, and a blush covers her cheeks. I can see she’s suppressing her smile.
“Wanna dance?” she changes the topic.
Chuckling, I nod. “Dancing with a pretty girl like you? I’d never miss it for the world.”
Just when we join the others, the tune changes something slow.
Grabbing her waist, I pull her body closer to me.
“It’s a sign,” I whisper in her ear, enjoying how her breath gets shallow.
“A sign for what?”
“That you should be in my arms,” I say and kiss her slowly.
Her body molds against mine like we’re two pieces of a puzzle. Her hands play with the hair at the end of my nape.
"Get a room, there are kids around here," I hear Moon's voice, and Eva separates our lips with a giggle.