I crack up.
“But seriously, you obviously got it right. I’ve never seen Ariana look so happy. She seems almost … normal now.”
The girls come back into the room then. Ariana is holding a stack of books but still manages to gesture wildly with one hand. Then she makes a movement that is clearly pantomiming giving a blow job.
Andre looks over at me. “I spoke too soon.”
“Normal is boring. Besides, I wanted her to be comfortable being herself in front of all of our family and friends. That’s what this dinner was about.”
Andre grins. “This wasn’t the family dinner you need to worry about. Wait until she meets Mamma.”
Epilogue
Vin slides into the kitchen, dancing in his socks before he grabs me around the waist.
“Is it almost time?”
I look at the clock on the microwave. We invited everyone over for two o’clock so they should be here in about ten minutes.
“Not quite. I’m just making some punch. Can’t have cake without punch.”
He grins as I do a little wiggle.
“I love seeing you like this. So happy.”
Things were tense while we waited to find out my results. Once Dr. Rose called to tell me the new tests were clear, I was so excited I dropped the phone before she finished talking. We’ve both been in a great mood ever since. Vin even took me to meet his mom yesterday. It wasn’t exactly a lovefest but I think we’ll eventually grow to be friends. Sofia Lavin may be difficult but after dealing with my parents, I can handle anything.
“Tell me again,” he whisper-yells against my neck.
“I’m just fine,” I whisper back.
I think he needs reassurance also. False positives happen but I never thought it would happen to me.
Once I knew the new test results were okay, Vin and I talked about my tendency to hide things from my friends. Over the years, I’ve thought about telling them what I was going through but it just seemed easier to deal with it alone. I didn’t want anyone’s pity.
I definitely didn’t want cancer to be the only thing they see when they look at me. Once people know you’ve been sick, it’s hard to get them to see anything else.
But as Vin pointed out, these aren’t people these are my friends. They’ve known me for years and they aren’t going to suddenly start treating me differently because of this.
He also asked how I would feel if I found out one of them had been sick and I never knew about it. I had to admit it wouldn’t feel great to be left out.
Being with Vin has shown me how amazing it can be to open up to the people who love you. It makes every burden easier to bear and every joy is magnified.
As if he can hear my thoughts, Vin squeezes my waist. “Do you know what you’re going to tell your friends?”
“I decided to be direct. Honest. Facts only.”
He nods. “Good. This situation requires some emotional sensitivity though. Expect them to be shocked. Maybe even hurt.”
I’ve prepared myself for that reaction. I expect Mya to take it the hardest. We’ve known each other the longest and she was living here while a lot of this was going on.
Vin squeezes my waist. “I know how it feels to find out someone you love is in danger.”
“Was in danger,” I correct.
“Yes. Was. Let’s keep that in the past tense.”
There’s a knock at the door a few minutes later. Vin goes to answer it while I bring out the sandwiches and finger food I bought for today. Hosting isn’t really my thing but for practical reasons I couldn’t exactly do this at someone else’s place. We’ve got food. We’ve got music. I think I’m doing okay.