Where the Magnolias Grow (editing)

Chapter 8

  "Hey," I said walking up to Shania the next night and hugged her, "How are you feeling?"

    "Anxious," she said excitement in her voice, "I haven't seen him in two years. My heart feels as if it's going to jump right out of my chest."

     Levi's truck pulled up and he parked right next to mine. It took a while for the doors to finally open.

     "Here we go," I said gently nodding towards the truck where Levi and Noah were standing still in the parking lot.

     Levi was wearing a white flannel shirt the top open just a little with dark jeans and white sneakers, Noah wore a red flannel shirt the same way as Levi with light blue jeans and tan boots. His dark hair was cut short and he as he looked towards us he was stationary staring right at Shania.

    I was in a dusty pink baby doll dress and brown flats my hair pulled up into a small bun.

Shania wore a yellow open back dress with white wedges, her short hair was curled.

    For a moment they just stared. She began to blink back tears gathering in her eyes and she took one deep breath and stepped towards him just as he stepped towards her. Eventually she got into a full out sprint towards him, throwing her arms around his neck, sobbing. He held her tightly around the waist and closed his eyes. I teared up and Levi was beside me in a second with his arms around me, while mine were around his waist.

    Noah and Shania pulled away just enough to where he could pull her face to him to kiss her. 

    "I'm so sorry I ever left you," Shania whispered to Noah when they finished their kiss, "I was protecting you."

    "I'm sorry I never came after you," he said wiping her stray tear away gently with his thumb, "You never had to protect me."

    I wiped a tear away. "I think we should give them some space. Don't you?" Levi asked gently. I nodded looking up at him as we began walking up the park trail.

    "That was the sweetest thing I have ever seen," I said softly.

    Levi looked down at me. "Even sweeter than when I showed you my special place."

    I looked up at him smiling. "Nothing will be sweeter to me than that. Wanna know why?"

    He looked down at me smiling. "Enlighten me."

    "Because it gave me the strength to tell you I loved you."

    "I love that part of it too. Took me a week. I knew I could get you to feel the same way," he grinned down at me, "But...I especially love what happened after."

    My face got warm and I playfully nudged him. "Just like a man," I said softly as I rolled my eyes at him.

    When we came up to the park lake Levi stopped making me stop too. "I have something to say." He let go of me but took my hand and turned me towards him, the lake to his back, the moon's reflecton in the placid water.

     "Okay," I said softly.

     "Brielle," he said looking deeply into my eyes, "We have almost a month left of summer together and then we are going to college...,"He began tracing the bottom of my lips with his thumb. "I will never fall out of love with you," he looked down at our hands intertwined, "I want you to always remember that. I want you to remember us and the way you feel about me should anything ever make you think you have to protect me, by breaking off what we have."

     He opened the box and a silver necklace with diamonds in the shape of a heart and a small diamond baseball in the middle of it. Tears began running down my face as I stared at the necklace.