Chapter 17
July 24
I answer the door and Charlotte is there. Without saying a word, she wraps her arms around me. I cry unashamedly, my tears flowing into her hair. When I break the embrace, I look at her before giving her a soft kiss.
“Thank you,” I say, woefully inadequate words for what that hug means to me.
We hug again before going up to my room to talk. She lets me do most of the talking, each word doing its part to thaw my frozen heart.
“I wish I could’ve been there for you.” She caresses my arm as she gazes into my eyes.
“Me, too,” I said, “but, I guess, in a way, you were with me.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, I don’t think I would’ve made it through everything without thinking about you.”
Now she’s crying, and we hug again. I hold her tight and don’t let her go for a long
