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She looks exactly the same as I remember.
    Her dark hair is cut short and stylish, but I notice a few red highlights. Her makeup is impeccable, as usual, and she’s wearing a classy gray cardigan and jeans that hug her round hips. Jackie was always stylish and always took the time to make herself pretty, even when she had foster kids climbing the walls.
    For a moment we’re both frozen, stuck in a kaleidoscope of memories and unspoken words. Then the first tear trickles down her cheek and I go to her. She opens her arms and I throw my arms around her waist and bury my face in her shoulder.
    “Oh, honey. You’re home,” she murmurs into my ear as she smoothes down my hair.
    I tighten my arms around on her and breathe in her soft, floral scent. I don’t want to let go.

 
    Chapter Six
    Chris
     
    W ATCHING C LAIRE AND MY MOM comforting each other fills me with the worst kind of longing for the way things used to be. Claire should have spent the last year here, not bouncing around from the dorm to Senia’s house then to that apartment. She needed us and because of my stupid pride she suffered alone.
    They finally release their grip on each other and my mom brushes the tears away from Claire’s face. Claire’s eyes are red as hell the way they get when she’s crying uncontrollably. I’ve seen that look on her too many times.
    “I’m so sorry I didn’t come sooner,” she says.
    “That’s water under the bridge. The important thing is that you came back and that you never, ever do that to me again.”
    This gets a small, congested chuckle and a smile out of Claire, but the pain she’s hiding from my mom quickly returns to her dainty features.
    “All right, that’s enough,” I say. “Claire has to freshen up so we can get going.”
    “Oh, poo. You just got here,” my mom complains as she glares at me across the kitchen. “You can’t leave yet. You two can hang out later. Let me have some time with my girl.”
    Claire looks at me and I can’t help but gaze at her for a moment. I love that Claire has never been good at hiding her emotions. It took almost a year after she arrived at our house for her to allow herself to be vulnerable in front of anyone. But once I tore down those walls I fell irrevocably in love with her. She’s so hard on herself, but I’ve never met anyone more loving than Claire.
    I know she gave up Abigail for both of us. I have no doubt that she believed she was making the right decision. But I can’t reconcile the girl I fell in love with—the same girl who made me wait more than two years to have sex with her—with this girl who fell in love with a guy she’s known less than two months. Is this guy better than I or did I just leave her heart wide open for him to get inside?
    “Stop staring at her, Chris,” my mom says and I’m snapped out of my thoughts.
    Claire looks down at the floor. She knows I’m thinking about something we can’t discuss openly in front of my mom.
    “Sorry, Mom, but we have to go. I have to get Claire back to the dorm soon so she can study. I’ll bring her by another time. I promise.”
    The disappointment on my mom’s face kills me. She nods, looking a bit defeated, then turns to Claire and grabs her hands.
    “In case I don’t see you anytime soon—”
    “I’ll be back. I—”
    “Shh! I don’t want you to promise me you’ll be back soon. I know you’ve got classes and lots of studying and parties and all that college nonsense. I just want you to promise me you’ll come home for Christmas. It just wasn’t any fun without you last year. Right, Chris?”
    Fuck . Knowing Claire, she’s going to think I put my mom up to this.
    “Mom, Claire probably already has plans for Christmas. Let’s not put any more pressure on her.”
    “Oh, come on. You were miserable without Claire here last Christmas.” She turns to Claire in full gossip-mode. “You should have seen him. He was a mess, brooding in the bedroom with his guitar for