E. Blair - Falling

“Who?”

“I dunno, just . . . people. I’ve seen it on TV,” is Mark’s pitiful explanation as the three of us laugh at him. He turns to Candace and tries to get her to back him when he says, “Why are you laughing? You once told me you wanted a pig for a pet.”

“What?” I question through a burst of laughter.

Turning to me with narrowed eyes, she defends, “Not like a gross barn pig. A domesticated micro pig.”

“What the hell is that, babe?”

“They’re these tiny little pink pigs. They say they’re cleaner and smarter than a dog. You can even litter train them.”

She says this in complete seriousness, and she looks adorable doing it, but that doesn’t stop Jase and I from laughing at her and Mark for their choice in pets.

Slapping my arm, she scolds, “Stop laughing at me,” with a hint of a smile.

“Just so you know, we’re not getting a pig.”

“You don’t even know what they are. You’ve never even seen one.”

Looking over at Jase for support, I call out to him, “Dude, Jase, are you hearing this?”

“It makes more sense to get a pig than Mark’s desire to snatch up a wild bird just because he’s thinks they’re cute ,” he says with a chuckle while shaking his head.

“Hey, guys,” Tori announces as she walks out with Bailey on her hip, and Connor runs around her, straight to me.

Squatting down, I give him a big hug, as I say, “Hey, buddy. When did you guys get here?”

“Just now.”

Picking him up in my arms, I watch as my mom follows Tori and Bailey, who just turned two, out to the rest of us.

“Candace, it’s so good to see you again,” she says as she gives her a one-armed hug while still holding Bailey.

“Can you say, ‘Hi, Candace’?” Tori asks of Bailey, but all Candace gets in return is a ‘hi’ followed by babble.

The two of them laugh as Tori says to Bailey, “We’re just gonna have to change her name, huh? Something a little more simple.”

Looking at Candace, I tell her, “Don’t worry. She can’t even say my name.” Setting Connor down, I reach over and take Bailey, as she says, “Wy-wy!”

“See? I’m Wy-wy,” I say to Candace as I keep my eyes on Bailey.

“Tori, these are my friends, Jase and Mark,” Candace introduces as they all hug and greet each other.

“Where’s Trevor?” I ask.

“I’m here,” he hollers as he walks out. “Had to unload the bags.”

“Hey, man,” I say when he gets closer. “You remember Candace, right?”

“How could I forget?” he says before giving her a hug.

Everybody meets Mark and Jase and spends a good amount of time playing with the kids before Candace and I take Connor down the beach a little ways to show him the puffins. I watch as she is on her knees behind Connor, helping him with the binoculars as he looks through them. She’s relaxed and happy. I love that I could give this to her. This bond of a family we are beginning to form with not only my family, but with her friends as well. It’s only because of Candace that I have this right now. She’s the one who showed me what it was to open up. To connect to others. That I was capable of having meaningful relationships. And since having her in my life, my relationships with Tori and Max have grown to a new level, allowing for an even deeper friendship than before.

The shift that life has taken is one that I never would have expected, but one that I would never change as I watch her and then look down the beach to see Mark and Jase making a sand hill with Bailey and Tori while my mom and Trevor sit back and talk. And when Candace looks up at me with her beautiful smile, I know I have everything I could ever want.

Mark has taken a keen liking to Bailey over the past couple of days, which Tori has appreciated since he pretty much has taken Bailey off of her hands, giving her a much-needed break. She and Candace spent a couple of hours yesterday shopping at The Landing while the rest of us played outside with the kids on the beach. This time of year the weather is nice, so we take advantage and ditch the indoors.

On the Fourth, we take the kids down to the local parade in the morning and then over to Seaside later that night, for fireworks. We’ve had a good visit, and it was needed in more ways than one.

When I wake up the next morning, Candace isn’t in bed with me, so I slip my pajama pants over my boxers and head downstairs to find her. The house is quiet with everyone still asleep, and when I walk through the living room, I look out the windows to see Candace sitting alone, down by the water.

Walking out, she has the binoculars up to her eyes, and when I get close, I ask, “What are you doing out here?”

She looks back at me when she says, “Watching the puffins.”

I sit down in the sand next to her, wrapping my arm around her shoulders, teasing, “You want me to swim out there and get you one?”

“Mark may get jealous,” she says with a quiet laugh.

“Yeah. You’re probably right.”

She sets down the binoculars and lays her head on my shoulder, saying, “I love coming out here.”

“Why’s that?”

“Because,” she says, waiting a beat before continuing, “I feel like I’m part of a family. I never felt that way with mine, but I feel it with yours.”

“Have you ever talked to your parents? Did they come to your graduation or anything?” I ask.

“No.”

Not wanting to dampen this moment, I lift her chin up to me and tell her, “I love having you here. The first time I brought you here, last year at Christmas, I watched you in the kitchen with my mom, and I knew I wanted to bring you back. I had been chasing you for so long, nervous that I would scare you away if I told you how I was feeling, but bringing you home with me, I knew I had to make you mine.”

She smiles, saying, “You never seemed nervous around me. I always thought you were so sure of yourself.”

“There wasn’t a second that I felt sure of myself with you. You’re the hardest person I have ever tried to read.”

“Is that a bad thing?”

“No. There isn’t a single thing about you that I would change. I love every piece of you.”

The leaves litter the streets as I drive home in the rain. I’ve been on a job all afternoon after I was commissioned to photograph a model for a portfolio. The photography thing has really picked up for me, and I’ve been trying to get a few more of my newer pieces on display at a couple of galleries. The exposure has been great, and Candace is nothing but supportive, coming along with me to showings when she can.

She’s been so busy with rehearsals lately for her first performance run that will start in a few days. The transition into the company has been a challenge for her. Most of the girls up there have been there for years, skipping the college route to go straight into their dancing career. Candace told me that it’s not very common to go from a university to a company, but she did it mostly to appease her parents. It’s been very competitive and some of the dancers haven’t welcomed her into the program very easily, giving her a hard time at first, but my girl is determined and always keeps herself focused when she’s dancing. It isn’t until she comes home to me that she finally lets out her frustrations.

We’ve made a routine of having Jase and Mark over every Thursday night so that Jase and Candace can watch the new episodes of ‘Ridiculousness.’ I just have to laugh at the two of them and their taste for trash TV, but she redeems herself each time we camp out downstairs by the fireplace to watch our black and whites.

Candace is already home when I pull into the drive, and when I walk up the stairs to the front door, I spot one of my bowls sitting on the ground. Picking it up, I go inside and set it in the sink then head upstairs. I stop in my tracks the moment I catch sight of her. She’s securing felted green leaves around the bun on top of her head, wearing a puffy red strawberry costume with green tights.