The Sea of You & Me

14. Kenny

Chapter Song: Like a Star- Corinne Bailey Rae

Part of me had entirely forgotten what I put in the damn thing. Another part of me wanted to sit through the box and stare at the contents for hours. Yet I was slightly terrified to bring up old memories.

"Oh my god our state ring," Cal grinned at the boys. He held up the shiny metal with his dimples deepening. That smile was always my favorite.

"Who put that in?" I asked.

"I did," Liam smiled. "I loved being able to play with the guys one last time and win. Four years in a row."

"Sooo cheesy," Riley teased him.

"Show off," Ty muttered.

"Oh don't act like you're not a state champion either," I scoffed.

"Look at this," Mason pulled out a picture that I threw in from our snowball fight years ago. "That day I almost lost my penis!"

"Oh my god you weren't going to lose your penis," I laughed taking the picture from him. I felt a thud on my shoulder, and smelled Cals cologne. I turned to him grinning at the memory handing the picture to him.

"I very well could have," he stated.

"Those poor poor people never knowing what Masons penis would be if you did lose it," Ty snickered.

"I know the horror," he groaned gripping his chest faking agony. What a drama king.

It was my turn to pull an item out of the box. I reached in and felt a folded piece of paper. I quietly unfolded it suspecting what it was.

Yup.

On the paper in my own handwriting was Cal's Forgiveness.

I crumpled it up and forced it in my pocket taking out another item. It was another paper but only folded in half. So naturally I opened this one too and it was a drawing of a building. I turned to Cal and wiggled it in his face.

He looked a little sad taking it. "Something you want to accomplish. That was one of them right?" He looked up at us unable to meet my eye.

"Ooooo look Ty you put your acceptance letter in here!" Riley exclaimed taking the box from me. I knew she was trying to change the subject.

I watched as Liam muttered something to Cal. They exchanged a few words hushed while the rest of the group carried on pulling things out. Mason completely oblivious to Riley purposely trying to change the subject and Ty just going along with it.

"Kenny! Your plane ticket!"

It plopped in my lap and I couldn't help but smile. I didn't know then I would spend so much time away from home. I don't know if I would have changed things though. I think I was meant to go even if it hurt a lot of people including me.

It helped me grow in ways I didn't think possible. Yeah, it killed me to be away but there was something liberating.

"Wait there are two papers in here that have the word games on them?" Riley looked up.

I don't know why I started laughing but I looked at Cal anyway. When he met my eyes he was nervous but a slow smile crept up. We both had written the same damn thing.

"Great minds think alike right," he chuckled. I nodded in agreement.

"Oh my god our dares." I gasped as I pulled them all out. We put those in a sandwhich bag together. "Liam my dare for you was to ask Riley on a date." I smiled at them and at the fact they had come so far.

"Hey Riles what are you doing next week?"

"Mmmm can't say I have anything going on," she smiled slyly.