The Forever of Ella and Micha

then you can move it to your ring finger whenever you’re ready.”
    She gapes at the box fearfully. “And what happens when I move it? We just get married?”
    “Yeah,” I say simply. “That’s kind of the point.”
    Her gaze connects with mine, her pupils magnified. “But then we’d be married—like, really married.”
    “It’s not happening right now, so calm down.” I massage her hips to try and relax her. “Now, are you going to open it, or stare at the box all day?”
    She stares at the box for what seems like an eternity and then tentatively flips the lid open. Her breath catches. “Holy shit,” she says and drops the box.
    Trying not to laugh, I pick it up and remove the ring, holding it out to her. “What do you say, pretty girl? Are you in or out?”
    I wait for what seems like forever and then she slips an unsteady finger through the band. “I’m in.”
    It’s on the ring finger of the wrong hand, which means we’re not quite there. But one day we will be. And that’s all I need at the moment.

Chapter 21
Ella
    I feel so strange the next day, in ways that are unexplainable. I have a ring on my finger, the diamond band twisted in knots that swirl up to a black stone in the center of glistening studs. It’s actually the most perfect ring for me, not girly with a big flashy diamond on it, like a lot of girls want. It’s dark, different, and has some scratches on the surface, like me.
    The more I think about it, it’s downright perfect.
    I decide to wake him up with a nice birthday present for being the greatest person that has ever graced my life.
    At the crack of dawn, when the sunlight is barely peeking through the curtain, I sneak out of bed and over to my house, which is soundless. Lila is fast asleep in my bed and I tiptoe to my closet. Searching through my old clothes, I find what I’m looking for.
    I remember when I wore it for Halloween. I was sixteen and decided to act like a girl for the night. Usually, I did something scary, but that year I put on a leather dress and some stilettoes that made me tower over almost everyone at Micha’s party. My hair was done up and I had some bright red lipstick on. It had been a rough day at my house that day. My dad had wrecked the car and my mom had yelled at him for hours, so I was relieved to be leaving and getting a break.
    When I showed up, the party had been in full mode. The music was cranked, people were wasted, girls were half naked, and furniture had been broken. Micha was talking to a girl with curly brown hair, wearing a dress equally as short as mine, but she had a lot more cleavage that nearly fell out of the top. He was dressed in a black T-shirt with a red skull on it and there were skulls all over his belt that held up his black jeans. He had sprayed black streaks in his hair and there were leather bands around his wrists.
    They were in the kitchen next to the keg and I had walked up casually as if nothing was out of the ordinary.
    “You know someone’s broken your mom’s ceramic plate, right?” I told him reaching for a plastic up. “Out on the back porch.”
    He was fully engulfed in the brunette. “Well, I’ll clean it up…” When his eyes landed on me his voice trailed off and the brunette gave me a nasty look. His gaze skimmed my costume and he didn’t look happy. “What the fuck are you wearing?”
    I sipped my beer. “A Halloween costume.”
    He gaped at me. “What the hell are you supposed to be?”
    “A slut,” I say, cutting a glance at the brunette. “Which seems to be a theme tonight.”
    She glared at me and then smiled sweetly at Micha. “I’m going to go dance. Do you want to join me?”
    He waved his hand at her dismissively. “You can’t walk around like that.”
    “Why not?” I was thoroughly enjoying how upset he was over the dress. “It’s how everyone else is dressed.”
    He leaned to the side and checked out my backside. “Your ass is basically hanging out of it… and girls dress like that when they want to get fucked, so go home and change.”
    I started to get pissed. Knocking back the entire beer, I crumbled the cup and tossed it on the counter. “You’re acting like a jealous boyfriend and it’s weird.”
    “I’m trying to protect you, Ella May,” he retorted loudly over the music as I marched toward the living room where everyone was dancing. “From all the other guys out there who are thinking the same dirty thoughts as I am.”
    For a brief moment, his words