The Redemption of Callie & Kayden

super squirmy as I take in my reflection in the mirror. My skin is pallid and even though the dress goes to my knees, I feel naked. The straps barely cover my shoulders and I’m showing more skin than I’ve shown in the last six years. The freckles on my skin are exposed, along with my boney collarbone and somewhat flat chest. Even the sandals on my feet make me feel bare. And my hair is down, which I’ve never been a fan of.
    “I look weird,” I say, tugging the bottom of the dress down. “And… naked.”
    Seth shakes his head as he steps back to examine me. His hair is swept to the side, with a slight fluff in the front. He has on a pair of tan shorts and a gray button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up. “You look beautiful.”
    I cross my arms over my chest. “I don’t think I can do it.”
    “Of course you can,” he says simply, turning back to the mirror.
    I shake my head. “Seth, why are you so dead set on this?”
    He’s fiddling with his hair and pauses. With a determined look on his face, he turns away from the mirror and looks at me. “Callie, I’m dead set on it for the reason you aren’t. You have to let it go. I know it’s hard, but you need to move forward—we all need to move forward and let go of the past.”
    “Is that what you’re doing?” I ask. “Because it feels like you’re running away from something.”
    “I’m not running away from anything.” He fastens the bottom button on his shirt. “I let go of the running away the day I started dating Greyson. It was like I’d been freed from the fear of what happened and I finally could be myself again.”
    “But how do you forget what happened?” I wonder, smoothing the wrinkles out of the dress with my hand. “How do you not think about it?”
    He gives me a small smile and sets his hands on my shoulders, looking directly into my eyes with a fire of determination. “You don’t forget. You just move past it. Let go. Be who you were supposed to be instead of who they make you feel like you should be.”
    “But how do I divide the two of them,” I say, letting my hands fall to my side. “Because sometimes I feel like they mix. Like right now. It feels wrong how I’m dressed, but I don’t know if it’s because I’m associating the dress with what happened or because I just don’t like dresses.”
    The corner of his mouth tips up and then he kisses my forehead. “Wear it and find out.”
    He backs away from me and walks over to his bag that’s on the twin bed. He pulls out a bottle of cologne, takes the cap off, and douses his shirt in it. I head over to my bag and quickly skim the letter I wrote to Kayden. I’m still unsure of what it revealed and I’m debating if I should run away from it or embrace it. Maybe it’s time to face the inevitable.
    “Oh, I forgot to ask.” He clicks the cap back on the cologne. “What did you wear underneath that dress?”
    I bite down on my lip, battling my embarrassment because I did wear the black lacy panties he made me buy. “Nothing.”
    “Oh, you decided to go commando?” he says with a devious grin. “That’s even better.”
    I let my lip pop free and a smile sneaks through. “You know that’s not what I meant.”
    “I know.” He winks at me. “But it was funny.” He chucks the cologne back into his bag. “Are you ready to do this?”
    I glance at the mirror, noting the vastness in my eyes—they take up my entire face. Sure, I trusted Kayden to see all of me, but I’m uncertain about the world, because it’s big and scary and always shifting. One minute it feels like home and the next, distant and unfamiliar.
    I submit though and Seth opens the door for me. My knees wobble as I amble out into the kitchen where Luke and Kayden are laughing about something at the table. There’s a tall bottle filled with a brownish liquid sitting on the table. When I step closer I realize it’s a bottle of Jack Daniels. There’s also a lit cigarette in Luke’s hand and smoke is filling the air.
    I halt in the doorway, watching how Kayden’s eyes light up every time he says something. I wonder if he’s drunk because he’s gone from sad to happy in a matter of a couple hours. There’s a huge smile on his face and his eyes are a little glazed over.
    “Drinking already?” Seth rubs his hands together, looking eager as he swings around me, bumping into my shoulder. I grab hold of the countertop to catch myself and then step to the side so I’m slightly hidden