My Last Wish novel · Chapter 21 of 24

Chapter 21: Wish 212

In January, Teddy stood at the end of the main street with his mouth open, and looked at the castle.

"It's pink," he said.

"It is."

"Is it a real one?"

"It's real enough," Dane said, and lifted him onto his shoulders.

I had thought this day would feel like a victory.

It felt like the first warm room after a long walk in the cold.

A woman in a visor offered to take our picture, and Dane handed her his phone.

We stood in front of the pink towers, the three of us, with Teddy in a hat with two black ears.

I put my arm through Dane's.

"Say lemons," the woman said.

"Lemons," said Teddy.

I looked at the photo afterward, on the bench by the carousel.

My face looked like a person who lived there.

I would print it, and Dane would build the frame.

It would be plain wood, with no brass plate.

By noon my chest had gone tight.

It happened on the narrow bridge over the water, with the crowd pressing in and the music too loud.

I put my hand on the rail and my heart went off.

Dane didn't ask what was wrong.

He turned his body so it shielded mine from the crowd, and he said, low, "Breathe in for four."

I breathed in for four.

"Hold it."

I held it.

"Out for six."

We did it several times, on a bridge, with a hundred strangers going around us.

When I opened my eyes Teddy was patting my knee.

"Mama, you're doing the breathing," he said, delighted. "Dane showed me."

I laughed, and the tightness let go.

Wish two hundred twelve took the whole day.

We rode the carousel, and a teacup, and a boat through a tunnel of singing dolls that made me cry for no reason, and Dane handed me a napkin without a word.

← Chapter 20 · All chapters · Chapter 22 →

Want to keep talking to characters like these? Chat with AI romance characters: AI Boyfriend · AI Girlfriend · Dark Romance · Fantasy Romance · BL (Boys’ Love) · Billionaire Boyfriend · Mafia Boyfriend · Possessive Boyfriend · Hockey Boyfriend · Older Boyfriend · K-Drama Boyfriend · Anime Boyfriend · Vampire Boyfriend · Werewolf Boyfriend · Demon Boyfriend · Fae Romance · GL (Girls’ Love) · Anime Girlfriend · Goth & Alt Girlfriend · Gamer Girlfriend · Tsundere Girlfriend · Fantasy Girlfriend