Will must have missed Hazel terribly to bother finding her online. Which was both flattering and a bit odd. She had always been under the impression that he mattered to her more than she mattered to him. He had been her lifeline. She hadn't been his.
"You really missed me that much?" she asked softly.
He sat up and got something out of his backpack. "Does this answer your question? It's my most prized possession."
Hazel stared at the picture frame in disbelief. Why was Will carrying that old drawing around with him?!
"You still have that?"
"Of course. It was the only thing I was able to bring with me when the fire broke out. I wasn't about to let go of the first gift I ever received. I usually keep it on my desk, but I figured I should bring it as proof in case you didn't believe who I was."
The first gift Will ever received. Hazel hadn't realized it meant so much to him.
But he had been ten when they met! It was too sad to never get a gift in ten whole years of life. How unstable was his father? Will hadn't said a word about his mother either.
It wasn't Hazel's place to ask though. She never talked about her parents with anyone, even him. It wouldn't be fair to expect him to talk about painful things without being willing to reciprocate.
"I didn't know it meant so much to you," she said lamely.
Will gingerly put it back in his backpack like it was a precious treasure. "Like I said, it's my most prized possession. It means the world to me because you do."
No one had ever told Hazel that she meant the world to them before. She had been so desperately lonely after losing her parents and then again after losing him. The words were music to her ears.
She suddenly recalled the last thing he said to her before the fire broke out. He told her that he loved her and not to forget that.
It was the first time anyone had said that to her since her parents were killed. She had wanted to say it back, but hadn't been able to speak at the time, which was why she kissed him on the cheek instead.
Was it truly possible that Will had been holding on to the thought of her love as desperately as she had been holding on to the thought of his? He did ridiculously claim she was the most beautiful woman in the world earlier…
"Do you…still love me?" Hazel asked hesitantly.
He sighed and came back over, sitting next to her and caressing her cheek. "What kind of stupid question is that? I've always loved you, Hazel Dixon, and I always will."
Kissing the top of someone's head was romantic. So was touching their face like this. When Will said he had always loved her, did that mean romantically? But how could that be, given the way they met?
Unsure what to think, Hazel threw her arms around him and buried her face in his neck. She doubted it would do anything to calm her raging thoughts, but at least it should prevent her from doing something stupid, like kissing him.
"I love you too."
She had to say it now that she had the chance. Even if she wasn't sure whether she could specify in what way yet.
Hazel loved Will with her entire heart and soul. She hadn't known it at the time, but she had been his since she was seven years old. She had always loved him and always would too.
He pulled back and kissed her forehead before giving her that crooked smile she loved. "Come on. We need to return my rental car and get to the airport. We have a flight to catch."
They did. The rest of her life awaited.
Hazel left that letter for her uncle and didn't look back once everything was loaded into the car. She doubted she would ever bother returning to California. She had been through too much here. Will should understand. He only came back for her.
It would be a long flight and she was exhausted by the time she boarded. As soon as they were in the air, he lifted the armrest between them and encouraged her to lean on him. An offer she had to accept.
When she woke up, he was leaning on her too. She couldn't believe she was actually here. On a plane with the man she loved, venturing into her new life.
Their new life. Will's behavior sure made it seem like he was never going anywhere again. Hazel wanted to believe that more than anything! That they would truly be able to spend the rest of their lives together, living out the dreams they came up with when they were kids.
They were both pretty out of it when they landed. They had to gather all their luggage and load it into his car, which he had left in long-term parking.
His house was even more impressive in-person than it had sounded when he first talked about it. She noticed it didn't have a single decoration on the walls though. Was he waiting for her to paint things for the house or what?
As tired as Hazel was, she felt gross from the plane so she went to shower before flopping into bed. Her last conscious thought was that this mattress was way better than the one she had at home.
She didn't wake up until it was almost dinnertime, which would severely throw off her sleep schedule. She would have been thrown off regardless though. Massachusetts was three hours ahead of California. She would have to get used to this new time zone.
The kitchen down here didn't have any food in it, so she sleepily stumbled upstairs, still in her pajamas. Will was on the couch reading a book and smiled when he saw her.
"Morning, Sleeping Beauty! Or I guess I should say evening."