Page 102 of Ruin The Friendship
The baby stops fluttering inside me, and reluctantly, Fletcher removes his hands.
“What else do you need before she comes?” Fletcher asks a while later. “It’s going to go by quickly.”
I sigh heavily. “Everything, pretty much. I registered for a bunch when we went shopping, but people aren’t going to buy the big stuff, and that’s going to be the most costly.”
“What if…”
“What if what?” I ask, my curiosity piqued.
“What if money wasn’t an issue?” The way he’s not looking at me has me worried.
“You can’t pay for everything. I know you can afford it, but it would take me forever to pay you back.”
“You wouldn’t have to pay me back. I wouldn’t be paying for it.”
“Then who?” I furrow my eyebrows.
What is he talking about?
“Hypothetically,” Fletcher says, sitting up and taking my hands in his, giving them a gentle, reassuring squeeze. “What if there was a savings account that was set up for you roughly six years ago with monthly deposits for you to use toward whatever you want or need? Hypothetically, of course.”
He didn’t. He couldn’t have.
My jaw drops, and my mind races. “You… You never used my rent money, did you?”
I can’t believe this.
He shakes his head, wincing, his gaze apologetic. “Sorry, but also, I’m not. Not even a little.”
I don’t have words.
“How much?” I ask, but I honestly couldn’t care less about the amount.
“Roughly sixty thousand. Give or take.”
“Fletcher! That money was supposed to be for you.”
“I didn’t need it. I told you I didn’t, and you insisted on paying, so I figured I would put it aside for you. I wanted you to have something if you ever moved out or had an emergency or something.”
I know I can’t be mad at him. He’s always taken care of me, even when I didn’t need him to.
“I don’t know what to say,” I admit.
“You don’t have to say anything. Even if you want to keep that money for something else, it’s there if you need it.” Fletcher presses a kiss to my forehead and swipes tears from my cheeks, tears I didn’t realize I’d shed.
“Thank you,” I whisper, curling into his chest.
“That went easier than I thought.” He pushes a curl away from my face. “With how stubborn you can be, I totally thought I’d have to beg on my knees for forgiveness.”
I let out a watery laugh, tears streaming down my cheeks freely. “I should probably yell at you.”
“You could.” He shrugs. “Doesn’t change anything. I’d give you a credit card with your name on it tomorrow if I thought you’d let me.”
“Don’t push it,” I say sternly, trying not to laugh.
“That’s what I thought.” He squeezes me. “Now, for the topic of rent. Unless you want to keep paying it and putting it into the savings account, you don’t have to pay me anymore.”
I should have expected this. “What if we put it into a college or savings account for the baby?”
