This diary entry is part 19 of 29 in Lily's diary dated 15 - September 2022

Hi! It’s me! Lily!

Well, things are a little bit back to normal now, I guess.  Jack registered for school today, and he’ll be starting soon, so he has to get his supplies and all that kinda thing.  He told me he was a bit jealous that I got to go to community college, and I told him it’s hard, and besides I have to drive a lot further than he does.  The school is about a half mile from him as the crow flies, but he’s on the other side of the tollway, so that’s a little bit of a production.  Oh well, he’ll figure it out.  I hope starting fresh will give him the chance to make new friends.  Heck, I don’t even mind if he makes female friends, as long as he’s very clear on who gets to date him and who doesn’t.

He doesn’t seem the type to wander, so it’ll be fine.

I told him that he has my permission to say he has a girlfriend in college if it will give him a little “street cred”.  He blushed, but he might do that.  I think that’s funny!!

Anyway, other news, I guess.  There’s not much of it.  I’m just going to school and doing other lessons with Sabby and… I might have some news soon!  Still working on some details.  Aww.  Guess you’ll have to wait, but it’s okay!  I’ll tell you soon!

Beth is really kind of jealous of me with Jack, to the point where Sabby had to sit her down and tell her that she’s too young yet, and her time will come, and to snap out of it because her jealousy is one of the worst things about her.  They had a bit of a yelling match, but that’s not unusual.  She went stomping up to her room and that’s where she is now.  But she’ll get over it.  She’ll turn sixteen soon and then she can find a boy and date him and learn that it’s not as easy as it looks.  Speaking of boys, Liz has her date this weekend, and she wants me to meet him.

I’m sure he’ll be fine.

Liz isn’t dumb, it’s just that the heart sometimes wants what it wants, when the mind says “whoa, hold up there, this isn’t a good idea”.

Oh, Sabby wants to send a tin of cookies to our “benefactor”, and wants to know how to deliver them.

Anyway, bedtime.  Other than Beth flying off the handle, it’s been a pretty quiet day.  I like quiet days.  Hopefully nothing soap-opera-ey will happen for a little while.

Love you all!!!  ❤

This diary entry is part 18 of 29 in Lily's diary dated 15 - September 2022

Hi! It’s me! Lily!

Jack was quiet today.  I texted him and asked him why.

“You remember, I can read your diary, right?  Even the subscriber parts?”, he said.  “I want see what you write there.”

Aww.  I had forgotten.

“Are you mad?”, I said, very fretful.

“No,” he said.  “Not mad.  I just..  don’t know what to do.  I mean, usually my first thing to do with you is buy you chocolate, but…  it doesn’t seem the right thing to do this time.  You have plenty of chocolate.  I don’t like just throwing chocolate at you to try to make things better.”

“It… does usually make things better, you know that, right?”

“Yeah,” he said.  “But you’re more complicated than that.”

Thing is… maybe I’m not.  I’m a simple girl.  Chocolate in, Happy out.  But I know what he means.  And maybe he’s right.  Maybe I’m too easily bought with chocolate.  But I do love chocolate!!!

“But,” he added, “I don’t know what else to do to show you I really mean it.  I…  maybe I don’t know you that well after all.”

“Maybe I don’t know me that well either,” I said morosely.

“huh,” he said.  “I’d forgotten.”

“What?”

“The memories.”

“…  oh.  I see what you mean.”

He went quiet.  I was worried a little, and he wasn’t answering my texts.  About twenty minutes later, there was a knock at the door.  Sabby yelled for me, and I went down to see what it was about.

Jack was there, and he just pulled me to him, wrapped his arms around me, and kissed me senseless.  Right on the doorstep.

“Jack?  What was that about?”, I asked.  It was nice, but I was very confused.

He took both my hands in his, looked me straight in the eyes, and said “I just gave you another memory.”

OMG.  That did it.  I melted.  I seriously melted.  In fact, I busted out crying and just clung to him, blubbering.  How did he know?  Even when I didn’t?  How did he know that memories were one of the few things in my life more valuable than chocolate?

“And I gave you memories yesterday, and the night before, and…  I’ll keep giving you memories.  Memories of fun, of love, of happiness, of…  of me.  That’s what I’ll give you.”

He kissed my forehead, turned around, got in his car, and drove away.

I turned around and looked at Sabby, tears running down my face.  I sniffled and wiped them away.

“He… he told me he was going to give me memories.  That’s how he’s going to show me he loves me.  He’s… he’s going to give me memories.”

Sabby sighed.  “No grandkids yet.  You promised.”

I nodded and sniffled.  And then we ate dinner.  But my mind was elsewhere.  On that boy who figured out what I needed more than nearly anything else in the world.

I’m not worried anymore.

He’s perfect.

He loves me.

I know he does.  He loves me.

He loves me enough to give me memories.

I am such a lucky girl.

Love you all!!! ❤

This diary entry is part 17 of 29 in Lily's diary dated 15 - September 2022

Hi! It’s me! Lily!

And tonight I’m a thoughtful Lily.  Some of those thoughts will need to be only for subscribers.  Sorry about that.  But some things aren’t for little ears or eyes!

Today was a quiet day.  Jack came over to my place and had dinner with us.  Dave took him into another room and had a talk with him.  Jack looked a little uncomfortable coming out of the room.  I asked afterwards what they talked about, and neither of them would say.  Jack just hugged me and told me everything was going to be okay.  Dave shook his hand when he left, so I guess it was a cordial talk.  All Dave would say was “My daughter has a boyfriend, and she will be spending a lot of time with him.  I just made sure he understood what the responsibilities of a good boyfriend are.”  I…  maybe I’m better off not knowing.

Maybe everything will be okay.  Dave and Sabby will always have my back.  If I believe nothing else, I believe that.  They will always have my back.  And I love them so much for it.

Jack wants to go on another date next weekend.  I told him yes, but this time we’re going out, and we’re going to have a real date.  Maybe we can spend some time together watching a movie after, but I want to go out and do things with him.  That’s how we learn about each other.  The rest… it’s a nice treat after.

This week starts fall! But then, this is Texas.  We’re lucky to get a couple of weeks of fall sometime in December.  Sigh.

Love you all!!! ❤

 

This diary entry is part 16 of 29 in Lily's diary dated 15 - September 2022

Hi! It’s me! Lily!

There is, as is often the case with Jack, subscriber-specific content in this post.  If you are below 13, it’s not suitable for you.  But as usual, nothing important is hidden.[um-loggedout]

And Jack and I had our first date!

It was…  well, only sort of a date, if I’m being honest.  We didn’t actually go anywhere this time.  I went over to his place, all dressed nicely in my nice black dress, and his parents were packing up Grace.  They said “Lily, Jack, we’re going to take Grace to eat out and play at the arcade for…  about three hours.  You can go out or stay in.  Don’t get in trouble, okay?

Jack and I both nodded.

The door closed.  We watched them drive away.

The food arrived, and we ate and cuddled and watched a movie.  That was… the best date ever.  I mean, it’s nice to go out with him and do things, but it’s also nice just to stay in and spend some time with him and… he treats me so well and I love him so much.

His parents came home a little later and found us on the couch cuddled together, Jack was half asleep and I was playing with his hair.  The movie had just ended.  Grace was so happy to see me, she ran over and jumped on me!  Haha!!!  I gave her a big hug.

“Auntie Lily!  Auntie Lily!  We had a burger and we went to the arcade and I played games and mommy taught me how to play bowling!  But the ball is so heavy!!! They put puffy things on the side and everything!  I got a… got a…. STRIKE!!!”

I giggled because she said all of that in one breath.  “Oh, you’re so good at bowling!”, I said, and she giggled happily.  She jumped off me and ran off to play with Lily the dog, who had been sleeping in Grace’s bedroom the whole time.

Jack’s mother smiled at us.

“Grace had a lot of fun at the arcade.  Seems like the two of you had a good time too.  Lily, is Sabby expecting you back?  We need to put Grace to bed.”

I knew a dismissal when I heard one.  I gave Jack a kiss and said goodnight to everyone.  Grace glomped me and said “Come back soon auntie Lily” and went back to harassing – I mean playing with the dog.  His mother followed me outside onto the patio.

“Lily,” she said quietly, so the neighbors wouldn’t hear, “We give you time alone, and we know what happens when teenagers have time alone.  But… are you still…?”

I nodded. “Yes, and that won’t change.  You do show us a lot of trust, but trust me on this one.  you know my story.  I don’t want to end up like my birth mother.”

She nodded and hugged me.  “We like you, Lily.  We don’t want that for you either.”

“Goodnight,” I said, and drove home.  That was a little awkward, but I guess I understand.  He’s their son, too.  But I’m just so glad they trust us.

I’m home now, and I’m so happy I got to spend that time with him tonight, and hopefully it’s the first of many other times.

Love you all!!! ❤

This diary entry is part 15 of 29 in Lily's diary dated 15 - September 2022

Hi! It’s me! Lily!!!

And it’s Friday!!!  YAAAAAAAYYY!!!!!

So Jack’s settling in, they spent all day unpacking and getting everything set up.  The housing market is kind of on its way down in this area, so they’re just going to stay in the apartment for a while and see if the houses become more affordable, so they’re making themselves at home in their apartment.  They’re having to tell Grace to calm down a bit to not bother the neighbors, but she’ll be alright.  Apparently she saw another little girl outside and ran right out and introduced herself.  They spent an hour playing!  Yay!!!  She needs friends her age.

I wish it was that easy.  She just runs out and says “want to be friends?”  We teenagers and adults make a huge game out of it.  Sigh.

There are a lot of kids in their complex, of all different races too.  Grace will have a good time.

Jack wants to go on a date tomorrow night!  Of course I said yes!!!  I don’t know what he has planned, but I’m sure he’ll come up with something.  Or he’ll just ask me for ideas!!!  Now that we’re in the same city, we don’t have to work so hard to make our dates memorable.  Maybe we’ll just have dinner with his family and play with Lily (the dog…  or.. haha).  I don’t know.  Maybe that would be nice.

But tonight, Liz is over.  The other girls have plans, but that’s alright, they can’t come over every weekend anyway.  Beth and Liz and I are having a pretty quiet party all our own, and it’s nice.  As I said, I love Crystal and Diana, but they’re a lot rowdier than Liz.  And Allison just zooms all over the place.  We’re not even really playing games this time – Beth is reading a book, and Liz and I are chatting and eating cookies.  Well, when I’m not writing here!  Hah!  Liz and Marie are getting along great now!  I think Liz wants a dog of her own.  But her parents really aren’t keen on the idea.  So she gets to be Marie’s aunt!  How cute!!!

Okay!  Bedtime!

Love you all!!! ❤

 

This diary entry is part 14 of 29 in Lily's diary dated 15 - September 2022

Hi! It’s me! Lily!

After school today I went over to see Jack and his family.  I knew they’d be a little busy, so I asked Sabby to make some cookies, and Sabby style, she made too many.  Haha!  So I went over with a couple trays of cookies.  They live in a big complex!  But there are some potholes in the driveway and the gate’s broken, so I hope it’s worth it.

Anyway, the apartment itself is actually really nice.  They have a three bedroom two bath, so everyone gets their own bedroom. Everything was empty because they were waiting for the truck, but we set up a little portable table and they ordered some food.  Grace, of course, gave me a big hug, and Jack gave me a big hug and kiss.  It was nice to see him again, but…  different.  He’s here for good now.  Is this a little like how newlyweds feel when they live together for the first time?

Grace was zooming around the apartment, I guess she had some energy to burn off.  Oh, Lily was there too!!!  She was happy to see me too.

So anyway, the food arrived and we ate and chatted.  It was nice.  I guess Liz and her family will come over when they’re a little more settled, but I couldn’t wait!  Their drive was pretty uneventful.  They have to register Grace and Jack for school this week, and Jack’s a little nervous, but I told him Texans are pretty cool for the most part, and he’ll be fine.  And if not, we’ll sic Sabby on them!

He laughed soooo hard!!!

They seem happy to be here.  I’m glad.  Ohio isn’t too bad but this is where they wanted to be, and here they are!

So, as we were finishing eating, the moving truck arrived, and, well, things got really busy.  I figured that was my time to scram and let them get to it.  I couldn’t help much, the movers would do most of the heavy lifting and they had to tell the movers where to put stuff, so I was really just getting in the way.  It was okay.  I got to see Jack again!  But they asked if I could take Grace and Lily for a walk around the complex instead of just leaving – they were kind of getting in the way too.  Yay!  I didn’t mind at all!  I love Grace and Lily!  So I put the leash on Grace… er, I mean Lily.  Hahah! And we went out for a walk.  I threw the toy for Lily and Grace was just running around having a good time.  There was a surprising amount of green space at the complex, it’s kind of a square of buildings around a central lawn, and there’s even a playground!  You should have seen Grace’s eyes light up when she found the playground!  I just sat on a bench and let her climb all over!!!  Lily laid down next to me and took a nap.

So after an hour we wandered back to the apartment, and the movers had already done their thing!  There was furniture and boxes and the beds were even mostly put together!  I helped a little, but then I had to get back.  Jack gave me a big hug and a long kiss and told me that we’ll have a date this weekend.  I can’t wait!!!  I don’t know what we’ll do, but it’ll be fun!!!  Oh, once Grace’s bed was set up, she just climbed right in and went to sleep, Lily cuddled up to her.  I guess I tired them out.  Haha!!!

Honestly, I just like spending time with him, that’s all.  We could just sit there reading next to each other and I’d be happy.

But I won’t discourage him from buying me chocolate!!!

Anyway, I’m home now.  I miss Jack, but I don’t too.  I’ll see him again.  Now I know I will.  Almost any time I want!!!  I remember when I first had to leave Jack, it hurt soooo much, I cried and cried and I wasn’t sure we’d ever see each other again, and now here we are, in the same city!!!  Maybe it’s meant to happen!!!

Love you all!!! ❤

This diary entry is part 13 of 29 in Lily's diary dated 15 - September 2022

Hi! It’s me! Lily!

HAPPY LILY!!!

OVER THE MOON LILY!!!

Jack is here in Austin!!!

But I haven’t seen him yet.  They’re a bit busy.  I understand.  I’ll have plenty of time with him.

So they got here this evening, and they’re staying in a hotel overnight, and tomorrow they’ll get their apartment and start moving in!  I asked Jack if they need help.  He said… maybe.  He’ll let me know tomorrow.  It’s not all about me, though, not this time, so I get it.

The movers are still trundling their way down to Austin, they should be here in a couple of days.  I guess it takes longer when you’re driving a big rig.

He does want to go on a date with me though!  Maybe this weekend.  We’ll see.  They have a lot to do, for sure.  Grace is very tired, but happy.  She wants to go to the waterpark!  They told her to have some patience.

Five year olds don’t have patience, haha!!

Sabby sat me down and told me that she doesn’t want me spending every free hour with Jack, though.  She said that’s not fair to the family, but it’s not fair to Jack, too.  She explained that even though she and Dave are married, sometimes even they need a little bit of time to themselves, and I have to be careful not to smother Jack.

I… guess I can see that.  Would I?  I don’t know, but it’s a fair point.  I…  don’t know how to be a girlfriend to a boy who is actually in the same city as me.  I hope it works out, I really do.

Sabby told me what the music box my birth father sent me plays.  It’s a song called “music box dancer”.  The song has a nice story behind it too.  It’s a thoughtful gift.  Sweet without pushing too hard.  Sabby thought so too.

He doesn’t seem like a bad guy.  Just a guy who made a huge mistake at one time in his life.

Oh well.  Marie needs walking.

Love you all!!! ❤

This diary entry is part 12 of 29 in Lily's diary dated 15 - September 2022

Hi! It’s me! Lily!

JACK IS IN MEMPHIS!!!

Well… near Memphis.  No one wants to be in Memphis.

I guess this morning they made sure the house was all clear (they’ll be selling it, or renting it, or something), hopped in the car, and left!!!

I know I just saw him but I want to see him again!!!

Other than Jack’s impending arrival for good, not much else going on, thankfully.  I got a bday present from my birth father.  I can tell he put a lot of thought into it, that was nice of him.  He sent me a music box with a pretty song.  I don’t know what the song is, but it’s pretty.  It’s made of solid wood and has flowers inlaid on it.  It’s certainly something worthy of putting up on the shelf to display.

I’m tired. I guess I should walk Marie and do bedtime stuff.

Love you all!!! ❤

This diary entry is part 11 of 29 in Lily's diary dated 15 - September 2022

Hi! It’s me! Lily!

Dave’s feeling better, I guess.  Sabby took him up to their room last night and, well, they didn’t come out again till the morning, and he seemed a little bit more chipper this morning.  I guess…  some things only Sabby knows how to do, right?

He wasn’t running around gushing about how great the morning was or anything, but you could tell.

I ran my prank idea past Sabby, and she giggled.  Not only is she going to be involved but Beth is too.  We went right to Amazon and clicky clicked…  Beth’s never pranked him before but this is a nice beginner prank.

I don’t think he reads this…

As pranks go, this is more fun than scary.  I think he’ll like it.

So… what else.  It was another relatively quiet day.  I took Beth to school and we did school stuff (Beth seems to be getting more into the swing of it and really seems to like her classes), and The movers left today with all their stuff.  It’ll take them a few days, so they’re likely to beat the movers down.  They leave first thing tomorrow.  Yaaaayyy!!!!

I asked Sabby if we could babysit Grace sometimes, and Sabby seemed a little hesitant, but said she didn’t mind.  Grace isn’t the type of kid to run around and break things, she just sits at a table coloring or playing with her dolls.

I can’t believe Jack’s coming to live here!!!

I asked Jack if me being here had anything to do with their move.  He said…  not really.  The way he explained it, Liz’s family is here too, his father found a really good job here, they’ve been thinking about moving to Texas anyway for other reasons…  and the fact that I’m here really didn’t have too much to do with it.  It did, however, ensure that Jack was not at all opposed to the move, not even the slightest little bit.

Good boy, we’d have to have a talk if he was.

He asked what a good place to look for a job was.  I said I heard HEB was a pretty good employer.  I don’t know myself, but that’s what I heard anyway.  So he’s going to apply there when he gets here.  The one sticky part is, I’m not sure whether his license will transfer.  I guess we’ll see.

Well, gotta go.  Marie is whining.  At least it’s not really hot outside anymore.

Love you all!!! ❤

This diary entry is part 10 of 29 in Lily's diary dated 15 - September 2022

Hi! It’s me! Lily!

Today is September 11, and Dave is sad again.  He doesn’t really like to talk when he’s sad, but I did the same thing I did last year and brought him his favorite drink.  But this time he wanted to talk.

“Lily,” he said, “You are one of the most cheerful and peppy and optimistic people I’ve ever met.  Nothing bad ever really seems to faze you.  Not even… when that guy tried something with you last year.  I hope… I hope you never lose that.”

“Why do you get so sad?”, I asked.  “I may be cheerful but I get sad too, and usually I have a reason.  What’s… what’s your reason?”

“I.. knew some people in those towers when they fell.  I wasn’t close to them, but I knew them.”

“Oh,” I said.  “I don’t know what to say.”

“You’re young, still,” he said.  It’s not that you haven’t had anything bad in your life, but you haven’t had anything that shook you to your core and made you wonder why you even bother with it all.  I… I hope you never do, Lily.  Thanks for the drink,” he said, and went back to sitting in his chair and being sad.

I gave him a hug and went up to my room.  Dave’s not the kind of guy who likes too much company when he’s sad.

Of course it’s sad, what happened.  It always is.  Every year we’re reminded of how sad it is.  But what am I going to do about it?  We can remember the people who died, but they’re dead now.  We can be mad at the people who did it, but most of them are dead now, too.  But we can move on with our lives, I guess.  Everyone says “never forget”, but maybe we should instead be looking forward to a time when we can forget.  Maybe?

I don’t know.  Like I always say, I’m just seventeen.  What do I know?

Dave will be okay tomorrow.  I know he will.  He’ll be back to grilling and having pressure washer accidents.  I haven’t pranked him in a while – he got me so good with that cayenne pepper chocolate pudding I haven’t dared.  But maybe it’s a good time to, soon.

Oh!  I know what to do!  Hahaha!!!!!  I need to get Sabby on board so I can buy something on Amazon!!!!  LOL!!!!!

Jack’s relocators are almost finished packing and they’ll be heading south in a couple of days.  SQUEEEEEEE!!!!!

Love you all!!! ❤