ROOM 7
Chapter Sixty-Seven: The Date
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The annulment papers arrived on a Tuesday.
Jay stood at the kitchen counter, reading through the documents, her coffee growing cold beside her. Keifer leaned against the fridge, watching her face. She looked up. Her eyes were calm. Her hands were steady.
"It's done," she said.
He walked to her. Took the papers from her hands. Set them on the counter. Pulled her into his arms.
"It's done," he said.
She closed her eyes. His heartbeat was under her ear. His hand was in her hair. The apartment was quiet.
"Keifer."
"Yeah."
"I want to marry you."
He went still. "What?"
She pulled back. Looked at his face. "Not today. Not tomorrow. But soon. I want to marry you."
He stared at her. His ears were red. His hands were shaking. "Jay."
She touched his face. "I've been thinking about it for months. Ever since you found me in that warehouse. Ever since you brought me home."
He covered her hand with his. "You've been thinking about marriage?"
She smiled. "I've been thinking about forever."
He kissed her. She kissed him back. The coffee grew cold. The papers sat on the counter. The city hummed outside.
When they pulled apart, his forehead was against hers. His voice was low.
"When?"
She looked at his eyes. At the question behind them.
"Let's set a date."
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Part One: The Calendar
The kitchen table was covered in calendars.
Keifer had printed twelve months. Jay had spread them across the table. They sat across from each other, pens in hand, coffee cups full.
"Not June," Jay said.
"Why not?"
"Emma's birthday. Clara's first birthday. Too much."
He crossed off June.
"Not July."
"Why not?"
"Annulment paperwork. Legal stuff. I don't want to think about Yuri on our wedding day."
He crossed off July.
"August?"
She looked at the calendar. "Maybe."
He circled the fourth. "August fourth."
She shook her head. "Too hot."
He crossed it off.
"August eighteenth?"
She looked at the date. "My parents' anniversary."
He raised an eyebrow. "You want to share a date with your parents?"
She smiled. "No."
He crossed it off.
"September?"
She looked at the ninth. The sixteenth. The twenty-third.
"The twenty-third," she said.
He circled it. "September twenty-third."
She nodded. "September twenty-third."
He wrote their names next to the date. Jay and Keifer. September twenty-third.
She looked at the calendar. At the date that would mark the beginning of forever.
"It's settled," she said.
He took her hand. "It's settled."
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Part Two: The Announcement
They told their families first.
Jay's mother cried. Her father shook Keifer's hand. Percy pretended to be surprised. Aries smiled.
Keifer's mother cried. His father hugged Jay. Keigan high-fived his brother. Keiran asked if he could be the ring bearer.
Then they told their friends.
The group chat exploded.
Lyra: SEPTEMBER 23RD?
Jay: September 23rd
Mica: That's three months away
Jay: We don't want a long engagement
Care: Smart
Cole: Efficient
Freya: I'm taking photos
Erdix: I'm filming
Ash: I'm crying
David: I'm bringing snacks
Ci N: Page 420. Wedding date set. Probability of more planning: 100 percent
Rakki: Ci N
Ci N: I calculate what matters
Jay laughed. Keifer looked at her from across the couch.
"What?"
"They're excited."
He pulled her closer. "So am I."
She leaned into him. His chest was warm. His arm was steady.
"Keifer."
"Yeah."
"September twenty-third."
He kissed her forehead. "September twenty-third."
She closed her eyes. The apartment was quiet. The city was bright. The future was waiting.
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Part Three: The Venue
They looked at venues the next week.
The first was too big. The second was too small. The third had a leaky roof. The fourth smelled like old carpet.
Jay stood in the fifth venue. A garden. Flowers everywhere. A white gazebo in the center. Rows of chairs leading to an altar.
She turned to Keifer. "This is it."
He looked around. At the flowers. At the gazebo. At the light filtering through the trees.
"It's perfect," he said.
She grabbed a napkin from her bag. Threw it at him. He caught it.
"You have a catching problem," she said.
"You have a throwing problem."
"I have a Keifer problem."
He tucked the napkin into his pocket. "The worst kind."
He kissed her. She kissed him back. The garden was quiet. The flowers were blooming. The world was waiting.
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Part Four: The Guest List
They sat at the kitchen table, papers spread everywhere.
"Your parents," Jay said.
"Your parents," Keifer said.
"Percy and Aries."
"Keigan and Keiran."
"Lyra and Alex."
"Mica and Calix."
"Care and Cole."
"Freya and Erdix."
"Ash and David."
"Felix."
"Ci N and Rakki."
Jay looked at the list. "That's sixteen."
Keifer looked at the list. "That's Room 7."
She smiled. "Room 7."
He took her hand. "Room 7."
She looked at the names. At the people who had become family. The people who had seen them through everything. The people who would stand beside them on September twenty-third.
"No Yuri," she said.
He shook his head. "No Yuri."
She crossed off the space where his name might have been. "Emma?"
He nodded. "Emma and Clara."
She added them to the list. "That's eighteen."
He looked at the names. "That's perfect."
She leaned into him. His arm went around her. The guest list sat on the table. The date was set. The future was coming.
"Keifer."
"Yeah."
"September twenty-third."
He kissed her hair. "September twenty-third."
She closed her eyes. His heartbeat was under her ear. His hand was in her hair. The apartment was quiet.
She was ready.
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End of Chapter Sixty-Seven