***
I stood in the middle of the field with Olivia’s cap under my arm, letting the crowd move around me. I could have slipped away quietly.
But not today.
A boy in a red nose gave me a shy smile. “Thanks for coming, Olivia’s mom. She always said you were the bravest mom.”
I surprised myself by laughing. “She gave me a run for my money, that’s for sure.”
Kayla grabbed my hand, squeezing tight. “She’d want you to see all of this. The chaos, the love… she planned every bit.”
“She gave me a run for my money, that’s for sure.”
It wasn’t lupus that took her from me. It was the accident three months before graduation.
***
On the drive home, I talked to Olivia out loud. “You got your wish, kid. They looked absolutely ridiculous. You would have loved it.”
At every stoplight, I glanced at her cap in the passenger seat and found myself smiling through tears. At home, I hung the cap beside the favorite family photo.
For a long moment, I just stood there, remembering her laugh, her stubborn hope.
It wasn’t lupus that took her from me.
That night, before bed, I took out her note and read it one more time.
“If anything ever happens and I can’t go to grad, promise me you’ll go for me, Mom. Please don’t let that day disappear.”
I touched the tassel and looked at the cap beside her picture.
“You were there, baby,” I whispered.
And for the first time since I lost her, I believed it
I touched the tassel and looked at the cap beside her picture.
