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“Terrible people don’t do things like that for others,” I tell him.
He averts his gaze. “It still doesn’t erase what I did to Liam. It doesn’t take away the fact that I bullied him…that I turned him away when he needed me.”
“You’re right, it doesn’t change what you did in the past.” I kiss his forehead, his cheeks. “But it means you learned…you grew. We all make mistakes. Some of them so awful it will churn stomachs, break hearts, and ruin lives. But people can and do change. You’re not that same thirteen-year-old boy anymore. Liam’s death was tragic, but something good came out of it because it changed you…for the better.”
I run my finger along his jaw. “And even if Liam died that night blaming you for it. The fact that you wish you could fix things…that you regret being mean to him. Regret not listening to him. Regret not loving him while he was still here…means you have a soul worthy of forgiveness, Colton.” I draw in a shaky breath. “And even though he’s gone…it’s not too late to start loving him.”
It’s never too late to start loving someone.
He hugs me so tightly, it steals the air from my lungs.
“You just saved my fucking life, Bible thumper.”
Then we’re even.
Because once upon a time…
He saved mine, too.