Janeth Rueda

“Hey cupcake!” he says, like he just had a great idea. “I’m so glad you’re here.” “Me too,” I say. “I thought you were ready to kick me to the curb.” I was. But when I found out he was hurt, it nearly gutted me. “Would if I could,” I say. “Do you think you could fall in love with me, cupcake?” he blurts out. I’m startled. I know he’s medicated, so I shouldn’t put any stock into his words, but I can’t help it. “You should get some rest,” I say. Tap. Tap. “So, that would be a no.” He whistles. Then he scrunches up his face when it makes his head hurt. “I’m in trouble,” he whispers quietly. “What?” He squeezes my hand. “I’m pretty sure I’m in love with you, cupcake,” he says. “I just wish you could love me back.” “You’ve had a lot of pain meds,” I say. Suddenly, he grabs the neck of my shirt and jerks me so that I fall over his chest. His lips are right next to mine. “Listen to me,” he says. “Okay,” I whisper. “I don’t have much going for me, but I know what love feels like.” “How?” “It just is, cupcake. You don’t get to pick who you fall in love with. And God knows, if my head could pick, it wouldn’t be you.” I push back to get off his chest, because I’m offended. But he holds me tight. “You’re not easy to love, because you can’t love me back. But you might one day. I’ll wait. But you got to start taking my calls.” He cups the back of my head and brings my face toward his. A cough from the doorway startles us apart. I stand up and pull my shirt down where he rucked it up. “Visiting hours are over,” a nurse says. “She’s not a visitor,” he says. She comes and inserts a needle into his IV, and his eyes close. He doesn’t open them when he says, “She’s going to marry me one day. She just doesn’t know it yet.” His head falls to the side and he starts to softly snore. His hand goes slack around mine. I pull back, my heart skipping like mad. “They say some of the most ridiculous things when they’re medicated.” The nurse shakes her head. “He probably won’t remember any of this tomorrow.” Pete”
― Tammy Falkner, Zip, Zero, Zilch

“Logan turns to Emily. She’s actually holding it together a lot better than the men in the room. I blow my nose into a tissue as he tells her, “Talk to me, Em. Say something.” She reaches out and cups the side of his face. “Oh, Logan,” she says. And a tear finally falls over her lashes and down her cheek. “I love you so much.” “I love you too,” he says back. And finally, he drops his head into his hands and cries. Paul”
― Tammy Falkner, Zip, Zero, Zilch

“You’re the only one for me.

My sun rises and sets on your smile.

My heart beats because yours does.”
― Elle Kennedy, The Goal

“Then I grab her. I can’t help it. I grab her and pull her against me. I need to feel her, to touch her, to smell her. I kiss her, because I really need to taste her. I hear the tiny little noises she makes when she’s excited, and she growls against my lips. The coach barks out, “Knock it off, Reed!” I lift my head, but I imagine I have stars flying around my head like Sylvester the cat after he gets hit with a rolling pin. “But she’s Mrs. Reed, coach!” I call back. “Congratulations,” he says drolly. But he’s smiling too. “Now get a room.” My”
― Tammy Falkner, Zip, Zero, Zilch