Kaden closed his eyes as he leaned into her, squeezing her in return but this time letting her quickly go. He nodded; he’d be okay. He wanted to make some joke about being totally okay with chocolate for a midnight snack, or some joke about if he overheard them tonight he was gonna plug his ears with whatever he found in her cupboards, but he couldn’t get past the idea that his nod was a promise, a solemn promise to keep in touch, to let her know they were alive.
He couldn’t fuck that promise up with jokes, it was too important.
So Kaden didn’t say anything, he nodded his promise that he’d be okay tonight, that he was going to miss her like crazy too, that he was so lucky to have her in his life. She’d called him my kid once and he wanted more than anything to crawl into bed beside her and snuggle, but that wasn’t happening. Instead, he pulled the blanket she’d given him over his head like a hood, and threw her a peace sign with one hand. Peace out. Goodnight. I love you as he burrowed into the couch and pulled the pillow over his head.