A thousand Boy Kisses

He was giving me my wish.
As soon as our eyes met, Rune straightened. I watched him swallow as my
mama placed me in my chair. When she stepped away, Rune crouched down, not
caring who else was there, and whispered, “Poppymin.” My breathing paused,
when he added, “You look so beautiful.”
Reaching out my hand, I tugged on the bottom of his blond hair. “It’s combed
back so I can see your handsome face. And you’re wearing a tux.”
A crooked smile pulled on his mouth. “I told you I would,” he replied.
Rune took my hand and, as gently as he could, pushed my corsage onto my

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wrist. I ran my hand over the blossom leaves. I couldn’t help but smile.
Looking up into Rune’s blue eyes, I asked, “Is this real?”
Leaning forward, he kissed me and whispered, “You’re going to prom.”
A tear escaped my eye, blurring my vision. I watched Rune’s face drop, but I
laughed and told him, “They’re good tears, baby. I’m just so happy.”
Rune swallowed and I reached out and touched his face. “You’ve made me so
impossibly happy.”
I hoped he heard the deeper meaning of those words. Because I didn’t just
mean tonight. It meant he had always made me the happiest girl on the planet.
He had to know.
He had to have felt the truth of that fact.
Rune lifted my hand and kissed it. “You’ve made me so damn happy too.”
And I knew he’d understood.
The sound of my daddy’s voice unlocked our stare. “Right, kids, you’d better
get going.” I caught the gruffness in my daddy’s tone. I knew he wanted us gone
because it was all too much for him to handle.
Rune stood and moved around to the back of my chair. “You ready, baby?”
“Yes,” I replied confidently.
All of the weakness I had felt vanished in an instant. Because Rune had
somehow made this wish come true for me.
I wasn’t going to waste a single second.
Rune pushed me to my mama’s car. He lifted me from the wheelchair and
placed me on the front seat. I was smiling so big. In fact, I never stopped smiling
during the entire drive.
When we pulled up at the school, I heard the music from inside drifting out
into the night. I closed my eyes, savoring every image: the parade of limos
arriving one after the other, the students dressed so smartly, all entering the
school gym.
With so much care, as always, Rune lifted me out of the car and onto my chair,
then moved before me and kissed me. He kissed me like he meant it. Like he

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knew that these kisses were as limited as I knew they were.
It made every touch and taste that much more special. We had kissed almost
one thousand times, yet the final few that we were taking, they were the most
special. When you know that something is finite, it makes it that much more
meaningful.
When he pulled back, I cupped his handsome face and said, “Kiss nine hundred
and ninety-four. At my senior prom. With my Rune … my heart almost burst.”
Rune took a deep breath and pressed a final kiss on my cheek. He began to
push me toward the gym. The teachers that were chaperoning saw us arrive.
Their reactions to me warmed my heart. They smiled, they embraced me—they
made me feel loved.
The music blared from inside the hall. I was desperate to see how the room
looked. Rune reached for the door, and as he wrenched it open, the school gym
came into view … a view that was dressed in pastel whites and pinks.
Beautifully decorated, perfectly themed with my favorite flower.
My hand moved to my mouth Lowering it, I whispered, “Cherry blossom-
themed.”
I looked back at Rune. He shrugged. “What else?”
“Rune,” I whispered, as he pushed me into the hall. The kids dancing nearby
stopped when I entered. For a minute I felt awkward when I was met with their
stares.
This had been the first time most of them had seen me since… But the
awkwardness was quickly forgotten when they began to come over, greeting me
and wishing me well. After a while, clearly seeing I was overwhelmed, Rune
pushed me to a table overlooking the dance floor.
I smiled when I saw all of our friends sitting at the table. Jorie and Ruby saw
me first. They jumped to their feet and ran our way. Rune stepped back as my
friends embraced me.
“Holy crap, Pops. You look so beautiful,” Jorie cried. I laughed, and gestured
at her blue dress.

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“So do you, sweetie.” Jorie smiled in return. Judson came up behind her, taking
her hand. As I stared at their hands, I smiled again.
Jorie met my eyes and shrugged. “I think it was always going to happen
eventually.” I was happy for her. I liked knowing that she was with someone she
adored. She had been an amazing friend to me.
Judson and Deacon hugged me next, then Ruby. When all of our friends had
greeted me, Rune pushed in to take his place at the table. Of course he took the
seat beside me, immediately taking hold of my hand.
I saw him watching me, his eyes never leaving my face. Turning to him, I
asked, “Are you okay, baby?”
Rune nodded, then leaned in to say, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you looking
so beautiful. I can’t take my eyes off you.”
My head angled to the side as I drank in his look. “I like you in a tux,” I
announced.
“It’s okay, I guess.” Rune reached up and fidgeted with the bow tie. “This was
near impossible to put on.”
“But you managed,” I teased.
Rune looked away, then looked back. “My pappa helped me.”
“He did?” I asked quietly.
Rune gave a curt nod.
“And you let him?” I persisted, noticing that stubborn tilt of his chin. My heart
raced as I waited for the answer. Rune didn’t know that my secret wish was that
he would mend his relationship with his pappa.
He’d need him soon.
And his pappa loved him.
It was the final hurdle I wanted Rune to overcome.
Rune sighed. “I let him.”
I couldn’t stop the smile forming on my lips. I reached over and laid my head
on his shoulder. Glancing up, I said, “I’m real proud of you, Rune.”
Rune’s jaw clenched, but he had nothing to say in reply.

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Lifting my head, I surveyed the room, watching our classmates dancing and
having fun. And I loved it. I looked at each person I had grown up with,
wondering what they would make of themselves when they grew up. Who’d
they marry, if they’d have kids.
Then my eyes stopped at a familiar face, looking at me from across the room.
Avery was sitting with another group of friends. When I caught her eyes, I held
up my hand and gave a small wave. Avery smiled and waved back.
When I looked back to the table, Rune was glaring at Avery. When my hand
landed on his arm, he sighed and shook his head at me. “Only you,” he said.
“Only you.”
As the night passed, I watched on, completely content as our friends danced the
night away. I treasured this time. I treasured seeing everyone look so happy.
Rune’s arm came around my shoulder. “How did you do this?” I asked.
Rune pointed to Jorie and Ruby. “It was them, Poppymin. They wanted you to
have this. They did it all. Moved the date forward. The theme, everything.”
I eyed him skeptically. “Why do I get the feeling it wasn’t just them?”
A blush flared on Rune’s cheeks as he shrugged casually. I knew he’d done a
lot more than he’d let on.
Inching closer, I took his face in my hands and said, “I love you, Rune
Kristiansen. I love you, so, so much.”
Rune’s eyes closed for a second too long. He breathed in deeply through his
nose, then opening his eyes, declared, “I love you too, Poppymin. More than I
think you’ll ever know.”
As I cast my eyes around the gym, I smiled. “I know, Rune … I know.”
Rune held me closer. He asked me to dance, but I didn’t want to take my chair
out onto the crowded floor. I was happily watching everyone else dance when I
saw Jorie walk to the DJ.
She looked over at me. I couldn’t read the look in her eye, but then I heard the
opening chords of One Direction’s “If I Could Fly” flood the room.
I stilled. I had once told Jorie that this song made me think of Rune. It made me

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think of when Rune was away from me in Norway. And more than anything, it
made me think of how my Rune was with me in private. A sweetheart. Only for
me. For my eyes only. When he told the world that he was bad, he only ever told
me he was in love.
He was loved.
So completely.
I had dreamily told her that if we had ever married it would be our song. Our
first dance. Rune slowly got to his feet; it seemed like Jorie had told Rune.
As Rune leaned down, I shook my head, not wanting to take my chair on the
dance floor. But then to my surprise, with a move that completely stole my heart,
Rune took me in his arms and swept me to the floor.
“Rune,” I protested weakly, wrapping my arms around his neck. Rune shook
his head, not saying a single word, and began to dance with me in his arms.
Refusing to look anywhere else, I stared into his eyes, knowing he could hear
every lyric, seeing clearly in his face why he knew this song was for us.
He held me close, swaying gently to the music. And, like it always had for
Rune and I, the rest of the world fell away, leaving only us two. Dancing among
the blossoms, completely in love.
Two halves of one whole.
As the song hit its crescendo, slowly bringing it to a close, I leaned forward and
asked, “Rune?”
“Ja?” he rasped back.
“Will you take me somewhere?”
His dark-blond eyebrows furrowed, but he nodded in agreement. As the song
ended, he pulled me in for a kiss. His lips shook slightly against mine. Feeling
overcome with emotion too, I allowed myself a solitary tear, before taking a
deep breath and shooing it away.
As Rune withdrew, I whispered, “Kiss nine hundred and ninety-five. With my
Rune. At prom as we danced. My heart almost burst.”
Rune’s forehead pressed to mine.

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As Rune moved us to leave, I glanced to the center of the floor. Jorie was
standing still, watching me, tears in her eyes. Capturing her gaze, I placed my
hand over my heart and mouthed, “Thank you … I love you … I’ll miss you.”
Jorie’s eyes closed. When they opened again, she mouthed back, “I love you