Six weeks can feel like an eternity or feel like a blink of an eye.

My initial stay in Rose Falls was a little less than six weeks long, and it felt like an entire lifetime. I had grown more, hurt more, and learned to love more than in any other part of my life.

But the six weeks following the morning I decided to stay in Rose Falls? The days floated by like flower petals in the wind. Since I’d realized that I belonged here, everything had made so much more sense. Sure, it wasn’t all easy, but at least it felt right.

The movers had been easy to cancel, even if the cancellation fee had been hefty. In the days following, Patrick and I had lazily unpacked the boxes together in my loft, and I’d made a deal with the landlord to let me rent for the next year at an increased price.

There had been long conversations with my bar managers in D.C., including one where they asked if I had lost my mind during my time in Rose Falls. They said I didn’t sound like myself. I told them that was just because they’d never spoken to me when I’d been in love before.

But after they realized that I wasn’t joking, that I really was going to stay in Rose Falls, they accepted it. They acknowledged that they were completely confident going forward without me in town—I had known they’d be fine, all along. Part of me knew that I’d just been using my D.C. bars as an excuse. I wanted an excuse to run away from Rose Falls, to flee the truth that had been so frightening to me. But now I couldn’t imagine running away from here, running away from Patrick.

And now, it had been six full weeks since that morning, since I decided that this could be my new home.

It had gone by in a flash.

I was standing at the front door of Brew for You with Patrick at my side, our hands clasped tight together.

“You’re going to be okay,” I said to him.

His eyes flitted around, looking at the huge crowd of people just inside Brew for You, all gathered there for him, tonight. “Are you sure?” he said. “Please tell me again that I’m making the right decision.”

I squeezed his hand. “You are making the exact perfect decision for you, Patrick,” I said.

He drew a deep breath, nodding. He turned to me and put on a big smile, leaning forward to give me a kiss.

And then we walked through the door for Brew for You’s last ever nighttime service.

Patrick had announced in the Gazette that the night bar would be closing for good, and ever since, people had been showing up and sharing their memories. The photo wall behind the bar had doubled its amount of pictures just over the last couple of weeks, with regular customers bringing in pictures and taking new ones.

Everyone was glad that the morning café wasn’t going anywhere—Brew for You wasn’t closing, just shifting its focus.

But tonight was unlike anything I’d ever seen. There were more people inside Brew for You than had ever been inside Cobalt. People kept streaming inside, too, until Patrick had to prop open the front door an hour later so that the party could expand and move outside, too.

I milled around, getting to know all the people who had now become my neighbors in Rose Falls. I stood by the door, the early summer air floating through, and a few minutes later, I saw Madeline and Gretchen walking down the street toward the bar.

I waved them over.

“This is incredible,” Madeline said, gawking at the crowds. “I’ve never seen anything like it in Rose Falls.”

“The people of this town love Patrick, and I kind of understand why,” I said.

She and Gretchen were both beaming at me.

“You’re so cute like this, Taran,” Gretchen said, holding up her camera and taking a few snapshots of me.

“I should have known the paparazzi were coming when you walked up, Gretch,” I said.

She just shrugged. “I’m a photographer. It’s what I do.”

“She’s right though,” Madeline said. “You look good when you’re in love.”

Patrick was all over the place, trying to say hello to everyone. But soon had meandered through the crowd, coming to say hi to Madeline and Gretchen and give them each a hug.

“Don’t be too sad about our night service closing because now Rose Falls just has the perfect team-up—Brew for You by day, Cobalt by night,” he said.

“Absolutely,” I said. “And don’t think we haven’t thought about team-up marketing opportunities.”

“You guys are disgustingly cute,” Madeline said. “You’re not just in love; you’re entrepreneurs in love.”

“Hey! So are you and Gretchen,” I said.

Madeline shrugged, smiling over at her wife. “Guilty as charged.”

Patrick’s eyes lingered on a pair of people walking down the street, and a smile came over his face. “Taran,” he said, leaning close to me, “there are some people I want you to meet.”

I hugged Madeline and Gretchen again before moving through the crowd again to greet the newcomers: a man and woman in their midsixties.

“Taran, I’d like you to meet my parents,” Patrick said. “Mom, Dad, this is Taran, my boyfriend.”

As I shook his parents’ hands, I tried hard to keep calm and not show the butterflies that were going wild in my chest. I still wasn’t used to Patrick calling me his boyfriend, and every time he said it, I lost my mind a little. It was wonderful—thrilling in a way I never could have expected—and it still felt a little like winning the lottery every time I heard it.

But I also had butterflies from meeting Patrick’s parents.

“Taran, I have heard so much about you,” Mrs. Davis said.

“You have, huh?” I asked.

She nodded, smiling at me. I could tell that Patrick got his smile from his mom. “Of course I have. Patty has told us all about you and how much you’ve been helping him lately.”

My eyes widened. “Me? Helping him? I think you may have that backwards, Mrs. Davis. Patrick is definitely the one helping me.”

She grinned. “Please, Taran. Call me Diane.”

“You know, Taran,” Patrick’s dad said, looking over at me. “I went into Cobalt a couple nights ago, just to check it out. I’ve got to say, I’m usually a Pabst guy—can of beer is enough for me—but those cocktails you serve at Cobalt are some of the best I’ve ever had in my life.”

“Wow,” I said, “Thank you so much for saying that. Helping with the drink menu is one of my favorite parts of having a bar, and it’s what I take pride in. So I appreciate that immensely.”

“You deserve all the praise and popularity you get, Taran,” he said, nodding.

“This party is just unbelievable, Patty,” his mom said, gawking wide-eyed at the crowd.

Patrick nodded in agreement. “I know. I never in my life would have expected this many people to come out.”

“Incredible,” his mom said.

“Only missing one person,” Patrick said, his face falling slightly.

His parents nodded. “We wish Owen could be here, too,” his dad said.

“He will be back so soon, though,” Patrick said, reaching out and squeezing his mom’s hand. “He’s been in the therapy program for almost six weeks. Just another couple and he’ll be back home.”

“And just think, he’ll be all rugged and strong from the wilderness,” I said, smiling.

His dad nodded. “Exactly. Ready to help me with the weeding and the lawn mowing this summer.”

Patrick laughed. “I’m sure he’ll be plenty excited about that,” he said.

“I can’t wait,” his mom said. Suddenly her eyes flitted to a point somewhere inside the bar. “Oh! Is that Sheila? Are Sheila and Bob here tonight, Patty?”

“They sure are,” he said. “Go ahead and say hi to them. Taran and I have plenty of mingling to do ourselves.”

“Okay, darling,” his mom said, giving him a tight hug. “I love you. I’m so proud of you.”

“I love you too, Mom,” he said.

For the next few hours, Patrick and I were whipped into a whirlwind of people. I was meeting most of them for the first time, but Patrick was introducing me to all sorts of old regulars and acquaintances. It was amazing how much he knew about his regulars’ lives—he told me about Sandra’s kids, about Barry’s baseball card collection, about Marla’s amazing home-cooked brownies. He knew everyone, and everyone loved him.

But slowly and surely, the night wound down. Most of the people who had come were really there for Patrick, not because they were night owls. When it was time to close down the bar for the final time, only a few people remained: Madeline and Gretchen, Andy and Chase, Emmett and his partner Ryan, and a few others I didn’t know the names of.

“Well, this is it,” Patrick said, talking to the small crowd. “I really have nothing to say but thank you. Thank you all for whatever small part you played in Brew for You becoming my reality.”

“I helped with the lemons and limes!” Andy shouted, laughing as Chase punched him in the arm.

Patrick grinned. “You certainly did, Andy. And I love you for it. I love all of you—even the ones I’m still getting to know or the ones who sadly didn’t get to see much of our night bar. But it will always live on in the pictures and memories. And of course, don’t forget to go to Cobalt for all your alcohol needs now that we won’t be here. Because if Taran is happy, I’m happy.”

I beamed at him from across the room.

“I love you all. And I’ve loved having this journey with Brew for You.”

Andy began to clap, and soon the whole room had broken out in cheers for Patrick. Soon Andy had darted over, turning up the music in the bar, and then ran toward Patrick. Andy lifted him into the air, carrying him around and chanting his name as Patrick laughed so hard he could barely breathe.

It was the silliest and most beautiful thing I had seen.

This was Patrick’s extended family, I realized at that moment. This town had such loyal, incredible friendships within it, and watching everyone so positive and happy, even on a sort of sad night, was amazing to behold.

I loved Rose Falls. And I couldn’t believe I was lucky enough to have started my journey here.

* * *

After everyone had left, it was just me and Patrick standing outside Brew for You as he locked the door for the final time at night.

“You doing okay?” I asked, resting my palm at the center of his back.

He nodded. “I’m doing great, actually. I feel kind of free.”

“I understand completely,” I said. “That’s how I felt giving up total control of my D.C. bars. It’s scary, but it’s also so freeing.”

“Exactly. I… am going to have time in the evenings now.”

“I know. You’re going to be fucking unstoppable, Patrick.”

He smiled, leaning over to give me a long, slow kiss. When we parted, he looked over at his car at the side of the building. “I don’t feel like driving home,” he said. Over the past few weeks, we’d been staying at my apartment many nights but also staying at his sometimes. It was smaller and definitely more out of the way, but I loved it. It was Patrick’s space, and I loved anything of his.

But I also was exhausted and had no desire to go on even a short drive right then.

“Come back with me,” I said, holding his hand in mine as we started walking up the sloping hill to my loft.

“Was hoping you’d say that,” he said, squeezing my hand.

“Of course,” I said. “No question in my mind.”

We walked in comfortable silence for a bit, watching the few fireflies in the night air. An idea had been kicked loose in my head, though, and I knew I had to tell Patrick.

Because I didn’t keep things from him anymore. Whatever went on in my head, I wanted him to know it.

“Hey,” I said, swinging his hand as we walked. “I’ve got a crazy idea for you.”

“I love crazy ideas,” he said. “What is it?”

“I know this might be a lot,” I said, “and I know you might need to think about it first for a few months. But… if you wanted to move somewhere that was a lot closer to your work, you could.”

“Somewhere closer, huh?” Patrick said, glancing sideways at me with a small smile.

I nodded. “Yep. Somewhere a lot closer. Walking distance, even.”

“Where could I move that was walking distance to my work?”

“Well, you know… I’ve got this big ol’ loft that feels pretty empty when you’re not there,” I said, stopping now to face him on the sidewalk. The sound of crickets filled the air around us as we met each other’s eyes.

“Do you mean it?” Patrick said.

“I mean, as long as you don’t think I’m absolutely nuts for suggesting it so soon….”

Patrick puffed out a laugh. “Maybe a little. But hey, maybe I’m crazy too,” he said.

He leaned in close to me and kissed me, wrapping his arms around my shoulders. “I love you, Taran,” he said. “And I’d love to move in with you sometime soon.”

I still got a shiver down my spine whenever Patrick told me he loved me, and now was no exception.

“I love you too, Patrick,” I said, my voice low. “I’m so glad you let me in your life.”

When we let go of each other and started to walk again, Patrick did a little excited jump in the air. “I am way more excited about this than I should be,” he said.

“No, you’re not excited enough,” I joked. “I’ve got an entire family of butterflies in my stomach, and it’s the best thing ever.”

Patrick smiled at me. “You sure did turn from a player into a one-man guy pretty quick, didn’t you?” he said, teasing me.

I shrugged. “Maybe I was a one-man guy all along, but I just hadn’t found the guy for me,” I said.

Patrick squeezed my hand again.

“I sure have found him now,” I said.

Patrick stopped again in the middle of the sidewalk. “God, we are never going to get home if you keep doing this,” he said.

“Doing what?”

“Being so goddamn amazing,” he said, leaning in to kiss me again.

And honestly, I didn’t mind. Patrick could keep stopping me all night, kissing me, and we could make the short walk take until dawn.

Because every part of it was worth it. And like everything with Patrick, I didn’t care at all about where we ended up. I didn’t fear the future anymore just because I was afraid of my past.

Because this was what I loved. The present. Being with him and knowing that no matter what happened, he would be there for me. He knew my worst flaws, and yet he loved me.

I didn’t care how crazy it sounded. I knew that Patrick was the one for me. The one I thought I’d never find, the one that I would want by my side forever.

And I was ready to spend the rest of my life making him as happy as he had made me.