Page 85 of Revived

Chapter 27

Rachel

“Are you sure, Rachel?”

I tuck the last shirt into my suitcase and then pull the zipper closed.

“Yeah, I’m sure. I just need to get away for a few days. Hug my mom. See my brothers and their kids. Maybe going home for a little while will help pull me out of my funk.”

Pfeiffer comes up to me, pulling me into her arms. “You’re not going to decide to stay there, are you?”

As I push away, she searches my eyes. But I honestly don’t have an answer.

“I don’t know. I just know I need space. Every place I go around town just reminds me of Grayson and Luke. I need to mourn that relationship and decide if I’ll be able to handle seeing them everywhere I go, or if I need to just chalk this move up to an adventure full of lessons learned, and move back home.”

Pfeiffer starts crying as we stand there, drawing tears from my own eyes as well. “Having you here has been like having a little piece of home. You’re my person, Rachel. And I honestly think you were meant to be here too, with me.”

“I can’t cry any more, girl. My eyes are burning.” I sniffle as we stare at each other.

“I know. I just hate seeing you like this. Did I tell you that Cash got in his face last week about it?”

“Yeah, and I appreciate that.”

“I’d do it again, too.” Cash stands in the doorway to my room, flashing me a sympathetic grin.

“I know,” I say, turning to him. “Thank you. But ultimately this has to be his decision. And I’m tired of waiting around. I can’t do that, hoping he’ll come to his senses. I have to move on with my life, and I think going home will help me figure out how to do that.”

It’s been two weeks now since Luke and I split, and despite the saying that time heals all wounds, I feel like mine have been getting worse. I barely make it through my shifts at Tony’s without crying, especially once people realized I wasn’t around town with Grayson in tow anymore. Emerson Falls isn’t small, but it isn’t huge either. And after Luke’s display of affection at Tony’s that one night, word spread fast about our relationship. Seems gossip spreads even faster after a break-up.

“Cash. Tell her not to go,” Pfeiffer whines to her husband.

“Piper, babe. She has a right to see her family. She’ll be back. Won’t you, Rach?”

I shrug and then set my suitcase on the ground. “Maybe. I just need to go home first before I decide.”

Striding down the hall with my luggage in tow, the doorbell rings just as I stop.

“Hi. I’m here to pick up Rachel Zanetti.” The young woman waves on the other side of the screen.

“Yes, I’m her. Give me one second. Pfeiffer!” I call for my friend as she runs down the hall and slams into me, hugging me like her life depends on it.

“Don’t be gone for too long,” she whispers in my ear.

“I’ll try. And take care of Jess while I’m gone. I’ll be thinking of her.” Granting her a small smile, I reach for Cash, hugging him quickly and then exit their house, following my Uber driver to her car where we load my luggage and then take off for the airport which is about an hour away.

“Where are you headed?” My driver asks as she glances in the rearview mirror, looking for my eyes. But my eyes are transfixed on the town of Emerson Falls blazing past me in a blur, leaving a solemn feeling in my chest as we cruise.

We pass the park where I took Grayson almost daily so he could run out some of his energy and the grocery store we’d visit each week. The movie theater at the end of the road reminds me of the first night Luke and I crossed that boss-and-employee line, and then I see the signs for the turnout that leads to the college, where the memory of a little boy feeding ducks makes my lips tremble. But then the street you’d turn down to head to their house comes into view next, like a beacon directing me home.

But this isn’t my home—at least it doesn’t feel like it anymore.

“New York,” I curtly reply, finally answering my driver.

“Fun! Business or pleasure?”

“Visiting family.”

“Nice. So have you been here long…” she starts as we come up to MainStreet and Skye’s Creations grabs my attention up ahead on my side of the road. It’s then that I realize I could really use a coffee from Skye’s before I leave. Who knows if I’ll ever get one again?

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