Page 61 of Echoes of Us

THIRTEEN

BEFORE

The last week of school was a whirlwind: darting between tests, intense training sessions, our final match of the year, and spending every possible moment with Noah. I felt like I hardly got any sleep between late-night study sessions and Noah’s constant interruptions. I spent that entire week in his apartment. Jogging and gym routines fell by the wayside as I made more time for him. Instead of feeling calmer about leaving, each day made it worse. I switched my tickets to Wednesday instead of Monday to stay a few more days with him. He had booked a flight, too, and decided to spend the holidays with his mom. He didn’t look one bit excited about it.

He packed up his suitcase, and I tried to talk to him about it, but he fumbled with his words, and eventually, we just ended up making out on his bed. Most of our conversations ended like that, with one or both of us finishing in our hands. It got more intense every time it happened, and the thoughtof not seeing him for three weeks really got to me. Not only because I was worried about him but because I couldn’t imagine spending that amount of time apart from him. I almost missed my flight because he refused to let go of my lips and climb off me.

When I got home and saw my old bed, it looked incredibly lonely. I couldn’t imagine what Noah was feeling. He had told me about how much he was dreading going home. He didn’t want to hang out with his school friends, because he was sure he would end up using, and he didn’t want to stay home with his mom, because he was sure he’d end up using. We spent the days texting and calling each other, and I was sure my mom was starting to get weary of my phone. I told her about Noah, and she was happy for me, but around Christmas, she began complaining about how much time I spent looking at my phone.

Three days after Christmas, I was hanging out at my house waiting for my dad to come over when Noah called me.

“Hey,” I answered, walking out of the dining room and getting a look from my mom.

“Hey, Atty!” he said brightly.

I smiled. At least he was in a good mood. “How are you doing?”

He tittered nervously. “Atty, I don’t know how to say this, because I know how crazy it is. I want you to know I realize how crazy it is,” he rambled.

I started to frown. Oh no, this couldn’t be good. “What did you do?”

He chuckled again. He sounded anxious, almost giddy. “So I got kind of drunk last night after we talked, and I fucking miss you, you know? I was on my computer, and I told you I was drunk already, right?” he asked.

I waited for it. He stayed silent.

“Noah, what did you do?”

“I just landed in Miami,” he said quietly.

Shock shot through me. “Noah, what the fuck?” I asked him, but I couldn’t stop myself from smiling. I walked a little further from the kitchen.

“I know, Atty, it’s crazy. I know it is. I was just so unhappy there. I looked up the tickets, and it all started sounding great. I thought about seeing you, and everything just sort of went out the window,” he explained.

Now what? I turned back towards the kitchen. How the hell did I spin this?

“Are you there?”

“Yeah, I’m just trying to figure out what to do.”

“I can book a hotel, just text me your address so it’s close by. I’ll grab a car and go check in,” he said.

“You can’t stay at a crappy Miami hotel alone for the holidays. Are you trying to get yourself into the most depressing scenario possible?”

“I’m not doing it on purpose,” he complained.

“Just give me a second, okay? Don’t move, don’t do anything. Wait for my call,” I told him.

“Okay.”

I hung up and went to my mom.

She glanced up at me and smiled. “Is Noah having a good break?”

“Yeah, funny thing about Noah.”

She stopped what she was doing, waiting for me to go on. “What is it?” she asked when I didn’t say anything.

“Well, I don’t think I’ve told you, but he doesn’t get along with his mom, and his dad died last year. He’s not having the best time right now, with the holidays and whatnot.” I could see her expression softening.

---