Page 64 of One More Weekend

“That’s what the airport is for.” Jenna hardly looked up from her suitcases, now stacked by the front door. I knew it wasn’tpersonal, that her distance was how she processed the stress. But I would have given anything for her to let me make her breakfast one more time.

There wasn’t anything left for me to do, so instead, I nodded and sat on the couch while she flitted around the apartment.

And then she slowed down, her eyes flicking across the apartment as she scanned for anything she might have missed.

That’s when I stood from the couch and threw on my sandals. “If you forgot anything, I can always ship it over to you.”

“Yeah, for sure.” Jenna bit her lip as she stopped in her tracks and looked around our apartment. It was almost empty, the vast majority of the decorating having been a result of her thrifting.

“Ready?” I asked, gripping her larger suitcase in my hands.

“No,” Jenna confessed before striding across the apartment and slipping on her Nike’s.

With her luggage in hand, we headed down the steep stairs one more time. She spent a moment in our doorway, saying goodbye to the place before following me downstairs.

When I pushed open the front door, her Uber was already waiting by the curb. I smiled at the guy as he offered to place her bags in the trunk. Jenna got her stuff inside and turned back to me.

She looked up at the building, the window of my bedroom visible from all the way down here.

I twiddled my fingers at my side. “I have no idea how to say goodbye to you.”

Shaking her head, Jenna scrunched her nose as she tried to hold back the tears in the corners of her eyes. “I don’t think we do. I think we say thank you, I’ll see you soon.”

She was right. Of course she was right. ‘Goodbye’ hurt too much.

Reaching out for her, I pulled her into a tight hug – my arms wrapping around her waist as she threw hers over my neck. Isucked in a deep breath, trying to take in every ounce of her smell before she drove away.

I wanted to remember every hint of her, maybe it would help me sleep at night.

“I stole a shirt, by the way,” Jenan confessed into my neck, a wet spot taking over my t-shirt as a tear fell.

Giggling, I nodded. “I would’ve been insulted if you didn’t.”

We stayed like that for too long, until the driver cleared his throat in the car.

Into her gorgeous light brown hair, I said all I could. “Thank you. I’ll see you soon.”

Nodding, Jenna pulled herself away. She met my eyes one more time before waving and disappearing into the car.

I stepped away from the curb, crossing my arms as I watched the black sedan pull away from the apartment building and into the flow of Manhattan traffic.

I stayed there until she was out of sight, trying to hold every glimpse of her that I could.

43

JENNA

I madeit half a block before the tears started to stream down my face.

Everything about leaving Sy, our apartment, and this city felt strange. Sitting in the backseat of the car, I tried to convince myself that it was the right thing to do.

I looked down at my phone, a text from my mom on the home screen:

So excited to see youat the airport, honey. Safe flight!

Biting my lip,I tried to find the courage to reply but then a new text appeared on the screen:

We’ll seeeach other soon.

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