Page 67 of Time After Time
Shaking my head, I wiped my nose with the back of my hand and leaned back to gain a clearer view of his face. “It’s not okay.” I bit my bottom lip, trying to keep the tears at bay. Years of feelings for Gen crashed over me, and with them, the heaviness of the last few months. The reality of my love for her hit me hard, tangled up with the pain of knowing summer was ending—and so could everything between us. “I’m so in love with her that…” I squeezed my palm against my chest, desperate for relief from the ache. “It hurts. It leaves me speechless. It terrifies me.”
“I know a remedy for that.” At his words, I frowned, waiting for a response that seemed to take forever as Robert gazed down the road where Gen had disappeared. I could tell he was also scanning for any sign of my mum’s return. His phone rested inhis hand, and he tapped the screen each time the light dimmed, as if anxious that my mum might call and he would miss it.
“What’s the remedy?” I pressed, impatience bubbling beneath my eagerness. “Ripping my heart out?” I punctuated my words with a weary chuckle.
“Yes.” He finally turned his gaze back to me. “You rip your heart out to her.”
“You mean to?—”
“Tell her exactly what you’re telling me, Sebastian. Tell her you love her.” His voice had grown serious, and the shudder that coursed through my body was undeniably triggered by the intensity on his face.
“Then what? Have her leave me?”
“You’re leaving at the end of the summer, Sebastian. You have only a few weeks before you go to another country.”
I fought the urge to be angry with him, to yell and tell him to be quiet. I knew I was about to leave, and everything surrounding that terrified me—the unknowns in America and what I would be leaving behind.
“If you run from this—leaving for America without telling her—what will that do to your relationship?” He shook his head, exasperated. “You both have different paths to follow, but it’s up to you to decide whether those paths will cross again or remain separate forever.”
“What are you talking about?” I blurted, shaking my head as I bounced my legs up and down restlessly. “Just because I’m leaving doesn’t mean I won’t call her, text her, or video chat. I’ll come home to visit.”
“But do you really want your paths to cross exactly as they are now? Gen won’t always be single, Sebastian. She’s a good girl.” And courageous. And genuine. And gorgeous. She smelled of joy, smiled like the sun, and felt like bliss. “You both will meetother people, and someone might take the step you’re too afraid to take, and Gen might choose to walk with that person.”
The thought filled me with dread, imagining someone else being blessed with her smiles and the joy she brought, sharing her tears and supporting her through difficult times. I despised that notion so deeply that a searing pain began to throb at the sides of my forehead.
“I don’t want that.”
“I know you don’t.”
“But I’ll take it.” His eyes widened in astonishment, his mouth agape as he continued to stare at me. Our focus broke only when my mother’s truck appeared around the corner, signalling that Gen had made it safely and that Mum was on her way to us. “I’ll endure it if it means keeping her close.”
“Even if it means enduring pain?”
“Even if it means selfishly refusing to part with her forever.”
Even at the expense of my own emotions.
Chapter 20
Geneviève
Even though my cream tank top had slits on the sides to let my skin breathe, the sun still beat down on me mercilessly.
Sweat gathered at my temples, daring to smudge the sunscreen I’d applied. Yet, no matter how much I tried to shield myself from the sun’s harsh glare, every exposed bit of skin felt like it was burning, tingling and prickling from the relentless heat.
My thoughts had been all over the place since last night.
I’d shifted in bed for what felt like hours, my mind running circles around itself, until I gave in and video-called Sebastian at 3 a.m. To my surprise, he picked up right away, looking just as awake as I was. We talked for a while, but even then, I couldn’t shake the nerves about the festival. I kept overthinking every little detail, wondering if the ideas in my head would turn out as perfect as I imagined when it came time to pull everything together.
“Geneviève.” I spun around to face Hanks’ irritated expression—our town’s postman—and I didn’t think I did a very good job atconcealing my grimace. “Another three packages for you.” He placed the boxes in front of my feet with an annoyedgrumble. “I hope these are the last ones.” With that, he turned away, frustration showing in the tense set of his shoulders and the sharpness of his stride. My ‘thank you’ went unanswered as he put as much distance between us as he could.
He was probably tired of showing up every five minutes with another package—especially since most of them were for me. But everything was being delivered to the town square, where we were already busy preparing for the summer festival.
The stalls would line the square and surround our city hall, which stood tall like a giant lighthouse, painted in white and blue. I was already picturing how stunning it could all look if I could bring to life what I had in mind.
“He’s like that with everyone.”
Startled, I turned to find Sylvie standing behind me, and a small grin tugged at my lips. The uneasy pounding in my chest seemed to ease the moment I saw her.
