Page 89 of Some Kind of Forever
“Did you take a picture of your dresses?” She bounces, smiling up at me. “Hunter said Ashlie looked beautiful.”
My head whips over, first to Hunter, who has his head buried in his menu, then to Ashlie, whose eyes are wide as she stares at him.
“Oh, did he, now? What else did he say?” I ask Artie, eating up this best-friend-new-brother drama. I hand her my phone to see the pictures, flashing her a smile.
Hunter clears his throat, eyes narrowing at us. “Naw, that’s not how it happened. You asked me if she looked beautiful in her dress, and I said yes.”
“How’s that any different?” Ashlie baits him with a sassy head tilt.
Hunter opens and closes his mouth several times before Kendall leans toward him, whispering loudly, “You might want to quit while you’re ahead, son. You’re no match for these three.”
I cover my snort with my hand as my shoulders shake against my best friend next to me. Ashlie knocks into me, and I can’t hold the laughter in anymore. Pretty soon, Kendall’s laughing along with me and Ashlie catches the giggles. Hunter sucks his teeth, trying not to smile.
“Man, teasing big brothers isfun.” I laugh, rubbing my hands together, feeling proud of myself.
“Yeah.” Artie nods. “Just wait until you find out about his collection of?—”
“Artie, Iswear to God…” Hunter warns through his teeth.
Kendall clears his throat, and my two siblings roll their eyes, going back to their corners and burying their heads in their menus.
After finishing breakfast, and with a few more promises to see them during the holidays, we’re all headed to our respective cars. I hug Artie first, then move to give Kendall one of our newly accomplished, awkward side hugs. Finally, stepping in front of Hunter, I wrap both of my arms around him, holding on tight. He freezes, but relaxes just as quickly and hugs me back. Despite how horribly everything happened yesterday, I’m so very grateful to have someone like Hunter in my corner.
“Thanks for trying,” I whisper into his arm.
“Hey,” he says, pulling back. “Don’t give up on him yet, okay?”
I scrunch my lips to the side and shrug, at a loss for what to do about Chase. He made it clear last night that he didn’t want anything to do with me. I’m not in a rush to redo any parts of that heated conversation by the pond. I just want to get on the plane, go back to school, and forget this weekend ever happened. Hunter hugs me again before climbing into the passenger seat of Kendall’s SUV. Waving, I slide into Ashlie’s hatchback.
When we pull into the airport, I take a deep breath before looking over at Ashlie, ready to leave LA, this weekend, and Chase right here. Since I’ll be the only one on the eight-seater, I’m giving myself the hour-long plane ride to cry and get it out ofmy system. Then I’ll box up what’s left of the tattered shards in my chest, wrap it up nice and neat, and pack it away. My internship starts on Monday, and I need to leave this all behind in order to focus.
Ashlie wraps her arms around me, hugging me as well as she can over the center console. The tears I’ve been holding in all morning fall. For every one I brush away, two more replace it, and I have to pull away just to catch my breath.
“You decided, didn’t you?” she asks with a somber voice.
I nod my head, trying to get some control over my breathing.
“You’re not going after him.”
“Nope,” I whisper, shaking my head slowly as my blurry eyes look at the gearshift between us. This feels different than it did on the porch at The Bluffs Estates. Before, it felt like a decision had been made for me. Like my hand was forced by circumstance and I had no choice but to follow through with ending things. This is something else. This is all me, my choice.
The decision is mine, and I’m choosing to move on, leaving the messy parts tangled up how they are. Maybe someday I can look back on the good things from this summer, but right now, I just need to forget.
“Let me know when you get back. And hey,” she says, looking into my eyes. “It’s okay to take some of those tears with you when you get home. Don’t feel like you have to leave them all on the plane.”
I sit back against the window, puzzled by how she knew what I was planning to do.
“Girl, don’t look at me like that. I know you, and I’m just saying, it’s okay to feel sad about this for a while.”
We sit in silence, with Ashlie squeezing my hand as I take in her advice. I don’t know if I’ll follow it, but it feels nice to consider it. It feels nice to have her give me the permission I won’t give myself to cry for as long as I need to.
With one more deep breath and another wipe of my face on my sleeve, I grab my weekend bag from the back seat and headinside toward the private jet terminal. I just need to make it onto the plane before I can fall apart again.
Check-in is quick, and after they escort me back for a brief security screen, I’m ushered through the doors and onto the tarmac. With each step I take toward the plane, my body slowly comes undone. My shoulders slump, my footsteps slow, and the tears brimming behind my eyes threaten to release.
My seat.
I just have to make it to my seat.
