Page 6 of Forever Yours

I didn’t respond. Just kept on walking toward where I’d parked the car.

He leaned heavily on me, making me stumble. “I love you so much.”

I grunted a disappointed scoff and continued to walk him across the front lawn. I was still too upset at him over how he acted.

“Please don’t be mad.”

“You owe Jessi an apology,” I angrily clipped.

He nodded, his head lulling back and forth on his neck. It wouldn’t surprise me if he passed out before I had a chance to buckle him in the passenger seat.

Just as we approached the tiered fountain in the front circle drive, Julien dug his feet in, and we came to a stop.

“I think I’m going to be sick.”

He suddenly pushed away from me and proceeded to projectile vomit into the small reflecting pool at the base of the fountain.

I’d need to text Fallon so he could send someone out to clean up the disgusting mess. I highly doubted his father would appreciate the vomit that now floated on top of the water. I met Mr. Montgomery once and that one time was enough. The man was a grade-A asshole.

“I think I’m dying,” Julien heaved the words out, along with the remaining contents of his stomach.

I rubbed his back, trying to soothe him. And then the smell hit me, and I almost gagged as well. This wasnothow I wanted to spend my last weekend at home or how I wanted to spend the first night with my boyfriend in a month. I hadn’t seen Julien much since he had already moved to the CU campus because of soccer training. They’d played an exhibition match against USC Upstate earlier in the week, which I unfortunately missed, and had another home non-conference match on Monday, the first day of classes, against Mt. Olive which I was going to. Their season opening was the week after. Soccer season went until October, but that could get extended if they made the ACC and NCAA tournaments.

“I’m so sorry,” he moaned, dropping to the paver stone driveway and burying his head between his bent knees.

“Sweetheart, you need to stop doing this to yourself.”

Julien was past the point where I was seriously concerned about him.

“I know.”

I didn’t think he did.

Lowering beside him, my arm circled his back and pulled him to me. The party was still raging strong, and I watched people come and go as I sat with Julien in silence.

“I miss her.”

I kissed his temple. “I know you do. But she wouldn’t want this for you. Wherever Liz is, she would hate to see you like this. To see Jayson drink himself to death or Ryder close himself off to everyone and everything. It would break her heart.”

I heard the sniffle right before I felt the dampness soak into my shirt.

“I’m such a fuck-up,” he hoarsely whispered, tears streaming down his face. I wiped them away with my thumb.

“You’re in pain. But Liz will come back someday. Give her something to come back to.”

His gorgeous face tipped back, those gunmetal-gray eyes shimmering. “I just wish we knew where she was. Hear her voice. Anything.”

“She’ll come back,” I repeated, hoping it wasn’t a lie.

And I hated the part of me that dreaded that day. The day Liz came back. Because for the first time since Julien kissed me in the woods behind his house, I wasn’t sure if I’d be the one he’d choose.

CHAPTER 3

Carolina University.

Fuck me.

Freshman move-in day was hectic to say the least. Everyone scurried around like clueless cockroaches as they tried to find their assigned dorm room. The elevators were backed up with a long line of people waiting, so I followed the stream of fellow students and their family members up the back stairs to the third floor.

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