Chapter 39 #2
Graduation day is here before we know it.
Sitting high in the bleachers with Wes’s family, I watch as the graduating seniors start to process into the stadium, all of them dressed in their black and blue caps and gowns.
As the seats start filling up and we near the back of the alphabet, I search the line up for signs of Wes’s imposing stature.
“Oh, there he is,” Audrey says, nudging my shoulder, and we start waving our hands in the air to draw his attention.
Wes spots us and waves back, his broad smile evident even from this far away.
Audrey bounces Leo on her lap and points across the stadium.
“Do you see your Uncle Wes, Leo? He’s waving at us. Wave at Uncle Wes.”
Leo laughs, the name “Uncle Wes” bringing a smile to his face, and I grin as he waves his hands around.
I knew that Wes’s nephew was adorable from all of the photos he showed me on his phone, but Leo is even cuter in person, his big blue eyes wide with excitement as they take in the festive surroundings.
Once all the graduates are seated in their chairs, the dean takes the stage to say a few words, followed by this year’s commencement speaker.
By the time the students start walking across the stage to accept their diplomas, Leo’s fast asleep against Audrey’s chest, and I smile at his peaceful face, wondering how he can possibly nap through all the commotion.
When it’s almost Wes’s turn, Audrey passes Leo to her husband to free up her hands, and we jump to our feet as Wes’s name is called.
On Micah’s other side, Wes’s parents do the same, all of us clapping and cheering, and we’re not the only ones.
The guy’s beloved, after all, and around the room I spot other groups on their feet as Wes accepts his diploma and moves his tassel from right to left.
The rest of the ceremony moves quickly after that, and when it’s over, we inch our way out of the stadium to wait outside for the new grads.
My eyes roam the crowd…and freeze when they spot a familiar figure a few yards away. I stiffen, surprised to see Chloe’s short hair and delicate features as she stands with an older couple. She looks different. Thinner. Paler. More fragile somehow.
I immediately excuse myself from Wes’s family and weave through the mass of people, heading in her direction. The tense set of her shoulders doesn’t go unnoticed, nor the way her eyes scan the faces around her almost as if she’s searching for something…searching for someone…
“Hey, Chloe,” I say, coming up beside her.
She jumps in surprise, and her eyes snap to mine, panicked, before her mouth cracks into a relieved smile. She gives a nervous laugh. “Oh. Hi, Ivy,” she says. “I was wondering if I’d see you.”
I raise my arms up uncertainly, relieved when she does the same, and we give each other a tentative hug. “It’s great to see you,” I tell her as we step back. “How have you been?”
She shrugs a shoulder. “Oh. You know. Fine.”
“You’re here for Ben, I assume?”
“Yeah. I came with his parents,” she says, gesturing to the couple on our left. Her eyes dart over my shoulder before settling back on mine.
“Are you looking for someone?” I ask her carefully.
“Oh. No. Not really.” Despite her words, her eyes keep flickering around. “I was just wondering if anyone else from spring break was going to be here.”
When her gaze settles back on mine, I try my best not to frown outright. “I’m sure Paul’s girlfriend is around here somewhere, but Cory and Jamie aren’t coming.” I hesitate before saying, “Neither is, um, Mason.”
I recognize the look on her face—one of all-consuming, breath-quaking relief—and my heart cracks straight down the middle. “Cool,” is all she says, and I don’t miss the way her shoulders ease down an inch.
“Cool,” is all I say back, hoping she doesn’t notice the way my own shoulders tighten.
I know I should probably head back to Wes’s family, but I hesitate, biting the inside of my cheek. I debate whether to ignore my gut and say goodbye, or listen to it and potentially upset the girl in front of me. My mouth opens before I can overthink it further. “Chloe?” I prompt.
She blinks at me. “Yeah?”
“I know it’s not my place, but I wanted you to know that if something, um, happened during spring break…
something with Mason…I’m here. If you want to talk, I mean.
” Her eyes widen, and she freezes, paralyzed.
She looks like she’d rather be anywhere but here, talking to me, so I won’t make her.
I rush out the rest of my words. “Ben has my number if you ever need it. I might understand more than you think. Anyway, I should go find Wes. It was nice to see you again.”
I raise my hand in a wave, but she doesn’t return it. She doesn’t say goodbye. She doesn’t smile, and so I walk away.
I tell myself it’s fine. It has to be fine. I said what I needed to say, and that’s all I can do.
She knows where to find me if she ever wants to talk.
Pushing through the bustling crowd, I hurry back to Wes’s family just as the graduates start emerging from the stadium. It’s easy to spot Wes, towering over everyone, and I push thoughts of Chloe and Mason aside.
“Wes!” I call, drawing his attention.
“There you are,” he says, beelining straight for me.
He immediately scoops me into a hug, and my feet lift off the ground as he spins me around.
When he sets me back down, he plants a kiss on my mouth, not caring that we’re standing in front of his parents.
Though my face warms at the public display of affection, I can’t help but smile at him.
“Congratulations,” I say, and he kisses me again, grinning ear to ear.
“Thanks, baby.” He gives his family a round of hugs before scooping up Leo. Despite looking sleepy and confused after his impromptu nap, Leo beams at his uncle. “Hey, little man!”
The sight of Wes holding a toddler was not something I was prepared for, and my heart warms in response. I always assumed he’d be good with kids, and when he whispers something in Leo’s ear that makes him burst out laughing, I can’t help but grin.
For the next fifteen minutes, Wes’s parents take what Audrey says is “an insane amount” of photos in every combo imaginable, and then Wes slings his arm over my shoulder as we chat with Ben and Kaden’s families.
I hang with them a while longer before saying goodbye, promising to see them at dinner tonight.
Quinn’s parents are taking her home today, so we made plans to meet up before she leaves.
Back at the apartment, I find her standing in the middle of the kitchen with a look of disgust on her face.
“What’s going on?” I ask, but I come to my own conclusions before she gets the chance to respond.
Empty liquor bottles litter the counter and some of the cabinets are ajar, as though someone was rummaging through them and pulling out only the things they needed.
Down the hall, I see the doors to Kinsley and Ava’s rooms are open, and all of their belongings are gone.
“They left?” I ask in shock.
Quinn scoffs. “They just left all their trash here! Didn’t clean up a single fucking thing. Those bitches.”
Stomach sinking, I walk over to the refrigerator and open the door. Sure enough, all of Ava’s probiotic yogurts are still in the fridge, along with Kinsley’s overripe produce. I eye a few boxes of suspicious leftovers that definitely don’t belong to Quinn or me. “Wow. I can’t believe this.”
“Just when I thought they couldn’t get any worse,” Quinn grumbles. “This place has to be spotless by tomorrow, or we’re gonna get fined by the school. My parents will kill me.”
“What do you think the odds are that they cleaned their bathroom?” I muse.
Quinn levels me with a look that says it all.
“I know you have to go,” I tell her, slowly accepting that my night is going to consist of a long and painful deep clean. “I’ll take care of the apartment. I promise we won’t get fined.”
Quinn widens her eyes at me. “Ivy. No.”
I widen my eyes right back. “Quinn. Yes.”
“Ivy,” she repeats. “No.”
“Quinn, yes.” She opens her mouth to protest again, but I beat her to it. “Look, I realize I haven’t been a good friend to you over the past month. Consider this my penance.”
Quinn purses her lips, thinking through my offer for a moment. Finally, she shrugs and says, “Okay.” I laugh at how easily I was able to convince her to let me do all the work. “What? You were really shitty.”
My laughter dies. “I know I was. I’m sorry again.”
She gives me a small smile. “It’s okay.”
“There’s one more thing I’ve been meaning to talk to you about,” I say, a bit nervously. “I never asked what your plans for a roommate were for next year.”
She quirks an eyebrow. “Why, you offering yourself up for the job?”
I shift on my feet. “Maybe. If…you’re interested.”
She blinks at me and holds up a finger. “I will be your roommate next year on one condition. You never ignore my texts again.”
“Done,” I say simply.
“I mean it,” she warns. “No matter the subject. If I text you about how gassy I am, you better respond.”
“I promise I’ll respond.”
She pulls me in for a hug, and I squeeze her tighter than necessary, making a promise to myself to value our friendship.
Genuine people don’t come around that often, and true friends are hard to find.
If this year has taught me anything, it’s to hold on tight to the people that matter. To the people who are worth it.
When our arms drop, she sighs. “I’ll help you clean the bathrooms before I leave. I’m not a total bitch.”
I grin at her. “I appreciate that.”