Chapter 21
Chapter Twenty-One
LOUISA
I walk out of the exam room, and everything is a blur.
What just happened?
The lady at the desk asks for my name and logs it into her computer that I am checking out. I grab my phone out of my designated locker and call B.
She answers after the first ring. "How did it go?"
My eyes start to fill with tears as I walk out to the parking lot. "Not good, B. That was awful."
"Lou, you always feel that way when you take exams. If I had a dollar for every time you thought you failed an exam and you actually didn't, I'd be able to pay off my student loans."
I let out a tiny laugh that sounds more like a whimper. "I know, but this one felt particularly bad."
"Come home, and I'll have a drink ready for you."
"Okay." I hang up and get in my car.
The whole drive home, I'm in my head, thinking about all the things that’ll go wrong if I fail that exam. By the time I walk through the apartment door, I've gone completely mad.
"There she is! How's my smart, amazing—" She stops in her tracks when she sees my face. "No, no, no, no. No crying in this apartment." She shakes her finger at me and walks the rest of the way over to me. She puts her hands on my cheeks, squishing my face. "Stop it. I will not allow you to stew about this until you get your results." She squishes my cheeks harder, giving me fish lips. I know I look ridiculous right now, and I think that's her intention. "You will have fun tonight. And you will have fun at Evie's cabin this weekend. You hear me? I will not take no for an answer."
Her voice is so theatrical, pretending to be serious and grumpy. I can't take it any longer, and I crack, my chest shaking with laughter. She cracks a smile too, giving up her ruse, and wraps me in a hug.
"Alright. Now it's time for drinks!"