Chapter 43
Ellie
D ay two of goodbyes was just as hard as the first one. After saying her goodbyes to Sadie the night before, Ellie had gone home and was surprised to see Brayden waiting on her in her room. He’d made himself a bed on the couch, and smiled at her when she came in.
“What are you doing up here?”
“I thought we needed one last night of sleeping in the same room.” He shrugged nonchalantly. “Like we used to do when we were kids.”
There was no way Ellie would have ever told Brayden no. Especially since they hadn’t been able to spend much time together over the summer. While Ellie had been busy with Sadie, Brayden had been practicing hockey and hanging out with his own girlfriend.
They spent most of the night chatting and recalling memories from their childhood. Ellie pulled her comforter and favorite blanket by the couch, and Brayden had leaned off the side of the couch as they talked until they fell asleep. Their parents woke them up the next morning with a full breakfast spread before they loaded into Brayden’s car and the Jeep and headed for Orono. Ellie and Brayden drove together, and they sang along to Disney songs and showtunes the whole two-hour trip.
Brayden was living at a dorm on campus and had, of course, gotten a room assignment on the third floor. With so many people moving in, there was a long line for the only two elevators in the building. Which meant the Mackenzies were hiking it up the stairs about fifty times.
Everleigh was put in charge of setting up Brayden’s room since going up and down the stairs so much would have been hell for her blood sugar. So she and Willow stayed there while Ellie made yet another trip up the stairs behind Brayden.
“How on earth do you have more shit than me?”
“It’s mostly my hockey gear.” Brayden heaved as he put the box he was carrying on his hip to open a door. He let Ellie through the door before following behind her. “And don’t act like we didn’t make a thousand trips from the house to the garage when you moved in there.”
“Fine. Fair.”
Arriving at Brayden’s room, Ellie sat the last box down on the ground. Since Brayden’s roommate had already arrived a day earlier, they had the whole room to themselves to unpack. By the end, Ellie was almost jealous she didn’t have a dorm of her own to decorate.
“Well,” Vera beamed as she looked at Brayden’s side of the room, “tell me your mom and sisters decorated for you without telling me.”
While Brayden’s side of the room featured framed photos, carefully displayed hockey gear, and string lights under the bunk bed where his desk was, his roommate barely had a desk lamp and an Iron Man poster taped to the wall.
To celebrate moving Brayden in, they ate at a local Mexican restaurant as they all tried to avoid the fact there would only be four of them going back to the Cove.
As Ellie expected, the goodbyes were just as hard to watch as they were to give. She watched their parents cry as they wished Brayden well and gave him one last lecture about safe sex. Even Everleigh cried as Brayden hugged her and lifted her off her feet. Then it was Ellie’s turn.
“You know, I think this is the first time I realized I won’t be having breakfast with you every morning after eighteen years.” As Ellie hugged Brayden, she heard Vera crying behind them. “Don’t worry. I’ll take care of them.”
“Thanks. I love you, Ellie.”
“I love you, too, Bray.” Ellie kissed his cheek as she smiled. “Make good choices.”
“I will, mom ,” he teased.
Vera hugged him again, and Ellie could see her crying. But her heart ached when she saw Brayden crying too. Ellie pulled Everleigh into a hug as Isla and Vera hugged Brayden.
They all said one more round of goodbyes before leaving. The drive home was much quieter than the drive there, but Ellie was thankful for the quiet. She looked out the window of the backseat as she mindlessly pet Willow, who was nestled between her and Everleigh. Normally, Willow rode in the back in a crate for safety. But both Everleigh and Ellie needed her calming presence as they drove home.
The house seemed weird when they arrived back. Sure, Brayden had spent the night away from them before, but it was still weird to know he wasn’t upstairs. Isla and Vera looked as exhausted as Ellie felt, so they all kissed goodnight before going to their separate rooms. Ellie grabbed the blanket off the couch where Brayden had slept and carried it over to her bed.
Cuddling up with it, she tried to sleep. But all she could think about was how different her life would be when she woke up. Sadie and Brayden were off at college now. Or, well, Sadie was halfway there and would officially move in the next day.
But still.
And in a few days, Ellie would be starting college as well. She had plans to keep shadowing Vera and Austin when she didn’t have classes, and she’d also taken a job at the bar with Dylan. That was surely going to liven up Straight to Ale.
Picking up her phone, Ellie pulled up Sadie’s text thread.
I miss you.
Three dots appeared almost instantly.
I was just about to tell you the same thing.
Ellie and Sadie texted back and forth for over two hours before Sadie fell asleep. Tossing her phone onto the pillow beside her, Ellie knew sleeping in her own bed wasn’t going to cut it tonight. There was only one place she wanted to be.
Grabbing the sweatshirt she’d taken from Sadie’s house the night before the party, Ellie put it on and headed across the yard to the farmhouse. She let herself in the back door and made her way quietly up the stairs. Ellie opened the door to her parents’ room and found them still awake, watching a movie. They were cuddled up together, but they slightly scooted apart as Vera patted the space between them.
There was no hesitation as Ellie crawled into bed between them. Vera pulled her into a tight hug as she kissed her cheek.
“How are you doing, Care Bear?” Vera gently ran her thumb over Ellie’s cheek. “I wanted to check in with you, but you looked tired earlier.”
Isla pulled the sheet up over Ellie as she put an arm around both her and Vera. “Do you want to talk now?”
Ellie nodded. “Last night and today drained me. Saying goodbye to Sadie hurts and I already miss her.”
“I know, baby.” Vera’s eyes softened as Ellie continued.
“And I miss Brayden,” Ellie sighed, trying not to cry. “We’ve been together since nine months before we were born.”
“Aww, Care Bear, I know.”
“And I’m worried about school starting next week.”
“What’s making you worried there?” Isla asked.
“I don’t know. I know Dylan will be there, but all my other friends went away to college.”
“We’ve always said we will support you wherever you want to go,” Vera gently reminded.
“I know, Mama, and trust me. After today, I’m never leaving this house.” Ellie wrapped her arms around Vera tightly. “I love you, Mama.”
“I love you, too, Ellie.”
The three of them talked for a little while longer about Ellie’s sadness over Sadie and Brayden leaving and how she was excited about continuing to work with Vera. Isla was also excited that Ellie would be joining her at work as well. Ellie knew how blessed she was to have parents who she wanted to be around constantly and who loved her unconditionally.
Yawning, Ellie and Vera settled into the bed as Isla carefully tucked them in. She kissed them both before snuggling up against Ellie. Rolling over, Ellie wrapped her arms around Isla as she snuggled into her mom.
“I love you, Mom.”
“I love you, too, baby girl.”
As Ellie drifted off to sleep in her parents’ embraces, she couldn’t help but smile at the events that transpired over the summer. Never in a million lifetimes would Ellie have guessed before prom that things would play out as it had.
She’d gotten to perform in Mamma Mia! with Isla which was a literal dream come true. Ellie had found a career path that excited her, and she looked forward to exploring more. She secured her first job, even if it was at her mom’s bar.
That didn’t matter. Ellie was excited nonetheless.
And then there was Sadie. Spending the summer with Sadie was beyond anything Ellie could have anticipated. She loved learning about Sadie and laughing with her. Ellie loved how Sadie truly cared about her and didn’t make her feel like she had to fit into a box. Sadie had definitely changed Ellie’s life for the good.
Because as she drifted off the sleep thinking of Sadie, one thing was abundantly clear.
Ellie Mackenzie was hopelessly in love with Sadie Baxter.