Chapter 1 Champagne News #2
My eyes were dry. They always were, save for the occasional slip of the mascara wand. Crying was unbecoming, but wallowing was fair game.
“It was stupid,” I said with a sigh. “I knew they weren’t going to be happy, but a little part of me hoped that they might, at least, be nice about it. I’ve been working my ass off for years for my degrees. I was summa cum laude at Columbia for fuck’s sake! Plus—it’s Newbury!”
“True, true. You’d think they would be happy you ended up there of all places. Don’t they have a building or something named after them?”
I nodded. “The Burke Library. My great grandpa donated a shitload of money like a hundred years ago. It’s actually really nice though.”
“Ha. I’m sure it is.”
“I’m serious! I would have died before admitting that to anyone, but yeah, that leather and old-book smell was the best. It’s the lignin in the old paper—when it breaks down, it’s chemically similar to vanilla.
” I sighed dreamily and let my head flop back.
“When I go back, the first thing I’m going to do is smell every single book. ”
Silvia pursed her lips to keep from laughing. “Maybe wait until after the trial period is over before you let your weird out.”
Rolling my eyes, I said, “Fine, I won’t smell all the books. Just the best ones.” She raised a sharp eyebrow, and I added, “Discreetly.”
“This is good,” Silvia said, reaching for the champagne bottle and topping off our glasses. “We need to focus on the positives. How’s packing going?”
“Mostly done,” I said. “There are just a few things left. I still can’t believe I’m leaving the city in two days. This all feels surreal.”
“You’re telling me,” she said. “I know we knew this was coming, but it still feels so sudden.”
“Whatever are you going to do without me?” I teased.
“Well, it’s funny you mention that…” Silvia’s posture changed in an instant, freezing like a flower dipped in liquid nitrogen. And while her face remained arranged in a smile, it looked strained. “I have something to tell you too.”
I stiffened with apprehension but managed to hold the smile on my face.
After five years of living as close as sisters, I couldn’t imagine there was anything she would hesitate to share with me.
She knew about my struggles with my parents.
I knew about her battle to be taken seriously as a first generation American.
Taking my best friend’s hand, I gently rubbed a thumb over her knuckles. “What’s your news?”
“Well,” she started, eyes dropping to our joined hands. “You know how Tim has been staying here kind of a lot?”
My smile softened. “Of course. Sil—he practically lives here.”
“Well, his lease is up at the end of August, and we thought—he and I thought—that instead of renewing it, he could just move in. Here. Officially.”
I squeezed Silvia’s hand and beamed. “That’s amazing news! I’m so happy for you!”
Silvia’s posture relaxed a little, but the tension in her shoulders remained. “You know how things have been going with us—it’s getting kind of serious. And we want to try out living together for a bit before taking the next big step. You know?”
I smirked. “Are you kicking me out so you can shack up with your boyfriend and have wild jungle sex all over the apartment?”
She gasped in mock indignation, raising a hand to primly cover her open mouth.
“Just make sure you close the curtains in the living room,” I continued, “or the guy across the alley will get a free show.”
Silvia burst out laughing, causing me to collapse into laughter with her. We pulled each other into another hug.
“I’m so happy for you,” I whispered into Silvia’s silky bob. “You’ve been together for two years!”
Silvia sniffed wetly against my shoulder. “Thanks, babes. I was so worried you’d be upset. You know I’d never replace you. But you already found a place—an amazing place. Everybody gets what they want.”
A tiny pang of jealousy flashed across my brain at her happiness. Their relationship—the possibility of forever—felt somehow bigger than my new job, wonderful as it was. I stuffed down the ugly emotion and tried to be supportive. “I’m so happy you found your guy.”
“He might be my guy, but you’re still my person. I love you, babes.”
It was unfair for me to move on and expect everything to stay the same when I walked out the door, but there was still a sense of loss knowing I wouldn’t be able to return to the apartment.
My only option was to pass my trial teaching period with flying colors so that I could stay at Newbury permanently.
Our place wasn’t perfect—it was insanely tiny considering how much we paid for less square footage than the walk-in closet I enjoyed growing up.
But it was bright and safe and a short walk to the chemistry labs at Columbia.
Silvia and I called it home for nearly five years.
We had painstakingly outfitted the shared space with eclectic decor, nesting like a pair of tropical birds, until it reflected our vibrant personalities.
In many ways it was my only real home since leaving Newbury. Between the gap year that had stretched from one to five, ultimatums from my parents, and the subsequent struggle to find my feet, there had been a lot of instability and uncertainty.
Until I found Silvia. Or maybe we found each other.
But our lives, which had intertwined for so long, were splitting in a nuclear decay—each a complete atom, but no longer the same element.
I took another sip of champagne and nudged Silvia’s knee with my toe. “I’m gonna miss you, lady.”
“No, no, no!” she cried, flapping her hand and bouncing in her seat. “You can’t be mopey after one glass!”
“I’m not mopey—”
“I’m going to call and text every day!”
“You better,” I said, trying not to sound mopey.
“It’ll be like you never left. You’ll see.”
I tilted my head to the side and gave her a dubious look. We both knew she was lying or, at least, exaggerating.
“We can be sad about you leaving tomorrow. Tonight, we’re celebrating. Double champagne news!” She thrust her glass in my direction, liquid sloshing dangerously toward the rim.
Fixing my smile back into place, I clinked glasses with her before tossing my head back and finishing in three long swallows.