27
(Day Four)
Although Blake had wanted everyone to see him and Marin off, Ryan and Matt had departed before any of them had woken, so when it was time to leave, only Celeste and Noel followed Blake and Marin out to the parking lot in the middle of the apartment complex.
Celeste tucked themself below Marin’s chin, burying their face into the hollow of his throat, squeezing handfuls of his shirt.
“You come back, okay?” They sniffled. “I’m sorry I was such a bitch to you.”
“This isn’t goodbye,” Marin told them, placing their hands on Celeste’s shoulders and pulling away to meet their eyes. “One way or another, we’ll see each other again, okay? I promise.”
Celeste’s lip trembled before they produced a wet cough, looking away. “I’m so sorry for putting you through this.”
“We still don’t know what’s going to happen,” Noel spoke up, setting a hand on their back. He leaned in to hug Marin as well, glancing past him at Blake. “I have faith in Blake’s worthiness. If anything is enough to save you, it’s that.”
Blake glanced away, trying his best to conceal his blush from his friends. Noel was the last person he’d ever expected to get a compliment from—and such a large one at that. Noel pulled away from Marin, shyly opening his arms to Blake, who stepped comfortably into the embrace.
“I want you to know that if anything happens,” Noel said in a voice pitched low enough that only Blake could hear. “It’s not your fault. Even you can’t fight time.”
“I don’t take those words lightly.” Blake gave Noel a brief squeeze.
Blake pulled away after clapping Noel once on the back. He glanced between him and Celeste, trying to piece together the right words.
“Thank you.” He landed on, but it felt weak in comparison to what the two had given him and Marin. “For everything you’ve done for us these past few days. For your company. I’m… we’re really lucky to have friends like you.” He reached out to take Marin’s hand, giving it a firm squeeze.
“Don’t get too sappy with it.” Celeste punctuated their words with a loud sniff, wrapping themself around Noel’s arm. “Jesus.”
“I want to thank you both, too,” Marin said, reaching out to take one of Noel’s hands and one of Celeste’s in each of his. “I’m so happy to have gotten to meet you. I can’t put into words how much I appreciate your help. Blake is right—we’re really lucky.”
Celeste turned to bury their face into Noel’s arm, obscuring their tears. “ I’m the lucky one here, dammit.”
Blake watched as Noel squeezed Marin’s hand once before releasing it, indicating to a package of Tupperware he’d set on top of the Camry.
“I set these aside so Matt wouldn’t get into them,” Noel said, handing it over to Marin. “I wanted to see you off with breakfast.”
Marin popped open the lid and Blake leaned over to view the contents—within were a variety of tiny quiches and berry tarts, separated by a little cardboard divider.
Blake shot Noel a warm smile. “I really appreciate it, Noe.”
“It’s the least I can do,” Noel said, stuffing his hands into his front pockets and ducking his head.
Blake turned to Marin before glancing towards the driver’s seat. “Ready to go?”
Marin nodded, taking a moment to hug Noel and Celeste in turn.
“Bye,” he said, voice soft as he pressed Celeste close.
“I’m not saying goodbye,” Celeste sniffled, tone stubborn. “I’m not saying goodbye to you, Marin, because you’re right—I am going to see you again tomorrow. You… drive safe, okay?”
“Okay,” Marin agreed with a mellow smile before pulling away.
“Drive safe,” Noel told them, raising a hand to wave goodbye as Blake climbed into the car. Marin rounded the cab to lower himself into the passenger seat.
Blake rolled down the window to say his final farewell, and to his surprise Celeste came around to the side of the car and reached in through the window, taking his hand in theirs. Tears streamed down their pink face in glossy lines.
“This whole thing,” they said. “The ‘being worthy of someone’s love’ thing? I think it’s bullshit.”
They were quiet for a moment.
“It’s stupid to think that you have to prove that you’re worth someone’s love.
Just being loved by them should be enough—and I think—” They hiccuped, voice gentle.
They reached across Blake’s lap for Marin’s hand as well, almost climbing into the cab in the process.
“Anyone would be lucky to be loved by either of you.”
Blake stared at Celeste, taken aback by their uncharacteristically vulnerable words. “I… that’s really kind of you to say.”
“That really is.” Marin smiled. “Thank you, Celeste.”
“Thank you .” They squeezed his fingers in their meager grip and for the first time Blake noticed how petite their hands were. “For being my friends.”
“Thank you for being our friend, Celeste,” Marin replied, his smile still soft and genuine.
“That isn’t going to change,” Blake reassured them.
Celeste scrunched their face up, looking unable to contain their emotions.
“Je vous aime tous les deux,” they said, squeezing Blake and Marin’s hands one more time before extracting themself from the car, returning to Noel’s side.
Before Blake could ask what it meant, they were already talking again: “You better go!” they cried, folding their arms over their chest and stamping their foot.
“Before I climb into that car with you!”
With one final wave, Blake heeded their advice, pulling out of the parking space and peeling out of the lot.
As they headed towards the street proper, he couldn’t help but shoot a final glance at Celeste and Noel through the rearview mirror.
They were hugging, Celeste hiding their face in Noel’s chest as he pet their hair, free of his typical awkwardness.
Before his eyes flicked back to the road, Blake caught Marin watching their friends as well, looking wistful—like he was looking at a memory rather than a mirror.
?
Celeste’s white Camry crawled down Highway 80 along the shore of the bay. The brassy waves undulated, windsurfers cutting along their surface. Beyond the water, partially enveloped by a diaphanous veil of cloud cover, was the distant silhouette of San Francisco.
As they inched towards the Bay Bridge, Marin rolled down the passenger window, reaching out to trail his fingers through the cool air, a blessed relief in comparison to the summer heat of Sacramento.
A car driving alongside them had the same thought, windows rolled down and Tracy Chapman crackling through their old speakers.
Blake turned to glance at Marin’s profile, slim and beautiful, framed by the green window panels of the Emeryville Towers winking in the morning light. He’d been quiet during the drive over, but his silence wasn’t borne from anxiety, as Blake’s was.
Marin was more at peace than the night before. He was enjoying the scenery around him, watching the landmarks materialize and dissipate along the highway with a content expression on his face. Blake made a mental note to take the drive on his bike next time, so Marin could really soak in the—
Blake’s heart seized in his chest, tremulous with the recollection that there might not be a next time. His eyes fell to the clock in the middle of the dash: it was half past eleven. Only fourteen and a half hours left.
What was he supposed to do? To say? How could he even begin to fit a lifetime of experiences into a single day?
“Hey.”
Marin’s soft voice interrupted Blake’s private anxieties. He smiled at Blake, expression tender, and laid his hand palm-up on the center console. Blake collected it in his and produced a smile that he hoped wasn’t too anxious. Marin picked up his hand and pressed a kiss to his knuckles.
“We have some time to kill before the gallery opens tonight,” he said. “What do you want to do first?”
Blake blinked, taken aback. “Me? It’s your day, Marin—we can do whatever you’d like.”
Marin looked pensive. “I really don’t know.”
“Here: why don’t you grab my phone and try to Google something fun we can do?” Blake suggested. He nodded down at where his phone was jammed into a cupholder. Marin picked it up. “Pin’s 1031.”
“Date of special significance?” Marin asked. “Or a big fan of Halloween?”
Blake chuckled. “It’s uh, kind of weird to be honest.”
“Try me,” Marin replied without looking up from the phone, a smirk coloring his lips.
“It’s the date Jace got stabbed with a fork at IHOP in sophomore year of high school.”
“ What ?” Marin gasped, mouth falling into a stunned gape. “I gotta say I was not expecting that .”
“I told you it’s weird!” Blake grinned, throwing a hand up from the steering wheel.
“What— why would you make that your pin ?!”
“It was a memorable occasion! When you have to walk one of your best friends into the ER with a fork jutting out of his hand, it sticks with you,” Blake explained. Marin tossed back his head and laughed.
“Why did he get stabbed with a fork?!”
“He was trying to steal someone else’s pancakes.”
“Well, whose pancakes were they?”
“Who do you think?”
“Would I be on the money if I said Matt?”
“You would be correct.”
The atmosphere in the car was much lighter after that and Blake felt at peace as they eased into their typical repartee. There was no point in being morose, after all—Blake didn’t want his anxiety to ruin what could potentially be their last day together.
As they rolled onto the Bay Bridge proper, Blake told Marin about the various shenanigans he and his friends got up to over their years together, the merman interrupting only to urge him to pull off on the Fremont exit.
“So where are we going?” Blake asked as they inched through the Embarcadero.
“Pier 45,” Marin answered. “I thought we’d pay Laffin’ Sal’s cousin a visit at the Musée Mécanique.”
Blake glanced at him, face awash with disbelief and horror. “ No .”
Marin continued to smile placidly.
“No, no! Marin!” Blake shook his head, already beginning to grin and laugh despite himself. “A million places in San Francisco to visit and you want to find another one of those awful nightmares?!”