It took three weeks in total to finish the mural. Nearly every day after school, Theo and Callie met to paint and eat snacks and talk. Juliet sometimes hung around, acting bored and waiting for them to finish, but Theo’s favorite days were the ones when Juliet went home instead. She said she had applications to pass to agents in New York City and photographs to send to managers, that kind of thing. Theo hardly listened to what she had to say.
A part of him had decided to give up on Juliet. A part of him had already said goodbye.
Toward the end of their mural sessions, Mrs. Simmons came in to check on them. She brought a platter of chocolate chip cookies and a big smile of thanks. “I can’t believe how good it’s looking,” she said, her hands on her hips and a bit of melted chocolate on her cheek. “This is going to be celebrated by students in Bluebell High for many years to come!”
Theo took a cookie and watched as Callie beamed with pride. “It was all her,” he said finally.
“As if,” Callie said, although it truly had been.
“I hate to bother you about this again, Callie. But have you made a decision about NYU?” Mrs. Simmons asked tentatively.
Callie blushed and glanced at Theo. Theo’s heartbeat quickened. NYU?
“I haven’t. Not yet,” Callie said.
“Well, you know you have to make up your mind pretty soon!” Mrs. Simmons said. “They don’t hold spots in that art school forever. And Callie…” She sighed. “These chances are once in a lifetime. You know that, don’t you?”
Callie said she did, then picked up her paintbrush and returned to the mural. It was clear she didn’t want to talk about it anymore.
When Mrs. Simmons left again, Theo walked up beside his dear friend, crossed his arms, and said, “NYU, huh?”
Callie’s cheeks were still ferociously red. “It’s not a big deal.”
“It’s obviously a big deal. Mrs. Simmons says so.”
“Mrs. Simmons has never left Bluebell Cove,” Callie said. “She thinks she understands what’s out there. Fame and glory and money and whatever. But I’m the kind of person who would fall on their face the minute they get to the big city.”
Theo’s stomach tightened into knots. “That’s not true.”
Callie laughed. “Come on. I’m not Juliet. I wasn’t made for that big, open world.
“But NYU is amazing, Callie,” Theo said, as though he knew anything about NYU.
Callie huffed.
“And Juliet will be in the city, right?” Theo reminded her. He told himself not to let jealousy get the better of him over his two best friends moving to the city without him.
“I mean, yeah. I guess so.” Callie’s tone was flat. “That’s always been the plan, right?”
Theo took a step back, aghast. Did Callie not want to be with Juliet? Did Callie not see herself in Juliet’s life after graduation? Before he could say anything else, Callie turned and began to clean her paintbrush. Something about the way her head was tilted told Theo that she was crying.
“I love Juliet,” Callie murmured. “I’ll always love Juliet. But I’m getting tired.”
Theo understood what she meant: that Juliet’s ever-present lust for a different life so often overshadowed Theo and Callie. Too often, they felt like stepping stones for Juliet. Too often, it felt as though she would forget about them the minute she left Bluebell Cove. And why wouldn’t she?
“You could be really successful,” Theo said to Callie, his throat tight.
“I don’t really care about success,” Callie answered honestly. “Name one person who’s happy and successful.”
Theo searched his mind, thinking of actors, directors, artists, and writers, people who’d fought to the top of the social ladder only to have their personal lives fall apart.
When Callie turned to look at him, he felt a sharp ache in his chest. He wondered if, all this time, Callie had been the voice of wisdom in their lives. He wondered if she knew more about the world than she’d ever let on.
10
Present Day
It was not the brilliant and warm homecoming that Juliet had privately imagined. That first dinner was awkward: a lot of strange silences, with Celia and Ivy looking at one another nervously and Sophie trying to pick up the slack conversationally. Unsurprisingly, Danica hardly said a word and hardly ate a thing before asking if she could go to her room. Ivy got up midway through her meal to show Danica where she would be sleeping, and Juliet, no longer hungry, went out to the car to grab their bags and take them upstairs.
