“Hey, Mol,” he greeted her with a big grin, taking the box out of her hands. “You excited? I got a sick playlist for the drive. I hope you’re contributing snacks.”
She nudged his arm with her little fist. “Obviously.”
I could see she was holding back a smile. Mason might find a receptive audience in her after all.
Molly rushed past to get more stuff while I placed my box in his trunk.
“You okay, Ade?” he asked, his brows furrowed. “That was some bullshit last night.”
“Yeah. But it’s done. I knew that breaking up was the likely outcome, I just didn’t think Liam would go off like that.”
Mason ran a hand through his messy hair. “Honestly, I think he’s jealous.”
I arched my brow. “Doubt it.”
“I’m serious. He was our lead only because you didn’t want it. You’ve always been a better guitarist than him. Then the whole Bleeding Moonlight thing happened, and I think it just woke the green fairy.”
That didn’t make sense to me. “He’s never taken our music seriously, so why would he care?”
“Sometimes people dismiss things because they’re afraid of putting in an earnest effort only to end up failing.”
I didn’t know what to say to that, partially because his words hit home for me as well. Maybe Liam and I weren’t so different after all when it came to music.
“Whatever.” I shrugged, eager to move on. “Mason, I hope you find a group of people you can continue playing with at college,” I said, tugging him to face me. “You’re so young and so talented. Don’t give up, okay? Don’t be like Liam or me.”
His lips inched up. “I won’t give up on me if you don’t give up on yourself, ’kay? And for God’s sake, you’re only two years older than me. Hardly a grandma.”
We loaded all of Molly’s stuff and stood at the end of the driveway, the moment for saying goodbyes finally upon us.
Mason gave me a hug before jumping in the car to give Molly and me a moment.
I wrapped my arms around my sister. “I’m going to miss you so much. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t.”
She squeezed me back. “You mean like sleep with a rock star?”
“Definitely don’t do that,” I grumbled into her hair. “But seriously, stay safe and call me if you need anything, okay?”
Molly pecked my cheek. “Stop worrying. I’ll be fine, you’ll be fine, and I’ll see you next long weekend. Love you.”
I waved until the car turned the corner. Walking back into the house, I was struck with loneliness so heavy that I had to stumble to the kitchen and sit down.
* * *
My phone’s incessant buzzing woke me from a nap I hadn’t intended to take. I was curled up on top of the blankets on my bed, and when I finally found my phone in one of the folds, it was Ezra’s name on the screen.
“Hello?” I answered, my voice groggy.
“Hey.”
Some alarm bell started ringing in my head when I heard the worried tone of his voice.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah, we’re just about to start the hike to the campground, and I wanted to call you before we lose signal. Silas didn’t come with us this morning. He has a fever. Could you do me a favor and go check on him at some point today? For as long as I’ve known him, the guy’s been too stubborn to go to the doctor. I just don’t want us coming back on Sunday to find him in rough shape.”
I jumped up from the bed. “Of course, why didn’t you say anything earlier?”
“I knew you were sending Molly off, so I didn’t want to bother you in the morning, but I figured she would have left by now.”
