Page 127 of Spring Break Fling

Diego jabbed a finger at me. “Don’t be a chicken shit. Hannah might’ve screwed up by walking away from you, but she wasn’t wrong about your talent. You’ve got something raw, man. Something people can’t learn. You were born with this in your veins. Stop holding yourself back.”

Before I could respond, Jessie burst through the door like a whirlwind. Her hair was a new bright purple color, making her stand out. “Holy shit, Nikko!” she squealed, throwing her arms around me. “You big, stupid bastard! I’ve missed you. Diego told me you were back in town, but I didn’t think that was true because you didn’t call me.” She whacked me in the back of the head. “Asshole.”

I chuckled, hugging her back. “Missed you too, Jessie.”

She pulled back, grinning. “You’ve got no idea how boring it’s been without you. Diego’s jokes suck, and Marcus keeps playing this godawful yacht rock playlist. I swear, if I hear ‘Kokomo’ one more time, I’m burning that place down.”

Diego feigned offense. “First of all, my jokes are gold. Second, ‘Kokomo’ is a banger.”

Jessie rolled her eyes and turned back to me. “You see what I’m dealing with? Insufferable. You better be sticking around.”

“I’m thinking about it,” I said. “Sit, I’ll buy you a beer.”

“Damn straight you will.” She looked around the bar. “Where’s that woman?”

“If you’re referring to Hannah, don’t. I don’t want to hear it. She’s not here.”

“He dumped her,” Diego said.

“No, I did not.”

“She dumped you,” Jessie said. “I knew it. You finally find a good girl and you fucked it up. Classic Nikko.”

“Drop it, Jessie,” I growled. “I’m not in the mood for you to count down the top ten reasons why I suck.”

“Yep, nasty breakup.” Jessie leaned forward, unfazed by my objections. “Okay, spill. What really happened?”

I sighed, taking another long pull of my beer. “She got a job in New York. Corporate gig. Wanted me to move there with her, but it’s not for me. So, it’s over. Period. Can we not talk about her anymore?”

“Sometimes things just don’t work out,” Jessie said with a sympathetic look. “But you’re allowed to be sad about it.”

Thankfully, that was the last that was said about it. We talked tats, local happenings, and nothing in particular. For a few hours, I felt a little less like my heart had been ripped out and stomped on. I’d missed this—missed them.

“Any more from those guys looking for you?” Diego asked.

“Nope. But I haven’t gone looking for them. My dad doesn’t know I’m back in town.”

“Do you think they’ll back off?” Jessie asked. “They know you don’t have the money. Maybe they’ll move on.”

“I don’t know,” I said. “This might be the calm before the storm.”

“I think I felt better when you were out of their reach,” Jessie said.

“I’ll keep my eyes open,” I said.

“You always do,” Diego replied.

I headed home for the night, making sure I locked up tight just in case. I went to bed and stared up at the ceiling. The ache for Hannah crept back in. I could still hear her voice, see her smile, feel the weight of what we’d lost. She’d made her choice, and I’d made mine. That was the end of it. All that was left was pain.

At least I wouldn’t have to wonder what could’ve been. I’d given it everything I had. The only thing I could offer was me mooching off her in New York. That wasn’t going to make her happy. She’d resent me and I would feel the same about her. We would break up eventually. I think we both knew that. It was better to just cut our losses before it got too painful.

44

HANNAH

Three weeks in New York, and I was already fantasizing about booking a one-way ticket back to literally anywhere else. I sat at my cubicle under the harsh fluorescent lights of Clarke & Co., surrounded by piles of proposals, mock-ups, and half-empty coffee cups. My eyes burned from staring at my laptop for hours, but I couldn’t stop. The client pitch was in the morning, and Clarke was breathing down my neck to deliver something groundbreaking.

“No pressure,” I muttered to myself, squinting at the screen as the words blurred together.