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Wyatt
Everly Knight.
My best friend in college.
My brother’s ex-fiancée.
How was it possible that she was even more beautiful than I remembered?
I scrubbed a hand over my face. This had been a bad idea. I’d walked into that kitchen, and there she was, fresh-faced and wearing a pair of overalls. It was like stepping back in time.
I quickened my pace back to the cottage, wanting to grab my jacket before heading to her place. The rental unit on the Knights’ ranch was a cozy, well-lit studio with just enough space to fit a kitchenette, bed, and table. The place was tastefully decorated, but what made it unique was the mural painted on the back wall. An image of the coastline in spring—the sky, sea, and hills dotted with orange and purple wildflowers filled me with a sense of peace.
The painting also made the space seem larger than it was. In truth, the cottage was one of the smaller places I’d stayed in, although it was still more spacious than my shoebox-sized freshman dorm room. Memories of my first year at college slipped over me like ghosts of the past. College was my first time living on my own. I enjoyed my classes just fine, but when I met Everly, everything fell into place.
Everly and me.
Me and Everly.
We were inseparable.
Until she met Lukas.
My right pocket dinged, pulling me from my thoughts.
Cole:How are you doing?
Me:Why are you asking? Are you worried?
Cole:Course not
Cole:Just asking out of concern for your fans. If something happens to you, I should know where your StarFire comic files are
Me:Gee thanks. Good to see where your priorities lie
Cole was my roommate,an Economics PhD student at Northern Oakland University. We met when I moved up north to teach high school English. I’d loved working with students and had thrown myself into my job during the day and written at night. When StarFire, my epic fantasy series, skyrocketed in popularity ten months ago, I took a leap of faith and quit my day job to write full time.
Me:Don’t worry. I have the first five episodes ready to upload. They’re in a safe place
Cole:Phew. That’s a relief
Cole:Of course I’m concerned about you too
Cole:But if something were to happen, the work must live on
My roommate wasone of the most driven people I knew. In addition to writing his dissertation proposal and teaching two undergraduate classes, he designed websites and apps in his spare time. When he told me about his latest project, a web cartoon app where creators earned money by publishing original comics, I jumped on the opportunity to join and pitched an idea for a series based on my StarFire universe. Cole welcomed me as one of his new creators. His app was scheduled to debut early December, just before my talk at LA FanCon, Los Angeles’s annual Fantasy and Sci-Fi Convention.
Cole:Still don’t understand why you’re staying in Sunnyvale when you could stay in LA with Lukas. Doesn’t he own an obnoxiously large apartment?
Me:Sunnyvale is the perfect spot to recharge before FanCon
Cole:Need company? I could join you
I scoffed at the idea.The guy enjoyed having a calendar so tightly packed that there was scarcely any room to breathe.
Me:When was the last time you went on vacation?
Cole:I’m not that bad. I know how to relax
