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Wyatt (Senior Year of College)
Come on, come on, pick up. Pick up.
She’d texted me that she was running late, but, hopefully, we’d still have time to talk.
“Wyatt?” Everly’s face appeared on my phone screen, and I found myself grinning. She must have just gotten back from a birthday party because she still had on sparkly blue eyeshadow. “What time is it over there?”
“One in the morning. Still early.” I stifled a yawn, determined to stay awake. Mind over matter, right? I’d stay up all night if it meant we got a chance to speak.
Everly slipped off the red wig she wore when dressed up as Ariel and shook out her blond hair. “Liar. You’ve always been an early bird. I can see the bags under your eyes. What time do you need to wake up for class?”
“Six,” I mumbled. “But I’m fine with it. Sleep’s overrated.” I’d been here in London for about two months, but it already felt like forever. Spending four months abroad to take writing courses at Cambridge seemed like a fantastic opportunity when I applied to the prestigious exchange program last spring. But after a short time in England, I realized how much I missed home.
Correction—whomI missed at home.
“Thanks for staying up. I didn’t mean to remain so long at the party, but the kids wanted to take photos with me.”
Oh, I could believe it. Everly’s princess-themed birthday parties were a huge hit, especially with some of the professors’ families. She’d had so much interest in singing princesses that she’d roped Indie in. Now they both averaged two birthday parties a week on top of their schoolwork.
Ev pulled out a makeup wipe and swiped it over her eyelids. “Anyway, enough about me. How did you get on with that paper? The Robert Browning one. You were worried your professor wouldn’t like it.” She tilted her phone to focus the camera on her face and shoulders while she slid the top of her mermaid costume off over her head.
My eyes traced the smooth, golden skin of her shoulders. “Um, fine. I got it done.” The words felt scratchy in my throat.
Tell her, Wyatt. Just tell her how you feel.
Not yet. I’d waged that inner battle for months. Everly and I had been friends ever since fate brought us together that day at the library. We shared everything. She knew about my dream of becoming a published author, and I was the one who stayed up late every year, helping her decorate her dorm hall for Halloween and Christmas. Her RAs had dubbed us “the holiday elves.”
Everything was easy and fun between us until Ev briefly dated a baseball player last spring, and I experienced something I never had before: jealousy.
Somehow, between our late-night study sessions, Halloween movie marathons, and rushing to early morning classes together, I’d fallen for my best friend. While unable to pinpoint exactly when my feelings changed, I could remember when I wanted to make them known. After Ev broke up with her boyfriend, I was going to tell her how I felt, but by then, I was only months away from starting my overseas adventure. It seemed unfair to spring something like that on her only to leave a short while later.
Plus, if I was being honest, I was also worried that she didn’t feel the same way.
Everly’s face disappeared, leaving me to stare at the ceiling of her dorm room. The sound of running water filled the background. “Before I forget to tell you,” she said off-camera, “Lukas and I have been messaging. He wants to meet up with me on campus.”
Weird. Our college was a four-hour drive from LA, and my brother hated leaving the city. He’d only visited me a handful of times.
“Really?” I tried not to let suspicion creep into my voice. I loved my older brother; he was my only family since our mom and grandfather died, but I wasn’t naïve. The guy was a serious player. Why did he want to hang out with Everly?
“I didn’t realize you two had gotten close.”
“He texts me during his breaks on set, and we usually just discuss whatever’s going on in his life. It sounds like he’s lonely and needs a friend.”
I almost laughed. My brother? Lonely? With his larger-than-life personality and good looks, people flocked to him. Growing up, I’d constantly had to fend off girls who were interested in getting close to me purely for my connection to Lukas.
Dating someone who planned to hook up with your brother as soon as they could?
No, thank you.
My stomach knotted. Everly was my best friend, but what if, deep down, she was just like the others? What if she preferred Lukas to me?
“I’m surprised he even reached out, but I guess since you’re not here, I’m the next best thing.” Everly’s face returned to the screen, her blond hair tied up in a ponytail. Gone were the fake eyelashes and the bright-red lipstick. Without even seeing her clothes, I knew she’d put on her “at home” outfit: a ratty old hoodie and sweatpants. And if I focused hard enough, I could almost smell the peach-scented lotion she used.
“Thanks for sending me that picture of your street covered in snow.” Everly beamed, and I felt its warmth all the way across the ocean. “It looked so tranquil and pristine. I wish I were there to see it too.”
“Don’t worry. We’ll see all the sights after graduation.”
Everly tilted her phone to focus on the map she’d hung in her room every year since we were freshmen. Stickers labeled all the places we’d talked about visiting in the future. Our dream to travel the world was the main reason she’d started her birthday party business. “I added Cairns to the list. Wouldn’t it be awesome to see the Great Barrier Reef and swim with sea turtles?”
