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Opening my backpack, I grabbed the envelope and held it in front of me. “This came today. And, uh, I don’t know why, but I just wanted to open it with you. There was something about opening it in front of Jeremy that just seemed…depressing or something.”
“I get it,” she said with a forced smile. “You’ll get in, Wyatt.”
“You know what’s funny? I didn’t realize how badly I wanted to go until this showed up,” I said, waving the envelope gently in my hand. “Now it’s all I can think about.”
“End the suspense, then,” she said before breathing in. “Open it.”
I nodded. “Okay.”
Tearing open the envelope, I unfolded the letter and scanned the words, my heart climbing into my chest as happiness filled my entire body.
“I got in!” I yelled, pulling Tilly into my arms and twirling her around the store. Her feet knocked into several videos that came crashing to the floor.
“Oh, shoot,” she said, jumping down to retrieve them. I stood and watched her, my smile diminishing as I saw her face—the face she made when she didn’t think I was looking.
She looked defeated, heartbroken.
“Till?”
The second I said her name, she pulled her lips into a smile. “Yep?”
“You okay?”
“Oh, my God, Wyatt, I’m sorry! Congratulations!” She pulled me in for a hug. “I knew you’d get in.”
“You did?” I asked, holding her tight.
“Of course,” she whispered.
“Thanks, Till.” I pulled away, looking deeply into her eyes. “Are you sure you’re okay with this?”
“Wyatt,” she said, breaking eye contact, “we’ve already discussed this. It’s an incredible opportunity.”
“That’s not what I asked.”
“I’m happy for you, really I am,” she said, her voice cracking slightly. “Listen, I have to get back to work; more customers are coming in, and I don’t want to get on Sully’s shit list.”
“I get it.”
“I’m sorry,” she said, her expression flat. “I’m closing tonight. But I’ll see you tomorrow, right?”
“Around the World party,” I said with a nod. “I’ll head to your place after class.”
“Perfect,” she said, attempting to give me a reassuring smile, but she wasn’t winning an Oscar for her performance. Kissing me on the cheek, she placed her hand on my cheek. “Congratulations. I’m really proud of you.”
If only I could believe it.
I was still struggling to shake the frustration I was feeling toward Tilly as I climbed the stairs to her apartment on Friday afternoon. As much as I wanted to let her lackluster reaction to my news go, I was having trouble with it.
We hadn’t had a fight since getting back together, and the last thing I wanted to do now was have one, especially since the end of the semester was approaching. At the same time, though, I kept thinking about if our roles had been reversed. If she had been accepted to a voice program, I liked to think I’d be thrilled for her, no matter how much I would miss her. It made me feel…slighted and a little irritated. But I tried to push those feelings down as she opened the door and wrapped me up in a hug.
“I’ve missed you,” she murmured into my ear. “Are you hungry? I’m starving. I was thinking we could order pokey stix before the party starts. I need some carbs in my belly.”
She was talking so fast. Tilly only did that when she was nervous or uncomfortable. Maybe she was feeling badly about what happened at the store. I didn’t want to make her wallow it in or anything, but it was oddly comforting knowing that she may have been feeling a little guilty for reacting like she did.
“Sounds good,” I said, placing my backpack on one of her chairs in the kitchen. “So, where does the party start?”
“Top floor—Marie and Michelle’s place. And then we work our way down. My place is last, which is kind of awesome since we’ll be ready to pass out by then.”
