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“Good. That was the point.”
AS WE GET TO the airport, Jo manages to walk fifteen feet in front of us the entire time. I’m not sure if she’s doing it intentionally - not wanting us to ask about Jason - or because Holden and I are walking slower than usual. Neither one of us want to get to the security checkpoint, because that’s where he needs to leave me.
“Are you going to let her drive back?” He asks.
I shrug. “It depends. If I’m an absolute mess, then yeah. If I can hold myself together until I get home, definitely not. Her driving scares me.”
He laughs softly. “Don’t tell her that. It pisses her off when I complain about her driving.”
“Noted.”
By the time we get to security, Holden only has 45 minutes to get to his terminal. Still, he doesn’t rush as he wraps his arms around me and pulls me in close. I inhale deeply, letting the smell of jasmine and honeysuckle infiltrate my senses. I don’t know how I’m going to get through spending so much time without him.
“Remember baby, we’ll take it one day at a time.” He whispers sadly. “I’m going to call and text you as much as physically possible. And if at any point you want me to quit, just say the words. You come first, Kayleigh. You will always come first.”
The tears stream down my face like a waterfall, making it hard for me to catch my breath. “I love you so much, and I am so proud of you. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me, and I’m sorry if I don’t tell you that as often as I should. We’re going to be okay, because neither of us are willing to let anything tear us apart.”
He places his forehead against mine. “I know what it’s like to lose you, babe. I will never let that happen again.”
“I know you won’t, and neither will I.”
We stand there for a moment, just relishing in the feeling of being in each other’s arms. Whe
n we don’t seem to be moving any time soon, Jo takes a step closer.
“I don’t mean to interrupt, but H, your flight is leaving in a half hour.”
The two of us whimper, and with one more squeeze, we let go. He gives his sister a quick hug, promising to let her know when he lands and telling her to do well in school – typical big brother stuff. When he’s done, he comes back to me.
“I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
“Every step of the way?”
“Not going anywhere.” I confirm.
With one last kiss, he uses his sleeve to wipe away his tears and grabs his suitcase. Jo and I stay until he gets through security. Once he’s done, he turns around and blows me another kiss. Josephine rubs my back comfortingly as I watch him walk away.
THE DRIVE HOME IS dangerously scary. When I say that Jo’s driving sucks, I mean its horrendous. She slams on the breaks for every red light, and tends to speed– especially being in Holden’s v8 engine car. When we finally get out of the heavy traffic, I decide to bring up the topic I’ve been hesitant to mention.
“So, I saw Jason yesterday.”
She visibly tenses. “Oh.”
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah.” Her voice is shaky, making it obvious she’s lying.
“Do you want to try that one again?”
She side-eyes me and then shrugs. “I’m fine. I broke up with him.”
Judging by her tone, I know I need to tread lightly. “So I’ve heard. He didn’t say why though.”
“I need to focus on school.”
I give her a knowing look, even though she’s intensely fixated on the road ahead of us – for the first time since she got behind the wheel might I add. “Jo, you two dated more than half of last year. You had no issue with school then.”
