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Kent bought two tickets for a hop-on hop-off trolley at a kiosk. This was the best, easiest, and fastest way to see the city. They could stay on for all the stops or get off, and tonight, if Palmer felt up to it, they’d take the ghost tour.
They walked three blocks to the waterfront and boarded the trolley. Palmer suggested Kent be near the window so he could take photos, but he refused. He wanted her to see everything. During their guided tour, they learned about the Great Molasses Flood of 1919 in the North End of Boston. At first, Palmer thought the tour guide was joking until the trolley paused in front of the small historic sign.
They swung by the USS Constitution, and then, after passing the TD Garden, home of the Boston Bruins and Celtics professional sports teams, the driver took them by the garage a now-famous mobster used to work out of while he infiltrated the FBI, which was right across the street. Palmer’s eyes widened and her mouth dropped open, and Kent told her it was in a movie that they could watch some night.
When they arrived at the Harvard stop, Kent and Palmer got off the trolley. They both wanted to see the famous campus. Palmer walked under the wrought iron archway and took in the beautiful space around her. She had dreamed of schools like Harvard, Yale, and Brown. The guidance counselors always spoke of how important a high school education was and gushed about the Ivy League. People who wanted to be in politics, especially those who wanted to run for president, went to esteemed schools on the East Coast. This translated to Palmer as meaning those people who were rich attended schools with deep traditions and power—something she’d never have.
Kent stepped beside her and sighed. “This place is impressive.”
“Did you know the campus used to be a cow pasture?”
“I did not,” he said, laughing.
“I remember during high school when we’d have college fairs. I’d talk to every school away from California because I hated it so much there. I wanted to move and start over. My guidance counselor saw me once and suggested community college, which is where I ended up, because she said a prestigious school is not the place for someone like me.” Palmer scoffed. “I wish I hadn’t believed her.”
Kent moved closer to Palmer, their shoulders touching. “My parents wanted me to go to college, but I chose the army. I always wanted to be a medic or a firefighter because I wanted to help people, and the army was the best way to do both. I proudly served my country and saved lives.” He sighed. “I lost lives, too, and those are the ones I’ll never forget.” Kent held Palmer’s hand. “We can’t dwell on the past. We have to look to the future and be the people we want to be.”
Palmer looked at Kent, with tears in her eyes. “I don’t have a future.”
He squeezed her hand and nodded. “You have tomorrow. I promise you that.”
TWENTY
At the first sign of exhaustion, Kent hailed an Uber and took them back to the hotel. Palmer protested until she got into the back of the car and fell asleep. They had toured the city of Boston via the trolley, taken a boat cruise on the harbor, and eaten more clam chowder, which Palmer proclaimed was the best she’d ever had. It was when Kent saw her hand trembling that he knew it was time to call it quits on the day.
Palmer was asleep on the bed farthest from the wall, bundled in his sweatshirt and the comforter he’d given her from his bed. When he’d given Palmer her meds earlier, he’d checked her vitals. With her being cold all the time, he worried her blood pressure was too low.
Kent sat on the window ledge and watched the taillights of the passing cars. The building across the street and all its businesses were dark, except for the restaurant and bars that occupied the bottom floor. The rain began, which added to Kent’s melancholy. He couldn’t pinpoint what was wrong besides the obvious—he was falling in love with someone who couldn’t love him back, and for the first time in his life, he understood what heartache was.
When he found out about Maeve, he was mad. Pissed off, even. Sure, he felt a pang of hurt in his heart, but nothing like he felt when he looked at Palmer. He saw Palmer as someone he could love for the rest of her life. Someone who never got a chance to live, and now that she had the opportunity, it was being taken away from her viciously. He looked at her and saw someone who wanted to be loved and love back.
He saw someone who was dying.
