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CHAPTER 15
“Shay, stay there,” Layne told her and pointed at her from across the small parking lot.
“I am way more than six feet away from you right now,” she argued.
“You’re, like, fifteen feet away, and we’re both about to go home and be around our families. I don’t want my mom to get sick.”
“I’m not sick, Layne. Come on. Can I…” Shay stopped and took a deep breath through her mask. “God, I just want to hug you goodbye. This is stupid.”
“I know,” Layne said softly.
“I don’t even know when I’ll get to see you again.”
“We’ll figure it out, right?” Layne said.
“I guess. But you’ll be in Chicago, and I still have no idea what I’m doing after graduation. Probably just living in my parents’ basement, getting three cats, and slowly growing old.”
“You’re being dramatic,” Layne replied. “And I hate to do this, but I really do have to leave now. It’s not a short drive for me.”
“I know. Me neither,” she replied with a flat smile that Layne couldn’t see through her mask anyway.
The school had decided that all students should go home. All classes had already gone virtual, but those who lived on campus had been allowed to stick around. Then, people had started getting sick when others hadn’t followed the rules, and now, everyone had to go home. Shay had to move out of her dorm room, her home for the past two years, with no help and in only a couple of hours because they’d wanted to keep the halls, stairs, and elevators as clear as possible. They’d asked everyone to select a time for moving their stuff to their vehicles, and Shay had checked with Layne first because she’d wanted to make sure they could say goodbye in person. They’d been able to arrange their times in a way that would allow them to do what they were doing right now, but it wasn’t enough.
Over the past few weeks, Layne had helped keep Shay sane. They’d gone from texting a few times a day to nearly non-stop. Then, they’d started talking on the phone, and their nightly chats had lasted hours. She worried that they would stop once they both got home. On top of that, Shay knew her parents wouldn’t exactly stay out of her hair. Her mom would want to do her laundry and would expect Shay upstairs for meals, and since neither of them was leaving the house, she wouldn’t have the excuse of trying to avoid exposure. She also expected several lectures about looking for and finding a job, but she didn’t want to do that just yet. It felt too much like giving up on her dream of playing pro basketball.
She also knew that Layne would be taking care of her mom, studying, and doing everything else that Layne did to make sure she’d ace her finals and graduate on time while she also kept trying to figure out her living situation in Chicago. Then, she’d move, and she’d be even farther away from Shay.
“You know what I regret?” Shay asked.
“No. What?”
“Not getting to know you sooner. I don’t regret the losses or even shots I should’ve made or anything like that. Hell, I don’t even regret dating Eliza, even though hindsight is twenty-twenty, and we’re clearly wrong for each other. I regret not taking the time to get to know you better. I feel like I missed out on something.”
“Me too. I–” Layne looked around the lot, and there were two people walking close together, clearly not staying at least six feet apart. “I have to go, but I wish I would have, I don’t know, opened up more. I regret the same thing. That’s what I’m saying.”
“I have a power brick for my phone,” Shay shared.
“Um… Okay. Weird flex, but cool?”
Shay laughed and said, “I meant that I’m not worried about my phone dying on the way home. We could talk on our long drives if you want.”
“I don’t have a power brick, but my phone is at a hundred percent right now, so–”
“Of course, it is.” Shay chuckled. “Maybe we just check in here and there along the way?”
“I can do that. I can also call you once I’m settled tonight. I need to make sure my mom’s good and get all my stuff out of my car, because I can’t leave anything in it in that neighborhood, or it’ll be gone by morning.”
“I hate that you live wherever that is. Can I say that?”
“You just did. Shay, I have to go.”
“I know. I know. I’m sorry. Just… Drive safe, okay?”
“I will. You too.”
“Bye, Layne.”
“Goodbye,” Layne replied.
