“Jamie?” I say as I knock on her door, but no reply. Her car is out here, and she isn’t working today. I knock again, discreetly looking over to Mom, but she’s thankfully talking on the phone. Defeated, I walk back to the car and climb in. Mom turns to me, a question in her eyes, but she just starts driving.
Getting home, I jump out before she can ask me anything. Heading inside, but before closing my door, I hear a hushed, “What happened?”
I look around, seeing boxes already set up in my room, and tears well in my eyes at the sight of them. I don’twantto leave either—but Jamie doesn’t see that. Twirling around, I see my cork vision board and hastily grab a box. I start removing each of the pictures, tears of anguish coming down my face. My friendship bracelet jingles on my wrist, and I stop momentarily.
Setting the box down, I run my fingers over the beads, each one dedicated to something special in our lives. White for our times playing in the snow, since I had never seen it before. Purple for myfavorite color. And little charms. My tears change from anguish to nostalgia, and I hope that this isn’t the end of our friendship.
I don’t know if my heart can handle another lost one.
A knock breaks me out of my thoughts, and I run a sleeve over my eyes and face, muttering a small, “Come in.”
The door opens, and I face away from the door, pretending to throw more knickknacks into another box.
“Hey, hon.” The concern in her tone is obvious, but I don’t turn around, not now. “Is something up with you and Jamie?” Saying nothing, she figures it out, sighs, and approaches me. She embraces me from behind, and I scrunch my face, holding in my tears.
Nothing like a Mom hug.
“I’m sorry, honey.” I nod, turning around squeezing her, when a small chuckle leaves me.
“Well, we can always let Josh go by himself.” She gives me a look, making me put up my hands in mock surrender.
“I know you and Josh aren’t best friends, but he’s agoodguy, honey. You’ll warm up to him,” she confidently states, and I nod at that. “Everything’s gonna be okay. You’ll see. It might be hard at first, but it’ll get better.”
I smile at her, feeling the pessimistic statements rising, but push them down for her benefit.
“Kate, I need you.”
Smiling nervously, she retreats, practically running to him. She closes the door behind her, and I glance around once again, seeing the memories pop out from my walls. I can almost see the little ghosts of my younger self living her life in this room.
I never thought that I would fall in love with Philly, but I did. This city gave me one of my best friends after I’d lost another. Throwing myself on the bed, my mind drifts back to the moving announcement the other day, it circling my head nonstop. My mind runs through every scenario.
Seeing him.
Not seeing him.
What’ll happen if I see him?
If I don’t, will I be happy about it?
Should I be happy about the move?
So many questions, and I’ve yet to come up with any answers. On top of that, Jamie and I are in such a weird place right now, and I’m on the verge of losing yet another friend all because of moving away.
In the event of a graduation dinner, Josh, unknowingly, has managed to ruin the little life that I’ve tried so hard to construct. Ifinallystarted to consider Philly my home. The memory of Liam still stings, but I had come to terms with it, and now I have to get reaccustomed all over again.
Los Angeles is a huge city. I mean, the chances of seeing Liam are one in four million. Knowing Josh, he’ll probably get the best house in the city, a place that’s about showing how much you have and not aboutbuilding a homelike Liam’s parents did.
Yeah, seeing him is unlikely.
Getting up with that thought, I look down at the box and see a familiar photo peeking out from the top. I sniffle slightly and slide down to the floor, gently grabbing it. Running my fingers over Jamie’s and my goofy smiles, it causes me to blossom one of my own.
Putting it back, I start to pack up more things I’ve collected. Ever since we met in the fifth grade, it’s been us against the world, but now that I’m leaving, it’s just me. And even though I wish she could come with me, she has UPenn, and I won’t take that from her.
Sighing, I put all the pictures in the box and move on to my closet. Outfit after outfit, I fold them up nicely, leaving some for the rest of my time here. And as I’m going through, something big and fluffy and partly dusty falls from the back shelf.
Picking it up, I’m met with Señora Bearington. The second most important plush I own. I can almost conjure the memory of when Liam handed her to me on Christmas when I was eight and revealed that he had gotten the male version to match. I hug her to my chest, and after a minute, I trace the stitching.
You’ll always be my forever, Freckles.
