“Oh my God, Lilly. I miss your face so much.”
“Yeah? Well, you’re about to see a whole lot more of it.Open your door.”
“What?” I bound off the bed and race down the stairs, then throw open the front door. There in the place of Julian’s Jeep is Lilly’s old Ford Bronco, with her standing beside it tucking her phone into her jeans. I leap off the three steps in one hop and throw my arms around her. “What the hell are you doing here?”
“Long weekend. Came home to see the fam. And you, of course.”
“No Noah?”
“No, his fraternity has some bro shit to do so . . . here I am.” She throws her arms out wide.
“Oh my God, this is so perfect. Julian just left to go down south for work.”
“I know, I passed him turning onto your street. We stopped in the road and chatted for two seconds. He told me you were gonna freak out. He looked way too happy I was gonna surprise you. Could you guys be any more sickening? I mean cute.” She rolls her eyes on the last part.
“Get in here. What are we doing first? Wanna go for coffee? Want me to make you some breakfast?”
“Is Pete around? I’m dying for one of his breakfast burritos. College food sucks.”
“Yep, he’s already shut down on the weekdays but still does Friday through Sunday breakfast for a few more weeks. Wanna drive or walk?”
“Let’s walk. I miss home.”
***
“So, when are you moving back?” I loudly slurp the last of my iced coffee through the straw.
“When are you coming with me?” Lilly tosses a napkin on her empty plate and stretches her arms over her head as she leans back in her chair.
“Well played.” I smirk. I miss her so much.
While her retort was a joke, it sobers me a bit. The tug of war in my head between feeling like I’m missing out by not having gone away to college and not wanting to be away from Julian is strong. More so when it hits me in the face, like now, seeing Lilly talking about her life on campus—especially when her life in San Luis Obispo sounds perfect and similar to life here. Trade the lake for the beach and you’re there. Cal Poly was one of my top school choices. But just like Pepperdine, I never applied. Maybe if I’d applied before all the shit went down, I’d be away at school right now. But that would mean I may have never met Lilly. Or Julian. My stomach drops on that sobering thought—makes me tuck that longing and sadness away. I wouldn’t go back and redo it.I wouldn’t.Sometimes I just need to take a walk down What If Lane to remind myself of that.
“What’d you have planned while your man’s away?” Lilly pulls me out of my pity spiral.
“Homework. Boring.” I shrug and stand to clear our plates and take them to the kitchen.
“Okay, I mean I have some too. Can I sleep over and we’ll do it together?”
“For sure! I’d love that.”
We say our goodbyes to Pete and take the trail back to Allie’s—home.My home. With Julian.Lilly entertainsme the whole way back with stories of campus life and Noah’s fraternity adventures. She says she’s not the sorority type.
“Same,” I agree. After the mean girl nightmare I went through in OV, you wouldn’t catch me willingly signing up for that shit.
“Okay, I gotta jet to Southy and see the fam. Might stay for dinner. Wanna come?” she asks as she stands next to the open door of her Bronco, ready to hop in.
I shake my head. “Nah, I’ll get a head start on my assignments while you’re gone. Are you sure they’ll let you leave once you get there?” I laugh, knowing how close they all are.
“I gotta spread the Lilly love around while I’m here. They’ll have to deal.” She holds her hands out to her sides in a cocky stance.
“Oh, okay.” I toss my chin at her. “Well, I’ll see you when you get done signing autographs.” I hear her giggle as she closes the door and starts her engine. Ambling up the steps and into the entryway, I can’t stop smiling. God, it’s so good to have Lilly home.Home.Will I ever get used to calling it that?
***
“Girl, I can’t believe I missed the Chase drama.” Sitting in the cool air on the deck, layered in hoodies, sweats and blankets, we recline on the loungers in the dark. The full moon casts a glow on the night.
“To be fair, it was more anti-drama. Felt kinda bad for the guy, if I’m being real.”
