Amanda hopped out of her chair. “Oh! Yes, absolutely. I just need to print a few things.” She glanced between Iggy and me, her smile widening. “I’ll give you a minute to say your goodbyes. Back in a jiffy.”
She slipped out from behind the desk and disappeared down the hall towards the east wing.
And then it was just the two of us.
“So,” Iggy said, leaning back on his hands. His legs, bare beneath a pair of tiny cotton shorts, dangled over the edge of the desk, swinging idly. “This is it, then?”
I sighed and nodded. “This is it.”
Something dark flickered across his face. Fear, maybe. Or the shape of a thought he didn’t want to give too much space to. Whatever it was, it vanished just as quickly. He worried at hisbottom lip, like he was trying to trap the words he really wanted to say before they could escape.
My mouth twitched. He was so easy to read. I liked that about him. The way everything lived right at the surface. Honest and unguarded.
“Say what’s on your mind, Iggy Pop,” I said, using the nickname I’d given him weeks ago.
It had started as a joke, a way to pull him out of his head on a bad day. Somewhere along the way, it had stuck. Become part of how I saw him, a part of us.
He straightened and shoved his hands into the pocket of his oversized hoodie. His gaze dropped, lingering somewhere around my chest instead of meeting my eyes.
“I’ll miss you,” he said softly.
Something fluttered low in my chest.
I stepped closer, close enough to cup his cheek. He leaned into the touch immediately, instinctively, like he always did. Iggy had been tactile from the moment we met. Always pressed against my side, looping an arm through mine, tugging me along on his impulsive detours during free time. Like affection was something he was always reaching for, afraid it might disappear if he let go.
I wondered what he’d do when I wasn’t here anymore.
“I’ll miss you too.” I let my arm fall back to my side. “When are you leaving?”
“Tomorrow,” he said. “I had my final therapy session yesterday, but my lift can’t get here until then.”
“What’ll you do when you get out of here?” I asked.
Iggy shrugged, but it didn’t feel casual. “Who knows,” he replied. “Find a job so I can pay my rent. After that...”
He trailed off, and the fear was unmistakable then. It hung between us, sharp and sour, like it had a smell of its own. Thepart of me that cared about him wanted to pull him close. To tell him he’d be fine. That everything would work out.
But I couldn’t promise that.
We were leaving each other behind, and the truth was, I’d probably never know how his story unfolded. I didn’t even know his last name, just like he didn’t know mine. Whatever came next for him would happen out of my sight.
So I said the only thing I could.
“Just take it one day at a time.”
Iggy smirked. “Okay, oh wise one.”
I chuckled and gave him a light shove. After that, we fell into silence. Not awkward, but not comfortable either. Just heavy. Like we both knew what was coming and were choosing not to name it yet.
“What about you?” he asked. Sunlight caught in his green eyes, bright through the tall front windows. “What will you do?”
“Go back to music,” I said. “Try to enjoy it again.”
He smiled and tucked a strand of pink hair behind his ear. The colour had faded since the first few weeks, washed down to something softer, more pastel. His blond roots were showing now. I wondered if the pink would survive once he left this place. Or if he’d try something new, like a fresh colour. Visible proof of a fresh start.
He opened his mouth to say something else, but Amanda rounded the corner, waving a stack of papers.
“Here we are!” she announced, slightly out of breath, as if she’d hurried. She slid the forms across the desk towards me. “Just a couple of things to fill out and sign, and then you’re officially on your way.”
