“But?” I’d said. “But what?”
He looked so sad. Which felt unfair, even insulting. I was the one getting my heart broken. “I’m so sorry, Idaho.”
This broke the dam. Just like that, I was sobbing, raw, unable to control myself. At some point, Colin had said he had to go. Him disappearing from the screen—poof!—was like a final gut punch.
“Poor thing.” I heard Liz say now. “I remember when Trav dumped me junior year.”
“We all remember that,” my mom replied. “You played that ‘Nothing 2 U’ song over and over again.”
“?‘NothingCompares2 U,’?” Kasey murmured.
“I was devastated!” Liz said. “It felt like my heart literally did break. I wanted to die.”
My mom asked, “Should I knock?”
“Did you try already?”
“I put my head in an hour ago. She told me to go away.”
Had I?
“Have they been having problems?” Liz asked.
“Not that I know of,” my mom told her. “They seemed fine at graduation on Saturday.”
“Poor thing,” Liz said again.
There was a soft rap at the door. Kasey called out, “Finley? You okay?”
No,I thought, but said nothing. Outside, a boat was puttering by, another person’s summer going just as planned.
“Let me try,” Liz said. “Finley? Sweetie? We’re here if you need support.”
“You don’t even know her,” my mom said, sounding annoyed.
“Heartbreak is universal.”
I heard someone coming in the front door then. “Where is everyone?”
“Back here,” Kasey and Liz called out in unison.
“Wasps?” It was Clark.
“No,” Kasey said. “Just talking. Cardoon happy?”
“Very. Surprisingly, so far this arrangement is actually working,” Clark replied. “Although the timing of the buses is a bit of a shitshow.”
“We’ll figure it out,” she told him. “For now I’m just grateful for the business.”
“Same,” Clark replied. “Anyway, I’m going to study. Ben went to Bly Supply, but he’ll be back in a bit.”
“Study?” Liz said. “It’s summer.”
“He’s taking a night class,” Kasey explained.
“Business Methods and Applications,” Clark added. “It’s about as boring as it sounds. I’ll see you guys.” The front door banged. A moment later, I heard the truck’s engine.
“That boy and his work ethic,” Liz observed. “And he’s such a sweetheart.”
