“Sorry, I didn’t mean to cry.” I wiped my face. “This is the best gift anyone’s ever given me.”
“I wish I could’ve given it to you in person.” He rested his head against the guitar, rocking gently back and forth. “Can I confess something? I hate that we’re so far apart.”
My fingers clutched around my phone, as if it were his hand. His words spoke a truth I had ignored for weeks, because acknowledging it always made my chest feel heavy.
“It’s the same for me,” I said.
Sebastian’s fingers slid over the guitar strings without playing anything, probably just enjoying the feeling. “I wish we could spend at least a few more days together. Just the two of us.”
“That would be nice,” I replied.
“You think so?”
“Of course. But there’s not much we can do about it, is there?”
I pulled the blanket from my bed over my shoulders because the floor suddenly felt cold.Maybe I shouldn’t sit on the carpet so much.
His fingers plucked the D string softly. “That’s not entirely true.”
“What do you mean?”
He sat up and held the strings to keep them from vibrating. “I have a week off during spring break. I planned to study, but if I pull a few all-nighters, I could take the whole week off.” His eyes, which had been resting on something next to his camera until now, turned directly toward me. “What would you say if I invited you to Las Vegas? I know, flights aren’t cheap, but I could chip in for half.”
“You…” My breath caught in my throat. “You’d already spend, what, five hundred dollars on me?”
“Of course. You’re worth every penny.” He put his guitar down, picked up his phone, and brought it closer to his face. “Think about it. We could have some more jam sessions. We could go to a karaoke bar with Nora and Raul. Maybe we could even do some of the things we used to do,you know,in that bed behind you.” He smiled hopefully. “Wouldn’t that be nice?”
“Sebastian, I…” I stuttered, staring into the camera and chewing my lip as I tried to think of how to respond.
Before I found any words, though, his smile faded, and he waved a hand. “I’m sorry. Ignore me. I said that on a whim. It’s okay if?—”
“No, that’s not it. I would love to spend time with you in person again,” I said, so he wouldn’t get the wrong idea.Of course, I’d love to see him again.Our calls had become special. He was the person I thought about when I woke up and when I went to bed. “Honestly, I’m just surprised.”
“Me too. I had that idea a second ago.” His lips pulled in as he slowly inhaled, then he shook his head. “Who am I kidding? I’ve been thinking about it for a couple of days.” He blushed. “I know it’s all complicated, especially since you live with my parents and we can’t just tell them. But doing all of this online… I feel like we’re missing out big time.”
My breaths were heavy, not only because his invitation had come out of the blue, but also because I understood where he was coming from. So far, this had been nothing but a sweet fantasy, an escape from reality, but it was clear that we were both invested in this connection. Maybe, if we had a little more time together to figure things out, this could actually go somewhere.
“There is a problem with your proposal,” I said. “I can’t leave Seastone during spring break. Your parents booked a vacation, so I have to stay and take care of the house and the animals. Otherwise, I’d book a flight right now.”
“My parents are gone?” Sebastian asked, narrowing his eyes. “I mean,I could,in theory, alsocome to Seastone. Nora would probably give me an earful because she’s dying to meet you, but she’ll get over it.”
“Wouldn’t it look bad, or at least raise some questions, if you came here while your parents are gone?”
“Not if they don’t know.”
His words demanded a few seconds of silence.
“I don’t know,” I finally said. “I’d love to see you, but… I don’t know.” It was stupid to think I was betraying Laura and Dany, because, ultimately, it wasn’t any of their concern what went on between Seb and me. Still… “Your parents took me in when I had no one on my side. I understand why you don’t want them to know, but—” The rest of the sentence got caught in the back of my throat. My fingers barely held onto my phone.
“How about Idotell them? Not about us, but that I’d like to come to Seastone, to have a quiet place to study?” His brows knitted together so tightly they almost touched. “Would that be an option?”
“So, a half-truth?”
“As much truth as I can give them for now.” He blinked rapidly. “I could even come a night early and spend some time with them. They’d be happy, and a day later, we would be too.”
“Aren’t you afraid they’ll cancel their trip if you ask?”
“Not at all.” Sebastian chuckled. “I know my dad. He probably booked something nonrefundable to save a few bucks.” He looked directly into the camera. “So what do you say?”
