Harper and I didn’t sleep a wink that night but finally succumbed around five o’clock in the afternoon the following Sunday, which worked out nicely as we had an eight o’clock appointment with my advisor, Sylvia, Monday morning. Both of us woke at five in the morning, silently getting ready in Charlie’s apartment. Everyone had left sometime after we’d fallen asleep. When I woke, I found a note from Charlie saying he was going to sleep at the studio so we could get some rest. He was so generous to me. Also, we hadn’t thought about it before but were awfully grateful that Cherry had our bags brought from her flat to Charlie’s.
“Are you ready?” I asked Harper.
“Yes,” was her simple answer.
We locked the door behind us and rode the subway toward campus.
A minute into our ride, Harper asked me, “What about your bike?”
“Who cares about the bike, Harper. I’m just glad he didn’t hurt you.”
“I promise I’ll make it up to you,” she whispered.
“Absolutely not. You have nothing to make up for, Harper. You owe me nothing. Shit happens, babe.”
She smiled slightly. “You’re incredible, Callum.”
“I’m really not. If I was, I never would have left you alone in the first place.”
“I’m not an invalid,” the old, sassy Harper said.
“Oh, got your tongue back, have you?” She smiled wider. “We’ll figure it out. We always do.”
“I can’t believe the past few weeks,” she said, shaking her head.
“I know. You, kicked from your home, us, working all those weeks just to have our money stolen.” Harper shook her head. “That’s not your fault either! Then, that psycho comes after you and kills that innocent girl.”
“That poor woman,” Harper said, shaking her head.
“Her name was Erica,” I said.
“I know, the detective told me.”
“Her husband,” I said, shuddering. “I don’t know what I’d do if...I mean, I just don’t know what I’d do.”
Harper grabbed my hand and squeezed hard.
At our stop, we got off the train and headed into the bright morning sun to Sylvia’s office. The same punk chick from two weeks before stood up and waved energetically, like we were old friends and she hadn’t seen us in a while. Harper waved back politely and she gestured for both of us to sit as she did the time before.
“Can I get you a water or anything?” She asked.
“I’ll take a bottle,” Harper said, surprising me.
The girl’s eyes lit up and she bounded down the hall toward a kitchenette. When she came back she handed Harper a cold bottle of water and a napkin.
“Sylvia’s ready for you now,” she said, smiling sweetly.
Sylvia’s office looked so much different to me now. It was like the past couple of weeks drained a little bit of color out of the way I looked at life. So much had happened and there was no way I thought I could ever get back that little piece of my innocence.
“Callum! Harper!” Sylvia beamed, completely unaware of the events that had transpired since we’d last left her office.
“Sylvia,” we both said. Sylvia came around her desk and hugged us both tightly.
“It looked like you both needed hugs,” she teased.
We smiled at her thoughtfulness.
“Okay,” she said. “Good news! Harper, I’ve pulled a few strings. You’ve officially gotten a full ride here.” Harper and I perked up at that bit of news. “Don’t ask me how I did it,” she joked. “A magician never reveals her tricks.” Harper and I hugged fiercely and tears appeared in Harper’s eyes once more.