Misunderstandings (Woodfalls Girls 2)

“Really?” he asked, sounding more excited than I’d heard him in the last few days.

“Sure,” I said as the idea took hold. “I don’t start until after Christmas break, so I’ll have those two weeks off.”

“That would be amazing,” he said.

“I think so too,” I said happily, not dwelling on the fact that Christmas was still months away. We talked for a few more minutes before he had to return to work.

“I’ll call you later tonight,” he promised.

“You better,” I threatened. “Bye.”

“Bye, I love you,” he shocked me by saying just before he hung up the phone. Glancing at the phone in my hand, I wondered if I’d heard him right. We had both avoided saying the words. It got to the point where I wondered if we would ever be able to say them again. Sitting there with his words still swirling around my head, I knew without a shadow of a doubt that I loved him too. I always had and always would. I belonged with him. He was the love of my life.

Looking around my empty apartment, I realized that all the things I thought were tying me to Woodfalls merely needed to be untied. Grabbing my keys, I tore out of my apartment. Five minutes later, I was running up the stairs to Tressa’s room, glad she had no classes.

She was in the middle of typing something on her computer when I burst through her bedroom door. “Well, it’s about damn time,” she greeted me.

“What?” I asked, momentarily confused.

“You’re leaving, right?” she asked, setting her computer to the side.

“What? How? Did you tap my phone?” I asked.

“No, you turd. I can tell by your face. You’ve been a Debbie Downer for the last two weeks, and suddenly you burst into my room like you just won the lottery. It took you long enough to decide,” she added, glaring at me.

“You knew. How did you know when I didn’t even know?”

“Oh please. You talk about Seattle like it’s your mother ship, and Justin like he’s your alien lover or something. I can’t believe you waited this long.”

“Waited this long?” I asked. “I thought you would think I was a total ass for moving across the country for some guy who broke my heart. Not to mention, I have no idea how I’m going to tell my mom or Ms. Miller, who finally offered me the job yesterday. I’ll be leaving a lot behind,” I added defensively.

“Your mom will recover, and Ms. Miller will have to hire someone else.”

“Yeah, but what about you?”

“Brittni, seriously? I’ve known you’d be leaving since you got home. I’ve had two weeks to adjust to the idea. I’ll miss you like a pussycat misses her tomcat, but I get it. Dicks before chicks,” she smirked, tossing a pillow at me.

“Gah, you’re so crude,” I stated, returning her smile. “Are you sure you’ll be okay? Maybe you should move to Seattle with me.”

She snorted loudly. “I could never leave Deadfalls. It’s in my blood. I know I make fun of it, but I love this old town. I’m going to miss your twat-face though, and you better not forget about me,” she said. She stood and gave me a ferocious hug.

“I love you,” I said, squeezing her tight.

“I love you too.”

I left my best friend behind a few minutes later after she promised to box up my belongings for me. My next stop was the school, where I turned down the job offer. With a few hours to kill, I went home and packed everything I could into my car, knowing Tressa would send me the rest. I contacted my landlord, Mr. James, and thanked him for renting me his loft. By four o’clock, I was ready to go with only one other person left to tell. I was just pulling into the driveway of the house I’d spent the first eighteen years of my life in when my mom pulled into the driveway next to me.

“You’d think I wouldn’t be the last to know,” she said, looking at my carload of belongings.

“I’m sorry, Mom. I wanted to wait until you got off work to break the news to you,” I said, following her into the house with a lump in my throat.

“He knows I’ll hunt him down if he breaks your heart again, right?”

“Yes, ma’am,” I answered.

“And I won’t tolerate sporadic visits like when you were in college, you hear me?”

“Yes, Mom,” I said, grinning with relief that she was willing to let me go. I had been so sure it would be a battle, but I was right, the strings just needed to be untied.