After 3

Chapter 291.

Hardin and I have only spoken a few times since he left his graduation without saying goodbye to me. He text me a few times here and there and has sent some emails. The emails were stiff, awkward, and formal, so I only responded to a few of them.

"Do you guys have any plans for the weekend?" I ask Landon while tying the strings of my apron around my waist.

"Not that I know of. I think he's just sleeping here and leaving Monday afternoon,"

"Okay. I am working a double shift today, so don't wait up for me. I won't be home until at least two."

 Landon sighs, "I really wish you wouldn't work so much. You don't have to help pay anything, I got enough money from grants and you know Ken refuses to let me pay for much."

I give Landon my sweetest smile and pull my hair back into a low ponytail, resting just above the collar of my black button up shirt. "I won't go over this with you again." I shake my head and tuck my shirt into my work pants.

My work uniform isn't too bad, a black button up, black pants, and black shoes. The only part of  the ensemble that bothers me is the neon green tie I have to wear. It took me two weeks to get used to the look but I was so grateful that Sophia got me a waitressing job at such an upscale restaurant, the color of the tie didn't matter. She's the head pastry chef at Lookout, a newly opened and highly over priced, modern restaurant in Manhattan. I stay out of her and Landon's... friendship? Especially after meeting her roommates, one of whom I had already met back in Washington. Landon and I seem to have the same sort of "it's a really, really small world" luck.

"Text me when you're off then?" Landon reaches for my keys on the hook and places them into my hand. I agree, assuring him that Hardin's arrival isn't going to upset me, and with that, I leave for work.

I don't mind the twenty minute walk each way, I am still learning my way through the massive city and each time I get lost in the crowds of busy people, somehow I feel more connected to the city. The noise of the streets, the constant voices, sirens, horns blaring, only kept me up for the first week. Now it's almost calming the way I just sort of blend into the masses.

People-watching in New York is unlike anything I've ever experienced. Everyone seems so important, so official, and I love guessing at their life stories, where they came from, why they are here. I don't know how long I plan to stay here, not permanently, but I like it here for now.

The best, and honestly, the only good thing about being alone is that I am free to live where I want to without an argument. Who am I kidding? I would take those arguments one thousand times over to have him here with me now.

Stop this. I need to stop thinking this way, I'm happy now and he has clearly made a life for himself that doesn't involve me. I'm okay with that, I just want him to be happy, that's all. I loved seeing him with his new friends at his graduation, I loved the way he was so collected, so... happy.

I just hated the way he walked off when I took too long coming back from the restroom. I left my phone on the counter and spent a half an hour trying to find the lost and found, or a guard to help me find it. When I did, it was dead. I tried to find Hardin at the spot where I left him, but he was gone. Ken said he left with his friends and something clicked then, this was over.

Do I wish he would have come back for me? Of course, but he didn't, and I can't live my life wishing that he did.

I purposely picked up extra shifts this weekend, wanting to keep myself as busy as possible and keep my time at the apartment as minimal as I can. Due to the tension and bickering between Sophia and her roommates, I am going to try my hardest to avoid staying there but I certainly will if things are too awkward with Hardin.