Scarlett
2 weeks later
Have you ever had your life planned out, which included living in your safe little bubble in the same town you grew up in with all the people you have known forever, only to be thrown a curveball out of the blue by the only person in the world that could change that all in a matter of minutes? Yeah, that might have been a little too specific, but here I am, living out that exact scenario.
"Come live with me in Florida," Phoenix's words replayed in my head. It sounded completely insane at first, but within seconds as I stared up at his sweet eyes, I saw our future flash through my mind. A future filled with mornings waking up in his arms, being there for every baseball game to cheer him on, date nights and study nights, having each other to hold onto on the worst days and the days we feel like we're on top of the world, but most of all I saw a future I would do anything to have if it was my last wish on earth. That's when I knew that the only answer that made any sense to say was "Yes," and ever since that word left my mouth, I haven't had one damn regret.
The second we got home that day, we started to research different colleges near Tampa Bay University and found a few good options for me that still were open for fall registration. Without wasting any time, we ended up sitting down with my parents and Ryder to tell them what we wanted to do. They were taken by surprise at the sudden change and short notice of it all, but after talking it through, they got on board. I think my parents weren't really prepared to say goodbye so early since I was going to be staying home for college, and I understand that because the thought of leaving them and everyone else behind not only scared me but made my heart heavy. Pheonix and Ryder would be with me, though, and that made all the difference. Ry wasn't exactly jumping for joy at the thought of living with his little sister once again, let alone her sleeping in the same bed as his best friend, but the plan warmed up on him, talking about all the things they wanted to show me around Florida and who on the team they wanted me to meet. It even got me more excited.
So, in the span of only two weeks, we began to pack up some of my things in several suitcases, signed up for classes at Bay Grove Community College, purchased a one-way ticket to Tampa with Nix and Ryder, and spent every last day I could, making memories with my best friends. And now today is the day we leave, but as the saying goes, "It's not goodbye, it's I'll see you later."
"Scar, this was still in your closet. Did you mean to leave it?" Mia came out with my memory box.
My brows raised. "No! I can't believe I almost forgot that," I took the box from her hands and went to find a spot for it in one of my bags. With new adventures to come will definitely bring more things to put inside of it soon.
Lily plopped down on the bottom of my bed between Luke and Jackson with a pout on her face. "Question...if I started to unpack your things right now, would there be a chance that you'd stay?"
I lightly chuckled, shaking my head. "Not one chance."
"Ugh, my little babe is really growing up and leaving us."
Luke looked over at her. "What do you mean by us?"
"Yeah," Jackson furrowed his brows. "You two are going back to college next week. The only one's Scar is leaving behind is us...the only ones that matter."
"Exactly," Luke nodded.
"Oh, shove a sock in it," Lily rolled her eyes, falling back dramatically on the bed.
Mia chimed in. "I'm going to miss our weekly facetime chats that usually turned into cooking tutorials from Wolfie and Aunt Sawyer in the back burning her tongue because she snuck in a taste before she was supposed to."
Lily leaned up on her elbows, laughing. "Or the three of us still managing to annoy the boys as they play their little games on the TV even miles away through the phone."
Luke rolled his eyes. "That's the one thing I won't miss."
"I'll admit...life sure is going to be boring without you around," Jackson lifted his head towards me, giving me a half-smile.
My eyes began to get misty. "Jack...god, you guys are going to make me cry again and I have already done enough of that this last week."
Luke tilted his head to the side. "Sorry, it's just that we are going to miss the hell out of you," The corners of his mouth slightly curved up.
And with that one sentence, tears instantly streamed down my cheeks. "I'm going to miss you all too... every day."
"Aw, babes," Mia spoke in a soft tone before throwing her arms around me. It didn't take the others much longer to surround me in one giant group hug.
Lily sniffled. "You're making the best choice for you, Scar. I know you are going to have the time of your life over there in Florida, especially with Nix...probably not Ry, though," She joked as we all laughed.
Jackson piped in. "But make sure to give my brother a little hell for me still."
"I definitely will," I smiled softly.
*Knock, Knock*
Someone lightly knocked on my door as we all turned to see my dad standing there.
"Hey guys, It's just about time to head out," He gave us a sympathetic smile. "Nix would have come up to get you, but Aunt Sophie is smothering him with hugs, and I'm afraid she may end up going on the plane with you guys."
I chuckled, wiping under my eyes with the back of my hand. "Okay."
"I'm surprised Aunt Sawyer isn't doing that to Ryder," Mia said.
My dad let out a laugh. "Oh, no, she is as well."
Luke spoke up. "Well, we will help haul your stuff down for you," He grabbed one of my suitcases, looking over at Jackson. "Hey...are you crying?"
His eyes were all red as he shook his head. "No..." A sweet smile appeared on my face as I gave him another hug.
"Only real men aren't afraid to cry in front of anyone," Dad said.
"Well, I may have shed a tear or two," Jackson admitted while we all smiled in amusement.
Mia reached down to take another bag of mine. "We better head downstairs."
Lily and Jackson took two more of my things before walking past my dad and out the door with Mia and Luke. I still stood in my room, looking around to take in everything one last time. "Tell everyone we will be down in a minute," My dad shouted at the others as he came into my room.
I turned towards him. "It feels strange knowing that later tonight I won't be telling you and mom goodnight and running upstairs to fall asleep in my own room...in my bed."
His face softened, walking closer to me. "No matter where you go, Scarlett, your room will always be here waiting for your return...just like your mom and I."
My brows gently knitted together, swallowing slowly. "I'm a little scared, dad," The corners of his lips slowly curved up at my words. "Do you think I'll like it in Florida?"
"Princess, it's natural to be nervous about big changes in your life. You're moving away from what you have known for most of your life, so give yourself and your emotions some slack," He placed his hand on my shoulder. "I can't say if you're going to like Florida, but I do know it's damn lucky to have you moving there. And when you have that one person in your life that you can't live without, I think you could live in a dumpster with them and never complain because all that matters is that you have each other."
I nodded, feeling another round of tears. "I love you, dad."
"I love you too, Scarlett," He wrapped me tightly in a warm hug. "I'm so proud of the woman you've become. You're going to do amazing things in this lifetime, and I can't wait to cheer you on through them all...even miles away," His voice was laced in sadness but filled with love.
My head lifted up at him, seeing his teary eyes. "Looks like mom isn't the only emotional one today."
Dad smiled, chuckling softly. "Definitely not," He went over to grab the last suitcase. "Let's get going before we make you guys miss your flight."
"Yes, let's go save Ryder and Phoenix from mom and Aunt Sophie."
"That's all you. I'm not looking to get on your mother's bad side today," He shook his head as I giggled.
"Smart move."
Once we got downstairs, everyone was gathered around in the entryway.
Ryder's mouth fell open. "Another suitcase? Jesus, how much shit do you have?"
"I think we might need a bigger plane," Nix teased as I rolled my eyes with a small smile.
"Hey, this was your idea, buddy. You get to be the bag boy today," Ryder smirked.
Phoenix's forehead creased, clearly not terribly amused by his new title. I tried to hold back a chuckle, walking over beside him. "Rethinking things, are we?"
His eyes met mine before he sweetly grinned. "Never. If I have to be someone's bag boy, it would only be for you, Shortcake."
I got up on my tippy toes, placing a kiss on his cheek. "Good because I have heard that the benefits of the job are incredible," My voice came out just above a whisper by his ear, pulling away.
Ryder narrowed his eyes. "What did she just say to you that has your cheeks all red? Actually, don't answer that."
"She was just telling me how excited she was about living with us," Nix had a goofy smile plastered on his face.
I softly chuckled. "Something like that."
Lily came over, wrapping her arms around Ryder's waist. "What's with that face, babe?"
"I'm just now starting to realize what I'm in for with these two freaks," He said in a joking manner.
She smiled. "Don't worry, when I come to visit, we will make sure to give them a run for their money."
Ryder laughed, giving her a quick kiss on the lips.
"We need to go now, or we will never make it out of the house," Uncle T urged everyone towards the front door.
Aunt Sophie pouted. "I mean, the second option doesn't sound so bad."
Phoenix shook his head. "Mom."
"Fine, fine, I hear you. Let's go!"
~~
When we got to the airport, we all rushed to go check in our bags, which Ryder and Nix had to each count one of mine as their own so I could claim the last two and print out our tickets.
After we were finally done, our huge group slowly made our way towards the security line, knowing that was the final stop before we had to say goodbye and part for good.
"Well," My mom's lip quivered, looking between Ryder and me. "I didn't expect to be dropping both my babies off today," She swung an arm around both of us.
"Love you, mom," Ryder patted the top of her back as we were almost getting strangled by her.
"Love you too, sweetie," She spoke in a broken up voice before placing each of her hands softly against my cheeks. "Call me at least every week, or I'll go crazy with your dad by myself. I want to hear everything about Florida and you."
I sniffled. "Every week? Try every day."
Her smile grew bigger. "Go reach your dreams, my little wolf. And I'll always be there if you need me."
I gave her one last long hug before I said goodbye to Aunt Ava and Uncle H. "Love you both so much."
Luke came up to me. "Make sure not to get eaten by any alligators over there."
"Can't make any promises," I joked as we both laughed, hugging once more. "Tell Chase he better treat you right, otherwise I will hunt him down and destroy him."
"I think he already knows that, but I'll tell him just to be sure."
"Bye, Lukey," I smiled.
I went over to Jackson. "Bye, Jacky."
"See you soon, Scar," He spoke in a sad voice, ruffling my hair up as I rolled my eyes.
Mia and Lily gave me one last famous double hug filled with more tears.
Just then, Aunt Sophie and Uncle T came over to me with loving smiles. "Bye, sweet girl. Keep those boys on their toes for me, will you?"
A small laugh escaped me. "Of course. Bye, Aunt Sophie."
"If either of them gives you any trouble, call me, and I will deal with those two knuckleheads," Uncle T winked.
"Oh, I won't hesitate to call," I told him, giving them both hugs.
Last but not least, I went over to my dad to get one more goodbye in. "I'll text you when we land."
He softly smiled down at me. "Sounds good...bye, princess."
"Bye, dad."
I walked over between Ryder and Nix as we followed the long security line filled with people. Once we made it through smoothly, we turned around to give one final wave to our families. My shoulders slightly fell as my heart ached for a moment, watching them all disappear off in the distance.
Phoenix rubbed my back in a comforting way. "Are you okay, baby?"
My head turned to him. "Yeah, I'm okay," I spoke in a quiet voice.
He slowly nodded, leaning down to give me a tender kiss.
"You guys ready?" Ryder glanced over his shoulder while Nix had his arm around my waist. They both patiently waited for my answer.
Suddenly a bright smile slowly formed on my lips, looking between them. "Let's go home."