"You almost ready?" Jack asked me as I fastened my earring.
"Yes." I said walking out into the living room. "I'm good."
"You look nice." He told me and I actually heard Ty scoff from the couch.
"Thank you." I half smiled. "Well, see you later boys."
"Have fun you two." Dawson said.
"Not too much fun." Ty teased.
"Oh, I'll try." I whispered to him.
Jack still had barely said three words to me as we walked to the riverwalk where all the restaurants were, he just quietly held my hand. Dinner was almost awkward, something Jack and I have never faced in our near two year and a half year relationship. It was like he was trying to make small talk, like he was avoiding something. After dinner we ended up walking the Riverwalk to look at the skyline across the Hudson River.
"Are you cold?" Jack asked me.
"Kind of, but it's fine." I said.
"Don't be stupid Peyton," He said, taking off his blazer and covering my arms with it.
"Thank you." I said and the silence returned, but I couldn't bare it any longer. "So are we gonna talk about it?"
"I don't know, are we?" Jack said, shoving his hands in his pockets.
"You were waiting for me to say something?" I asked.
"Is that surprising?" He responded.
"Honestly, kind of." I said and he quirked a brow at me. "Jack, I can't keep telling you the same things over and over again. There is nothing going on with me and Trevor."
"I don't want you to tell me the same things over and over again." Jack said calmly.
"Okay, good." I said.
"I want you to tell me who your choice is." He said.
"What?"
"Peyton, I was serious last night when I asked you to pick him or me." Jack explained.
"Why? Why would you ever ask me that?" I stopped walking to face him.
"Because if you love me, then the decision should be easy. It should really be no decision at all."
"Jack, you know that I love you. I love you more than I've ever loved anyone in my life. We talk about spending the rest of our lives together."
"I know we do." He said, still almost monotone.
"So what's the problem?" I asked.
"Trevor."
"How?" I asked. "What about him is a problem? Beside your own insecurities driving you to the point that I am going to cheat on you, or leave you, for Trevor. Who by the way, has been dating my best friend at school and roommate for almost two years, so you have even less to worry about than you did in high school. And considering in high school you had nothing to worry about, that means you literally have negative things to worry about happening between Trevor and I."
"Don't get cute with me about this Peyton, I'm serious." He sighed. "I just don't think it's fair that I have to feel like this all the time."
"You're right, it's not but that's not my issue to bare." I said.
"Wow." Jack interrupted me.
"Tell me how it is then. Tell me how you convincing yourself that I'm going to do some horrible thing that leaves you heart broken is remotely my fault. I can't control how you think."
"No, but you can control who you talk to."
"Do you hear yourself?" I asked him. "This is Trevor we're talking about."
"Trust me, I know who we're talking about."
"One of my best friends, one of your best friends for that matter. You just expect me to drop him, sever all ties because you don't trust me?"
"Hey, hey, hey, I never said I don't trust you." Jack interjected.
"So you don't trust him? Is there something about him I should know then? Because if he's dating Chris and he's gross-"
"No it's not that I don't trust Trevor either."
"So then what, Jack? Help me get there. Help me understand why you feel like this so I can stop it."
"I don't trust it." Jack said.
"I am now somehow more confused than when we started." I said.
"I just know, I would feel better if you spent less time with him and more with me." Jack said.
"I understand that, I would love to spend more time with you but I am a full time college student, studying at a college Trevor attends." I explained.
"Not anymore, he signed." Jack said.
"Yes he did sign, however his girlfriend and his best friends still go to the school so he does come back from time to time." I explained and Jack scoffed. "What? You want me to leave everytime he comes to visit."
"Transfer to a school here." Jack said.
"Oh, Jack come on don't do this." I sighed.
"I'm serious, there's plenty of great nursing schools in New Jersey and you can live with us."
"And what if you get traded, huh? I transfer again? Plus, Jack Boston University is one of the best schools in the country, it's almost Ivy League, I'd be insane to transfer our of their nursing program." I said.
"Well then Peyton, I don't know what to tell you." Jack said. "I'm giving you options here, you have to meet me in the middle somewhere."
"Your options are move or drop one of my best friends." I said. "You're not giving me much to work with here, J."
"Trying my best." He started walking again.
"Well, then try harder!" I raised my voice slightly. "Cause ya know what if you loved me you wouldn't constantly bust my balls about this when I've told you it's nothing. While we're on the bullshit subject of using 'If you loved me' as a pass to get what you want." I said.
"It's not a pass, Peyton it's the truth." He told me, running a hand through his hair. "Peyton you go back to Boston and I stay here and we barely talk between my work schedule and our different sleep schedules. When you're here we spend most of the time fighting, and then I'm sticking. you on a plane come Sunday night. It's getting old and it's not worth it." Jack said.
"What are you trying to say?" I asked.
"I'm not saying anything, I am asking do you think what we're doing is working?" He asked.
"Jack, if you're trying to break up with me then do it, I'm not helping you." I told him, fighting tears.
"Peyton it's not that I want to, I just-"
"Yeah, got it." I said, handing his blazer back and starting to walk ahead of him to the apartment.
I entered and went straight to Jack's room to change and shower, once that was done I got in the bed for what definitely felt like the last time and started to cry until I heard the door open.
"The boys are playing video games." Jack said. "I'm sorry, I'll sleep on the floor."
"No, don't be stupid this is your bed. I'll sleep on the floor." I said.
"No, Peyton stay." Jack said.
"You know you can just sleep in the bed. We've done it for two years, one more night won't kill us." I said and Jack said nothing, he just crawled into bed. "Goodnight, Jack."
"Goodnight, Peyton." He responded before we both drifted off to sleep.
The next morning, I woke up first as usual and began to gather my things silently as to not wake him. Which is easy, as he sleeps like he's dead. Once I was all ready to go, I took one last look at his room and his sleeping figure and rested the ring he gave me on the nightside table where I slept and the necklace as well. I quietly pulled the door closed behind me and left Ty and Dawson a note on the counter on my way out.
Boys,
Caught an earlier flight, didn't want to wake you.
Miss you already
xoxo
P
I called my Uber and waited silently in the Lobby until it pulled up. Fiddling with the folded piece of paper in my hands until the last possible second when I approached the doorman.
"Excuse me, can you give this to Jack Hughes the tenant in 2210?"
"Of course ma'am."
"Thank you so much."
I grabbed my bag and wheeled it out the doors as the nice Uber driver put it in the trunk for me.
"Peyton!" I heard over my shoulder and saw Ty running toward me. "You thought you could leave without saying goodbye?"
"Oh, Brian O'Connor quote. Low blow." I shoved him as he roped me into a tight hug.
"Where's your man?" He asked me and I completely lost control, sobbing uncontrollably in his arms. "No, Peyton. No tell me you're kidding."
"I wish I was." I cried.
"Oh, god I'm so sorry." He hugged me tighter. "God, I am gonna kill him."
"No, no, he had a point. It wasn't working." I wiped my eyes. "I don't want to miss my flight."
"Yeah, I know. Um, call me as soon as you land, okay? I love you, kid."
"I love you too." I hugged him one more time before getting in the car.
After the flight from hell, I ubered safely back to the dorms and made my way into my room where Christina and Trevor were tangled up in her bed as he was here for the weekend.
"Peyton?" He asked groggily as he woke up. "You're back so early, I thought you would take all the Jack time you could get. Holy shit is it Monday?" He panicked, grabbing his phone.
"No, no, you were right I'm back early." I laughed and he rolled all the way over to look at me.
"Why?" He asked seriously as he sat up. "Peyton, you're puffy."
"No, I'm tired." I lied.
"Peyton..." He trailed off and I wouldn't look at him, staring at the ceiling and biting my lip until I heard his bare feet hit the floor and flop over to me. "P." was all he got out as his hand touched my shoulder and I fell to absolute pieces.
"Alright, it's okay. It's okay." He hugged me tight, practically keeping me on my feet as I could barely stand on my own. "Let it out, I'm so sorry." Trevor comforted me as he guided my body to a sitting position on the floor beside him.
And so I did, I sat on the floor in the middle of my dorm room and sobbed in my best friends arms until Christina woke up, and then I told the story, and then I cried on Christina, and then I cried so hard I threw up. Somehow I fell asleep on the bathroom floor and woke up in my bed, and by somehow I mean Trevor. Who was sitting in my desk chair when I woke up.
"Hey," I greeted him and he jumped out of his chair. "Relax, I'm not in the hospital I got my heart broken." I laughed, reaching for the water bottle "someone" had left me.
"Where's Christina?" I asked.
"She had a sorority thing." He explained.
"Oh shit, what time is it?" I asked.
"Relax, you're excused we said you had the stomach flu. Just rest, okay?"
"Okay, thank you for everything."
"Always, Peyton. Dom's on his way over with your favorite ice cream." Trevor said. "Which I also just realized is Jack's favorite too, okay changing the order to the second favorite I am all over it." He dialed his phone as he walked out of the room, making me giggle. "Dom! Okay, scratch the vanilla with butter scotch, we're going mint chip with chocolate sprinkles."