The school year practically slipped through my fingers and before I knew it, we had finished exams and graduation and prom were around the corner. I got accepted into Harvard and well, all of the other schools I applied for. I still remember the day I got my acceptance letter. It was a school morning and I had collected the brown envelope from my mailbox silently. I brought it to school and waited until lunch before I presented it at the table. Everyone was there; Jace, Ari, Dylan, James, Theo and Thai.
"What's that?" Dylan was the first to notice it. They all read the address and their eyes grew wide knowingly.
"Open it!" Jace encouraged and I shook my head at him.
"I want Ari to open it for me," I had replied and she looked at me questioningly. I nodded telling her it was okay and she quickly snatched it up. She tore the envelope revealing its contents and read the letter. She looked up at me with wide eyes and then squealed.
"You got in! You got in!" she jumped up and down excited. Everyone joined in on her cheering with the exception of Dylan, "They are offering you a full scholarship and they want you to join them for an early summer program!"
"That means I'd have to leave at the beginning of summer," I noted aloud.
"I mean, we won't get to enjoy the beautiful beaches together but this is your dream school," Ari told me and I nodded not feeling as excited as I should have been, "What's wrong?"
I glanced at Dylan and he forced an encouraging smile in my direction but it didn't warm me. Because I saw through his façade, I saw the hurt in his eyes and I knew it reflected in mine too. This wasn't how I was supposed to feel. All my hard work was paying off and all I could think about was Dylan.
"I know this is what I wanted but something doesn't feel right," I confessed and they all stared at me in silence. Everyone seemed to know my problem but no one said anything. We all sat in silence for the rest of lunch that day and then returned to our regular classes.
Now it was two days away from prom and four away from graduation and I felt the same way. Dylan was obviously worried because our time together was coming to an end and so was I but we were still trying to make the best of it.
"Come on Skylar, let's go cash my dress. Months of searching and I think I've finally found the one," Ari suddenly emerged from the changing room and grabbed my hand. We were in a store shopping for her prom dress.
"Wow! Really, are you sure you don't want to try the rest of the dresses in the store?" I replied sarcastically as she pulled me to the cashier.
"Excuse me, I'm sorry I'm not simple minded like you," she teased.
"I'm not simple minded!" I pouted.
"I know, I just thought it would be a good comeback," she chuckled.
"Well it wasn't," I stuck my tongue out at her.
"How mature," she said rolling her eyes.
"I know," I nodded.
"So about Harvard..."
"I accepted. I'm leaving the day after graduation," I told her simply.
"You don't sound happy about it," she remarked and I remained silent, "You know, it's okay to follow your heart."
"No one asked me to stay," I muttered quietly but she heard me.
"Because we all want what's best for you. No one wants to be the person to ask you to throw away your dream and stay," she informed me.
"Harvard doesn't come along every day, especially not full scholarships," I pointed out.
"Oregon offered you a full scholarship also," Ari commented.
"I know but-"
"Your dream school is Harvard but you don't want to leave Dylan."
"It's not just Dylan. It mostly is but...you're my best friend Ari and we've been through everything together. I don't know what it would be like without you. We'd only talk over the phone and I don't want that, I want to be there with you. And Jace...I grew up with Jace. He's been there all my life and I don't want to leave my brother; I kind of keep him focused. James, he's like a brother to me, no matter how annoying he is, he's always there making me laugh," I explained as we left the store, "And Dylan, well, he's everything to me now and I don't think this love I have for him will go away."
"There is something called long distance relationships," Ari sang in my ears, "But they never work out."
"Exactly and I really want to be here for Dylan and the twins and I have gotten so close."
"You've been telling me reasons why you can't go and I have yet to hear a reason why you can't stay, so what's the problem?" Ari asked me and I frowned.
"He hasn't asked me to stay," I repeated, "And I'm still not sure if I want to give up Harvard."
"Well your time is running out," she pointed out and I sighed deeply.
"I know."
"You'll make the right choice Skylar. I know you will," Ari reassured me.
"I hope so," I ran my hands through my hair. Ari frowned slightly before suddenly smiling brightly in my direction. She grabbed my hand in hers and pulled me along behind her.
"I know what will cheer you up," she remarked.
The familiar food court appeared before us and she carried me towards a table with familiar faces. Dylan smiled when he saw me and I mirrored it almost immediately. Next to him was Jace who was grinning in my direction also. I also noticed James who was stuffing his face with a burger and a milkshake. The twins were sitting at the table also, watching him in disgust. I let out a low giggle at the scene before me.
Ari and I joined them at the table and I grabbed James' milkshake and drank some. He frowned in my direction, his mouth hanging open leaving the food in his mouth on display.
"You just took my food away without asking," his words barely formed, "I know for sure our tongues don't tangle so who gave you that right?"
"Let's see," I said and noticing that the twins were still frowning at James, I laughed lightly before continuing, "All those years of you volunteering to eat half my lunch even though our tongues didn't tangle."
"Well...whatever," he brushed me off and continued to devour his food.
"This is so disgusting," Thai commented.
"I agree," Theo added.
"It needs to stop," Thai shook his head.
"I'm almost done," James snapped with mustard on the corner of his lips.
"Do what you gotta do man. Lick out the wrapper if you have to," Theo teased leaning back.
"Asshole," James muttered.
"De rien," Theo smirked.
"Anyways," I said cautiously looking back and forth from Theo and James before continuing, "Why are you guys here?"
"We came to meet up with you guys," Jace told me and I nodded understandingly, "Ari told us you guys were at the mall seeing as you wouldn't answer your phone."
"I left my phone at home by accident," I explained, "So why did you come? Missed me?"
"No. Dylan couldn't stop bitching about where you were and how he felt he was going to die if he had to take another breath without you by his side," Jace replied dryly.
"Bro that was deep. What was that? Shakespeare?" Dylan teased with a silly grin on his face, "Continue reading those books and you'll have a girlfriend in no time."
"Screw you," Jace chuckled lightly as did everyone else.
"I don't care what anybody says, I'm still not used to this,' Ari commented referring to Jace and Dylan being friends again.
"Well you better because..." Dylan cleared his throat and spoke in a girly voice, "I'd die if I had to take another breath without Jace by my side."
"You just don't know when to stop," Jace shook his head playfully as our laughter died down a little.