I winced, knowing how big of a crush she had on the guy. "Yeah, I saw her take off down towards the gazebo looking pretty upset. From having to leave Jace?”
She nodded and let out a heavy sigh. "I should probably go see if she's okay." She rose up on her tiptoes, and her lips brushed mine. "We'll talk about this later, okay?"
"Okay."
As she started to walk away, I grabbed her hand and yanked her hard, causing her to crush into my chest.
"Sierra, you have me. You always have. You always will. I don't care if we're in Florida, Georgia, or freaking Norway. Where you go, I go, and that will never change."
"Jeremy—" she began, but I held a finger to her lips, silencing her.
"I love you, Sierra. We'll figure it out. Together."
She smiled softly and nodded. "I love, you, too. I don’t know what I’d do without you."
The grin on my face couldn’t have been wider if I’d stretched my skin. I was that sure about what I was doing.
“Then it’s a good thing you’ll never have to find out.” I gave her a reassuring smile as she slipped out the front door. Instead of following her, however, I didn't move from my spot in the living room. After a few minutes of going over my game plan, I knew what I had to do.
I had plans to make. And my first stop? Mr. and Mrs. Sullivan. As I made my way towards the kitchen, I prayed like hell that they'd agree.
If they didn’t, I’d figure something else out.
When my parents sat Lexi and me down and told us that we were moving, I barely had time to react before she let out a sob and ran from the room. To say I was shell-shocked would've been an understatement. To be honest, I wasn't sure what I was feeling until Jeremy walked in, and in true Jeremy fashion, he made a joke, trying to elicit even the faintest smile.
Only, this time, he couldn't. And, as soon as I saw his face, I knew how I felt.
Heartbroken.
It's not that I wasn't ready to be an independent eighteen-year-old college freshman. I was. At the same time, I understood why Dad had accepted the job transfer. Grandma Nancy had recently suffered a stroke, and he wanted to be near her, especially with not knowing how much longer she had. I was torn. I wanted to be with my family. I wasn't financially ready to strike out on my own, and I couldn't imagine paying living expenses while trying to pass my college classes. I also couldn’t expect my parents to pay for me to live in the dorms when I could easily live with them.
But how could I leave Jeremy? He was my best friend. He was the love of my life. He was my other half, my whole heart, my everything. How could I walk away from the greatest man I'd ever known?
Most people would scoff, saying that we’re too young, too inexperienced, too naïve to be so in love, but I knew my heart. It’s been Jeremy’s for longer than I can remember.
They say when you know, you know. I don’t exactly know who they are, but they’re right. And I knew. I just didn’t know what I was going to do about my future.
I felt like I was being pulled in two completely different directions, and I had no idea which side would win out.
At least, I didn't until Jeremy made me realize I didn't have to choose—just another reason to love him even more. It still made me wonder, however. Could I really have both? His reassuring kiss made me believe it, and even though we had a lot of talking to do, his kiss put me at ease. We'd figure it out. I wouldn't lose him. I never would, and with my whole heart, I believed it.
But my sister was a different story, even if she was tight-lipped about her feelings. Ever since Jace had surprised us all by shipping off for the Army right after graduation, she'd been in a funk. Jeremy suspected that something had gone down between them before he’d left, but if it had, she hadn't said a word.
I walked down to the gazebo, where Jeremy had said he'd seen her go. Sure enough, she was there when I approached. She was hunched over, her face buried in her hands. Her shoulders were shaking as sobs racked through her. My heart shattered for her.
I knew she'd had a thing for Jace for all of high school, but he'd put her in the friend zone and never let her out. She’d watched from the sidelines for far too long as he’d dated Mallory, who’d hated the close friendship Jace and Lexi shared. She’d pined for him much in the way I had for Jeremy before we’d gotten together. But, unlike my boyfriend, Jace hadn’t seen Lexi that way. Or, at least, that's what he'd claimed.
Pretty much everyone at Navarre High School knew they had a thing for each other except for those two. It didn’t make any sense, and I’d always thought they’d get together, but graduation had come and gone, just like Jace. And now that we were moving, Lexi didn’t know when she’d ever see him again. If she ever would. I couldn’t imagine being in her shoes, so I wanted to do whatever I could to comfort my baby sister.
Lexi's head lifted slightly as she heard my approaching footsteps. I sat next to her on the bench and wrapped an arm around her shoulder, pulling her in close. She laid her head in the crook of my arm, her soft sniffles echoing in the gazebo around us.
"Hey, you know Ohio isn't the end of the world, right? I mean, sure, it's not the beach, but think of all the Reds games we can go to now."
Her shoulders shook as she gave a small laugh at the mention of our dad's—and our—baseball team. "Senior year, Sierra. It's my senior year!" Her voice was a cross between a wail and a cry, and my heart hurt for her.
I sighed as I ran soothing circles on her arm. "I know. It sucks, and it seems unfair that, after spending nearly your whole life in Navarre, you're going to have to graduate in a new place. But don't you think, if Dad had any other choice, he'd have found a way to stay?"
She nodded. "I know. And I understand, but like you said, it just seems so unfair. Not that I’d ever ask Dad to stay… Not with Grandma’s condition. It’s just…" Her voice cracked as another wave of tears streamed down her cheeks. "We can't leave. Not now. Now that he's finally—" She stopped abruptly as her face reddened to the color of the ripest tomato.
I raised an eyebrow. Okay, maybe Jeremy was right.
"Now that what, Lexi?" I asked, trying—and failing—not to sound too interested.
She sighed and shook her head. "Nothing. It doesn't matter. None of it matters. In three weeks, we'll be in Ohio and Jace will be… God knows where."
I gave her a reassuring squeeze. "Hey, it's called phones. E-mail. Technology is a pretty cool thing," I said. "You guys are best friends and have been for years. A little bit of distance isn't going to change that."
Lexi sniffled and shrugged. "Do you think so?"
"Even if he won't admit it out loud, Jace cares about you," I told her. "One way or another, he'll find you."
She wiped her eyes, looking hopeful for the first time since my parents had told us the big news. "God, I hope you're right, Sierra. I just… I can't imagine my life without him, you know?" she asked.
It was rhetorical, but I nodded anyway. If she felt even a fraction for Jace what I felt for Jeremy, then yeah. I definitely got it.
And that was when a fierce wave of determination crashed over me. Even if it meant saying goodbye to my family and working three jobs to pay my bills, I was not leaving Jeremy. Not if I could help it.
She must've seen the look on my face, because she sat up and wiped her nose. "God, Sierra, I'm sorry. I was only thinking of myself. What about you? What are you going to do?" Her eyes widened. "Oh, God. You're going to stay here and I'll be all alone. I know that sounds selfish, but I can't help it. I feel like everything is falling apart. What will I do without you there? Hell, I’ll even miss that big lug Jeremy. I’ve gotten a little used to him being around for the last…oh, ten or so years," she said, giving me a smile and a shoulder bump.