Nate finally brought it up. Lena had thought about it before, so when he asked her now, she didn’t
even hesitate with her answer.
“What about you? Why note back and work here?” she countered instead.
Nate stilled for a moment. “I can’t right now.”
He didn’t offer an exnation, and Lená didn’t push. Instead, she said, “I don’t want to move
overseas.”
That was the end of it. Sensing her mood dip, Nate pulled her close. “I’ll apply toe back next
year.”
“Okay,” Lena murmured, her eyes fluttering shut.
“You get some rest. I’ll take a quick shower,” Nate said, getting up and heading to the bathroom.
Lena opened her eyes but didn’t move, staring nkly at the ceiling. She’d always thought long–
distance
rtionships were no big deal, but now she knew just how exhausting they could be.
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Suddenly, Nate’s phone buzzed. Lena nced at the screen, spotting the name. “Nate, it’s Retta,”
she called out.
“Answer it,” Nate replied casually from the bathroom, his tonepletely unfazed.
Lena smirked as she picked up the call. “Hi, Retta.”
There was a pause on the other end before Retta’s voice came through. “Where’s Nate?”
“He’s in the shower,” Lena replied, adding with a little extra cheer, “He told me to take the call if it
was important.”
“I just wanted to remind him that Prof. Ridley ising the day after tomorrow. He needs to attend
the meeting. He should head back as soon as possible.”
“Got it. I’ll let him know. Anything else?” Lena asked, keeping her tone casual, though she knew this
wasn’t just
about a reminder.
Retta could’ve texted or waited. She’d called now, at this exact moment, for a reason.
Retta spoke again. “Lena, do you really think this kind of rtionship with Nate canst?”
And there it was. Retta wasn’t even trying to hide her feelings.
“I don’t know,” Lena answered. “But I’m not worried about forever. I’m focused on the love we have
right now.”
Lena wasn’t trying to pick a fight with Retta; she was just being real. Nobody could promise forever,
but right now? Nate was the only one she cared about.
Retta went silent for a moment, then hung up without another word.
Lena snorted softly, setting Nate’s phone on the windowsill. With a quick tap, she opened the
automatic curtains.
She nced up at the night sky, but something below snagged her attention–a sleek ck car
parked outside. It was definitely not one she recognized.
The window was rolled down just enough for her to spot a figure inside. She squinted, trying to
make out the face, but before she could, the window slid up, and the car drove off.
“What are you staring at?”
Nate was fresh out of the shower.
“Just the stars and the moon,” Lena said, turning back to him and handing over his phone. She
ryed Retta’s reminder about the professor but left out the rest of their chat.
Nate knew exactly how Retta felt about him, and the fact he wasn’t doing anything about it said
enough. If it didn’t matter to him, it didn’t matter to her.
***
The next day around noon, Lena texted me: [Do you want to see Nate while he’s here?]
I mean, duh. Of course, I wanted to see him–Nate didn’t visit often. But there was one small
problem: I was still stuck in Lindale.
Not because I wanted to stay. No, it was because Demi refused to leave.
I’d seen the awful setup she was living in, and there was no way I could just walk away and leave
her here.
I’d already spent a whole day trying to talk her intoing back with me, but she kept shutting me
down with the same line: “Keira, you should go. I’m fine here.”
Fine? Yeah, right. I wasn’t buying it.
“Demi,” I said, “If you don’t give me the real reason you’re staying, I’m not leaving. I’ll stay here with
you.‘
She caved under my stare. “Keira,” she finally said, her voice shaking, “if I go back, I won’t survive.”
She swallowed hard before continuing. “I… I identally found out someone’s secret.‘