GARRETT
I never got those cheesy airport goodbye scenes in those rom-com movies that girls love, but for the first time in my life, I’m actually living out one of those.
And I gotta be honest, it feels a little surreal, and a lot…weird. It’s the same kind of feeling I get when I have overdue work left for the day, or when I’m running through my project overview in my mind. Like something’s just…not right.
I frown and look down at Julianna, who is walking beside me with her small luggage bag rolling along on the other side. She doesn’t seem to feel the same way, so I decide against talking about it.
We soon come to a stop outside the departure hall, turning to face each other.
“So,” I fold my arms and grin down at her. “This is it.”
“Uh-huh.” Jules bites her lip in a smile, a habit of hers I’ve come to love.
Wait—love? Let me just backtrack on that. A habit I…adore.
Yeah, much better. Even if we’re dating now, I definitely shouldn’t be obsessed so early on in the relationship. Plus she lives across the country, and I’ll only see her six months later. Getting attached this soon is just emotional suicide.
“You should head in,” I tell her before I can say anything stupid. “Just follow the signs, or ask an officer, and you’ll be alright.”
Jules nods, her gaze not meeting mine, her fingers playing with her hair. She has her waves in a loose braid over her shoulder today, which makes her look so fucking gorgeous that I want to take her back to my apartment with me, flight be damned.
“Thanks for everything.” She finally looks up at me with those gorgeous baby blues. “This was the most amazing weekend I’ve ever had in my life.”
“Same here,” I say solemnly. “You taught me how to make actual pancakes. You practically gave me new life.”
Jules grins and rolls her eyes. “It’s about time someone did.” She pauses then, rocking back on her heels. “But before I go, I have something for you.”
A kiss? Jesus, let it be a kiss.
I school my expression into polite curiosity. “Oh yeah? What is it?”
It isn’t a kiss, because Jules starts digging around in her bag. I try not to look disappointed, but my face changes to blank confusion when Jules pulls out a potted plant the size of her palm.
“Here.”
“Ah… What’s that?”
“Your new pet. Remember I said you’d kill anything other than a cactus? So yeah, I got you a succulent. Not exactly a cactus, but they’re in the same family.” Jules grins, holding the plant up to my face and waving it under my nose. “It won’t take up much of your time, just put it in your balcony and water it once in a while. Even you can’t blow it.”
I stare at the plant she’s holding in front of me, not knowing what to say. No one’s ever got me a present quite like this. It’s so damned cute of her to do this. So damned sweet.
The feeling of wrongness inside me intensifies a thousand times.
Jules looks worried at the expression she sees on my face, and her smile fades a little. “What’s wrong, you don’t like it? It’s fine if you don’t, I’ll just take it with me—“
“No, I like it,” I say immediately, taking the plant from her. “It’ll remind me of you. These two round things here can be your ears, and this is your nose…”
Jules rolls her eyes again, giving me another exasperated smile. “You’re gonna kill it, aren’t you?”
I return her grin. “I’ll try not to.”
We stand by awkwardly, smiling at our feet like two lovestruck teenagers until Jules seems to make up her mind suddenly. She braces her hands on my shoulders, gets on her toes, and gives me a peck on my lips.
“Thanks for everything,” she whispers, gazing up at me earnestly. “I had an amazing time.”
And I have to tell myself not to grab her to me. “Sure you don’t wanna stay a couple more days?”
Jules shakes her head reluctantly. “I really want to, but I can’t. I’ll see you again in six months?”
It sounds to me like six years.
“My offer still stands,” I remind her. “Anytime you want to come back here, just say the word and I’ll have you covered.”
“Okay. I’ll think about it.” Jules bites her lips, and her gaze drops down to my mouth again.
And I’m thinking the same thing she is. “One more for the road?”
“Yes, please.”
We kiss again, longer this time. There’s a noisy crowd around us, and a small plant awkwardly lodged between our bodies, but shit, this kiss is like nothing I ever had before. It’s gonna last me the six months until I see Jules again, and so I get down to committing every single detail to memory, from the way she tastes to the feel of her waist in my hand.
We finally break apart when we can’t breathe.
“I should go,” Jules gasps.
“Yeah.” I nod, catching my own breath. “Won’t wanna miss your flight.”
I actually want that very fucking much, but I know that’s not going to keep her here.
Jules takes her luggage handle reluctantly. “Think of me often, okay?”
“I will. Remember to breathe when you’re on the plane. And call me when you land.”
“Okay, I’ll call you. Take care, and all the best for your project.” Jules lingers a little more, then finally forces a smile. “Bye for now, I guess.”
I nod once, stuffing my other hand into my pocket so she won’t see how tightly they are clenched. “Bye.”
I watch as Jules heads into the departure hall where I can’t follow. She keeps turning back to look at me, waving intermittently, and I crane my neck and watch her make her way through the crowd, until finally, she gives me a final smile. Her blond head disappears around a bend.
And I’m left holding onto a fucking plant instead of the girl I’ve gone and fallen in love with.
For the next hour I hang around at the airport like some druggie waiting for a fix, texting Jules all the way until it’s time for take-off and she turns off her phone.
Only when her plane leaves the airport do I get in a cab and head back to the city alone. When I get back to my empty apartment, I put the plant on the stand beside my bed and water it with a small glass, then I spend the next couple hours trying to work on my project.
I fail miserably, of course, because my gaze keeps going back to my phone on my desk. What I’m really doing is waiting for Jules’ call.
Six months to go until I get to hold her again. One hundred and eighty-two days.
This is gonna suck so bad.