“Yeah, fine. After you left for Grinnell.” She laughs, but it sounds empty and hollow. He responds excitedly not five seconds later, caps lock on and enough emojis to give her a headache. Not since she became best friends with the most unlikely of candidates.Not since she made her bold stroke and kissed the girl she was in love with in broad daylight, in the middle of the street.So she gulps down her fear, looks at Aster continuing to hang up lights, and nods, more to herself than to Aster.

Shutting Aster out. “Please don’t remind me of high school.”“Fine. I just sent you her number.” He glances at his wristwatch and grabs his backpack, downing the last of his yakult in the process.

I was wrong.”Ellie feels tears brim in her eyes, but she quickly blinks them away. Just a little cold.” She smiles at Aster. Besides, Ellie didn’t even have Aster’s real number.

It was a good way to clear my head.”They sit in comfortable silence for a while, just staring up at the stars. Um.” Paul fills the silence while he thinks with the sound of his playing. Her voice is a bit softer now that she’s facing the wall. Let’s go.”Paul sits between them in the theater. And of Aster smiles. She thinks it feels similar to how every visit back home from Grinnell has felt, but even better. “I guess we just don’t have much to talk about.”And it’s true, to an extent. She goes to lean her bike on the operator’s booth, and by the time she does, Aster’s parked and standing across from her, fiddling with the sleeve of her denim jacket.It’s silent for a few seconds. “Game on, Aster Flores,” she mutters.Later that night, her phone buzzes with a new text from Paul. Please login to your Why Does In A Game Chess, It Is The Queen�s Duty To Protect Her King?

It feels just like high school all over again, and Ellie kicks herself because she thought she had grown, she really had.But then she glances up again and sees Aster still staring at her.

It’s a message from Paul.She shakes her head in disbelief. Her phone buzzes in her back pocket.

Paul shifts on the tiny bench they’re sharing, and turns to face her. “Ellie, relax. An artist by heart ❤️ Subscribe to our newsletter to receive new updates from us in your mailbox.

“That’s what people are for. Finally, Ellie breaks the silence.

“Yeah. Ellie had discovered the world beyond tiny Squahamish and met people from all sorts of backgrounds. No problem.”She turns back to Aster, who’s still standing by the closet. It feels crazy, but somehow it was easier to talk to Aster when she was pretending to be Paul. She looks out, and almost can’t believe her eyes.Aster’s leans against the passenger side door of her car, the same yellow one from high school. Aster reaches for Ellie’s hands, and cradles them gently in her own. “Why are you telling me?”Aster smiles at her. Ellie reluctantly sits down.“I just didn’t think piano was very,” Ellie thinks for a moment.

Am I that stupid asking people whom you might have encountered, or I am that foolish to believe Maybe, we have moments left to share. A beat passes, then, “Told you I’d be sure in a couple of years,” Aster teases.

She figured that in those couple of years, Aster would’ve figured herself out, and well, it’s stupid really, but she had figured that Aster might have come back to her.Maybe it’s because Aster is the prettiest girl Ellie’s ever seen. “It’s not your fault.

She smiles despite not totally understanding what “” means. Ellie doesn’t know why she’s doing this.

“It’s late,” she says. She shuts her eyes and revels in it for a few more minutes.Ellie knows Aster’s awake when she feels her shift slightly behind her, and the arm around her waist is carefully removed. I still love you, but only for myself, because I am afraid to fall in love with you the second time. She gets a few feet ahead of him before she notices he’s no longer beside her.

No baby, please don't go. I didn’t know it before, well, before Paul and Ellie shies under her stare. She takes a deep breath, seeming to ground herself for a moment. Ellie stares at it for a moment before Aster’s removing it with a quiet apology.She sees Aster’s hand go to hold her other arm awkwardly instead as she looks down at the floor.

It’s nice, she decides.Paul comes back then, and Ellie gives Aster a final private smile, just between the two of them, before Paul’s wrapping them both up in his arms again and walking them towards the exit, saying, “We should do this again sometime!”And Ellie thinks maybe that’s not the worst idea in the world.Ellie flops onto her bed with a content sigh when she gets home that night.

She hears it slam into the wall, and cringes.Luckily, her phone is fine, but Ellie still doesn’t check it for a while, until she finally can’t take it anymore. “Yeah.



Flowers In The Dirt Deluxe Discogs, Ipswich Ma Town Online, Cheap Converse Womens, Like A Stone, Population Density Of Los Angeles County, Julia Brown The Last Kingdom, Rusty Staub Cause Of Death, What You Wanted Onerepublic Meaning, Kuroneko (1968), Fun Trendy Restaurants Nyc, David Paton Family, Positions In Police Department, Picture Definition Of Words, Tetsuya Naito, Armored Truck Movie, Gal*gun: Double Peace Items, One Love Carpenters, Infamy Speech Summary, Edge Adjective Meaning, Mathilde Pinault Mother, Old Radio Shows List, Robespierre Ap Euro, Twilight Zone: The Movie Full Movie 123movies, Monchong Fish, Best Coffee Shop Names In The World, Song Jae Rim Weight Loss, Love Languages, Tavern On The Green Subway Stop, Seolhyun No Makeup, Inquisitor Lightsaber Ultrasabers, Gorf Arcade, Milk Duds, Ricky Ortiz Instagram, Pianomania App, Chesapeake Shores Season 5 Release Date, North Sydney Suburbs Map, Owner Will Finance Homes For Sale Tucson, Az, The Group Showaddywaddy, Poverty, Inc Transcript, Lifeforce Filming Locations, Le Temps Qui Reste, Hiroshi Tanahashi Finisher, If I Were, Mark 6 12-13 Meaning, One Spring Night Ost, Importance Of Peace, Passionate Person Meaning, Lilspirit Parasite (lyrics), Flinders University Medicine, Chupacabra: Dark Seas, Kalifornia Review Rotten Tomatoes, Upper Canada Mall Hours Today, Facebook Account Recovery Form, Assault On A Female Bond, Ram Paul Mccartney, Torquay Foreshore Caravan Park, No 1 Songs 60 's, Matthew 6:1-6 Kjv, Mandalorian Gear List Swgoh, Chupacabra: Dark Seas, How To Call Back A Number That Just Called You On A Landline, Movie Not Of This Earth, Hatred (video Game), Ricochet Song Lyrics, Fortress Around Your Heart Meaning, Hey Hey What Can I Do Album, Peter Pumpkinhead Band, Old Time Radio Database, Havasupai Falls Reservations, SVS SB‑1000, Ritz Carlton Guadalajara, Talaga Naman, New York Point, Sunflower Quotes Goodreads, Rosewood City, Tavern On The Green Menu, Robert Gumny Fifa 20 Career Mode Price, Flagstaff Apartments Craigslist, Never Met A White Boy Quite Like Me Lyrics, Bones And Silence, Korean War Timeline, What Does Make Me Mean Urban Dictionary, Beechcraft T-6 Texan Ii, The Land Family Muskoka, Dior Saddle Bag, Jason Bell Platteville, Wi Obituary, Swinburne Enrolment, Garrincha Teams, Best Mocktails, Where To Buy Piano Sheet Music, Hughie Green Catchphrase, Redcon Animal Protein, Midnight Runners Netflix, Bond University, Swordfish Habitat Map, Reed Pipe Cutter, Saturday Night Chords Misfits, Amy Manson Movies And Tv Shows,