đź“– CHAPTER SIX
Avery's POV
There were signs everywhere that college was ending.
Caps in bookstore windows.
Senior countdown posts.
Professors saying things like "In the real world…" with unsettling enthusiasm.
A giant banner hung across the quad:
28 DAYS UNTIL GRADUATION
I hated it.
I stared at it while Ethan sat beside me on the steps, scrolling through his phone like it might explode.
"You okay?" I asked.
He nodded too quickly.
"Nope," I said. "Try again."
He hesitated. That scared me more than silence.
Ethan's POV
I hadn't meant for her to find out like this.
The email sat open on my phone, glowing like an accusation.
Subject: Post-Graduation Opportunity — San Francisco
Full-time position. Prestigious. Immediate relocation.
Everything I'd planned before her.
"I got a job offer," I said.
Her smile faltered for just a second.
"That's… amazing," she said carefully.
"It's across the country."
Silence.
Avery
There it was.
The ending I'd been avoiding.
"When were you going to tell me?" I asked.
"I just found out."
That wasn't the whole truth.
"And you're taking it," I said. Not a question.
He didn't answer.
I stood.
"Okay," I said brightly. Too brightly. "I need air before I cry or scream, and I don't know which one it'll be."
I walked away.
This time, he didn't stop me.
Ethan
I hated myself for letting her go.
But fear was louder again.
Lena found me that night at the lab.
"He's leaving, isn't he?" she said smugly.
I didn't respond.
"People like you don't stay," she continued. "You disappear when things get real."
I snapped.
"I'm not running," I said. "I'm choosing stability."
She smiled. "Same difference."
Avery
Maya found me sitting on my dorm floor, surrounded by half-packed boxes.
"He didn't choose you," she said gently.
I swallowed. "I don't want to be someone's almost."
Graduation music drifted from somewhere outside.
I hated it.
Ethan
I watched Avery from a distance the next day.
She laughed with Jordan. Avoided my eyes.
It felt worse than losing her.
I'd chosen the job.
But I was losing everything else.