Page 7 of The Breakaway

My mind immediately jumped into logistics. Two months and a bit. It wasn’t that long. I would finish out finals, go home for Christmas, and then it would only be a couple of weeks before he was back.

Before I could say as much, a door opened at the end of the hallway. Rob sauntered out, his hair standing on end. Shirtless. I swear he did that on purpose. Just to make me uncomfortable.

I gripped Logan's wrist. "What about Rob?" I hissed, suddenly desperate to hear his answer before Dr. Evil made it within earshot.

Logan frowned. "What about Rob?"

"Well, he can't?—"

"Morning, shitheads." Rob stalked to the fridge and pulled out a carton of milk with his name scrawled across the side inSharpie. He had to label all his food since I was definitely going to share his skin cells by touching it.

"I got some news, bud," Logan said.

My grip tightened. "Logan?—"

Rob turned, and Logan held up the email. "I'm going to World Juniors."

Rob's eyes widened. He started saying something, but I didn't hear a word of it. Because Logan hadn’t answered my question.

Chapter

Three

My alarm wentoff at nine, the noise drilling into my skull. Ugh. Tuesdays were supposed to be my day off from class, but there was no rest for the wicked, aka the string section in Select Orchestra.

Rolling out of bed, I stumbled to the washroom, avoiding my reflection in the mirror. By the way my eyes seemed to be shrivelling up like raisins, I was well aware I looked like a hot mess. After brushing my teeth and splashing some cold water on my face in a feeble attempt to shock myself awake, I padded out to the living room.

Logan was already gone, off to the gym for his daily dose of lactic acid production before hockey practice later that afternoon. The townhouse was quiet, and this was when I loved it least. Modern grey furniture and abstract art on the walls, all selected by Logan’s dad. It felt about as welcoming as a dentist's waiting room.

I plopped down on the cold leather couch with a sigh. The harsh reality had sunk in after talking more with Logan last night. With him leaving, I would be stuck here alone with Rob for two months. Rob, who hated me for stealing his friend. Rob,who excreted disdain from his pores. Rob, who would probably murder me in my sleep if he could get away with it.

Fantastic.

I had to find another option. I could look in the school paper, but it wasn’t likely I’d find a seasonal living opportunity. Lily, Caleb, and any orchestra people I knew weren’t options. Caleb lived at home, and Lily was in a shared room off campus. I would just have to brainstorm with Crystal and Maddie when we met up for coffee in a half hour.

I started a load of laundry, then threw on jeans and a hoodie and headed out. The ten-minute walk to the campus coffee shop seemed to take an eternity, my mind reeling with worst-case Rob scenarios. He’d start hosting parties instead of going out every night. He’d hang his jock strap on the stools in the kitchen. I shuddered.

Crystal and Maddie were already at our usual corner table when I arrived, steaming lattes in hand. I collapsed into the empty chair with a groan, and Maddie passed me my cup.

"Thank you.” I blew out a breath. “I'm so screwed.” I’d called them both multiple times since I’d seen Logan’s letter, so they were well-versed in my current level of hopelessness.

Crystal grimaced, her pink hair almost neon under the fluorescent lights. "I talked with Lindsey. We don’t have anyone moving out at the semester. There aren’t any openings in the fourplex across from us either."

Maddie squeezed my hand. Her fingers were warm from her coffee cup. "I mean, I'd be down to share my bed with you for a couple of months, Shar. Mi casa es su casa and all that."

“Your roommates would be okay with that?”

Her curls bounced as she shrugged. “I have my own room. As long as you cleaned up after yourself, they wouldn’t bitch about it.”

I bit my lip, considering it. Her room was small, but I could probably get a twin mattress in there. Make a cot on the floor.

But Maddie's place was so far from campus. At least a twenty-minute drive by car, which I didn’t have. It would make getting to rehearsals and shows a nightmare since the bus ride would be almost double that.

I glanced up at Crystal, who was staring at her coffee cup. “What?”

She flinched, her eyes widening. “Hmm? Oh, nothing.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Just say it.” Crystal was doing a new thing where she tried not to blurt out the first thing that came to her mind. After her last relationship ended because she told her boyfriend Matt he “just acted a little feminine sometimes,” she’d decided it was time to nurture a filter.

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