Page 79 of Wonderstruck

you don’t have to. you’d have to come all the way here just to go back to campus.

wasn’t a question.

protective now are we?

with you, always.

I shook my head, my breath catching as Iread that line again, and again, wondering how someone could want to change so much. So quickly.

Finn had always managed to wedge himselfinto my thoughts, even when thinking of him only made me sad. I suppose that was the curse of a crush; you get to spend every minute of every day thinking about them whilst trying to remind yourself that they either don't know you exist or would never think of you the way you think about them. But living on that cloud of hope only meant that the higher it got, the worsethe damage would be when the fog cleared and you fell right through it.

I'd fallen so far with Finn, I was sure my bruised heart wouldn't survive another trip.

But it was different now.

The cloud I was perched on didn't feel like it was about to give way this time. It didn't feel as though I'd slowly start sinking. I don't know what had changed, but, call me lovestruck, I didn't want to question it. Thinking of him, of us, only made me smile. Made me hopeful.

And I know that hope is a dangerous thing. Ithink hope breaks more hearts than people do. But something about the way my heart was leaning toward him, how my eyes searched for him in every room I entered, told me I could trust it.

Trust him.

1.she'll never love you more than me. you know that, right?

chapter twenty

what does it mean if i'm counting down the minutes until i get to see her?

Today was dragging like it had a personal vendetta against me. Like the universe knew I was seeing Aurora later and decided to slow time just to mess with me.

Then Daisy stopped by the apartment to borrow some picks from Tristan and casually mentioned that Rory had decided to leave Liberty Grove for good. She was going all in with skating. Just like that. And suddenly, the day didn’t feel so unbearable anymore.

Because damn, I’d never felt pride like that before. The kind that made your chest feel too tight, like your heart was trying to punch its way out just to celebrate. Rory was choosing herself. Finally putting her happiness first. And honestly? It was about time. If anyone deserved to be happy, it was her. Preferablyall the time.

I smiled back down at my phone as I typed.

with you, always

“Do I even need to ask who you're texting tomake you look like that?” Jess called out, leaning over the side of the rink. His grin was pure mischief, his breath puffing out in thick clouds.

I felt my own smile stretch wider as I slippedmy phone back into my bag. I didn’t even have to answer him for him to know he was right.

He pushed off the side of the rink, his grin stillin place as he jumped through the gate and sat down on the benches beside me. “Things going well with you two I take it?”

I shrugged, trying to play it cool, but I couldfeel the heat creeping up my neck. “Maybe.”

Jess laughed, deep and real. “That’s a yes then.” He nudgedmy arm, leaning his stick against the railings. “Seriously, it’s been nice seeing you… well, yourself.”

I turned to face him, my brows pinching. “What do you mean?”

His broad shoulders shrugged, wedging his water bottlethrough the gaps in his helmet, chugging what looked like half of it before staring back at me. “Well, whenever you came back last year, after being home, it was always like you weren’t fully there, you know. Like your mind was in eight different places and but never in the moment.” His eyes softened. “But something’s been different with you ever since coming back after summer. It was how I remember you being when we first arrived last year. Now it's like you've forgotten all about…" He trailed off, his eyes wandering.

Oneof the perks of having Jesse as my bestfriend for pretty much my whole life was that we didn’t need to talk about why I was like this. He was there. For all of it. For me. For Daisy.

Jesscleared his throat. “And the only thingI can pin you being, well, how can I put this nicely… not an asshole—”

“Thanks.”

“—is down to the time you’re spending withRory.”

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