Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between

Stella nods, her eyes fixed on the sidewalk. “And then there were four…” she says, and they all grow silent. Though dusk hasn’t yet given way to dark, the streetlamps above them snap on, casting long shadows across the sidewalk.

Finally, Scotty clears his throat. “So what’s the plan?”

“There’s not much going on,” Stella says, digging her phone out of her purse and scrolling through her texts. “Pretty much everyone’s gone already. But apparently Andy Kimball’s having people over later. And Mike Puchtler and those guys are going bowling. They said we could meet up, if we want.”

“And if all else fails, we could always go hang out in my backyard,” Scotty says. “Just for a change of pace.”

“You have a backyard?” Clare asks in mock disbelief, since they ended up there pretty much every single night this summer, eating his mom’s home-baked cookies beneath the starry sky as the clock wound down on another evening.

“Actually,” Aidan says, thumping the hood of the car, and everyone turns to him, “I think we’re gonna head out on our own.”

Scotty’s face falls, and he stares at his best friend. “So… this is it?”

“Yeah, what happened to quality time?” Stella asks, frowning at Clare. “You’re gonna leave me alone with this clown on our last night together?”

“No,” Clare says quickly, over the sound of Scotty’s protests. “Just for a little while. We still have some… talking to do. But we’ll meet up with you guys later for sure.”

“Right,” Aidan says. “We just have to make a few stops first.”

Stella laughs. “Let me guess: Clare made a list.”

“Clare made a list,” Aidan agrees with a grin.

“Pro and con?”

“More of a schedule for the evening, actually.”

“Hey,” Clare says, frowning at them. “How else are we supposed to figure this out?”

Scotty rolls his eyes. “Yeah, it’s not like there’s any way you could have seen this whole college thing coming. It must’ve really snuck up on you.”

“It’s not that,” Clare says, glancing at Aidan, and when their eyes meet, he smiles almost without meaning to, which is the kind of smile she loves best: It’s like a sneeze, a reflex, a twitch, helpless and automatic, and it only happens when he looks at her.

“It’s more that we can’t exactly seem to agree,” he says, holding up his wrist to show them all his watch. “And I’ve only got, like, ten hours left to convince her. So no time to waste.”

“But we’ll call you later,” Clare says as she gets into the car. When Stella gives her a skeptical look, she adds, “Double-pinky promise.”

“You know who probably doesn’t accept double-pinky promises?” Stella asks, walking over to rest her elbows on the open window. “Beatrice St. James.”

Clare can’t help laughing at this. “Which is why I’m so lucky to have you.”

“You really are,” she agrees, and then her face rearranges itself so that she looks more earnest than usual. She glances quickly behind her, then back at Clare. “Hey,” she says, leaning in close, her voice a low whisper. “Good luck, okay? And listen…”

Clare tilts her head to one side, waiting.

“I know I might have said that I thought it would be crazy for you guys to try staying together…”

“Just once or twice.”

“But,” Stella continues, then pauses and licks her lips, “but… I don’t know.”

Clare stares at her. I don’t know is not a phrase she usually associates with Stella, who is much more prone to statements like I told you so or Trust me or Here’s the plan.

“I mean, what you guys have… it’s pretty cool.” She twists to look over her shoulder, to where Aidan and Scotty are talking a few feet away. “So, I don’t know anymore. I guess… I guess I’m just saying that I have no idea what you should do.”

“That’s very helpful,” Clare says, patting her hand. “Thanks for the pep talk.”

In spite of herself, Stella laughs. “Sorry.”