Page 3 of Inevitable

At least, that’s what I’d thought.

Looking at him now and the apartment we shared, it was as if the spell had been broken. He wasn’t any of those things. He was lazy. Condescending. And I was over it.

“Sumner, please,” he pleaded, grabbing my biceps and forcing me to stop.

“Let. Go. Of. Me,” I seethed. He dropped my arm and stepped back.

I grabbed everything I could, shoving it into my bag, ignoring Nico’s pleas as he tried to convince me to stay. Tried to persuade me that he would change. Hecouldchange. I’d heard it all before, but this time, it went in one ear and out the other. Tears pricked my eyes. How could I have been so stupid?

“Where will you go?” he called as I walked out of the bedroom, grabbing my laptop and the acceptance letters from the kitchen before heading for the front door.

I didn’t answer, shutting the door behind me. A moment later, his footsteps scuffed against the ground.

“Sumner, wait.” He lowered his voice, catching up to me. He clutched his coat to his neck, his breath filling the air. “Sumner,” he hissed, glancing around.

I ignored him, lugging my bags behind me as I marched ahead. I’d already requested an Uber, and I was relieved to find it idling at the curb, exhaust billowing from the tail pipe, the lights from the dashboard aglow.

I opened the door and tossed my bags inside. Nico grabbed my arm, and I turned to face him. “I don’t think this would look good foroptics, Professor Cunningham. Do you?”

With that, he released me, hanging back as I climbed in and shut the door. I didn’t glance his way, the tears already falling as the driver pulled away from the curb. How could I have been so blind? So naïve?

I headed for the airport, determined to catch an earlier flight home to California. There was no point waiting around in Boston. There was nothing for me here. And I realized with sudden clarity that there hadn’t been for a while.

While I waited in the terminal, hoping to make it on standby, I sent a quick text to Piper. We’d been best friends since kindergarten, and despite living across the country, we were still as close as ever.

Me: I might be flying in tonight. Can I crash at your place?

My phone rang almost immediately, her image flashing on the screen. “Hey,” I said, accepting the FaceTime request and watching as my name inched up on the standby screen.So close.

“Is everything okay? I thought you weren’t coming home till tomorrow.”

“Change in plans,” I said, with one ear tuned in to the announcements. The flight was boarding soon, and my name had just moved to the top of the list. “Can I stay with you tonight?” I didn’t feel like explaining everything to my dad and Lea. My dad had never been a fan of Nico.

“Yeah. Of course.” She held the phone closer to her face. “Have you been crying?”

I forced a smile. “I’m fine. Or at least, I will be.”

“What about Professor Dick?” she asked. For once, I didn’t roll my eyes at her nickname for Nico.

“I broke up with him.”

She let out a sigh of relief. “It’s about damn time. You always were too good for him,” Piper said. It was something I’d heard often from her the past few months.

“And I’m moving home. Well, home-ish.” I joined the line at the desk for the gate agent. “I’m going to Stanford.”

She cheered and did a little happy dance that made me smile. “That’s awesome news. We’re totally celebrating when you get here.”

“I could definitely use a drink,” I said, more to myself.

“What about the book tour? Have you talked to your mom?”

My mom was a best-selling author known for her memoirs, and we’d agreed that I’d join her on her latest book tour this summer. Well, she’d suggested it in a way that sounded more like a demand, and I’d conceded, as always.

“Geez, Piper. Give me a second to catch my breath.”

“No way. You’re on a roll. Don’t stop now!”

“Yeah, but would it really be that big of a deal to go with her? It’s just for the summer. I can work on my business plan in my spare time.”