The Forever of Ella and Micha

to have her here.”
    Naomi shrugs and opens the door, letting in the sunlight and warm air that smells like cigarettes. “It’s your decision. I was just giving you an outsider’s point of view. Do you want to come out with us tonight? Drinks are on Dylan.”
    “Nah, I think I’ll stay in tonight.” I wave her off and she leaves, closing the door behind her.
    I pile my clothes in the stained bathroom sink and turn on the shower. The pipes squeak as the water sprays out. Raking my hands through my hair, I let out a frustrated sigh. My fingers grip the counter and my head falls forward.
    My mom told me once about how she met my father. He lived in the town over from Star Grove and one day when they were both cruising, they ran into each other.
Literally
. The front end of my dad’s truck slammed into the back end of my mom’s car. Her car was trashed, but they ended up talking for hours after the tow truck had come and gone and my dad had offered to drive my mom home.
    She said it was instant love, or at least that’s how she interpreted it in her hormonal teenaged brain. She was supposed to be leaving for college at the end of the summer, but she stayed behind and married my dad instead.
    She said she regretted the decision, but I’m not sure if it’s because my dad turned out to be a cheating dick, or if she was just sad over the loss of her future.
    I push away from the counter, coming to the conclusion to let it go for now. Ella and I are tough enough to make it through a month.
    We already made it through hell and back.

Chapter 2
Ella
    Blake gives us a ride to lunch and then drops us off back at campus about an hour later. I try to be happy, but fail. According to my therapist, I shouldn’t try to conceal my feelings because it’s unhealthy. She says bottling things up and letting them eat away at me usually ends in disaster; that suffering in silence is never an option.
    Lila hops out of the back of the car when Blake pulls into an empty parking space. “Thanks for the ride, Blake.” She shuts the door and shimmies off toward the sidewalk.
    “Are you okay?” Blake asks me as I unbuckle my seatbelt. “You seem kind of quiet today.”
    “I’m fine.” I start to open the door. “I just have a lot on my mind.”
    Pulling the beanie off his head and ruffling his hair, he rotates in his seat to face me. “I’m a good listener.”
    I eye him over warily. “I’m sure you probably don’t want to hear it.”
    “Try me.”
    “It’s about my boyfriend.”
    “Ah.” His eyebrows arch upward. “The infamous Micha.”
    “That would be the one,” I say. “He’s leaving… clear across the country.”
    He wiggles the keys out of the ignition. “And you’re upset about this, I take it?”
    “Well, obviously. He’s leaving and he was supposed to drive out here from LA this weekend.” The more I talk about it aloud, the more panic chokes at my chest. “But now he has to drive out to New York tomorrow. I have no idea why I’m telling you this. I’m sorry.” I climb out of the car and close the door.
    He meets me at the front of the car, swings his bag over his shoulder, and pushes the lock button, the headlights blinking. We walk in silence toward the grass area that stretches over the front of the campus. Lila is underneath a tree talking to Parker, a tall guy with thick arms and sandy blond hair. He’s wearing a button-down shirt and a pair of fancy jeans. It’s her type of guy normally, except for Ethan. The two of them occasionally talk on the phone, although they still insist they’re just friends.
    “Thanks for taking us to lunch.” I step up onto the curb. “I’m sure Lila’s thankful too. She’s been going crazy being stuck on campus.”
    “Anytime.” He stuffs his hands into his pockets with a pensive look on his face. “So your boyfriend’s in LA right now?”
    I nod unenthusiastically. “Until tomorrow.”
    He mulls over something, gazing at the parking lot. “You know that’s only, like, a four-, four-and-a-half-hour drive from here. You could probably make it there later tonight if you left soon.”
    “I know that.” I force back a smile, knowing I could make it there in less time than that. “But I don’t have a car.” I point over my shoulder at his red Ford Mustang. “Hence the ride this afternoon.”
    An amused smile tugs at the corners of his lips. “I know, but I have a car that could get you there.”
    “Why would you do that?” I ask,