Delayed (26 page)

Nick turned, not knowing how to introduce the girl he had brought home to meet his family. He sighed.
 

“This is Joy. My girlfriend.”
 

Mimi pulled the door back further, revealing someone else. “I didn’t know you had a girlfriend.” She turned to the person next to her, who Nick wasn’t sure was truly there. “Well Nick’s girlfriend, meet my brother’s old friend, Olivia. They’ve known each other for a decade.”
 

Nick stared at the girl he had spent the last year wanting to see, while trying to convince himself not to think about her. Her brown hair had grown longer, and she wore little make up. Everything about her looked younger.
 

“It’s good to see you,” she said. Her tone was calm, as if she meant to hold the rest of her statement back.
 

“It’s good to meet a friend of Nick’s. He’s quite the loner back in Shepton,” Joy chimed in. She took Olivia’s hand and shook it, even though Olivia had not offered it out to her.
 

They huddled into the beach house, Mimi closing the door behind them. Joy attempted to make small talk with Olivia. Nick tried to process how Olivia had ended up here. He hadn’t invited her. She stared at him out of the corner of her eyes, as she nodded to agree with whatever Joy was saying.
 

“Nick introduce me to everyone,” Joy said. She turned back and grabbed his arm. He stiffened under her touch. There was very little he could do to get away from her now.
 

Olivia took her place next to Mimi. “It was nice seeing you again,” she said.
 

“Dad’s out in the back with Abuela. You should go introduce them to your girlfriend,” Mimi said, not trying to hide her bitterness.
 

Nick kept his eyes locked on Olivia. Joy said something else, before pulling him into the mass of his family members.
 

He introduced her to a few of them, but they spent more time with his Abuela and father.
 

“This is your enamorada, your girlfriend?” his Abuela asked. She scanned Joy without malice. “Very pretty. Nice to meet you.”
 

His dad shook hands with Joy. The introductions were short. They talked about Shepton for a bit, and the business her family had owned once. Nick spent the next hour wanting to turn around and find Olivia. He could feel her in the house.
 

Joy’s phone rang. She let go of his arm and excused herself to take the call.
 

“Your friend came,” his dad said. “Olivia. She’s been here since the morning helping set everything up. I didn’t know the two of you were still talking.”
 

Nick raised his eyebrows. He didn’t know his father even knew that he was friends with her, or had been once. “We’re not that close,” he said. “Mimi must have invited her.”
 

“You should go say hi to her,” his Abuela chimed in. “Don’t be rude, Nico.”
 

She pulled him to her side and then gave him a kiss on the cheek before sending him off again. “Go. Before she leaves and the two of you never talk again.”
 

His grandmother’s push gave him a head start, but it was up to Nick to walk the rest of the way. He kept his head up. He’d say hi, and thank her for coming. That was enough.
Keep things civil
he reminded himself.
 

Olivia stood next to Mimi; the two of them whispered something amongst themselves before turning their attention to him.
 

“Finally came to say hello?” his sister asked. She took a giant gulp of her drink, “I’m going to get a refill of whatever this is. You two should catch up. Tell her more about your girlfriend.”
 

She left them alone, not waiting for a response. Nick kept his hands folded behind his back. It almost looked like he was getting ready to bow and ask Olivia for a dance around the non-existent ballroom.
 

“Do you want to go upstairs to talk?” he asked her. The only private space, free of family and his sister’s glare was the master room.
 

“Sure,” Olivia said. She didn’t look at him as they climbed the steps. The room smelled of vanilla and sand.
 

“Your girlfriend, she’s the girl you met on our road trip, right?”
 

Nick took a seat on the bed next to her. He could feel the weight of the palm tree in his pocket. He had kept it since the night Mimi had given it to him. There had been no luck in his life, and yet he could not part with it.
 

“Yeah. I didn’t think you would remember. You were really drunk that night.” He paused thinking back to the night in the hotel, the scent of strawberry on Olivia’s lips.
 

“I wasn’t that drunk,” she said. A soft smile spread on her face, as she remembered. “I’m glad you found someone.”
 

“I didn’t really find her. We work together,” he said, knowing his unhappiness was seeping through. He didn’t want her to see him like that, like her presence made a difference in his life. Like she wasn’t the reason he had chosen to reject a job offer in Glensford and move down to Shepton.
 

“I have something for you,” he said, reaching into his pocket before he could finish. The keychain swung around his finger, scratched and battered, the metal still glistened. “It’s yours.”
 

She didn’t reject the item. Instead, she let it rest on her open palm, staring at it. She smiled again.
 

“I left it here for you,” she said. “The day we first met. I thought it might really bring you luck.”
 

“You left it behind on purpose?” he asked.
 

Olivia nodded. “You needed more luck than I did. I didn’t want it. And now it found its way back to me.”
 

“Liv,” he began. “What are you really doing here?”
 

She clamped her hand around the keychain and placed it in the pocket of her sweater.
 

“I just wanted you to know that I was still here, if you ever needed me. I’m still your friend if you want me to be.”
 

“I don’t want you as my friend,” he said. “Don’t worry, I don’t want you as my girlfriend either.” The lies were getting harder to say. “I have Joy. She makes me happy, and I’ve been doing fine these past two years without you.”
 

Olivia bit her lip, she held back for a moment. “I’m glad to hear that. I just wanted to make sure, one last time. I wish you still wanted to be friends, though. I’ve had so much that I haven’t been able to tell you.” She paused, and finally looked up at him. Her gray eyes were glazed. “I understand. I guess I let our friendship slip away too.”
 

He felt himself scooting toward her, but stopped. What did she want to tell him? Why hadn’t she tried to find him? He’d gone to see her that night. It wasn’t like he hadn’t tried. She was with Simon now. She could talk to him. Nick knew he couldn’t stay in the room much longer. The more he watched her, fighting her tears, the more his mask wavered.
 

“You should go. We’re not friends, and there’s no other reason for you to be here.” He stood up. “I have to get back to Joy.”
 

Olivia stood up with him. She nodded without objection. “You’re right.” She walked to the door, before turning back around. Then without warning she reached out and wrapped her arms around him, nestling her head against his chest. His heart began to race. She would probably hear it soon. So he gently pushed her away.
 

“Why did do you that?” he asked.
 

“One last goodbye,” she said. He could see a tear making its way down her cheek.
 

“Liv…” he began again. He took a step toward her, ready to give in, to comply with whatever she wanted to do. One word. One command and he would undo everything. She gave him one last smile and walked out of the room. He heard the front door open and close again. No one in his family would notice. He sat on the edge of the bed, convincing himself, that this was the right thing to do.
 

Without Olivia in his life, things were better. He didn’t want to go through a one-sided love, always wanting more than friendship. It wasn’t fair to either one of them. He kept repeating the lie, but it never quite stuck.
 

30

July 6, 2014

The box weighed down on Olivia’s palms. She held onto it, as if grasping on for dear life, just a few more steps. Someone pulled the door open for her.
 

“Go ahead,” the boy said. He looked familiar but the strange part was she didn’t think they had met before. Someone stood behind him, that boy she did recognize. It had been five years, but Diego looked the same as he had the day of her performance, maybe a bit taller, less boyish, almost a man.
 

“Thank you,” she said to the boy in front of Diego. They followed her into the student union, but unlike her, she assumed they were students. They headed to the elevator, the three of them, strangers. Diego got off on the second floor, the radio broadcast center. The boy who had opened the door for her got off on the same floor as she had. The fourth floor, it had been remodeled from an old student gallery into the offices for a new branch of the student run magazine.
 

Her mom had decided to sponsor it, and use it as a way to train potential employees and interns for her own magazine. Olivia had volunteered to help move supplies into the offices, not that there was much left to carry. The movers had brought by the desks, printers, and other supplies the week before
 

“You made it,” her mom said as she passed through the door, which the strange boy held open for her. He gave her a smile, one full of charm and poised elegance. “Lucas, you’re here early. This is my daughter, Olivia.”
 

Olivia turned and shook hands with the Lucas fellow. His grip was strong, but not forceful.
 

“I can carry that for you,” he said, taking the box from her hands. She thanked him and turned to her mom as he disappeared into one of the back offices.
 

“Who is he? He looks familiar.”
 

Her mom nodded. “He’s Lucas Silva, one of the sons of the family that owns the Melo’s Coffee franchise. He goes to school in California, but he’s in town for a few days. One of my writers wanted to bring him in for an interview. Handsome, isn’t he?”
 

Olivia scrunched up her nose. “Yeah. A little too young for me, though.” She paused. “Are you trying to set me up?”
 

Her mom laughed at the question. “If you’re going to date someone, it doesn’t hurt if he’s the heir to a multi billion dollar company.”
 

“Mom.”
 

“I’m kidding. Besides, you only date guys with black hair. There was Michael and then Simon, and Nick. You have a type.”
 

Nick. Olivia felt her heart drop again. His words stung despite the many months that had passed. She didn’t correct her mom about the dating bit.
 

“We’re meeting for lunch once you finish everything here, right?”
 

Her mom nodded, right as Lucas made his way out of the offices. “I should be done in an hour. You can wait here if you want.”
 

Olivia shook her head. “I have something I need to do first.” She turned to Lucas. “Thank you for the help.”
 

He gave her a smile, dimples colored his cheeks. “It wasn’t a problem. It was nice to meet you.”
 

She realized now he was dressed like all the country club boys she had spent a summer working for. Maybe she had known him then. He didn’t seem as stuck up as the usual lot though, but refined nonetheless.
 

Olivia left the student union and headed directly to her destination. The new freshman dorms were already in use for the summer term. It wasn’t Smith Hall, but Everest Hall. It didn’t resemble a prison, as much, but there were still tiny windows and a certain grayness about the place. It was closer to the nature trails, but farther away from campus.
 

She followed the trail of signs and loud students toward the entrance. No one seemed to notice her slip inside. Hopefully Mimi hadn’t moved out yet. Olivia wasn’t even sure if Nick’s sister was taking summer classes. It was all part of the calculated risk she was taking in coming to say one final goodbye to her.
 

She’d come once before, the day of the memorial to help bring things from Mimi’s dorm. Tape and decorations to paste around the beach house, and snacks for the endless guest list.
 

225
 

Olivia knocked, hoping she was right in her guesswork. It took a second to click open.
 

“Olive,” Mimi said. Her black hair had a single streak of purple on it. It matched the top she wore. “Why the random visit?”
 

Olivia pulled her phone out. “I wanted to show you something, and to say goodbye.”
 

Mimi’s eyes widened. “Goodbye? Why?” She didn’t wait for an answer. “Come in.”
 

The two of them took spots on opposites sides of the tiny room.
 

Mimi crossed her arms. “So what do you want to show me? And are we suddenly saying goodbye?”
 

They were fair questions, both of them, so Olivia stared with the second. “I’m going to London for the summer, and I’ll probably end up staying there, if everything goes to plan. I didn’t want to leave without thanking you.”
 

“London. Why?”
 

“Well it started out as a planned vacation with my mom, but then I decided I might want to stay longer. I took a theater class there one summer, and I loved the city. I’m trying to get a job with a theater company there. Nothing’s certain yet. And I wanted to thank you for letting me come to your mom’s memorial.”