If Only

Goodbye

♣️17 - Goodbye♣️

"I'm going to miss my little girl so much," said Rita, hugging her daughter, who was on the verge of crying.

"Mom, me too!" she said.

After kissing Rita, she made her way around all of us, including Haze and some of her friends, and then finally me.

She threw herself into my arms, despite everyone around us. People were startled because Hannah and I were never close, not 'hugging close'. But they didn't know everything we went through.

And I couldn't care less.

She was going away, to pursue her dream and it was all going to change. She wasn't going to jog around the cafe everyday. I wasn't going to see her familiar face every now and again.

And I realized how much I was going to miss something I had taken for granted.

She was always a sister, but sometimes a little more. And I couldn't imagine what it felt like for her, leaving everything she had known to an unknown world. Leaving her mother, best friends and all those memories.

I realized my eyes were misting slightly, and I blinked away the tears. What was I doing? No one else was crying and my girlfriend was right next to me.

"Thank you Josh. For everything, " she whispered before pulling away and bursting into tears.

"I can't do it. I can't walk away. I'm gonna miss you guys so much!" she cried.

"Hannah, this is all you worked for. It's your chance," I muttered, aware of everyone else around me.

"Yeah, he's right. You gotta do it and make your bro' proud, " said Haze with a grin.

She faced us all. "I'm going to sit in that car and not look back and try not to cry, OK?"

We all nodded and watched her get into the rented car that was sent from the school.

She didn't look back, but I knew exactly what was going through her mind.

Swallowing a lump of emotion away, I turned around to go somewhere private so I could think things through, only to be grabbed by Tracey.

"We need to talk."

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