summer of ava

THE TRUTH

That night, Ava lay in bed staring at the ceiling, her stomach in knots.

She'd known this was coming. Had known it all summer. But somehow, she'd convinced herself it wouldn't hurt this much.

She was leaving.

Her parents had enrolled her in a boarding school three states away. They'd told her months ago, before summer tutoring even started. It was a good school, they said. Great opportunities. She'd make new friends. It would be an adventure.

But all Ava could think about was Jason.

When had it happened? When had "Mystery Boy" turned into the person she thought about first thing in the morning and last thing at night? When had his rare smiles become the thing she looked forward to most? When had she started dreaming about a future that included him?

She grabbed her phone, pulled up his contact, and typed: Hey.

Then deleted it.

What was the point? She was leaving in two days. Sunday morning. Early, before sunrise. Her parents had planned it that way—"less traffic," they said, but Ava knew it was also to avoid drawn-out goodbyes.

And Jason... he didn't feel that way about her. Did he? They were friends. Good friends. But that's all it was.

Right?

Ava rolled over, hugging her pillow, and let herself cry. Quiet tears that soaked into the fabric, tears for a summer that was ending too soon, for a boy she'd never forget, for all the moments they wouldn't get to have.