Emma couldn’t help but be jealous that he was now out of high school. He was the only thing that ever kept her from running again, and now he wasn’t there. Sure, she only had to make it through this year, and then she’d be able to get the hell out and start her life, too, but without him to talk to in between classes or eat lunch with, all she wanted to do was ditch. It was nearly impossible for her to make it through an entire day without her eyes wandering from her locker to one of the exits, resisting the urge to walk out and never come back. She’d done it once when she was sixteen, but he’d found her and brought her back, and she promised him she wouldn’t do it again. Why she had done that, she was certainly questioning.
At least it was finally spring break. Emma knew he was coming home, but she’d deliberately not talked to him for a few days because she couldn’t help but feel like now that he was out, he would want to stay out. Meaning that it didn’t matter that he’d left her behind because she would only hold him back. He was the one person she was certain would never abandon her, but now...she wasn’t so sure.
Without really thinking about it, she went to their spot, threw her backpack on the ground, and laid her head on it so she could stare up at the sky.