Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 90217 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 451(@200wpm)___ 361(@250wpm)___ 301(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 90217 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 451(@200wpm)___ 361(@250wpm)___ 301(@300wpm)
Dani looked over her shoulder before leaning in toward me. “Has Brody heard anything back yet?”
I shook my head. “Not yet. Hopefully soon, though. He’s sent out so many applications.”
Brody had been applying to jobs in the Chicago area ever since I’d gotten accepted to Northwestern. I was still in disbelief that he was willing to go there to be with me. It made me feel way more special than I could believe, but Brody insisted that it was exactly what he wanted to do.
I still had anxiety about his job search, though. He had a degree in business management, and I had no doubt that he’d be an incredible asset to any company. But he was interviewing against other kids who had stellar grades. And Brody was the first to admit that in the first three years of his college experience, he certainly had been more focused on football than getting good grades.
He’d applied to dozens and dozens of firms. He’d been to three interviews so far, and had two rejections. I was starting to worry he’d need to interview a lot more to find the right fit.
I’d been on a straightforward path for my whole life. Brody’s, now, was so much more open-ended.
Dani, Henry, and I roamed the crowds a little longer. They met up with their parents and my parents eventually found me, still dressed in their professor’s robes from the ceremony. They handed me flowers, and we talked for a while before I broke off to continue the search for Brody. When I saw Roman’s broad shoulders in the crowd, I knew Brody couldn’t be far.
I walked over and sure enough, he was there behind his brother, surrounded by a crowd of other students.
“There you are!” Brody said, wrapping his arms around me in a huge hug. “I was just about to call you. Congrats, my love. We did it.”
“We really did.”
“Against all odds, for me,” Brody said, beaming. “This past semester was somehow both the hardest and quickest of my life.”
“We did do a lot of studying,” I said. “Maybe too much.”
“Never thought I’d hear you say that,” Roman said. “Congratulations, man.”
“Thank you, thank you,” I said.
The semester really had been a lot of work. I’d managed to stay ahead enough in my classes to help Brody with his whenever he needed. Amazingly, he’d finished the semester with all almost straight-A’s. He’d only gotten a B in one class, which he said was the best semester he’d ever had before.
I was beyond proud of him. And I knew he was going to go far, even if it took a while for him to find a job in Chicago.
“Now, I say we go home, clean up, change, and head to the bar,” Mike said, coming up beside Brody.
“Sounds perfect,” Brody said. “Where are we headed?”
“You know exactly where we’re headed. Red’s fucking Tavern, dude!” Vance said, booming from beside him.
“I’ve heard Brody talking about this Red’s Tavern place,” Roman said. “Maybe I’ll make a rare appearance at a bar, myself.”
Brody’s eyes went wide. “No way. You’d actually come out with us?”
“It’s your graduation night,” Roman said, his eyes kind. “I know I’m not usually a hard partier, but there’s never been a better time to do it.”
We set up a time to meet at the tavern before Brody, Roman, and I went off to go find their mom in the stands. I’d finally met Brody’s mom about a month after we’d officially started dating, and she’d welcomed me like I was her own. She lived in a small house in a more rural area, but she had a nice life, with chickens in her backyard and a big, sleepy golden retriever named Cheeky. We found her soon, wearing a bright pink sundress in the stands, and she came up to give each of us a huge hug.
“I’m so proud of you boys, you wouldn’t believe it,” she said. “And Logan and Brody, you know you have to be at my house at least every Sunday night before you up and move your booties to Chicago. I’m going to miss you so much.”
“We will be there as much as we can,” I promised. “And even after we move, we’ll fly out or drive out all of the time. I still need to visit my parents down here, too.”
She smiled at me. “You better,” she said. “I’ll be counting on it.”
“Ma, you can come visit us in Chicago, too,” Brody said, giving her a grin. “Our place is going to have a guest room.”
“Guest room? How the hell are you boys affording that?”
Brody laughed. “Trust me, we’re not right in the city. You’ll see.”
We talked for a while longer before saying goodbye. As Brody and I walked down the sloping streets toward our house, I couldn’t believe how quickly spring had given way to summer. All of the trees were exploding with leaves now, and I actually had to take my robe off because I was getting so hot under the sunlight.