1. Kat
Chapter 1
A lmost six months ago, my life was falling apart. Now, I sit on the subway, heading back to my apartment, which I can afford all on my own.
I’d thought Carter ruined my life, but I was wrong. If anything, he set me free. It’s crazy to think I’d been heartbroken. Now I’m grateful, and while I still hate him, I’m not heartbroken anymore.
The thought of still being with him, running between New York and Maine just to keep our relationship going, makes my stomach roll. Looking back, I can see all the red flags I’d been blind to when I thought he loved me. I would have done anything for him; I did. I put who I was in a little box until it fit what he wanted, and in doing so, I lost not just myself but my drive.
Now, I have my dream job and provide for myself. I’m so busy I don’t even have time to be lonely, but on those rare nights when I lay alone in bed, it’s not him that my mind wanders to.
No, it’s Alex and Desmond and the night we had when I first came to town.
I feel my cheeks heat at the memory, even though it’s close to eighty degrees today. Thankfully, the air in here isn’t as hot as the platforms, but I push the memory aside all the same. The last thing I need is to work myself up and pass out from the heat, especially not in this neighborhood.
Getting off at my stop, my phone dings, letting me know I’ve got a new email, and I scramble to pull it from my bag. Usually, I’d wait until I got home, but I know the route by heart now, and I’ve been waiting for an email all week.
I applied to teach at this year's Summer on the Hill program, and they should be notifying the selected teachers this week. If I don’t get picked, I’ll be bummed, but I made sure to save enough to get me through with rent until the new school year starts. It’ll be tight, but I can do it. Not to mention, I have nothing better to do, and I really love my class. Getting a few more weeks with them before they move on to the next grade would be amazing.
I hadn’t realized how hard it would be to let my students go. Don’t get me wrong—not every day is sunshine and rainbows. Sometimes, the kids are hard to handle, but I love my job. At the end of the day, they are all smart and funny, and they are only children. I can’t say I loved school at that age, either.
My eyes fly over the email as I pull it up, not really absorbing much of what I’m reading until I hit the one thing I’d been praying for.
Congratulations! We're thrilled to inform you that you will be joining us for this year's ‘Summer on the Hill’ program.
I stop dead in the middle of the sidewalk, making the person behind me run into me. I jolt forward, almost dropping my phone as he grumbles about what a dumbass I am, but I couldn’t care less. I read the message again, just to be sure I didn’t imagine it.
I read it three times before it really sinks in, and I start moving again. I all but skip the rest of the way to my apartment, even though it’s hot and everyone around me is crabby. I feel like I just won the lotto.
Thank god Carter was a piece of shit.