Hello, Again (Book 2)

Goodbyes

Katherine

Though it was only an hour drive to the airport, you could've told me it was a lifetime and I would've believed it. At least Monday evenings were relatively sparse going north, so the ride was quiet, if you could stomach Grace's angry tears and Andrew's attempts to calm her down. Matthew had remained silent almost the entire ride, but he spoke up finally.

"We're gonna miss you down here, Grace," he said. She started at his voice, and I saw them make eye contact in the rear view mirror. "We'll send you pictures, if we can."

That started another round of sobs and tears, and only Andrew could understand what she grumbled then. She waved for him to speak. "She says she wants to see you again." His face twisted like he was tasting something particularly bitter. "Not just pictures of the wedding, but be there." The embarrassment seemed to make Andrew's cheeks flush in the flash of the headlights of passing cars.

Matt and I shared a glance.

Although we talked a lot about the wedding, there was still a few details up in the air. We had the venue, the catering, the arrangements. Matthew was the one in charge of the invitations. We'd made a list of about fifty people—how many of them had RSVP'd?

I had my choice of people to come—old friends from college, people from church, and even a few teens from Wayward that were friends were Erland so he wouldn't be alone the entire time—and Matt had his. Mostly his family, he said, and some people he was thinking about.

He gave me a look as if to say, It's up to you.

I swallowed, throat dry. If I invited Grace, she would need to come down again. And though she'd gotten away with it once without her parents knowing, a second time would not be so lucky. And... what if I invited them all? Oh, but seven people would be too many... And I promised Andrew that I wouldn't say anything to his—my—our father.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, glancing back at Andrew and Grace. "We can't."

Andrew's face softened with relief, though Grace's angry tears started again. "Thank you," he mouthed.

I was tempted to say something else to offer comfort to Grace, but what could I say without lying to her? Instead, I spent the rest of the drive praying for her. That God would look out for her. Help her to find peace in Him through knowing Jesus. Maybe she already did know Him, but that she would be reminded and that she would find comfort there.

When we pulled up to the airport, Matthew and Andrew got out to get the bags. I turned around and made eye contact with Grace. "Hey."

She scowled.

"Hey." I held out my hand. She took it. "I know this is hard, Grace, but goodbye doesn't always mean the end."

"How do you know?" She sniffled.

"I though the same thing once." I let out a breath. "And it made me very angry and very mean to those around me, my family, those I loved. But God has a way of working things out for us, just trust Him."

Andrew tapped on the glass and Grace pulled her hand back. I was left in the car alone. A few moments later, Andrew tapped on my glass and I rolled down the window.

"You'll send me the receipts, right?" He looked like he was really bothered at the thought that I might not.

I didn't like the idea, but I could respect it. "Yep, I'll send them to you in a few days."

He nodded. "Thank you, Katherine."

"Thank you."

He stepped back and waved before moving up to Grace and starting their way into the airport. I wondered how they would travel, but Andrew assured me that he had swiped Grace's passport from his parent's safe before coming down. And she had written permission to travel to arrive at the reformatory school, which is where she would be going now. Such a bright young girl, the thought of her being around more hardened individuals made me worry.