That Summer - Jure Maček

Separated

I take the last sip of my drink, which leaves a sour aftertaste in my throat.

"So, are you going to walk us back to our hotel, girls?" Bojan asks, his hand has travelled around Lucia's shoulder but she doesn't seem to mind it anymore.

"Sure," Lauren and I smile. But Lucia is looking at the table like someone just died. Looks like we'll have to comfort her later...

I'm more worried about how to say goodbye to Jure. We talked a lot tonight, but it was more friendly talk instead of the romance we had yesterday. This has kind of led me to believe that maybe I was being delusional after all. Maybe this is just some silly summer crush, that isn't reciprocated. 

I mean, am I supposed to give him a hug, handshake? I literally have no idea. I'm bad at goodbyes in general, and kissing him would feel weird in this situation.

We walk back to their hotel, kind of in silence. 

"Are you okay?" Jure asks me.

"I'm fine," I reply with a smile.

"The internet has taught me that when a girl says she's fine, she's never really fine. So speak up," he raises his eyebrows, that everlasting smile stuck on his face.

I sigh. "This might sound.. silly. But I'm going to miss you. Like, I'm going to miss our conversations," I look at the ground.

"That's not silly at all, I know we've only known each other for like two days but I've had a really nice time with you," he admits.

"Yeah, me too," I blush.

We arrive at the hotel, and the group begins their goodbyes.

"Listen, we're super booked with concerts this coming time, but I'll make sure to DM you some time," Jure and I stop walking.

I nod. "Yeah, I would like that," 

He pulls me into a tight hug, one of the best hugs ever, I must admit.

I hug the rest of the guys and we say goodbye to them as they walk back into their hotel.

Lucia dramatically lets herself fall to her knees once they're out of sight.

"That Bojan guy was literally a god. I'm so sad we didn't get to spend more time with them," she groans and lets herself fall onto her back.

Me and Lauren laugh and sit down next to her. People are looking at us a little weirdly, but we never care. 

"Then why didn't you make a move?" I ask.

"Yeah, right, make a move, get a crush and then never see him again," she says. When she sees me looking at the floor she quickly apologises.

"Sorry, Juliana. But it will be different for you! You live super close to the border, you'll be able to see Jure again soon," she tries to say this with enthusiasm.

"I don't know. I don't think he'll ever DM me. He said it himself that they were busy, that's a classic excuse for 'I don't really want to see you again'," I sigh.

"Whatever girls! God, I thought I looked sad during this vacation but look at you! Mumbling about a bunch of guys. You can both do so much better than someone who doesn't try hard enough," Lauren suddenly blurts out.

Lucia's eyes widen, as she makes eye contact with me. And then we both start to laugh uncontrollably about this weird outburst from Lauren, since this never happens.

"You know what I mean! Come on!" Lauren grabs us by the arm to pull us up and drag us to the city center.

"Let's get you girls some dick," tears are literally streaming down my face, from either laughing or being sad about the guys leaving. Either way, I will survive. And maybe Lauren is right. Maybe it's just time to move on immediately.