Reaching for Stardust // Josh Kiszka

Part VII

Word Count: ~4100

Warnings: none, really, unless you count conflict & slight sexual content

I'm very nervous to post this chapter, honestly (well, I've been nervous to post this entire fic lol). Writing conflict is something I often find challenging, particularly in fan fiction when it doesn't take much to accidentally yank the reader out of the story. But it's been a while since these two got into some emotional hard times and I hope you'll appreciate how it will go <3

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On our third and final day in Savannah, we were walking through the cool morning air with iced coffees in hand somewhat aimlessly. I felt perfectly at ease among the charming townhouses and apartments, pale moss hanging from the giant oak trees, squares of historical plaques and statues that lined the streets and the soft blue sky. But there was a silent beckoning to return home, too. That wasn't an unfamiliar feeling when a trip was winding down–as much as I didn't want to leave, I also was ready to return to familiarity and guaranteed comfort. Nevertheless, I wasn't wishing for our last day and night to fly by–quite the opposite. I wanted it to move as slowly as the breeze and the clouds above.

Josh's hand was in mine as we walked and when half my coffee was gone, I felt more of an urgency in his steps and his grasp as we headed east back to Forsyth Park. He was on the quieter side again though I was as well, feeling content to be lost in the vivid imagery that I was trying to commit to eternal memory when I wasn't able to snap a million pictures. We breezed past the fountain and the trees and artists selling their own colorful prints and rogue musicians, then crossed the street and I looked up from watching a little lizard scuttle into some bushes to see an impressive white building, as old and as full of character as everything else in the city, in front of me.

"SCAD, right?" I remarked, flipping through the blips of Google that I could remember and tying that information to the architecture.

"Yeah, SCAD. Bad acronym, I think," Josh said, holding my hand tighter as we walked around the perimeter.

"It's small." I took note of how busy it appeared to be despite its modest size–people were bustling in and out of the doors we were walking past in that end-of-the-semester rush that I didn't miss in the slightest. I looked at Josh then, curious: "Why are we here?"

"Let's keep walking," Josh said, carrying me onward with a swing of his arm and more speed to his steps. "Although, there is something I need to talk to you about."

Josh had never begun a sentence with those words–they sounded foreign and awkward coming from him, too formal and weirdly foreboding. The strange moment made my heart skip a beat and I felt the same sort of dread and fear I'd felt before our flight return, something dangerous telling me to get ready, but I wasn't prepared for whatever was coming. I waited for Josh to continue, not willing–and not feeling particularly able–to speak first.

He led us away from the school. "There's one additional reason why I chose Savannah for this trip in addition to genuinely wanting to explore this new place with the love of my life," Josh began, and instead of his touch keeping me from tensing up, my body began to grow tight and stiff while we walked. He paused his words until we reached a park bench, but he didn't let me hand go as we sat down.

Now I was dying to know. "What?"

Josh looked up, his perfect profile aligned with the sky. "I had a job interview with SCAD right before I booked this trip, so I thought we should come down here and see the city for ourselves. See if it would be the right fit." He turned to me, placing my hand on his knee. "I'm so, so sorry for not telling you when all of this was happening, darling. I sent out the application sort of on a whim–I didn't truly expect them to reach out. But when they did, it felt like a chance I had to take."