Stained Lungs (A Shadouge Story)

Chapter Twenty-Four: Scholarships and Hickeys

Shadow's POV~
A few weeks went by. I had gotten to the point where I only smoked once every few days, and even then, I couldn't finish a whole one. It made me sick to my stomach.
Rouge was elated by this, she was so happy that I was cutting down, and to be honest, I was too.
She finally got her phone back, and everything was back to normal.
It was Friday, and after school she came over to my house. I would have it to myself for awhile, so I invited her over. And besides that, she wanted to talk to me about something.
Once we made it to my room, we sat down on my bed.
"So, what did you want to talk to me about?"
"Well," Rouge began, "I got a letter in the mail yesterday, it was from one of the colleges I applied for. Actually, it was from the one I want to attend."
"Really? What did it say?"
She began to grin, "They're willing to give me a full-ride!"
I smiled, I love to see her happy. "That's great! I'm happy for you."
Her smile then started to fade, "Thanks, but there's something else I wanted to tell you."
Oh shit, is she breaking up with me? What'd I do?
"Oh, um, okay... What's wrong?"
She looked down, "The university isn't around here. It's not even in this state. And on top of that, I'm required to live in a dorm or sorority my first year."
What?
Are you just gonna leave?
I sat there. I didn't know what to say.
"So, are you gonna go?"
"Well, I'd love to," she answered, "This is a huge opportunity, but Shadow, I don't want to leave you behind. We could still see each other after my classes, it's just that-"
"You couldn't live with me."
"Exactly. Wait, did you want me to live with you after high school or something? I didn't think you'd be super upset about it, I thought we could move up there and you could get an apartment."
"What?! Rouge, I don't have the money to just find an apartment on the spot. Sure, I could start looking, but that's a wealthy city around that campus. I don't know if I could afford anything near that college."
She sighed, "Can't we try to figure something out?"
"Of course, babe," I replied as I wrapped my arms around her.

We sat there snuggled up together for a bit, and then she finally asked:
"Shadow?"
"Yes?"
"What do you think about me leaving?"
I was quiet for a moment, and then I started kissing her neck.
"I don't want you to go." I said between kisses, "I don't want you to leave me."
She wrapped her arms around me and closed her eyes. "I don't plan on leaving you, Shadow."
I kept kissing her until I began to leave little hickeys on her collarbone. She cooed my name as she ran her fingers through my quills. It was heaven.
It wasn't long though until Rouge had to go home. I walked her out to her car, kissed her goodbye, and watched her leave.
I went back to my bedroom and picked up my guitar. I hadn't played it in awhile, so I thought it would pass the time better than thinking about smoking.
Even though my fingers were occupied, my mind wasn't. And cigarettes were the last thing I was worried about.
What if she does leave?
Or what if you leave? What if you move away?
What if you never get to tell her how you feel?
I froze.
"I have to tell her."