.:*Last Summer & Beyond*:. [CLUB PENGUIN FANFIC]

Saying Goodbye (Prologue)

''You'll never know the heaviness of a goodbye until it's your last...''

"C-Come again, sir?" it felt like a rock plummeted from the top of my throat to the bottom of my stomach.

"You've got two options here: you either stay in Pengsylvania and lose this job, or you move out to Club Penguin Island and get triple what you're making now. Time is of the essence here, Whitney," His raspy voice beat down on my fragile ears. I had to move or lose it all? I had to leave everything I've ever known or lose the best job I'll ever get? "Whitney?"

"Y-Yes, I'm still here, sir... I-I... need more time thi--"

"We don't have any more time left on this! Ebert was supposed to be transferred within the month, and he split off from the company, hightailing off passed the north border with a woman he couldn't even spell the first name of. In short, I need a yes or no, PRONTO, SISTER!"

"I..." my heart swelled. A balloon nearly full in my chest, and my decision, the needle. I couldn't weigh this. I couldn't know the weight of what I was doing. This was lose, lose. Thoughts flooded my mind, filling my entire head with nonsense. It turned seconds into hours. Every millisecond I could feel. I had nothing to say, yet I could fill a library with my thoughts. I had to pick. Neither answer felt right, but I had to pick. I could feel the room closing in around me. Shrinking and warping, I felt no escape. I had to pick. I had to say something to make this stop. I shut my eyes tight as I felt the hot tears welling in my eyes. "Y...Yes."

"Booyah! That's my girl! We're gonna be getting you out of here by..." His voice drifted off as I could feel the room grow back. My thoughts went blank, and I couldn't tell what just happened. I couldn't feel. I could hear him fidgeting with his calendar for a bit before swooping back in with, "...the 28th! How's that sound, young grasshopper?" I just sat there for a moment. I stared off not really paying mind to what I focused in on or if I was even focusing at all. I felt the tears, but I couldn't put together why they were falling. I finally pulled it together enough to realize I had been asked a question in the midst of it all.

"Sure, sounds great."

"You gonna be ok, kid?" 

"Yeah, I just..."

"Aw!~ I knew you were gonna miss me someday!" He chuckled viciously. Egotist.

"Y-Yeah, I'm gonna miss the whole team... It's getting late, and... and I should head off now. Thanks for letting me know about this."

"Alright, don't run off with a woman you can barely say the name of now!" He wheezed at himself and continued, "Have a great night. Take care!" With a click, it was over. I let my phone slip out of my grasp and onto the carpet below. My life was about to get a whole lot different. 

. .: .: .: .: .:. :. :. :. :. .

I could feel the weight of my soul as I dragged through the hallways that morning. I stumbled on passed the pictures I had to collect off the walls. I stopped and held myself up against the wall right in front of one of them. I couldn't hold myself together enough to grab the frame, but I stared at what I could see. My 24th birthday. Holly and I looked so happy. I longed for another chance, another moment, like that. I couldn't look away. 

I must've been off in my head long enough to gain an audience. Before I knew it, I heard, "Whit? You alright over there?" My dad sat down the box to come comfort me. I guess it was rather visible by this point that I wasn't ready for this. I couldn't hold it back anymore. I didn't care who saw; I just let it all go in that moment. I was shameless. I shook my head and the tears started to fall once more. I ran up to him, wrapped my flippers around his neck, and clung on like there was no tomorrow. I sobbed into his collar as he started to rub my back. My dad was my whole life, and that was being ripped away.

"I-I'm s-s-s-... sorry-ey-he-he!!" I couldn't control what came out, it just did.

"Sorry for what, sugar?"

"I d-...on't even know!" I buried myself deeper into his neck. I wailed and carried on with nonsense not a single soul could decipher. I continued on until I physically couldn't anymore.

"Sweetheart," He pulled me off of him to look me in my reddened eyes, "you know I have all the means to come and see you. This is going to be hard, but this is a start for a life you never expected. This right here is what's going to make you the strongest person I know. You're going to go out there and kick the world's ass." He pulled me in for another hug as I chuckled and wiped the tears away. "You're gonna do great, sweetie."

"Thanks, dad..." 

And with that, we got back to work. We got all of my house packed up and ready to be shipped off with me. I had a few more goodbyes, and then I was off. It didn't matter what happened now; all I knew is that I had a world to kick the ass of and a dad to make proud by doing it.