No Promises

chapter seventeen

WHEN MY CLASS ends, I stop to pick up lunch before heading back to the apartment. I had thought about staying on campus to hang out with Isla in person while we video chat Stevie, but the reality of my life is that it's going at different speeds than my friends. We have lives outside each other now, and the thought alone was devastating.

I didn't know if I was going to be able to accept it, but have been distracted enough with my classes and projects that I haven't had time to stop and think about it. It's hard to believe that I'm only a few days away from being halfway done with the semester. It went by so fast and I've hardly had time to worry about the fact that I only talk to my best friends once a week.

Each of us too busy to have day long hang outs the way we used to.

And it's a hard pill to swallow.

"Hi Vee," I say as I settle in front of my computer, taking in her light sky background. "Where are you?"

"I'm at Berkeley waiting for Felix," she says, leaning back so I can see she's sitting on a patch of grass. "He finishes class in a bit and we're spending the day together."

"Cute," I say. "How has it been? Being there?"

The smile is all the answer I need, losing herself in a daydream as Isla's name flashes on my screen, letting us both know she's free. "I'll add her in," Stevie says, her eyes darting away around the screen as she invites Isla into our video chat. "Hey Isla!"

"Hey! Sorry, I'm late," she says, settling in on her dorm room bed. "I had a question for one of my profs and it turned into a whole thing."

"Is he cute?" I ask with a teasing grin.

She shrugs. "He's young."

"Okay, no," Stevie says, holding her hand up in protest. "Robyn, stop putting ideas in her head. Isla, you are not dating your professor."

Isla rolls her eyes as my phone buzzes on the table next to my laptop. I reach for it when I see Jonas' name on the screen. "Hang on a second," I tell them as I bring the phone up to my ear.

"That better be your boy toy, Robby!" Isla says loudly before I can even greet him.

Jonas' laugh is rich in my ear, her voice loud enough that he heard. "Boy toy, huh?"

"You heard it here first," I say.

"Can't say that I'm against it," he says in a teasing town as I get up from my seat at the island and move toward the fridge.

"Is that so?" I ask as I run my hand over my jeans, playing with the shallow pocket as I lean back into the countertop. "Not that I don't love hearing from you, but what's up?"

"I wanted to know if you wanted to hang out, but you've clearly got your hands busy."

"I mean, if you don't mind listening to me talk to Isla and Stevie for a little while, you're more than welcome to come over," I tell him, moving back towards the island. "We haven't had a ton of time together, so we're squeezing some time in before Isla has to get to her next class."

"Do you mind is really what I should be asking."

My lips curl up as I shake my head. "I don't mind."

"Okay, cool," he says. "I'll be over in a bit then."

"Sounds good," I tell him as I hit the end call button, climbing back up on the stool at the island. "What were we talking about again?"

"I believe we were talking about your new boyfriend," Isla says with a hum, despite it not being the topic of conversation I remember.