Behind Closed Doors

Chapter 24: Noah Calhoun and Allie Hamilton

Months passed. Y/N had come home from her ill-fated cabin trip to find that she had gotten into her top choice school, Parsons, so that she could continue her education in interior design. Part of her had wondered if she should be taking on more loans, but most of her was extremely excited. The best part was that the school was close to home, so she could stay in her apartment.

Unfortunately, Y/N's old roommate had moved out to follow Phish around the country - people still did that? - so she was now living with someone new. Alicia was fine, but they didn't really have anything in common. Y/N could never figure out how to bridge the gap between them, so they mostly left each other alone.

All in all, the months had both crept by and moved extremely fast. Her school life was fast-paced and jam-packed, and she couldn't believe how quickly the spring semester had gone by. Her personal life however was severely lacking. She had a few classmates she spoke to, but no one she spent any significant amount of time around. Y/N had been forced to spend time with her mom and Geoff just for socialization. Not that she had much time for that, since she still tried to pick up the odd client here and there to make ends meet.

Y/N was in a weird place. Professionally, she was at the top of her game. Grad school was really helping her hone her skills, and she felt more confident than ever. Her social life was in shambles though. She hadn't spoken to Mary since the cabin.

Usually when Mary and Y/N fought, the wronged party would reach out within a few days. Even if it was a mutual misunderstanding, things would typically blow over quickly. Y/N waited a week after the cabin, then two, and by week three, she realized Mary wasn't going to reach out. She spent that week crying while Alicia avoided her like a plague.

As the months went by, Y/N pushed Mary further and further towards the back of her mind. Every once in a while, something important would happen - she'd crush an assignment, she'd match with someone cute on the apps, she'd fight with her mom - and her first instinct would be to call Mary. Once, Y/N had literally been about to press 'call' before remembering. Those moments were the hardest.

Y/N felt like she was in a fog, going through the motions. She kept her grades up, she kept moving forward, but there was something missing.

Mary was missing.

Y/N hated herself for hurting her best friend. She hated herself for not thinking about Mary's feelings. She hated herself for not being honest.

But she'd made this mess, and now she had to live with the consequences.

---

Y/N was just finishing up her last final project when her phone buzzed repeatedly. She was in a groove, and she was so close to being done, so she didn't bother to look to see who it was. Whoever could wait.

After about an hour and some last minute tweaks, she was ready to submit her project and be done with the semester. Y/N uploaded it, clicked send, and slumped back in her chair. Being done was amazing. She felt drained.

It was only then that she remembered her buzzing phone. She walked over to it and looked at the screen.

>Hey it's Mickey

>I stole your number from Mary's phone I hope that's okay

>We're in the city for Mary's birthday and I want to see you

>Are you busy later?

Y/N just looked at the texts. Each one felt like a punch to the gut. She wasn't sure if she even wanted to respond. But Mickey was kind to her, even if his big mouth was the thing that exposed her to Mary in the end. Y/N found herself actually wanting to see him too, which surprised her.

The mention of Mary's birthday hurt though. Y/N knew that it was coming up - how could she forget her best friend's birthday? But while she didn't expect an invite to celebrate, facing the reality of the situation stung. Y/N had been agonizing for days over whether or not she should text Mary on her actual birthday. Maybe she could talk it over with Mickey. She figured seeing him couldn't hurt.

Y/N remembered it had been a while since Mickey had sent the texts, and she realized she should probably respond before he made other plans.

>Sorry, I was finishing up some work. I'm free if you still are?

She didn't expect such a quick response. The little typing bubble sprang up virtually immediately. Mickey told her to meet him at the hotel they were staying at in an hour.

Y/N tried to ready herself for whatever was coming.