You Are the Shell to My Tortoise | ✓

Epilogue

Shrieks and cheers filled the air in the soccer field we were in.

My eyes welled up as I took in the sight of the graduation caps that had been tossed into the air above us, momentarily overwhelmed by the finality of this moment.

This was it.

High school was officially over.

Someone collided into my side and pulled me into a giant hug.

"We're high school graduates now!" Next to my ear, Melissa's voice was almost uncomfortably loud.

"Yeah!" I responded, turning around to hug her back. "Congratulations, Mel!"

"Congratulations!" she chirped back.

Derek stood at her side, looking in all directions as if it were the first time he was seeing our school field.

His eyes gradually landed on us, and he said, "I can't believe we won't be coming back here next year."

"Me neither," I replied, trying to blink away my tears.

It didn't work—they rolled down my cheeks instead.

"Aww, are you okay?" Melissa squeezed me harder.

I put my arms around her in return. Simultaneously, Derek petted my shoulder.

"Yeah," I reassured her, forcing the words past the lump in my throat. "I'm just a bit ... emotional, I guess."

After all, this was our graduation day. It was only natural to be moved to tears, right?

"Guys!"

A sudden force almost knocked us off our balance, causing us to stumble sideways. I blinked as I realized that it was Ashley who had launched into us and joined in on our group hug.

Laughing, Melissa withdrew one arm to drape it over her shoulders.

Ashley pulled back to grin at us. Her cheeks were already wet with tears.

"I almost don't want to leave," she said, looking around at us. "I'm going to miss you guys so much."

Nolan, Ashley, and I would all be going to Cornell University in the fall, but Melissa and Derek were both attending Boston University. Derek's family lived in Massachusetts, and he wanted to go to a college that was closer to home. Since the location of her college didn't matter as much to Melissa, she decided to go ahead and apply to there as well.

"I'll miss you too," Melissa said. "But we'll arrange meetups for sure."

Behind me, I felt someone's presence breach my personal space. Upon turning my head, I was greeted with Nolan's half-grin. I returned it with one that felt like it was about to split my face into two.

"Congrats, guys," he said.

The skies were gray, and the sun had been entirely blocked out by the threatening-looking clouds. Despite that, there hadn't been a single drizzle today. Principal Lawson had announced that if there was a lightning warning or if it began to actually rain, we would be relocated to the auditorium. It wouldn't have been a problem for Nolan if it took place there, but cap-tossing would have to be canceled for safety reasons.

The both of us had initially thought that Nolan wouldn't be able to attend today since the graduation ceremony was supposed to take place in the open school field. Thanks to the weather today, however, he was able to make it. Apparently, as long as he wasn't exposed to direct sunlight, he would be fine.

He'd warned me that he would leave the second he spotted any signs of the sun emerging, though. He said that he didn't really care about participating in the ceremony, but all the same I'd hoped that it would remain cloudy all the way right up until the end. I was so glad that it did.