***BC: STEVEN***
I had thought of the future but not as far ahead as Albany.
I never thought about having kids or living on my own or doing anything other than teaching at the University. Teaching was something I actually loved doing, but if I had to be honest, it wasn't something I wanted to do for the rest of my life.
But I had no idea what I wanted to do if I gave up teaching.
Like Albany pointed out, I needed to think about something other than the now. It was what I was doing as I sat behind my desk and waited for the next lecture to start. I pulled a notebook out from my drawer and grabbed a random pen.
Think about the future, I wrote as the heading. The longer I sat there, the more my brows dipped into a frown because I couldn't fucking think of one thing.
Muttering under my breath, I dropped the pen and leaned back in the chair. My eyes darted around as my mind trailed back to the day Albany came to see me. I'd promised her that we'd fuck on my desk, but was that ever going to happen?
Shaking my head, I pushed my hips up to pull my phone out of my pocket. Swiping my thumb across the screen, I pulled up Albany's contact. My finger hovered over the screen. I wanted to call her so badly just to hear her voice.
In the end, I locked my phone and pushed it back into my pocket.
She wanted space and I wasn't going to disrespect her wishes.
***
Thomas was waiting for me when I walked out of the building. He was leaning against the side of the truck with his arms cross over his chest and his head lowered. He was studying something on the ground.
"Hey," I greeted when I met him.
He slowly raised his head to look at me. "I'm leaving."
I blinked, completely taken aback by his words. My lips parted but no sound escaped. I swallowed as I took a step closer and spotted the duffle bag in the bed of the truck.
"W-where are you going?" I asked when I found my voice.
He straightened and shrugged as he glanced around. Finally his eyes found mine. Emotions flashed through them, one after the other which made it impossible to make sense of any of them.
"I thought that I'd visit some old friends. Figure things out and shit." His lips tugged up slightly. "You can have the house to yourself for a few weeks. . . maybe months."
I raised and eyebrow. "You'll be gone for that long."
"For however long it takes to learn to. . . accept myself for who I am."
"Does this have something to do with what's going on between Kieran and you?"
Thomas didn't answer the question. He turned pulled the door open ad climbed into the truck. Pursing my lips, I walked around the truck and got in.
He immediately pulled away from the curb and headed in the direction of home. We were silent the whole ride up until he pulled up in the driveway and looked at me.
"I'm taking the truck but I've already made arrangements with Severide for you to borrow the Escalade until I get back."
"You shouldn't have done that. I could've taken the bus."
He rolled his eyes. "I'll see you whenever I see you."
"Call me okay?" I said as I opened the door. "It doesn't have to be everyday, but call me so I know that you're okay."
"I will."
I stared at him silently for a few minutes before I slid out of the truck and walked over to the gate. Thomas honked the horn before he sped away and disappeared around the corner.
My shoulders slumped. Why does it feel like Albany had been the glue to keep us together?
YOU ARE READING
The Bucket List (A REVERSE HAREM ROMANCE)
Romance*** UNEDITED *** Crystal and I have been friends since fourth grade. We were like sisters even though we weren't blood-related. The two of us had a lot of plans but tragedy struck and I was suddenly all alone. During her last few hours alive, we wro...
