Chapter 38

I wiped away tears as I stood outside looking up at what used to be my house. I saw the rest of the girls doing the same thing. It looked empty and lonely. All of our stuff was out of it, but I knew it would forever hold memories of us. I didn’t want to leave. Getting into Sidney’s rental car meant this house was no longer ours. I hoped that whoever moved in for school next year would love it as much as we did.

“Tanner, I hate to do this, but we have to go or we’ll miss our flight,” Sidney said while putting his arm around me.

I nodded and turned toward the girls. Tears filled all of our eyes as they rushed over to me. Before I knew it, we were tangled together in a group hug, crying our eyes out. We were all headed our separate ways today. None of us knew what the future held, but we knew that we would always be best friends, no matter what. After a long, drawn out goodbye and a few more hugs I got into Sidney’s car.

He pulled me to him and kissed my temple before starting the car and backing out of the driveway. He didn’t say anything, and I was grateful that he was giving me time to grieve over the drastic change moving away from the girls was. We pulled up to the airport almost half an hour later.

As I got out and followed Sidney’s lead, I was grateful for the timing of the trip. My chemo schedule was three weeks on it, one week off for six months. This week was my week off, so I wasn’t feeling too bad. Security escorted us inside and we blew through security in minutes. I didn’t like exploiting Sid’s celebrity, but I was never going to turn it down when it came to avoiding the security lines at the airport.

One of the transport cars was waiting for us on the other side. Sid and I got on and were driven to a private room where we could wait until it was time to board. People pointed and called after us as they recognized Sidney the entire way. We would be the last two on the plane and the first two off so we could avoid the other passengers as best we could.

“Is this what it’s like every time you fly an unchartered flight?” I asked him as I stretched out on a couch.

“Yeah, pretty much. Are you nervous?” I smiled and shook my head.

“Not really. I know I haven’t flown since I was like 12, but I’m willing to bet first class is much nicer than coach.” He smiled and laughed.

“Much nicer,” he agreed.

“So what’s the plan when we get to Nova Scotia?”

“My dad is picking us up. He’ll drop us off at home. I figured you’d probably want a nap. Then we’ll see how you feel and take the rest of the night from there.”

“Sounds good.”

I cuddled up to him with a contented sigh until we were told it was time to board. We got back on the transport car and were driven the rest of the way to our gate. Once again, it was almost pandemonium as people recognized him. Some even tried to chase after the car. Security made sure we weren’t bothered as we boarded the plane.

“Window or aisle?” Sid asked me as we walked onto the plane.

“Is it okay if I take the window? I just want somewhere to rest my head in case I get tired,” I explained. He smiled and nodded. I got in and sat down in my seat.

Once in the air, he pulled out a portable DVD player and popped in a movie. I lasted about 10 minutes before I fell asleep. I woke up a little while later with my head resting on Sidney’s shoulder. He looked over at me and smiled as I stirred.

“I got you a ginger ale while you were sleeping in case you wanted something to drink,” he said pointing to the glass of ice and can sitting in front of him.

“Thank you. That was sweet,” I responded as I cracked open the can and poured myself a glass. I sipped on my drink as I looked out the window. It was a clear day and I could see the ground below us. “It doesn’t look like we’re going very fast when you watch the ground.” He laughed and kissed me.

“We’ll be there soon,” he whispered.

Just like he said the plane landed not long after. As soon as we were allowed Sidney and I made our way off of the plane. Just like in Pittsburgh we were transported to a designated location where we saw Troy waiting. He smiled at us as we made our way over to him. He hugged Sidney, and then hugged me as well.

“How was the trip?” he asked as we followed him to the car, still escorted by security.

“Smooth sailing,” Sidney replied. We didn’t have any baggage because we had shipped everything except for what was in our carry ons.

“I thought I’d drop you two off at home and let you get some rest. Then your mother and I figured you might want to come over for dinner since it’s your first day back,” Troy told us.

“That sounds wonderful, Troy. Thank you,” I said from the back seat.

I spent the rest of the car ride looking out the window and watching the sights as they passed by. I’d really never been outside of a city. I’d grown up in Manhattan and had gone to school in Pittsburgh. Even any vacations my family had taken had been to other cities. I couldn’t keep the smile off of my face as I saw how beautiful Sidney’s hometown was.

“Nice place,” I commented when we pulled up to Sid’s house.

“It’s not bad,” he joked. He got out and opened the car door for me. I took his hand as I got out and gazed around his property.

Troy called out a goodbye as he pulled away. Sidney led me to the front door and I followed him inside. His house had a nice open floor plan, which I loved. There were plenty of windows which allowed the sun to filter in and light up the house naturally. He gave me the tour of the first floor, which ended at his back door. I stepped out onto the deck and gazed out over the lake.

“It’s beautiful here,” I told him. He walked over and wrapped his arms around me from behind.

“I think you’ll like it here,” he said.

I turned my face to look at him, and kissed him. After just staring out over the lake for a while we went back inside and he led me upstairs. I collapsed onto his king size, way too comfortable bed and burrowed into the pillows. I was asleep in minutes. When I woke up I saw Sid lying next to me, staring with a smile on his face.

“How long have you been looking at me?” I asked with a yawn.

“About half an hour or so,” he replied. I rolled my eyes at him.

“Why would you want to stare at me sleeping for that long?” I shifted myself up onto my elbows.

“Why wouldn’t I want to stare at you sleeping for that long?”

“You’re impossible,” I groaned. He laughed and kissed me. I let myself fall back to the bed, taking Sidney with me as I wrapped my arms around his neck. “It’s been a long time since we’ve been able to do that,” I said when we finally pulled apart.

“I know. I’m glad we did. I’m looking forward to being able to do that more often now that there aren’t other people here to bother us.” He kissed me again, but I pulled away shortly after.

“I have to shower before we go to your parents’ house for dinner,” I told him when I saw the disappointed look on his face.

“Fine,” he whined. I rolled my eyes.

“You know, I’m feeling kind of weak. Maybe you should shower with me to make sure I don’t fall or pass out,” I suggested. The disappointed look transformed into a grin.

“I think maybe I should.”

An hour later we were in Sidney’s car heading to his parents’ house. We pulled up and saw Taylor playing street hockey with some other kids of varying ages. When she saw his car she left the game to run over and meet us.

“Sid!” she called as she gave him a hug.

“Hi, Taylor. How’s everything?” he asked, hugging her back.

“Better now. Hey, Tanner. Did you have a good flight?” she asked turning her attention to me.

“I did, thank you. I noticed you weren’t in goal when you were playing over there,” I commented.

“Sometimes I need to get away from it, ya know?” I laughed and the three of us walked into the house. Trina came around a corner and hugged both Sidney and I.

“I’m so glad you guys made it! We’ve got some skewers on the grill along with some salad and fruit for dinner. It should be ready soon. Can I get you anything to drink?” she offered.

“A couple of waters would be great, Mom,” Sidney told her.

“Okay. Go on out to the porch. It’s a beautiful evening. I figured we should sit outside and enjoy it. I’ll bring the waters out,” she told us.

“Is there anything I can help you with?” I asked.

“Everything is taken care of. Just go on out and relax,” she ordered. I followed Sidney through the house and out to the porch in the backyard where Troy was standing over the grill.

“Hey, guys. Did you find all the boxes?” Troy asked referring to everything we had shipped out.

“Yeah, I found them. Thanks for bringing them over,” Sidney told him.

Trina joined us a few minutes later with a bowl of salad and a tray of various fruit. A minute later Troy had the skewers on the table. We talked over dinner and long after the food was gone. It may have just been my first day in Cole Harbour, but if this was what the rest of the summer was going to be like, I knew I was going to love it here.

Once the sun was down Sidney and I headed back home. It was weird to call his house “home” but that’s what it was to me now. It really hit me as we walked inside that Sidney and I really were going to live together. Up until today we’d just been dating and spending the night together. Now we were living in the same house. Together.

“What are you smiling about?” he asked, interrupting my thoughts.

“Just about how much I love you,” I told him. He walked over and wrapped his arms around me.

“I love you too, Babe.”

We settled into the couch and turned the TV on. We spent the rest of the night lounging around. I smiled when I got into bed and rested my head on his chest. I was going to be spending my first night in our house.