Present Day

Keyboard clicks and zipping bookbags punctuated the professor's final presentation slides.  The students held onto every word with baited breath, and not because they were interested in how to properly format a reference page, but because they were collectively waiting for the moment when the lecture ended.

Especially Suri McAlister.

She had only been back a few weeks and already she was counting the days until their next break. Maybe she should have done what her advisor had suggested and eased back in as a part-time student, but she was already a year behind. 

It didn’t help that she kept zoning out during lectures, though that did make for some great doodles. 

Suri pulled her gaze from the scribbles she had detailed in the corner of her scarce notes and rejoiced as those sweet words of dismissal were uttered by the professor, and the room surged around her to vacate as quickly as possible.  

No one glanced her way or waited around for her, but she expected as much.  

College wasn’t like high school. Each class was a fun little surprise of people she had never met and people she would very much like to never meet again. Hardly ever was it people she knew. Though, that was probably because she knew a grand total of three people.

In fact, she shuffled into the hall and was greeted by the sharp eyes of one of them.

Jennifer Mae stood against the far wall, arms crossed over her curves and painted lips pursed in disappointment. Not that her face ever really looked pleased.

“I have been waiting for you to respond to me for forever now,” Jenny said, her hip protruding to accommodate the hand placed on it. “What did you do? Lose your phone again?” 

“Sorry.” Suri apologized for everything, even when it wasn’t always her fault. This time, it was. “I thought I responded.”

“Of course you did.”

She pulled her phone out of her pocket, pouting at the message she had typed and never sent. “You sent this yesterday. And I’ve been busy with classes since this morning.”

“I sent it yesterday because I needed an answer yesterday.” 

Jenny punctuated the immediacy of the situation with a flip of her hand and a high-arched brow raise. Suri read the message again to be sure of what she was committing to. 

A party at Jenny’s home to celebrate her twentieth birthday. Tomorrow night. Open bar, music and food provided. Sent to her and basically anyone else Jenny had come in contact with in the last three to five years. The information was buried in a slew of excited geers and emojis. This is why she hated group texts. 

“I’ll try to be there,” she said. 

Jenny didn’t like the non-committal response. “You’ll try?”

“Yeah, I— there’s this thing I have to do today. If it goes okay, I’ll be there.” 

Jenny didn’t believe her, a learned response formulated over the last few months as a result of Suri’s general disinterest in going out and the upticks in her unreliable promises. Suri couldn’t blame her; she could only blame herself. 

“I’ll be there,” Suri reiterated. 

The skepticism on Jenny’s round face became all muddied with sympathetic patience that only made the situation worse. Suri’s stomach turned; she figured now was as good a time as any to be forthcoming.

“I’m, uh, I’m going to see my dad today.”

“Oh,” Jenny said, the small utterance a sledgehammer on Suri’s nerves. “No, right. I get it, I guess. I just, like, didn’t think about it. You haven’t mentioned going to see him since—”

Jenny trailed off mercifully and Suri shook her head to dispel any intruding thoughts. “Last year,” she offered, before quickly moving on. “I think it’s time now, though. You know?”

This was maybe the last thing on all the islands of Lacuna that she wanted to do, but it had been a year. She was different now, stronger. In theory.

“If you say so.” Jenny waved a perfectly manicured hand to brush away the awkwardness and Suri nodded again as if she had been granted permission. “Don’t forget to text me though. I need a headcount for the food and drinks.”

“You got it.” 

Suri gave her a double thumbs up and demolished herself for doing something so visibly embarrassing, but Jenny had already dismissed her with a hair flip and a perfected eye roll. 

Now was the hard part: she had to go see her father.