Chapter 2

On the way, I kept sobbing, but David never got annoyed. Every time my tears started to fall, he'd quietly hand me a pack of tissues and gently comfort me, telling me everything would be alright.

Finally, we arrived at Riverside City Hospital. I rushed straight to my grandma's room, following the directions Helen had given me earlier.

Helen was waiting outside the room, her eyes red from crying. When she saw me, she started to scold me, "Emily, what took you so long?"

But then she noticed my messy hair and puffy, red eyes, obvious signs that I'd been crying, and she stopped herself.

My voice trembled as I asked, "Helen, how's my grandma?"

Helen looked at me with sympathy. She said, "Oh, Emily, I..."

All the worry that had been building up on the way here spiked to the max when I saw Helen's reaction.

I rushed into the room and saw a white cloth over my grandma's face.

My legs went weak, and I stumbled, falling to my knees at her side.

Helen's voice trembled as she spoke, "Her eyes stayed open, waiting for you. If only you'd gotten here half an hour sooner."

I gently shook her, hoping she'd wake up.

I said, "Grandma, it's me. I'm back to see you. Please, answer me."

My voice was choked with sobs.

But I knew the always-smiling, optimistic woman who had been my rock would never answer me again.

My mind was flooded with scenes from all those years, the years when Grandma and I had only each other.

My parents passed away when I was very young, and Grandma raised me on her own. I always knew I was different from other kids, but thanks to her careful love, I never really felt the pain of that loss.

After high school, I wanted to stay at a local college in Riverside City to look after her, but for once, Grandma got angry. She said, "Why waste such good grades?" She insisted I apply to that elite out-of-state university I'd always dreamed of.

Whenever I came home, she'd always make a feast and fuss over me to eat up.

And there were so many more happy, heartwarming memories.

Those days are never coming back.

I couldn't hold back anymore. I broke down at Grandma's bedside, crying my heart out.

The next few days passed in a daze. I was numb, barely able to get through it all. If it hadn't been for Helen and David, I never could have handled Grandma's funeral.

Luckily, David really was the older neighbor I grew up with.

After I'd finally calmed down a bit, I remembered my phone was dead. I borrowed a charger, plugged it in, and as soon as it powered up, my screen lit up with a ton of notifications.

My eyes went straight to Alex's messages.

Alex: [Let me know you made it safe.]

Alex: [Did you get there? How's your grandma?]

Funny thing is, he didn't even think to message me until the next day.

Alex: [I tried calling you, but your phone was off. What's going on?]

Alex: [I went by your dorm, and your roommates said you haven't been back for days. Where are you?]

Alex: [All I asked was for you to grab a cab on the highway. Even if it was raining, you could've just bought an umbrella at a rest stop. Are you still not over it?]

It's honestly just laughable.

I forced a smile, typed out: [We're done.], and was about to unpin his chat. But the moment my finger touched the screen, it was like waking up from a dream.

Unpinning? What's the point?

I just blocked and deleted him everywhere.

Next up were messages from my advisor.

He was really pissed that I'd left without notice, and totally went off on me in his texts.

I called him back right away, and as soon as he picked up, he started yelling at me again.

But when I explained the situation, he just went quiet.

I asked for a leave of absence, and he agreed without hesitation. Then he sighed and told me to take it easy, offering his condolences.

A couple of days later, after everything was taken care of, I gave Helen a heartfelt thank you and set off for school.

Her eyes were still red as she handed me a bag of her homemade snacks. "Don't be too sad, Emily," she said gently. "Study hard, okay? Don't let your grandma down."

I nodded through my tears, doing my best to hold it together.

David offered to drive me back to school.

It suddenly hit me; he'd been with me every step these past few days, helping out nonstop. I couldn't help but feel guilty, wondering if I'd kept him from something important.

David smiled at me. He said, "Honestly, I just came back to visit. Wasn't busy with anything else."

On the way back, the sun was out in full force, a total contrast from the pouring rain when I first arrived.

My mood had completely changed, too.

Looking back at all the mess with Alex these past few years, I could only let out a bitter laugh, wondering why I didn't realize I should've ended things way sooner.

I let out a sigh.

"Emily, don't be too sad," David said softly. "I'm sure your grandma, watching over you from above, wouldn't want you to stay stuck in this sadness."

"I know. Thank you, David," I replied quietly.