(y/n)'s POV

And so it was Monday once again and I was back on the bus to school, having had my complaining session with Spot earlier.

I couldn't get to sleep in order to nap the bus ride away, so instead I opened my phone to see if there were any unread texts.

There was one, from Kath last night that I didn't notice until now. After Jack and I stopped talking I answered her, and it lead to a relatively unexciting conversation about what we were doing after we graduate. I was going to go into theatre, while she wanted to go to school for journalism.

I always told her that once I'm on Broadway, she'll have to be the one to interview me. She agreed, and said I had to play myself in a musical about her life.

"Do you think you'll be interested in long distance in a year once we get to college?" The text read, and I stared down on it. I knew what this was about, Jack again. Everyone who spent two minutes with the guy knew he was headed to Santa Fe for college and probably beyond, he'd been dreaming of it since he was six.

"I don't think so, it'd be too hard and emotionally draining, ya feel?" I responded earnestly.

"I guess, but you two would be able to work it through. If I know either of you, and I definitely do, then you'll make it." She responded immediately. I swear, I never knew how she did it. It's like she always saw immediately and had 5 responses copy and pasted, already ready to go.

"I'm staying, he's going, and we're both set on that. And we'd either have to move in together or break up eventually. I'm not giving up my career options here and I'm not dragging him away from his lifelong dream, Kath. It's not fair to either of us. Some things just aren't meant to be," I typed back, pausing every once in a while to deliberate what I'm trying to say.

Sure, he was cute and strong and a hell of a good painter and a fantastic friend plus the most loyal person I knew, but we didn't go together. We weren't made to be a couple, and the stars surely weren't aligned for us as soulmates, but as friends who may or may not even keep in touch during college.

"But do you think he'll even enjoy Santa Fe that much? Think about it, he's been building it up in his head since he was tiny, and it was always just as an escape. He has family here, we love him like all hell and he knows that. And I genuinely believe that if anyone, you can convince him to stay if you're together. He can go to art school, pursue his passion alongside the girl he loves and most of his friends." It, for once, took her ages to type out a text.

I blinked, feeling my face heat up when reading about him loving me.

He didn't love me, I was just the girl he had to fall for. But soon enough, after the bet is done, he would get back up and realize that he didn't love me. He was going to Santa Fe, and it would be there where he'd meet the love of his life who he'd settle down with and marry and have kids with, since everyone knew that boy loved kids. Those thoughts scared me, so much so that I didn't even realize I'd left Kath on read for far too long.

"but what do you want me to do?"

There was a long pause as she typed, trying to find the right words.

"Become his Santa Fe."

It was a simple text, only four words. The problem was the heavy weight they held, like a boulder crushing my back as I tried to carry it.

"I don't even think that's possible." I typed back eventually.

"I'll ask Crutchie." There was her practically-copy-and-pasted typing again, leaving me alone with my thoughts. This was surprisingly deep for me. The waters were getting too hot and I wasn't sure if I could manage.

This was the problem of this scheme I had begrudgingly agreed to. I was scared, and things were getting intense. I didn't want to take away my friend's happiness all for some stupid bet.

I felt really bad, so I decided to take my mind off it and text Elmer. He was a funny dude, and definitely knew how to make people feel better. And right now, all I needed was someone outside of this drama to talk to for a while.

"hey, dude. I'm bored, so how's it going?" I typed out, ready to switch over to tumblr to wait for a response but I saw the three dots of typing pop up immediately.

"woah, freaky! I was just gonna text you the same thing. we must be psychic!" He texted, earning a genuine laugh from me. Like I said, he was fantastic at taking my mind off things.

"does that mean that we're useless superheroes?" I texted back.

"who needs to be useful when you're wicked cool!" He typed.

"you're not wrong. I'm sure if we consulted Race we'd have millions of ways to make money off it"

"who needs Race when we have the biggest, best brain on the continent. me!" I chuckled at his response.

"last year you asked me multiple times how to spell the word egg" I sassed over the screen. I wished this was a lie, but I was being 100% truthful.

"no geniuses can spell egg, (y/n). I'm just playing the part" I could feel his joking indignation in waves through his screen.

"if that's what you need to tell yourself, buddy."

"anyway, do you and jack have something going on? you've been seriously eye-balling each other during lunch. it's okay, i wont tell him" he texted after a minute of writing and re-writing.

I took a deep breath, letting myself exhale slowly and calmly before I typed my text to him.

"well, I like him kinda but it won't last, so we probably won't end up dating or anything." I told him, thinking it over. Elmer was trustworthy, it's fine.

"and why don't you think it would last?"

"because, Elmer, we both want different things out of life. he's going to Santa Fe to be a farmer and he'll eventually find a wife there and have kids. I'm staying here to pursue my dreams of being on Broadway, and eventually I'll find someone else and get married and we'll forget each other." I texted back, taking ages to really put it into words.

"he only wants Santa Fe because it symbolizes hope for him, (y/n). all of us know that deep down. so BE his hope, and maybe he'll stay. maybe he'll accept that fancy art school's full scholarship, since they've been begging to have him there since he was 15. and then you both get your happily ever after." Elmer typed back quickly.

"Kath said that too, but I don't think so. he wants Santa Fe, not me."

"if that's what you really think, (y/n). now, let's change the subject bc this is far too sad for me. wanna see some wholesome memes?!"

"hell yeah I do!"

And with that, my mind was taken off it for now. I knew I was bound to stay up really late pondering all night, but for now cute dogs saving their owners were enough.

(1274 words)