Last Year

I sat on my bedroom floor, a blanket thrown over my shoulders and my phone propped against the screen of my laptop.

Everett's face flashed up at me from my phone. I could hear his gym's music faintly in the background. He was walking on the treadmill, his body shifting with every step he took. His face glowed with sweat, and it was hard to tear my eyes away from him to focus on my practice papers.

"So, explain to me again," Everett said, his breathing heavy. "You graduate in September, and then you have your final exams?"

"Exactly."

"Why?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. That's just how it works here."

"But that's not really a graduation then. I mean, you can't even celebrate 'cause you know you're not officially done."

"It's not really a celebration unless you're here anyway."

Everett frowned. Or at least he seemed to frown. It was hard to make out based on the pixelation of the screen.

"Isla, you're allowed to have fun when I'm not there," he said.

I sighed, dropping my pen and picking up my phone to hold closer to my face. "I know. It's just, it's not as fun when you're not around."

It was true. Since he'd left for New York again back at the start of the year, it was like something was always missing. No matter how many jokes Connor cracked, or how many beach trips I made with Sky; nothing seemed to fill that gap like Everett did.

It was like he'd barged his way into Shellside Bay and formed a permanent Everett-shaped hole in my life. And now that he was back half-way across the world, that hole was more obvious than ever.

"Isla," he sighed my name. He'd stopped moving, pausing the treadmill to chide me through video call.

"I know," I said quickly. I didn't want our call to be spoiled by this. It already spoiled most of our relationship, but I wouldn't let it have this much power over us. We could have a conversation without the distance ruining it all. I was determined. "I know. I think exams are just getting to me. How's university prep going?"

"College?" he corrected with a smile. "Good. I've got my things mostly ready. My room mate sounds nice. I don't know. I hope he's nice."

"It's so weird that you're going to be sharing a room with a complete stranger."

"You're going to be sharing a place with River," he pointed out. "In less than a year."

"He's not a stranger." I paused. Laughed. "Actually, yeah, no. I take that back. You're right."

I sighed, leaning back against my bed. Thinking about the future—about next year—it was like looking into the abyss. I didn't know what to expect. It caused a kind of sinking feeling in my stomach, the idea of an unknown future.

It was terrifying.

Growing up.

Leaving.

But it would be more terrifying to stay.

I only wished Everett could be with me.

"Maybe you could come here to study," I blurted. "Like, on an exchange?"

Everett was quiet for a long time. Eventually, I glanced at the screen. He smiled at me then, looking away momentarily.

"Yeah," he muttered. "Maybe."

My throat grew tight at his nonchalance. Everything in my body seemed to rush to a halt. He didn't notice how I'd grown silent.

I dropped the topic.

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"Isla, are you listening?"

I blinked, looking up from my lab manual to see Sky frowning at me through the phone screen.

I had propped my phone up against my water bottle on the kitchen counter so that we could chat while I studied. Except, while she'd been chatting, I'd been completely zoning out, nonsensical numbers and letters floating in my brain.

"Sorry," I sighed, dropping my pen. "I'm listening."

She stared at me through the camera. She looked almost like a stranger without her long, thick curls that would frizz out into waves from the salty air of Shellside Bay. Her shaved head made her eyes seem like they sank into her head, and I had to do a double take every time I looked at her.

Sky's mouth opened, then closed again. She frowned. "Isla, how's uni going?"

I hadn't been expecting that question. I hoped the surprise didn't show on my face. I tucked my hair behind my ears, avoiding her eyes. Even through a screen, they seemed to pierce my skin. "Good. It's all good. Fun."

"Fun?" Sky echoed.

"Fun," I confirmed. She lifted a brow at me, and that was all it took for me to give in. I groaned, collapsing onto the table. "It's so hard. I mean—how am I supposed to understand all this by the end of next week?"

I lifted my manual to prove my point and Sky laughed.

"You're smart, Isla," she said. "You've got this."

I rolled my eyes and sighed loudly, just to be extra dramatic.

I never expected university to be hard.

Well, I expected it to be challenging. A little difficult. But it was like Sky had said herself—I was smart. At least, I was supposed to be. I'd done well in all my classes, topped most of them really, and even graduated as the school dux, top of my class. This wasn't supposed to be as difficult as it was.

"Yeah. I know. I'm just jealous of you," I said, changing the subject. "How's Cairns anyway? Or was it Darwin this week?"

"Darwin's next week," Sky said, smiling teasingly. "It's fun! It reminds me of Shellside Bay, just way bigger."

After graduation, Sky had decided to take a big road trip around the country with her cousins from Melbourne as a gap year. It was such a Sky thing to do, no one was really surprised.

The only thing that was keeping me sane was the thought of her coming back to Sydney next year to start university. I wondered if River would let her stay here. We had another room available, although I suspected it was probably his parents' room—not that they were ever here. She could always bunk with me, anyway.

Suddenly, someone shouted her name in the background. It was a male voice, and my eyes grew wide.

"Sky!" I gasped. "Is that a boy calling your name?"

"His name is Josh," she said.

"Josh," I repeated with a laugh. "Don't tell me you're dating a boy named Josh."

"It's not dating, first of all," she replied. She grabbed the phone, and it shook a little as she moved locations. Her voice lowered slightly. "It's just a summer thing. A summer crush, really. Unless he follows us up to Darwin. Anyway, you'd understand if you saw him."

"Summer's over, Sky," I said simply.

Without realising it, the words sent a chill of sadness through me, because it was true. Summer was over. We were a month into March now and Shellside Bay, and everything that came with it, was gone. A distant memory.

There were no more bonfire parties. No more morning shifts at the Shack. No more surfing, and beach tans, and sand beneath my feet. No more Nauti Buoys on the Nauti Buoy sailing to that distant island, where we'd dunk each other's heads beneath crystal waters until the sky turned purple.

No more Everett.

Summer was truly over.

"You're just saying that because you have a boyfriend," Sky said pointedly.

"I'm saying that because it's a fact. And, I mean, his name's Josh."

Sky laughed, rolling her eyes. "Not all of us can get a guy named after a mountain."

"His name is Everett, not Everest!"

"What's the difference?"

"Are you sure you're majoring in geography next year?" I teased.

"It's geology."

"What's the difference?"

Two hands planted on my shoulders, and I jumped, craning my neck to see River grinning down at me. I whacked him as he laughed, leaning over to look at my phone.

"Is that Sky?" he asked.

"River!" she squealed, waving both of her hands.

I rolled my eyes, shoving him off of me. "It's literally two in the afternoon, Riv. How are you just waking up now? Don't you have midterms too?"

"It's business," he said as an explanation, stretching and yawning. He pulled up a seat and slouched in a chair beside me, turning his attention back to Sky. "How's Darwin?"

"Darwin's next week," we both said simultaneously.

River arched a brow. He reached up, scratching his head. His hair had grown out almost completely now. It was strange seeing him this way.

He was no longer Summer River. His buzzcut was gone, black waves beginning to tickle the tips of his ears. He wore a hoodie. I'd never seen him in a hoodie before. I stared at him for a moment, trying to process this new side of River. A River outside of Shellside Bay.

This was Sydney River and I had no idea who he was.

"Have you spoken to any of the other Nauti Buoys?" he asked. It took me a moment to realise he was asking me, not Sky, because she was waiting for me to reply too. I nodded.

"Austin's still working, like, every day. His dad's trying to 'build character' or something," I said.

River stared at me, and I knew what he was waiting for. I decided to be kind and spare him from his misery.

"Connor's working too," I continued, "except he works on sites pretty far out from Shellside Bay. Spends half the day driving around. I don't think they even have time to see each other, much less come visit us anytime soon."

River released a tight breath and I noticed him sag into his seat. I wondered if he'd spoken to the boys at all since we left.

"And Everett?"

I blinked, turning to Sky. "What about Everett?"

"Oh, come on," Sky said. "He's one of the Nauti Buoys now. How is he?"

"He's... good."

Honestly, if I'd thought it was difficult finding time to video call him while in high school, university was a whole other issue.

We spoke here and there, but he needed to do well this semester, and I was struggling to keep up with all the content. It was tough.

And time zones were never helpful.

Back in high school, I finished classes by 3PM and had the rest of the night to talk. Now, my schedule was all over the place, and so was his. It was impossible to talk for more than thirty minutes at a time.

"How's college going for him?" Sky asked, slipping into an American accent with a giggle.

"Good," I replied. "He got an A on his last essay, and I think his spring break is coming up. Maybe he'll be here before we know it."

"I know he will," she said, grinning.

"Don't tell me he's staying here," River added. I looked at him sheepishly and he pretended to gag.

I knew he was joking, though. As much as he complained, he secretly liked the company. It was the reason he was always running away to Shellside Bay, back to us.

I nudged him hard in the ribs and he leaned closer to the screen, practically shoving me out of the way.

"Sky, your hair is shorter than mine now," River said, lifting a brow.

Sky giggled, running a hand over her head. "You never mentioned how much maintenance it was!"

"Oh, believe me. This shit's ten times worse," River replied, running a hand through his own hair.

"Why don't you shave it off then?" I asked.

He looked at me, like it was a stupid question, then shrugged and leaned even closer to the screen. I scoffed, nudging him with my elbow again.

"Shouldn't you be studying for your midterms?"

"It's business," he repeated, rolling his eyes as if that was an actual answer. He stood up straight and grabbed an apple from the counter before throwing himself onto the couch. "Besides, I'm tired. How will I concentrate like this?"

"You just woke up!" I called out. Sky giggled over the phone, and I almost shot her a glare for encouraging him. To her, I said, "He's really a hopeless case."

"I don't know how he made it through high school," she replied.

I didn't know either. He was always skipping school and barely spent any time studying, failing classes—and now he was acing university.

It didn't make sense to me. How could he be getting high distinctions in all his assessments with barely any studying?

A male voice called Sky's name again—Josh, probably—and she spun around for a second before turning back to me.

"I think I've got to go," she said with an apologetic grin.

I shot her a teasing look. "Ooo got to go back to Josh?"

"Shut up," she said. "I'll send you a photo of him."

I laughed, mostly because I did actually want to see what he looked like.

"Alright," I said. "Talk later."

"Bye!" she said in a sing-songy voice before hanging up. The line went dead, and I stared at the blank screen for a moment, imagining Sky having fun with her summer fling on the beach. Behind me, River was already beginning to snore.

I groaned and buried my head back into my lab manual, wondering if Everett was doing the same thing.

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The next day, the numbers were beginning to make sense. I'd attended one of the optional lab revision sessions, almost ashamedly. When had I become the kind of person who needed revision sessions? But afterwards, I found myself glad I went. Things were beginning to make sense.

"So," Everett's voice came through my earphones. I was sitting on the light rail from university to Central station after the revision lab. "It helped, then? You think you're going to pass?"

Even hearing his voice sent shivers down my spine. My heart seemed to race at the mere thought of him.

I nodded, although he couldn't see me. "I think so. I mean, most of it is making sense now. It just depends on the kind of questions they ask on the day."

"That's good," he replied. "Have you made any friends?"

"I don't need friends, I have you. And the Nauti Buoys. You guys are my friends," I said.

I could hear his frown in his voice. "Is that a no, then?"

"It's a no."

"Isla!"

"Everett!" I mocked. "Seriously. I don't need friends. They're all... kind of stuffy anyway."

"Stuffy?"

"Yeah!" I sighed. "I mean, like, today for example. I made a joke to the girl next to me and she just gave me a funny look before going back to her work. Like, at least give me a pity laugh, right?"

Everett chuckled and I imagined him shaking his head, the way he normally did. I imagined him running his fingers through his hair. I wondered if it had gotten any darker since I last saw him, back to its natural dark brown that it was the first day I saw him.

"Isla, you're amazing. Anyone would want to be your friend," he said.

"Clearly not," I grumbled.

"You should at least try to make some," he pointed out. "College is more fun when you have friends to hang out with."

"University."

"Whatever," he groaned. He sighed and a second later asked, "Just try. Promise?"

"You're one to talk," I shot back. "I don't see you hanging out with friends every night, going out partying or whatever it is you do over there."

Unspoken words seemed to tag onto the end of my sentence. Everett's last friend had betrayed him, going behind his back with his ex-girlfriend. A part of me felt like he was avoiding making new friends because of that, but I couldn't imagine how lonely he must have been.

Since his mum had died, and his dad had moved quickly onto a new woman, I knew he didn't speak much to his family anymore. And I knew more than anyone how it felt to lose the person closest to you.

Except, I was all the way here in Sydney, and our conversations had dwindled down to scattered texts and phone calls at strange times of the day—whether he would admit it or not, Everett needed someone there for him, live and in person.

I wished I could be that person.

"I don't need friends, I have you," Everett mocked in return.

I scoffed, rolling my eyes with a grin. "Real original."

"Alright, look. Let's make a deal. You try and make friends, and I'll go out partying every night."

"I think I've changed my mind about the whole partying thing."

Everett chuckled. "I figured. Alright, you make friends and I'll stop being a hypocrite and talk to some of the people in my class, people other than my roommate."

I sighed dramatically, imagining his smirk across the ocean.

It wouldn't kill me to try and talk to people more but it was different from school. I didn't see the same people in each class, and most of the time, I'd only see the same people for an hour or two, once a week. And most of the time, they had already friends here in Sydney.

But if Everett was asking me, I could try.

"Promise," I said.

"Good girl," he teased. Despite myself, my face warmed. I realised then that his voice sounded raspy, and I frowned.

"Ev, what time is it over there?" I asked.

"Here?" he hesitated, the teasing tone immediately vanishing from his voice. "It's... not that late."

"What time?"

"Well, it's early if anything."

"Meaning?"

He exhaled loudly. "It's 3AM."

"Three!" I exclaimed. Some people turned to look at me and I clasped a hand over my mouth. "Three? You should sleep. Don't you have classes tomorrow? Isn't your roommate asleep?"

Through the speaker, I could hear some shuffling. I wished I could see him. A second later, he spoke.

"My roommate left yesterday." He paused. "It's actually spring break next week."

Spring break? Everett would be free for an entire week. My mind began racing with thoughts. We could video call more, we could talk. Maybe... maybe he could even visit.

"What are your plans?" I asked, attempting to sound casual.

"Plans?" he echoed with a bitter laugh. "Studying, studying, and, oh, studying."

"Seriously?" I frowned. "That's it? Live a little, Ev."

"Well, maybe I could throw a little partying in there," he replied. I could hear his smile in his voice.

"Because you're such a party animal all of a sudden," I teased.

"Really, I'd much rather spend my time talking to you."

My face warmed and I fought a smile. "You should go to a few parties. I don't want to hold you back or anything."

"You could never hold me back."

"You're just saying that."

"Because it's true."

"So, what? You're just going to study all week and call me at three in the morning?"

He laughed through the phone—a quiet, breathy chuckle that I missed with all my being. "Basically."

"Sounds like a plan." I pressed my lips together, hesitating for a moment before saying, "Maybe you could come visit?"

Everett was silent. My heart dropped into my stomach and I realised I'd said the wrong thing straight away. A flight to Sydney from New York was expensive. I shouldn't have mentioned it at all.

"Never mind," I said quickly.

"No, Isla, I could," he said.

I interrupted him. "No, it was silly. I mean, spring break is only a week, right? It's not worth it."

"Anything's worth it," he said quickly. His voice softened. "For you, Isla. Anything's worth it."

"Well, I'll be too busy studying anyway," I said. "We'd better save it for next time."

Everett was quiet for a moment before asking, "Are you sure?"

I wasn't. I wanted to see him. He'd left only a month ago and I craved him with every inch of myself. University was turning out to be horrible and I wasn't sure if I could manage this for three whole years without him. I wasn't sure how much longer I could go without seeing him.

And I knew, if I asked him to, he'd come. He'd say yes. He'd spend his last dollar flying here to see me if I asked him to.

I knew that, so I couldn't.

Instead, I nodded and attempted to make my voice sound cheerful.

"I'm sure."

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AUTHOR'S NOTE

Harry's House dropped today and it made my whole week

I usually write really long author's notes because I just love asking yall questions buuuut people sometimes find them annoying so I'm trying to keep them short and sweet from now on! All I have to say is thanks for reading! <3

Next time: a new character appears.