The large cardboard box clunked as I set it down on the white marble kitchen counter. “Okay. That’s the last box.” My chest puffed as I wiped the sweat droplet off my forehead.
Jess groaned, “Who knew moving could be so exhausting?” She fell back on the plush gray couch across the room.
“At least you guys are finally moved in!” Layla squealed in delight and plopped down next to Jess. “Can you believe we finally have our own place?”
The city life outside our window buzzed. I took a moment to relish our final product. We’d spent the last day moving into our own apartment.
It was a relief to finally be near my two best friends.
“It feels like a dream,” I breathed and looked out the large windows overlooking the city.
The windows were my favorite part of our home. They were framed in black and took up nearly the entire back wall. The balcony outside was decorated with our lovely plants and a small metal patio set.
The city breathed life into our home.
One side of our living room wall held large, breathtaking panels of a black-and-white forest with our long sectional couch underneath.
The opposite light-gray wall held our flat-screen TV. It was simple, but we had yet to buy more décor.
Thank God for thrift stores.
“We got so lucky,” Jess added. Layla and I vigorously nodded.
These apartments were way out of our budget, but luckily, the couple who owned the apartment had decided to rent it out while they moved across the world for the husband’s new job.
Mrs. Lopez may or may not have been one of our previous high school teachers. When we’d seen her post about the opening on Facebook, we’d jumped at the opportunity immediately.
Mrs. Lopez had been hesitant at first, but Jess and I had explained we wanted to live near Layla and that we’d both received scholarships to go to the university but couldn’t afford the housing.
Our situation was riding on this.
We’d made a deal that as long as we continued our education and maintained good grades, Mrs. Lopez and her husband would help us by lowering the rent.
She was proud to see Latinas pursuing their dreams.
“We need to celebrate.” Jess got up and walked over to the kitchen. Her footsteps echoed as she walked across the mahogany floors. The right fridge door squeaked as she opened it and peered inside.
Jess reached inside the sleek black fridge, and when she pulled back out, she held a wine bottle in her left hand.
“When did you even get that?” I grinned as I grabbed three glasses from one of the many unpacked boxes lying at our feet.
“Well, I was saving it for Quintin’s and my anniversary, but I think this is more important.”
Jess grabbed one of the glasses from my hand and began pouring the pink liquid. Layla grabbed the second glass.
Once the three of us had filled our glasses, we stared at each other in a moment of silence. Appreciating the giant milestone for us, I gave my best friends a giant grin as I raised my glass. “We finally did it. A place of our own, together.”
“Forever,” Layla and Jess replied in unison, reciprocating my gesture. Our glasses clinked, and we brought them to our lips. The sweet liquid made its way down my throat easily.
“Oh, okay, Jess. I see you! Buying the fancy shit.” I raised my eyebrows at my friend, who flipped her black hair behind her.
Bringing her free hand up, she popped a hip and began fanning herself. “What can I say? I’m living the lavish life now.”
The three of us burst out laughing, and I sat down on a black stool to balance myself.
“Let’s go out tonight—to celebrate!” Layla stared between Jess and me. “There’s a really cool club nearby.” Her eyes were shining brightly.
I knew I didn’t have the heart to say no to her.
“Only for a bit,” I responded. Layla’s blue eyes twinkled, and my heart swelled.
“Yay! Girls’ night!” She threw her hands up in the air, forgetting about her wine. It all splashed down on her.
Jess and I fell over laughing as Layla stood frozen with her jaw on the floor. The wine trickled down her forehead and into a puddle at her feet.
“You better clean that up,” Jess said through fits of laughter. Layla finally snapped back to reality and whined as she searched for a hand towel to clean up her sticky mess.
“I’m going to get ready for tonight,” I breathed once I was done laughing. The sides of my stomach were aching, and I needed a break.
I made my way to my bedroom, and the breath left my lungs once again. The windows easily took up over half the wall space, and my plush queen-size bed lay against the white wall to my left.
It was nothing like my old small and cramped room.
My desk was straight ahead, right up against the window overlooking the city. The lights below twinkled like stars, and I admired the beauty of the sight before me.
The door to my small bathroom was on the right side of the wall, closest to the room’s entrance, and my closet was on the farther right side, next to the bathroom door.
I grabbed a towel from a box on the floor and walked into the bathroom. It was small and minimalist.
The glass shower was on the right side, the marble sink and large circular mirror were in the middle of the wall, and the toilet sat to the left.
I took a quick shower and then searched through my unpacked boxes to find what to wear tonight. Sighing in desperation, I stormed out of my room and went across the hall to Layla’s.
“I have nothing to wear,” I groaned, throwing myself face-first onto her soft bed. It smelled flowery. Layla’s response came out muffled due to my face being stuffed into her bed.
I jumped when I felt something light thrown onto my back. My head lifted, and I craned my neck to see what she had thrown at me.
“Is that—”
“Yes. So you better feel special,” Layla responded. I sat back up to observe the outfit she’d thrown at me.
It was one of Layla’s favorites, a cropped thin-strapped top and matching miniskirt. The fabric was a red floral silk. It was beautiful.
“Oh my God. I love you so much,” the words rushed out. I grabbed the outfit after giving Layla a giant kiss on the cheek.
Layla giggled as I ran out of her room and back into mine, and I prepared myself for the first girls’ night we’d had in over six months.
“I love this place!” Jess screamed over the loud music as we entered the club. The colorful lights were flashing everywhere as the music’s bass caused the air around us to vibrate.
Layla had been living in this city since last year, so she knew all the good spots, whereas Jess and I had just moved here.
“Let’s get drinks.” Layla gave us a dorky thumbs-up and led us over to the bar, which was flocked.
We pushed through a few bodies until we found a small opening and leaned against the bar while we waited for the bartender.
I glanced between my two beautiful best friends. It’d been so long since the three of us had been together. Six hours away from each other had made it a pain to visit often.
Right after we’d graduated, Jess had taken a year off to spend time with her family in Mexico. It had been the first year all of us had been apart, but we’d remained good friends.
After our second year of college, I’d ended up spending the summer in Mexico with my own family.
Charlie had just graduated, and my mom had met her boyfriend just before that, so we’d decided to visit my abuela.
My abuela had met Carlos, now my mom’s fiancé, and we’d spent the summer taking care of my abuela. It had been nice seeing my mom’s side of the family after so long.
We hadn’t gone since Charlie and I were young teens, and after my parents had divorced during my junior year of high school, my mom couldn’t face everyone from her hometown.
This was the first time in over a year that the three of us were truly reunited. We’d been through so much, yet here we were, together.
Layla’s beach waves stopped at her shoulders, revealing the skin above her strapless pink top. Her dark, ripped jeans clung tightly, revealing her slim figure.
Jess’s black, long curly hair was hanging down to her waist, matching her thin-strapped crop top and leather skirt.
As soon as the bartender gave us our drinks, we hit the dance floor, Jess’s favorite place.
Lizzo began to play, and we shouted in excitement.
“This is our song!” Jess yelled out, and we formed a small circle.
The three of us danced as we sang along to “Truth Hurts.” The song came to the chorus, and Jess and I turned toward Layla.
Layla threw her head back and laughed wholeheartedly as we reminisced.
Milo and Layla had broken up after graduating from high school in June 2015, due to her moving six hours away.
They’d rekindled during winter break last year in 2017, two and a half years later. Things had gone smoothly, and they’d attempted a long-distance relationship.
Things had gotten ugly, and Layla had ended up alone with a broken heart. A few weeks later, Jess and I had surprised her during spring break and had shown up at her door, playing this song.
That had been the beautiful weekend we’d all seen Mrs. Lopez’s post, and here we were now, singing along to Lizzo and living our best lives.
Jess slowed her pace and stared past Layla and me. The music continued to blare as she stared at whatever was behind us.
Confusion crossed her face, and Layla and I turned to see what she was staring at.
Jess leaned next to my ear. “Not to be weird, but couldn’t that guy be Jason Kade’s doppelganger?” My heart dropped at the sound of his name.
My eyes wandered across the bar until I realized who Jess was talking about. We only had a glimpse of the side of his face, but they did look similar.
The guy’s blond hair was slightly longer and lighter than I remembered Jason’s being. He was also a few inches taller and more muscular.
The beautiful art that covered his entire left arm was what caught my attention.
His sleeve tattoo was incredibly hot.
I turned away from the stranger and faced Jess. The three of us had stopped dancing and were now standing still on the dance floor.
Thinking about Jason for the first time in so long made my heart ache in a heavy way.
It had been so long. But we’d ended on bad terms, so it was natural for me to feel this way.
I couldn’t help but wonder what he was doing now. Was he still playing football? Did he still travel across the country like he had planned? Did he have a girlfriend?
“I’m so sorry, Kara.” Jess gently grabbed my hand as her eyebrows furrowed. “I didn’t think you still had—”
The frown on my lips turned into a small smile. “It’s fine.” It really was. Even though he was my first love, he wouldn’t be my last. “Let’s get another drink?”
Jess and Layla cheered in response.
I grinned as we turned, and I led them toward the bar. As we got closer, I noticed the doppelganger leaving. As he turned to face us, I abruptly stopped, causing my friends to crash into me.
All air in my lungs disappeared as we locked gazes.
I could have recognized those blue eyes anywhere.
