I took a deep breath and knocked on the apartment door. I had thought of a million ways to tell him, but none ended well.
Rocky opened the door and beamed at me. "Well, Deuce, it's a bit early for you to be here."
I blinked. "Rocky, it's noon." It hadn't escaped my attention that she was still in her pajamas, complete with purple slippers.
"Oh," she said, her smile faltering. "Right."
"Can you tell Ty I need to talk to him? He's probably still asleep…" I said softly, glancing past her into the apartment in the hope he was actually awake.
Rocky nodded, her grin returning. "TY! DEUCE IS HERE!" she yelled over her shoulder before slinking into their kitchen and leaving the door wide open.
I scowled, sighing as I stepped into the apartment and closed the door. So much for the 'asleep' part.
I shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other, faintly aware Rocky was watching me like a hawk as she ate her waffles. No doubt she wanted to know what was up; something the two Blues shared was the ability to read me like a book.
"Hey, uh, Rocky…where's your mom?" I asked, wanting to break the silence.
"The grocery store," the girl answered with a smile. "And, say, Deuce, why are you here exactly?"
"To talk to Ty," I said.
"Uh huh."
"You don't believe me?" I asked, looking at her.
"No, I do, but you're not telling me something." She took another bite of her breakfast with a small smile. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong," I snapped, my response far too quick to relate otherwise.
She raised an eyebrow before glancing to the opposite side of the apartment. I followed her gaze to find Ty standing in the doorway of the hall that led to his room. He was wearing nothing but black briefs. His hair was perfectly mussed, and he was giving me his infamous devious grin.
"Maybe it's just that he hasn't been touched today," Ty said, his gaze pinning me to the door as he walked over to me. He tugged at the headphones around my neck and nipped my earlobe. "Is that what it is, baby?" he whispered. "Or is it something else?"
Hours spent on thinking of the perfect way to tell him and I was going to perfectly blow it. I knew the words that were at the tip of my tongue, but they stung like poison. Neither of us needed a drawn out painful long-distance relationship; the chances of it working out were slim. I didn't see another way around it. I had to do it.
"Ty," I began, turning my head away slightly. "I think we need to see other people."
He froze; I could tell solely by the way his breathing changed.
"Why?" he asked, his voice showing the wound he would never let me see.
"Because you're going off to college, and I'm…I'm…" The word was there but so were the tears, and I wouldn't let either one fall.
"But, Deuce, college won't change how I feel about you. I love you," he breathed.
I shook my head. "Please, no, please, don't say that." I wiped at my eyes; the tears had started.
"What's really wrong?" Ty asked, moving his hand to cup my cheek and assume the role of drying my tears.
"Whoa, what's going on here?" Cece asked loudly. The redhead had climbed through the window, though her presence had escaped me until she spoke.
I glanced at Rocky, who was preoccupying herself with her syrup on purpose. I could tell she was uncomfortable.
"Hey, Cece, you want breakfast?" the brunette asked.
"You bet. What are we having?" Cece asked, plopping down in a chair in the kitchen. "Oh, waffles!"
Ty looked at them and growled. "Do you two mind?"
"No, not at all," Cece chirped.
Rocky replied with silence as she got out the ingredients for Cece's waffles.
"I should go," I whispered, turning and fumbling with the door handle. My hands were shaking badly, but I didn't care. I just knew I had to get away before the truth spilled out.
"Deuce, what's wrong?" Ty asked, his voice slightly more firm.
"Nothing," I whispered. I flung open the door and ran down the hall, taking the stairs two at a time when I reached them. I could hear footsteps behind me, but I didn't dare look back.
"Deuce!" It was Rocky.
I spun around at the bottom of the stairs and looked up at her. She was standing on the first landing, her slippers nowhere to be seen.
"What's wrong, Deuce? I just want to know," she said.
"It's none of your business," I replied.
"It is my business if you break my brother's heart! You had no reason to do that. Just yesterday you two were flirting and kissing like normal."
"Yeah, well, a lot changed yesterday," I snapped.
"Like what? I thought we talked about the college problem."
"We did. That's not the issue anymore, Rocky!" My voice was pleading, begging her to understand and accept my choice without making me tell her everything.
"Then what is?"
I sighed and looked away from her. "Telling Ty I didn't want to see him anymore was the hardest thing I've ever had to do."
"Then why did you do it?"
"Because I couldn't tell him the truth. It's not that I don't want to see him; it's that I won't be able to."
"What do you mean?"
I looked back at her. "It's a long story. But, I'm moving to California. I leave Friday."
"But that's only a few days from now…"
"I know. Just don't tell Ty. At least, not until I'm gone."
She slowly nodded. "I'll miss you. We all will."
I gave her a half-hearted smile. "I'll miss you all too. I have to go help pack now. When the time comes, tell Cece and Ty I said goodbye." I swallowed, forcing the tears away. "Goodbye, Rocky."
She rushed down the stairs and flung herself into my arms, wrapping her own around my neck. "Bye, Deuce."
I hugged her tightly. "Take care of yourself. You only have one brother now."
She sniffed as I let her go and squeezed her hand. She gave me a small wave as I pushed the door open and stepped out into the wind.