Eddie eased his guitar case into the back seat of his van; there was no room for it in the very back of the vehicle - boxes of his belongings took up all that space.

Summer break was dwindling to a close - Eddie had his new (new to him anyways) apartment to move into the next day.

He had gotten a part time job at the grocery store stocking shelves and doing inventory to make some cash this summer. It was easy enough work and Eddie got a kick out of watching customers wrestle with whether or not he was really the only employee nearby to help them find something; it was like they were afraid he'd bite their head off or curse them or something.

He'd put back every bit of money he could for the apartment. He used the rest for gas money and the occasional date night with Chrissy, who had also taken a part time job as a lifeguard at the public pool.

She didn't need the money really-her scholarship and her dad's contribution were more than enough for school- she mainly wanted a reason to get out of the house during the day and away from her mom. Eddie couldn't blame her.

As if his thoughts had summoned her, Chrissy came stumbling onto the front porch, a large box occupying her hands so that she had to shoulder open the door. Eddie jogged over to grab the box from her. She smiled as he removed it from her hands. She wiped her brow which was dewy with sweat from her efforts; she'd been helping Eddie pack and load up his van all afternoon. Eddie shoved the last box in the very back of his van and forced the doors shut.

"Thank goodness that's done. Too bad we have to undo all this packing tomorrow!"

"True," Eddie agreed. "It'll be worth it though. Plus, we can take breaks every now and then…"

He hooked a finger in the belt loop of her shorts and pulled her up against him, letting his hands roam down her back side and back up to settle on her lower back.

He was always attracted to Chrissy, but something about her sun-kissed skin on display in her tank top and shorts made it hard to keep his hands to himself.

"Eddie," Chrissy cast her eyes down, a blush coloring her cheeks. "We'll never get anything done if you have your way."

"Maybe not," he agreed. He leaned down to press kisses to the soft skin of her neck. "I don't hear your complaining though."

"Hmm," she hummed. "It will be nice to have a place all to ourselves."

"Too bad you only have a week to help me break the new place in."

Chrissy would following Eddie tomorrow, her car also loaded up with her belongings, so she could help Eddie settle in. She was staying one week, then it was dorm life for her until next summer.

"I know," she sighed. She nuzzled her face into Eddie's shoulder and he hugged her a little tighter.

"You know I'm still going to see you all the time though, right? School won't keep me that busy."

He chuckled and kissed the top of her head.

"I'm gonna hold you to that."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chrissy gazed at her room one last time. Her bed was stripped of its comforter and pillows. Her desk was strangely bare with its usual stack of notebooks and colorful pens all packed away in Chrissy's luggage. The closet door stood slightly ajar revealing its empty interior.

She wasn't sure when she'd see this room again. She'd told her parents that she'd visit for holidays, but her mother seemed less than enthused by the suggestion - still offended by Chrissy's decision to not come home for summer breaks most likely.

Chrissy patted the doorframe as she turned her back to the room and headed downstairs. Her father stood at the bottom of the steps, waiting for her.

Mr. Cunningham had always been a man of few words; at least that's how Chrissy had always known him. He was a kind and reasonable man. Chrissy's relationship with her father was preferable to that of her and her mother; the only thing Chrissy could fault him for was his willful ignorance of his wife's attitude towards her. She tried not to resent him for it, but there were times she couldn't help but wonder why he never bothered to stand up for her. His standing his ground about Chrissy's college fund had been his first time coming to her rescue. What a different home life Chrissy might've had if he had spoken up more?

He smiled at her as she joined him on the bottom step. He cleared his throat; he seemed nervous, almost.

"Have everything you need?"

Chrissy nodded. "I think so."

"Right." He patted the newel post as he awkwardly paused. "Can I walk you out?"

"Of course, Daddy." Chrissy gave him what she hoped was a reassuring smile.

He held the door open for her, letting her lead the way. Her car was parked in the driveway, loaded and ready to go. Eddie should arrive soon and then they'd both head out to the city.

Chrissy fiddled with her keys as she and her father stood in silence by the car. His hands were shoved down in his pockets and he cast his eyes back and forth to the road as if looking for Eddie's van.

"Chrissy?" he broke the silence.

Chrissy met his gaze. "Hmm?"

"I, uh…well… I'm going to miss you. And I hope you'll visit. And maybe call every now and then?"

Chrissy inadvertently glanced back at the house; her father caught this, of course.

"Don't worry about your mother. I'm going to talk to her."

Her eyebrows shot up in surprise. Her dad let a laugh escape.

"Not what you expected me to say, I know."

"Well…no, not exactly." Chrissy admitted.

Mr. Cunningham sighed and dropped his eyes from hers. He was practically looking down at his feet when he spoke again.

"I know I haven't gone to bat for you like I should, Chrissy. I guess I didn't want to see how miserable you were. But when you started dating Eddie and making all these changes in your life, I saw a different side of you. I think it made me see how sad you were before. And I could've helped change that and I didn't. You've inspired me to make changes of my own, starting now."

Chrissy didn't want to cry, but she felt the tears escaping to roll down her cheeks. She never dreamed her dad would be saying these things to her, especially now when she needed to hear them the most.

"I don't want your leaving today to be the end. I wouldn't blame you if you never came back, but I don't want that." He managed to meet her eyes again and she saw that his own eyes seemed to be wet with tears.

She took a step towards him and hugged him firmly around his middle. He let out an "oof" of surprise but then wrapped Chrissy up in his arms and let his head rest atop hers.

They stayed that way for a long moment, long enough that Eddie's van went unnoticed as it came to a halt in the driveway.

It wasn't until Chrissy pulled away from her father, wiping the tears from her face, that she noticed Eddie gawking at them from his front seat. Chrissy choked out a laugh and waved him out. He looked as shocked as she felt.

Mr. Cunningham had brushed off his own tears hastily and managed a smile for Eddie.

"You look out for our girl in the big city, huh?" Mr. Cunningham held out his hand to Eddie who, still looking mildly stunned, took his hand and shook.

"Yes sir, I plan to."

"Good. I won't keep you, I know you two have lots of unpacking to do. Let me know how the apartment is when you're all settled."

Chrissy nodded and gave her dad another quick hug.

"Thank you," she whispered. He simply nodded, possibly not trusting his voice to reply any further.

As Mr. Cunningham retreated to the front porch, Eddie whispered, "everything okay?"

"Better than okay. Maybe I can tell you when we get there?"

He nodded and opened the door for her.

"Alright, let's get this show on the road!"

She leaned up to kiss him before sliding behind the wheel. He closed the door and jogged back to his own vehicle, swiftly backing out onto the street. Chrissy followed behind him, waving out her window to her father who waved back.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Eddie threw an empty box by the front door and pretended to dust off his now empty hands.

"There! That was the last one!"

"Finally!!" Chrissy sighed, plopping down on the sofa.

It had been a long week. He and Chrissy had lugged all his moving boxes up the stairs to the second floor apartment. Then they had to unpack and put away all the stuff, of course. They'd also done some thrifting for furniture and a few kitchen supplies. They'd snagged a decent second hand couch that looked barely used. Eddie's uncle had given him money for a new mattress so he wouldn't have to load up his mattress from home; no frame though, so it sat directly on the floor. Chrissy had still managed to make it look nice with some soft grey sheets ,a charcoal grey quilt, and lots of pillows.

Eddie had hung posters around the bedroom and his guitar had a spot all its own on the wall. The rest of the apartment had fairly nicer decor thanks to Chrissy.

All in all, it was nice for Eddie's first place.

Eddie joined chrissy on the sofa, wrapping her up in his arms and kissing the top of her head.

"Thank you for helping me with all this. I wish I could help you tomorrow."

Tomorrow would be Chrissy's move in day to her dorm room; it also happened to be Eddie's first day of trade school followed by his part time job. He'd found an affordable program that taught welding - a solid and profitable trade according to his uncle Wayne - that he could attend in the mornings. Then he'd work afternoons at a local music shop that sold instruments. He'd wanted to skip the first day to help Chrissy move but she'd put her foot down.

"I told you it's fine Eddie. They have resident assistants to help with move in. I'll be fine, I promise."

Eddie sighed.

"I will miss you though." Chrissy added, leaning into him more. "It's been nice being with you all week. I wish I didn't have to go."

"I'll miss you too. I'll call every night."

"I know you will."

Chrissy leaned up and kissed him on the cheek. Eddie smiled at her, but he felt a pang of sadness still. He'd already gotten used to having her there every morning when he woke up. This next week was going to be a long one.

There may be time jumps between upcoming chapters! I'll be sure to add it in the chapter title or a note at the beginning. :)