EJ waited impatiently for the seatbelt light to go off so he could grab his stuff and get off this plane. Given that he'd been bouncing back and forth between San Francisco and Boston since May, one would think he'd be used to long flights by now, but it really just made him dislike flying even more. Add to it the strange, on edge feeling he'd had since somewhere over Pennsylvania, and he really just wanted to get on with it, whatever "it" was going to turn out to be this weekend.

Not that he didn't want to be there. Ashlyn had always been his favorite cousin and his friend, and he was thrilled to see her so happy. And maybe also a little thrilled that her "happy ever after" was back in Salt Lake, meaning she could take up the family business and he was free to keep doing what he loved. As funny as it sounds, the semester he spent in AV Club really got him excited about technology. When Duke blew up, he landed at Stanford to be in the heart of the tech scene, and because he's EJ Caswell, scored a great internship that lead to a job right out of undergrad that kept him in northern California. But as much as he liked his work, he hated feeling trapped at the office, with all his meals provided and dry cleaning on campus designed to make it so he never had to go home. He was burning out fast, and needed a major change of scenery. Since he'd never lived on the east coast, Boston seemed like a nice change of pace. He wasn't so sure he'd still feel that way in February, but he'd loved spending time there so far. Just three more weeks before he was there permanently, and he couldn't wait. But first things first, there was this wedding to get through.

As he navigated through the airport and down the escalator, he couldn't help but think of another time he'd been here, in a half deserted terminal to pick up the girl who he couldn't stop thinking about. Truthfully, it happened in every airport he went through, and there were a lot of those lately. He knew she'd be there this weekend, she was Ashlyn's maid of honor. Thankfully there were going to be a couple hundred guests, courtesy of both the Caswell and Redonovich families being too big for their own good, so he was hoping to avoid it getting awkward. Because the last time had been really, really awkward.

Which was mostly his fault, honestly. He didn't know who he was trying to impress that night, but he bought way too much booze and like anything having to do with the East High theater kids, it got a little out of hand. He hadn't meant to kiss her, even though he'd never stopped wanting to. He would never stop wanting when it came to Gina, if he was honest with himself. But they had been moving in different directions for three years, and they had actually managed to stay friends after their romantic relationship ended. So after being so careful, not saying how much he missed her, not calling her every time he thought of her because it was better for both of them to not, he just burned it down. The next morning, nothing had changed… she was still flying back to New Mexico, he was still heading back up to San Francisco for a summer internship at the company that eventually hired him. They were still moving in different directions, and Gina still believed making it work was more than they could handle. So they parted again, awkwardly but mostly amicably, even though he knew that wasn't what he really wanted. And nothing between them, if there was anything between them, felt the same since. So he kept his distance, and she kept hers, so he guessed that was his answer.

Distance was going to be in short supply this weekend, though. He was secretly VERY relieved to not be a part of the wedding party so he could make his excuses about not joining any of the East High pre-wedding festivities. But the next five days were all wedding, all the time. There was the rehearsal dinner, and the welcome drinks, and the morning after brunch, and God knows what else that he'd blocked out of Ashlyn's incessant wedding chatter over the last couple months.

He made his way to the rental car counter and picked up the keys he'd reserved. He probably could have borrowed a car from his parents for the weekend, but he didn't like feeling beholden to his dad, nor did he want to explain to anyone why he needed keys at that particular moment. He needed an escape route, just in case, and his own car would give him that. Ready or not, this weekend was happening, so he better just get on with it.

After EJ had gone to his parents' house to drop off his bags and taken his suits to the cleaners to get pressed after being stuffed in an inadequate garment bag for the flight, he debated his next move. He knew he should go over to Ashlyn's to help with whatever she needed, but he had no idea when Gina was getting in (because looking like he was fishing for that info would invite questions he didn't have the answer to), so he decided to text her to know what exactly he was walking into.

EJ: Hey cuz, I finally made it. Rehearsal's not til tomorrow, right? What do you need from your favorite cousin before then?

Ashlyn: Thank goodness, I couldn't remember when you were actually supposed to get in. We're at the house doing favors, could always use an extra set of bow tying hands.

EJ:…. What are my other options?

Ashlyn: Trying to keep Big Red from having a panic attack?

EJ: Bows it is. Hey, Ash… who's "we"?

Ashlyn: Me and Gina. She got in a few hours ago and came over from there.

EJ: Just you two?

Ashlyn: OMG, EJ. GET OVER IT! It's been years since anything happened with you two, can't you just act like a normal human being around her?

EJ: It's just… delicate. You know how it is.

Ashlyn: I actually don't since I'm marrying my high school sweetheart on Saturday. But even if I did, I would still think you were being ridiculous. Just come help.

EJ: Fine, but I'm leaving when it gets weird.

Ashlyn: When?

EJ: You know the Wildcats, someone ALWAYS makes it weird.

Ashlyn: I hate it when you're right.

Ashlyn: Hey, EJ? Just a heads up…

EJ: Oh God, what now? Did Big Red throw up on something important?

Ashlyn: No, about Gina. She's moving to Boston in the fall. Going to school out there.

EJ laughed. Seriously? The girl he'd been running from for three years, the feelings he'd been running from for three years… was moving right back into his life for his supposed "fresh start."

EJ Caswell has caught a lot of lucky breaks in his life. But it's been a long time since he's managed to catch one when it came to Gina Porter.