Winter and spring had come and gone with more rendezvous between the pair. In early June, Quinn was tasked with letting Aurora know that he'd be gone for the whole summer. It was a Hughes tradition to go every year, and no matter how much he'd begged his mom, Aurora couldn't come with them. He was certain her parents would not agree to her going with a boy they'd never met to his family lake house for the entire summer. And if she went without their permission, it was kidnapping. Not to mention the fact that the draft was at the end of June and he didn't know where he'd be headed or if he'd be going anywhere.
Quinn sat on his regular swing waiting for Aurora. It was her turn to bring the skittles, but he had an extra pack in his pocket to soften the blow. They never really spoke about hockey together and he found it quite refreshing to just have someone who didn't care that he was quite possibly going to be a first round draft pick.
Of course, Aurora knew that he had to be good at the sport- he was on the national team, representing his country. And she knew about hockey- Theo had declared for the draft as well, he wasn't nearly as good as Quinn, but he should still be picked at some point. The difference between the two was that she didn't care where Theo went, and Quinn hadn't told her that he was declaring at all. For all Aurora knew he would just be going off to school next year and that would be that.
Quinn was jolted out of his thoughts by a small hand resting on his shoulder, and Aurora's cheeky smile in his peripheral. Her hair swung and floated as she cocked her head to the side to look at him. "Hi Q!" She said with an audible laugh in her voice, "what were you thinking so hard about?"
"Hi Rory." He gave a soft smile back. "I brought you two kinds to choose from today." Quinn reached into his pocket and pulled out a berry pack and a sour pack.
Aurora furrowed her eyebrows, "It's my turn." She pulled a pack of regular from her oversized sweater pocket.
"I know, but I have to talk to you about something."
Rory pulled her hand away from his shoulder and took a step back. "What is it." She was in retreat mode, her walls were going back up, she knew that whatever Quinn was going to tell her wasn't going to be good. He's finally tired of you and all your problems, her brain shouted cruelly at her. She knew this would happen eventually, nobody ever stuck around, and they were just two months shy of hanging out for a year.
"Don't do that Rory, it's not that bad." Quinn tried to settle her nerves. "My family goes away every summer, last August when we first met I had just gotten back the week before." He took a breath, "I can't not go, and I can't bring you with me." He looked to the ground after his last words. It wasn't for lack of trying, he had begged Ellen to give him either of the options but she wouldn't budge- he understood, but that didn't mean he had to like it.
"When do you leave?" Aurora asked.
When Quinn looked at her face to try and catch her eye, to reassure her, she was focussed on picking her nail beds apart, "two days." He mumbled.
Aurora blew out a sharp breath, "And you'll be gone the whole summer?" He nodded once in response, "This summer's gonna suck." She gave a sad chuckle.
She wasn't sure what she was going to do. Obviously Quinn wasn't her lifeline, but in the ten months they'd known each other they'd grown exceptionally close. He was her safe space, away from all the dark parts in her life. She knew that if she needed to get away, she would have Quinn and a pack of skittles and that's really all she needed to be happy.
"Okay well, I guess we just have today." She tried to be positive despite the aching feeling in her chest. "And then two months until you're back" Aurora smiled at Quinn.
His chest ached. He couldn't tell her that he was probably leaving her alone. That he wouldn't be back. That he'd be drafted and then go to training camp, and then in the fall to university. He couldn't break her heart like that, tell her that he was leaving her with her abusive family.
It was better if she didn't know.
"And then I'm back."
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forget me not ~ q.hughes
Fanfiction"And I won't confess that I waited, but I let the lamp burn As the men masqueraded, I hoped you'd return With your feet on the ground, tell me all that you'd learned 'Cause love's never lost when perspective is earned And you said you'd come and get...
