Megan picked up her phone and stared at it, letting out a huff before tapping on JC’s name under her contacts. She had to call him and tell him what Annie was planning. Moving back to Ohio to attend graduate school sounded great on paper. Megan knew Annie’s dreams of getting her Master’s degree had been thwarted at least twice now and it had been a huge goal for her.

But it didn’t need to be now. There were more important matters in Annie’s life. She just didn’t want to own up to it. And that’s why Megan was going to take control.

Megan normally didn’t interfere in her friends’ love lives but this was an emergency. Annie would thank her later, that was if Annie ever found out.

“Hello?” JC answered on the first ring.

“Josh, it’s Megan. Look I don’t have a lot of time to explain but here it goes. Annie’s planning moving back to Ohio…”

JC didn’t hear anything else Megan was telling him. He’d been in the middle of a recording session and had looked down to see her number flashing on his iPhone. He’d only answered because he knew Megan was dropping Annie off later that afternoon.

His mouth was suddenly dry and his heart and his stomach felt as if they’d switched places.

“She’s leaving?” It was all he could get out.

“Yeah. She’s planning on telling Emma-Claire goodbye today.”

JC was silent. Just that morning Emma-Claire had been jumping up and down squealing with delight that she was going to see Annie. He couldn’t bear to see his daughter after he picked her up from getting ice cream. He didn’t want to see that look of complete and utter devastation on her little face.

“Well, she can’t.”

Megan rolled her eyes. That was his answer?

“She’s going to.”

JC let out a slow breath. Then, “Ok. Thanks for letting me know.”

Megan was about to say something else when the phone went dead. He’d hung up. She groaned and shook her head, walking out of her room. She was about to join Annie in the living room when she heard Annie’s phone ringing.

Annie had been busy all morning on her laptop filling out the online application for graduate school. She jumped when she heard her phone buzzing on the arm of the couch. Without looking up from the screen, she reached for it and answered.

“Hello?”

“What’s this I hear about you leaving and going back to Ohio? And you were really going to tell Emma goodbye today? You couldn’t have waited until I prepped her a little bit?”

Annie bit her lip and whipped her head around to see Megan sheepishly looking at her from the hallway. Megan winced at the look Annie had thrown at her.  She’d never seen that look on her friend’s face before and suddenly Megan felt awful for what she’d done.

“I was going to tell you, Josh, but I just –“

“You just…what, Annie? Look, I know I fucked things up for us and I take full responsibility for all that but you can’t take out your anger on my daughter!” JC had never raised his voice that much at Annie and he was even taken aback by his tone.

“I’m not taking anything out on Emma! You know I love that little girl like my own daughter, Josh. But I can’t sit around here knowing you’re in the same city and expect my life to go on.”

Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Annie’s inner monologue was useless. Tears began to fall almost immediately as she continued to talk to him.

“I can’t be with you and I made the mistake of falling in love with you and with your daughter. And now I’m paying for it because I know if I stay here and see you with some other woman it will kill me. So I have to get out of here and get over you. Okay? I don’t want to hurt anyone. But I know I’m going to hurt Emma. I know it. And it breaks my heart.”

JC could barely understand her through her tears.  She was sobbing now and it was uncontrollable.

“Annie, ok. Ok. I get it. I-I’m sorry. I should’ve known or…or something.” He wasn’t making any sense of anything and he knew it. “Look, I’ll tell Emma you have something important to tell her okay? I just feel like she needs to be somewhat prepared, you know?”

Annie’s sniffs were her only response.

“I’ll see you at 3.”

He hung up and looked up at the girls behind the glass partition. He waved them on, letting them know the recording session was over. He needed to get back to Emma-Claire.

“Before you yell at me, I was only trying to help.” Megan was soon by Annie’s side as Annie sobbed into her friend’s shoulder. “I shouldn’t have said anything. I guess I was just thinking of Emma and…and I don’t know. It just seems like you’re rushing into this and I don’t want you to have any regrets.”

Annie pulled away from her friend. “I know. I’m not mad. I’m frustrated. I’m frustrated with this whole situation. I shouldn’t have ever gone to work for him. I should’ve just gone back to Ohio after I was done at the McGriffin’s.”

Megan smoothed out Annie’s brown hair. “But you didn’t go back. You stayed and for a while you know it was pretty great.”

Annie snorted and wiped a tear with the back of her hand.

“Annie, it was! You said yourself he was the best sex you ever had!”

Megan didn’t need to remind her. Annie would probably never get those images of JC on top of her out of her mind. 

“I know everything happens for a reason.” Annie rested her head on the back of the couch. “But I just wish sometimes we knew what was at stake before it happened. The last thing in the world I want to do is tell Emma that I’m leaving.”

“Annie, do you really want to go? I mean, really?” Megan put a hand on Annie’s leg. “Because you don’t have to-“
“Yes, I do.” Annie was adamant. “Because if I don’t leave then I’ll never get over him and I have to get out of L.A. to get over him.”

Megan didn’t say anything. She could already tell by the look on Annie’s face if she thought that would ever happen.

Emma-Claire clung tightly to her father’s hand as they made their way to the ice cream shop. She was literally dragging him down the sidewalk to get to Annie. JC was pulling her back so she wouldn’t run into other patrons at the sidewalk café next to the ice cream shop.

“There she is!” Emma-Claire squealed with delight and JC looked up and saw Annie sitting at a table outside. She wore denim shorts and a long-sleeved t-shirt. Her brown hair was pulled back into a low ponytail and sunglasses covered her brown eyes.

Annie was glad she remembered her sunglasses. JC couldn’t see how bloodshot her eyes were. Nor could he see that she couldn’t take her eyes off of him. He wore his LA black cap that had more or less become a staple of his now. A tight white undershirt tucked into his black jeans showed off his chiseled chest.

“Annie!” Emma-Claire nearly threw herself onto Annie’s lap. Her little arms could barely reach around Annie’s neck until Annie pulled her up into her arms.

“Hey, girl.” Annie kissed Emma-Claire’s cheek. “I missed you.”

“I missed you, too!” Emma-Claire seemed to squeal with every word. She looked over at JC. “Okay, Daddy, you can go now!”

JC smirked at his daughter and looked over at Annie. “Hey.”

Annie, still thankful for the sunglasses, nodded at him. “Hi.”

JC looked back at Emma-Claire. “Okay, I’ll see you later. Y’all have fun.” He turned away before he could sneak one last look at Annie.

Almost immediately after ordering their ice cream, Emma-Claire went into a spiel about everything Annie had missed out on. New friends at school, swimming lessons at her house, Uncle Lance and Uncle Michael coming over for dinner. Finally, Annie pointed out that Emma-Claire’s ice cream was going to melt if she didn’t start to eat it.

“Emma, there’s something I need to tell you.” Annie knew it had to be now or she’d never get the news out before JC came back.

“Are you gonna move back with me Daddy?” Emma-Claire had been mid-bite into chocolate brownie ice cream.

Annie winced and slowly shook her head. “No. No, honey. I’m not.”

Emma-Claire looked down at her bowl of chocolate soup and then back at Annie.

“Emma, I have to go back to my house. I need to go be with my mommy and daddy for a little bit.” It was the easiest way to break the news.

“Do they live here, too?” Emma-Claire asked.

“No, honey, they live in another city. I would have to take a plane there.”

“Will you be far away?” Emma-Claire’s voice was shaky and Annie knew she was bound to burst into tears at any minute.

Annie looked at the little girls sitting across from her and felt even worse than she had before she’d come here.

“I will, Emma.” Annie opened her arms and Emma-Claire pushed herself off her seat and walked over to her. She leaned into Annie and soft sobs began to emit soft cries.

Soon, Annie was crying as well. And that was all they could do. Just sit there and cry.