“Isn’t it going to be weird?” she said. “Not seeing your parents…as much?”

Constanza shrugged. “I’m almost seventeen. I figure I’d be out of their house soon anyway. At least this way they’ll be able to see me on TV.”

Jessica had to smile.

“But you know, leaving them behind doesn’t really make me sad,” Constanza continued. “They’ll always be around, one way or another. It’s more my friends I’m going to miss. You especially.”

“Me? Especially?”

“Of course, silly. I mean, sometimes I feel like I’ve hardly gotten a chance to know you. It’s only been what? Two months since school started?”

“I suppose so,” Jessica said quietly. It felt like years sometimes, but she’d only arrived in Bixby in late August. She sat next to one of the suitcases, staring at the profusion of clothes and shoes inside. “Two months can seem like a long time, I guess.”

“That’s so true.” Constanza leaned closer. “In fact, my theory is that two months in friendship time is actually longer than a year, you know?”

“Um…not exactly.”

Constanza bent and picked up a stack of shirts that hadn’t made the cut. She took them to one of the room’s huge, now half-empty closets. “Listen, Jess, I know you’re all sad about me leaving. You’ve been moping around ever since I told you about LA. But sometimes these short friendships are totally the best.”

Jessica raised an eyebrow. “They are?”

Constanza slid the shirts back onto hangers thoughtfully, one by one. “Sure! Didn’t you ever have a best friend at summer camp or something? You make friends quick, and you know you’re only together until the end of summer, so it’s super intense?”

Jessica nodded. “Yeah, I guess I know what you mean.”

Constanza reached over to brush a lock of Jessica’s hair out of her face. “But those are always the people you remember for the rest of your life. At least I do. Even though I usually forget to write to them or whatever.”

Jessica swallowed, a lump rising in her throat. She couldn’t believe that tears had sneaked up on her and knew she’d feel like a total dork if she cried. She tried to focus her mind on Jonathan’s words: Constanza was one of the lucky ones. She wouldn’t be here for Bixby’s big Halloween surprise.

Constanza sighed. “Maybe it’s because when friendships end like this, instead of growing apart, you get ripped apart. So you never get to the phase where you don’t like each other anymore.”

Jessica blinked, and one tear traveled down her cheek.

Constanza reached out with an elegant finger and softly brushed it away.

“Come on, Jess. That’s enough of being sad.” She laughed. “I’ll be back in Bixby whenever my shooting schedule allows. Still have to see the parentals, you know.”

“Okay. Sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry.” Constanza turned her smile up to its full wattage. “But now that we’re all packed, we’ve got to have some fun so I can remember you happy.”