My Summer Love Story

Jackie's Pov

My flashlight beam lights up as small portion of the path that I followed and for some reason it dosen't look familiar at all to me. My flip flop catches on what I assume is a tree root and I go down, hard before hitting my head on something hard. I wrap my hand around a small tree trunk and pull myself up so I am in a sitting position. Cradling my aching head I sit for a moment and think. Flashes push themselves through my head and I live them again even though they have already happened. My twelfth birthday when my dad didn't show up, swimming in my friends pool when I was eight or nine, learning to ride a bike, listening to my mom cry in her room after an argument with my dad, breaking my wrist when I was thirteen. My head spins and I struggle to stay awake and sitting up. A light rain envelopes me and I start to cry for the way my life used to be. Before the arguments and screaming, when I actually got along with my parents.

When I was ten years old my parents started to fight about everything but money, because money was never a problem for us. They fought about each other, me, lies, and assumptions about affairs. They never knew that I could hear every hurtful word through my door, in fact they never cared to ask. It affected me a lot because now I rarely talk to them. So they started going on business trips that stretched longer and longer until they were both gone for months at a time. This summer, my mom vowed to stay around the house and I constantly wonder if she is going to break her promise and fly out to some exotic country, because for some reason, I don't trust her. And for some reason I can't shake the feeling that both of my parents would rather be on a trip then home with me.

Determined I wipe the tears out of my eyes and stand up slowly waiting for my head to hurt, when it dosen't I pick up the now drenched flashlight that had been strewn away from me when I had fallen and flip the on button a few times before groaning in frustration. It had gone and died on me.

I breathe and give a small smile of reassurance because the longer I stay in the dark the easier it is to see around me, and finally I can see the trail, the blessed trail.

A few steps later I began too see pieces of the cabin and traces of the footprints I had left there before. I couldn't wait to get inside to my warm bed and take some aspirin because even though I couldn't have been out in the woods for more then an hour, I have a killer headache.

Beach towels rustled gently on the porch railing and I heaved a sigh of relief at finally finding my way back. Wrapping my left hand around the banister I pulled myself up the rickety steps. I pulled off my shoes in a sleepy daze, pulled open the door, and screamed.

A dark figure slapped a hand over my mouth and gently shoved me out of the door way before heaving the door shut behind it. I blinked over the top of the hand and tried to make out any details of the face that was only a few inches from mine. I had ceased screaming after the hand covered my mouth but my heart still raced at a not normal speed.

"Jackie, it's me." The voice whispered pulling the hand back.
Wait, voice? I know that voice!
"Cade?" I say hesitantly.
He placed his hand back.
"Shh!"
"Sorry. What are you doing in my cabin in the middle of the night?" I ask quieter then before. "Oh, and where is Liz?" I add on as an after thought.
"Pranking the new girls." He looked thoughtful for a second. "Which should have included you." He nudged me teasingly and I laughed.
"Oh and about Liz. She's pranking the new kids in my cabin. She'll probably be back-"
"Jackie, what's wrong?" A light voice interrupted climbing the steps behind me. I turned and waved at Liz and the girls following her.
Cade nodded silently to me and replied.
"Jackie was awake so the guys and I decided that she could help." I smiled him a silent thanks and he nodded again.
But the girls groaned.
"Cade, this is a tradition! You can't let every girl you like in on it." Olivia exclaimed and the girls nodded silent agreements.
"What are you talking-" I started.
Cade kicked my foot lightly and smiled at Olivia.
"Your right. Sorry Olive. But it's already done so I guess that's it." He shrugged a fake apology.
She huffed and pushed past us to enter the cabin. I heard her bed squeak and then settle so I assumed she was going to go to asleep and ignore us.
The girls followed her with 'good nights' aimed at Cade and Liz squeezed my hand gently before entering the cabin, leaving me and Cade alone.
"Thanks." I say scuffing my right flip flop into the well worn wood.
He gives me a quick smile and starts to head down the steps before hesitating and turning around.
"Your welcome."
And butterflies fill my stomach.