Changing Summer

Summer break was always the same for Parker, she attended the same parties, hung out at the same places and spent every day wishing that the repetitive cycle would break. Unable to hear herself think over the blare of bad music, Parker leaned against the wall and scanned the room for her friends.

Spotting Savannah standing on the other side of the room, Parker pushed through the sea of people separating them and pulled her best friend towards the garden to get some air.

"Why did I let Lucas persuade us to come," Savannah moaned, shutting the sliding patio door behind them and dropping down beside Parker on the swing seat, "We could have been in our pajamas by now, watching shows on Netflix and eating brownies... instead we're here, surrounded by sweaty boys and people who can't handle their alcohol."

"We're here because you have a huge crush on Lucas," Parker teased.

"I do not," Savannah argued, "Speaking of Lucas, how're things going with Nathan?"

"How did we get from your crush to my relationship?" Parker inquired, trying to avoid the question.

"They're brothers," Savannah replied, turning to look at Parker expectantly, "Now, stop dodging the question and spill."

"Things between us are good..."

"But..." Savannah added.

"I don't know, Sav, we're always hanging out with his friends and doing the same stuff... I wish he'd do something spontaneous once in a while, sweep me off my feet..." Parker explained, realizing how stupid it sounded, "I know it sounds dumb."

"It's not dumb to want to feel special," Savannah told her.

Hearing the patio door slide open, both girls looked up to find Lucas approaching them.

"You girls do realize that the party is that way, right?" Lucas asked, motioning to the house with his head.

"We needed some air," Savannah said as Lucas sat between them, "There are only so many wandering hands a girl can deal with, before the urge to punch their owner is overwhelming and you have to walk away."

Feeling her phone vibrate in her pocket, Parker retrieved it and opened the new message.

"Nathan?" Lucas inquired as Parker put her phone back in her pocket.

"Yeah," Parker mumbled, feeling disappointment flood through her, "He's not coming... he's training with his dad and won't be finished until late."

"Again," Savannah stated, "His dad is obsessed."

Parker shrugged and checked the time on Lucas' watch, deciding to head home.

"I'm just going to head home," Parker added, "I'll see you tomorrow, Sav."

"Do you want me to come with you?" Savannah asked, following Parker inside.

"No, you stay... have some fun," Parker replied, hugging Savannah and heading out the front door.

It only took her twenty minutes to walk home, making her way straight up to her bedroom and getting changed into her pajamas. Dropping onto her bed, Parker grabbed her laptop and decided to browse Netflix.

She had just started watching Buffy, when her phone started ringing and she answered it.

"Hello."

'Hey,' came Nathan's voice from the other end.

"What's up?" Parker said, noticing how tired Nathan sounded.

'Nothing, Lucas told me that you walked home alone and I wanted to make sure you got home safe,' Nathan replied, 'I'm sorry I wasn't there babe.'

"It's not your fault," Parker told him, watching as Buffy pummeled a vampire and plunged a stake into his heart, "Besides, you didn't miss much."

'That's not the point, I told you I'd be there and I wasn't,' Nathan argued, 'What are you doing anyway?'

"Watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer on Netflix, what about you?"

'I'm analyzing old basketball matches... my dad thinks I'll pick up some new tricks from them,' Nathan explained, speaking to someone in the background and sighing, 'I've got to go.'

"Are we still handing out tomorrow night?" Parker inquired.

'Of course, I'll pick you up at seven'

"See you then."

Hanging up, Parker threw her phone down on the bed and returned her attention to the laptop screen. It was a little passed midnight, when Parker decided to log off of Netflix and get some sleep.

Waking up early the following morning, Parker had a shower and headed downstairs to eat breakfast with her family. It wasn't until after her therapy session that she met up with Savannah and spent the afternoon working on her homework, until it was time for her to get ready.

"Do you know what you guys are doing tonight?" Savannah asked as Parker got changed.

"Probably the same thing we do every time we plan to hang out," Parker replied, closing her closet door and grabbing her jacket off the bed, "We'll head down to the basketball court for a while and then go get some food at the diner, before going back to Nathan's house."

Savannah rolled her eyes, jumping off of Parker's bed and looking out the window as a car pulled into the driveway.

"Nathan's here," Savannah announced, looking Parker over once more and nodding in approval, "Go get him."

Parker chuckled as she left the room, heading outside and climbing in the passenger seat of Nathan's black SUV.

"Hey," Parker stated, securing her seat belt, "So... where are we going?"

"It's a secret," Nathan told her with a mischievous grin, "You'll see soon enough."

Watching Nathan closely for a few seconds, Parker smiled and averted her gaze to the passing scenery. They soon left the town and carried on driving for a while, until Nathan pulled the car over to the side of the road.

"Are you planning on murdering me and dumping my body in the woods?" Parker joked, jumping out and joining Nathan at the back of the car.

"Only time will tell," Nathan replied, retrieving a cooler and handing some bags to Parker, "Come on."

Parker followed Nathan along a trail and froze when they stepped out into a small clearing, taking in the scene before her. In the center of the clearing stood a lone oak tree, strewn with lantern shaped lights that illuminated the area and revealed a checkered blanket laid out on the grass.

"Did you do all this?" Parker inquired.

"I had some help putting it together, but the idea was mine," Nathan explained, taking Parker's hand and entwining their fingers, "I know I can get caught up with basketball and that sometimes it probably seems as though you don't matter, but you do..."

"Nathan..." Parker began, falling silent when Nathan held up a hand to stop her continuing.

"Let me finish... my dad was one of the best basketball players that our school has ever seen, then he injured his knee and he couldn’t play anymore," Nathan said, "Basketball is the only thing that we have in common and I love playing... it makes me feel good about myself to be out on the court with the team... to know that I'm doing something to make my dad proud."

"Why are you telling me all this?" Parker asked.

"Lucas overheard you and Sav talking at the party," Nathan admitted, "I already had this all planned out, but I just need you to know that you're important to me and I don't want to lose what we have."

"That was never going to happen, Nate... I just want to spend more time with you," Parker confessed, hoping she didn't sound like a whining child.

Without another word, Nathan pulled her towards the blanket and motioned for her to sit down. Parker took a seat and watched as Nathan pulled a variety of food from the bags, setting it down in front of them. They spoke about different things while they ate, from Parker's therapy sessions to Nathan's parents and it was nice. They had been talking for about an hour, when Nathan stood up and held out his hand for Parker to take.

"Dance with me."

"There's no music," Parker replied, taking Nathan's hand anyway and letting him pull her to her feet.

"We don't need any," Nathan added.

"That line was so cheesy," Parker teased, chuckling as Nathan pulled her into his arms and kissed her.

"What sort of cheese are we talking about here?" Nathan inquired as they swayed back and forth.

"I'd say mature cheddar at least."

"I'm definitely improving," Nathan joked with a dopey grin, spinning her round.

Parker moved her hands to rest on Nathan's chest as he kissed her again, their fluid movements seeming to flow with the beat of Nathan's heart and in that moment... everything was perfect.