Crowded Room

37. Look Up at the Stars

Shawn is talking to Camila’s aunt as they all help in the kitchen when he notices her grandfather standing outside, so he excuses himself and opens the glass doors, walking outside before Camila can see him. He knows Camila thinks they just need to give him time, but Shawn can’t help trying to talk to him. When he stops next to the old man and clears his throat, he realizes the snow is finally falling down. Neither of them say anything for a few minutes until Shawn finally speaks up.

 “ I know you don’t really like me, Sir…” He can feel the man’s eyes on him after these words. “ But I need you to know that I really care about Camila. I have no intention of hurting her, if that’s what you’re concerned about.”

 “ I know you care about her, son. I can see it.” Her grandfather finally speaks after a long moment of silence that made Shawn even more nervous, but after hearing him referring to him as ‘son’ he starts feeling more hopeful. “ You know, Camila never brought any boys home or talked about dating. We even thought for a while that maybe she would bring a girl, so you can imagine how surprised we were when she mentioned you.” Shawn looks at the man and nods his head, feeling relieved that he’s actually talking and not ignoring his attempts. “ It was weird for me at first when she told us she had a boyfriend, but she seemed happy about it. She doesn’t know this, but I saw her crying later that night in her room. I’ve never seen her crying like that and she was crying over you, so you can’t blame for not being your biggest fan.”

 “ That was a misunderstanding, sir.” Shawn quickly says. “ I never meant for her to feel like that.”

 “ Good.” He says, taking his eyes off Shawn and turning his head to look at the house. Shawn follows his gaze and sees Camila looking at them from the kitchen, curiosity in her eyes as she probably wonders what they’re talking about. “ Seeing you with her since you two arrived here was enough proof of how much you care about her, Shawn. But if I ever see her crying because of something you did again, I won’t be as nice.”

 “ I love her.” Shawn whispers after a few minutes of silence, not really knowing how else to prove his point. The man looks at him and nods his head, patting him on the back before walking to the house.

 “ Come on, you don’t want to freeze out here.” He says before walking inside, so Shawn follows him and finds Camila looking at them with questioning eyes. 

 Shawn gives her a smile before walking to her and kissing her cheek in front of everyone, then helping her out with what she’s doing. Her grandma eventually asks about her audition for Carrie and they start a conversation about college, then move along to her two cousins who are still in high school and what they’re planning for when they leave for college as well. Shawn loves seeing her talking and laughing with her family, she looks so carefree and happy that he could just watch her for hours.

 Once the food is all ready, Camila drags him upstairs to her room, but he can see her grandfather sending him a look of warning. He never said anything about them sharing a room in their conversation earlier, but he definitely doesn’t seem happy about it.

 “ Okay, now you can tell me.” Camila says as soon as she closes the door of her bedroom behind them.

 “ Tell you what?”

 “ What my grandpa told you.” She laughs, laying down on the bed as Shawn seats down on the edge of the mattress looking at her. “ You’re still here breathing, so I guess he wasn’t as mad as you thought he would be.”

 “ Still being the key word.” Shawn says, making her laugh.

 “ Come on, I’m curious.” She sat up on the mattress and took his hand in hers, pouting at him until he gave in.