The Summer I Grew Up

Chapter 1: Let Summer Come

For Alex,

From the kindness of my heart

The cool, early morning breeze whisked through the orange painted sky and along my back and exposed arms. The sun rose like a dolphin coming up out of water for a breath of fresh air. The crickets ceased their chirping as the first rays of daylight shone through the small town of Audie. It was a modest town hidden amongst Georgia's peach trees and coca cola heads. We had a big forest behind us, huge, filled with deer, bunnies, mooses, squirrels, and sometimes coyotes and wolves. And a nice, tiny beach, where I was now. I've seen some bottlenose dolphins while on a fishing trip with my friends and a West Indian manatee while on an afternoon swim. Though, the marine life nearby has its cons. Constant horseshoe and hermit crabs are in houses too close to the beach. My friend said one pinched her while she was sleeping. She had the red skin in the shape of the pincers to prove it. Sea turtles sometimes would bite instead of fish. Some freaks eat them anyway. You have to remove the knobbed whelks from sea shells if you want to keep them, and those suckers cling to them for dear life. Then, you have the North Atlantic right whale. Sure, it's beautiful if you can get a picture of it leaping out of water, but they're also insanely terrifying. Not scared? Just imagine that 100,000 pound mammal leaping out of water, and landing on your ship in the water. Not to point out the obvious, but you don't want that happening. Sadly, it has been reported a couple times in this area. But other than that, the beach was peaceful.

I sat there, my baggy, cropped, orange shirt moved as the winds tickled it. My tight, ripped jeans left my knees unprotected from the warm breeze, not that I minded though. My converses lay next to me as I dangled my bare feet beyond the edge of the sandy beach, dipping into the cool, clear water from time to time.

So far, the first day of summer was going well. I saw a whale far off in the distance, to where it was a barely noticeable shadow, leap from the water. I watched the water droplets dance around it. Time seemed to slow for a second. Just me and the peace. In the moment.

Until an annoying blue truck zoomed past, honking all the while. I looked back to see Daniel Petre, the most obnoxious guy I knew, in the driver's seat and his band of goons in the trunk, Sandro Terenti, Adam and Abel Varlam, and Roland Beso. Otherwise known as "The Football Five" in my town. I glared at them as they laughed and drove past me. I looked back to the waters to find the beautiful whale gone. I sighed, aggravated. Why did they have to build a road next to the peaceful, secluded part of the beach?

Luckily, my light taupe gray metallic 2010 suburban Chevrolet parked next to the road went untouched. It had taken me years to save for that car, and I was not gonna let the Five put a dent in my baby. It was the perfect size for me. Big, with lots of seats for my friend group.

I got up, looking to where I'd seen them disappear, and when I was satisfied that they were gone, I walked over to my car and opened the passenger side and took out my guitar. I had been playing since I was 10 years old, and naturally became a pro. Though, I would never play in front of anyone. I had convinced myself that I wasn't really that good, and playing in front of a million other people would just be embarrassing. It's been a well kept secret of mine, only a few people know about it.

I plucked the strings, just to test them. The song seemed to flow from my fingers as I played my steel guitar. The calming melody coursed through the winds, bringing my peace again. I slightly swayed side to side as the song filled the misty air. I smiled. This was the kind of summer I had hoped for. No stressing from back to back assignments or exams. No dealing with school drama and mindless idiots. Just me, my guitar, and the beach.

I could get used to this.

After a while, my fingers started aching from how much I was playing. I finished the song and laid my guitar next to me, and layed on my back, taking in the warm, sunlit afternoon. The rays traveled up and down my exposed skin, I was sure to have a tan when I went back home. I wanted that though. I was way too white to be considered a Georgian. My skin was sincerely lacking in the melanin department. But I didn't get sunburned easily, unlike my mom. I tensed up just thinking about her. I should hate her. I should hate her will all my being. She walked out on me and my dad. Didn't even say goodbye. Left a note in case we thought she was in trouble saying, "Left for a real life. Be good, Elene. - Mildred"