Stacy Coleman is, once again, spending her summer vacation in Tree Hill. She'd never try to explore the town like this before, so everything looks new and intimidating. The fact that she knows deep inside that she is not straight has been haunting h...
"Yes, losing your heart's desire is tragic. But gaining your heart's desire? That's all you can hope for. This year I wished for love, to immerse myself in someone else and to wake a heart long afraid to feel. My wish was granted. And if having that is tragic, then give me tragedy because I wouldn't give it back for the world." ―Peyton Sawyer
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There's something interesting and deeply complicated about love stories that are settled in small towns. Tree Hill, for example, is the definition of quietness - even amongst the energetic days of basketball matches, holiday season parties and all the other absurd ideas a lot of young people together can offer -, and aside from those facts, everybody knew each other. As a foreign face, it felt difficult to simply crash in what seemed to be already tight ties.
When Stacy Coleman took the bus for the first time and faced three hours of travel to spend the summer with her grandmother, she didn't know she would eventually become a regular there. Every summer, every end-of-year break, every moment she would want to skip the big city and have a reconnection with nature, she'd go for her grandmother. And, well, contrary to popular opinion, living with an old lady did not mean she was trapped in her room all of the time. In fact, Rosa Coleman was totally in favor of making her live her youth while it lasted, ignoring all of Stacy's mother's objections about what the young lady should be doing with her life. She would soon become a senior in high school, and it would be some of her last chances to make mistakes, to learn from them, to discover whatever it is she wants to do in the future. If college is even an option for her.
— Are you sure you don't want to go check out that party at Tric? I heard it's an all-ages club. — the older one proposed on one of those nights. — Could take your granny too, if you're in the mood to get teased because of it.
— I'm okay, grams. I really don't wanna become a burden here, I know you sleep early.
Rosa laughed, shaking her head as if she couldn't believe it. Of course the kid would use that excuse. She knew her daughter must have been pretty strict about what she could and couldn't do at her grandmother's house. Not to mention the fact that Stacy looked a lot like herself when she was a young woman, always so eager to follow the rules and not make her parents worried. It was a good quality, of course, many adults dreamed about raising responsible kids, but that wasn't a reason to miss out on healthy and fun activities out of 'respect'.
— You know, Stacy... When I was your age, back in the 60s, I would give anything to have that type of diversion. My parents were too strict, and see... I'm here, on my 65 years old, sitting in a chair while knitting and thinking about what I could have done. — she smiled softly, as if expecting that Stacy would take the hint to go out and have fun. After all, she didn't want the girl to stay inside all summer. Those aren't the type of summer vacations you'd tell your friends about.
Of course it took a long hour to convince her, but soon enough Stacy was seeing herself walking to Tric, wearing a blue buttoned shirt and jeans, as well as the new boots she got just before arriving in Tree Hill. It was almost blendable with the other girls — that were far from being simple, all of them looked stunning. Another thing about small towns is that people really care about appearance. It's impossible to leave home wearing the bare minimum and still have a good reputation after that. Maybe that's why Stacy felt so worried about leaving the house that night.
