REPOST - [ camp discovery ] - a tayvis short story

chapter one.

13:08

taylor: age 23 || michael: age 7

Taylor parker her car and let out a deep sigh. They had made it. After six hours in the car, they had finally made it to the place she used to call her summer home. Looking at the surroundings of the parking lot brought back memories that she had no idea she still remembered. How her mom and dad used to pull into this parking lot. How she would get her things out of the trunk with the help of one of the counselors. How they would pull off some years without as much as a goodbye. This was the place where she met the guy who fathered her baby boy. Her baby boy who was sitting in the backseat and was now old enough to be a camper here.

"Are you ready?" Taylor asked Michael, cutting the car's ignition. She turned and looked at him. His face was still holding the same straight look it had been for most of the car ride. She wished she could see inside his head, see exactly what he was thinking.

"Yeah," he said, his words coming out as if he was in another dimension.

"What's wrong, babe?" She asked, feeling a tad bit worried. Maybe this was too much for him. Maybe it wasn't a good idea for him to do this. Maybe all he needed was alone time with her, Maybe she was making a mistake.

"Nothing. I'm excited," he gave her a smile. A smile that looked sad, but a smile nonetheless.

"Okay." She was a bit hesitant, but this was happening. This was about to be their life for the next month and a half. She hoped, she prayed, that this would be what Michael needed. She opened her car door and stepped out of the car. She looked around and took in the fresh air. She smiled. It smelled just the way she remembered it. She could hear the subtle crash of the waves from the lake – the smell of the pine trees that were sprinkled throughout the grounds of the camp. So many old memories came flooding back. Good memories. She hoped for more of those this summer and maybe even summers to come. She hoped that Michael enjoyed it. That he made friends and loved every second of being here, just the way she used to enjoy every second of being here. She also hoped that it helped with the new found anger that he had built up. That he was able to heal in a way that being back home, living in her parents house, wasnt about to do.

She closed the driver's door, walked over a little, and opened the back door, ready to start grabbing things out that she and Michael would need for their stay. Most of their belongings were packed into her car. Her plan after camp was to find somewhere new for her and her son to live. She didn't want to be in that town she grew up in anymore. There were too many bad memories and not enough good ones to overshadow the bad. They both deserved a new start, where no one knew their history. Where no on knew what they had been through.

Taylor screamed when she felt a pair of hands touch her. She turned, seeing a tall man standing there. Without thought, she punched the man in his chest with all of her might. The man stumbled back, holding his chest. "Oh my God," she whispered, noticing who was standing there. "Are yu okay?" she asked, just as she heard the car door on the opposite side of the car open and close.

Before she knew it, Michael pushed the man out of the way. "Get away, get away, get away!" Michael yelled, pushing the 6 foot 6 inch man again.

"My bad, my bad," he said, rubbing the spot on his chest where Taylor had punched him. "I'm sorry." He said backing awat from Taylor and Michael. He let out a couple of coughs as he looked at her, wide eyed.

"I'm sorry!" she called out to him as he continued to walk away from her and Michael. She let out a deep breath. Ever since the ordeal with her ex-boyfriend, people approaching her without warning caused a visceral reaction. She would scream and start swinging to degend herself. She took a few deep breathes as Michael hugged her legs tightly. "I'm okay, baby," she told her son, hugging him.