Meadow Valley book series- Everything's changed

Chapter 24: The bon fire

     Adam parked in a clearing in the woods. They had to hike in the dark woods to get to where the bon fire was. Adam used the flashlight on his cell phone to illuminate the path ahead of them. Adam led Ana beside him. In order for her to see where she was walking. He placed his right hand on the small of her back. Ana looked over at Adam and smiled. She felt secure and safe.

"Watch out for that branch." Adam pulled Ana a little closer towards him so the branch would not scratch her.

"Thank you." Ana looked shyly at him and bit her lip.

     David followed closely behind them. When they arrived, Ana was expecting to see something out of a movie. It was nothing like that at all. There were about ten other young adults hanging out by a homemade fire pit. They were just sitting there talking with each other. A couple of them were drinking what seemed to be like a bottle of beer. It was nothing wild or crazy like she had imagined it might be. One guy got a little loud and carried away when he was trying to show off to some of the girls. There was more girls than guys at the party. The only guys there was David, Adam and two other guys. Ana couldn't remember anyone's name.

     Adam introduced David and Ana to everyone in the circle when they first arrived. Everyone said their names. Ana sat down in between her brother and Adam. She just smiled and nodded as others made conversation around her. She noticed some of the girls staring at her brother and Adam. They were whispering to each other and giggled. One of the girls approached Adam and flicked her hair back and forth as to flirt with him. It was kind of obvious what she was doing. Ana tried to not pay attention or look in their direction. She concentrated on what her brother was telling people about their lives.

"We just moved here from Miami a few weeks ago. We lived there our entire lives."

     Ana rolled her eyes as she watched some of the girls soak up everything David was saying. They asked him about his accent and where he was from.

"We were all born in America. Our father was born in Cuba and our mother is from here."

"Why does it sound like you have an accent?" One of the girls asked as they swooned over David.

"Maybe because we speak both English and Spanish. Practically everyone in Miami speaks both languages. Isn't that right Ana?" David nudged his sister.

     Ana just nodded her head and smiled at them. Adam was trying to listen in on the conversation. Even though one of the other girls was talking with him. Ana knew that her brother was quiet handsome and charming. He always had a way with making girls fall for him without even trying. He only had a couple girlfriends in the past. Their father taught them well. He would never approve of David acting like a foolish boy. Running around dating a bunch of girls.

     Their father always told them that we were special. God had a special person waiting for them and at the right time they would meet them. They also knew not to waste their time on fruitless relationships. That is the reason Ana still has not had a boyfriend or even kissed a boy yet. She was waiting for the perfect time in her life. She knew that it was not while she was too young.

"Ana, your kisses are special. You don't want to go around kissing a bunch of frogs when you can have the prince." Ana could remember her father's words as if he were right there with her now.

     Ana listened as David explained who they were and it was little bit hard for Ana to hear him talk about their father and his recent death. David started sharing personal information about their lives. He talked about their fathers' recent death. It was difficult for Ana to listen to. She didn't want people here to feel sorry for them. For once she just wanted to be normal and not have people give you that 'I'm so sorry your dad died' look.

     Ana stared at the ground and tried not to show any emotion in her face. At one point Adam leaned over and rubbed her arm. He looked at Ana in a sorry kind of way. That was it. She didn't want Adam to feel sorry for her too. The last thing Ana wanted was for Adam to know about their problems and feel sorry for her. Ana got up quietly and walked away from the crowd. Trying not to draw any attention to herself. Ana couldn't hold back the tears that she had been fighting so hard to hide. She didn't come here to be reminded about her life. She came to get away from it.