How I Lost My Virginity, Almost

Welcome to LA

Landing at LAX marked the beginning of my life, the life I was always supposed to lead. At least I hoped it would.

Growing up in the Irish countryside, in a hippie household consisting of an American mother and Irish father has its perks, sure - I had all the freedom imaginable; the only problem with that is I lived on a community farm with three other world peace and green extremists, vegans and weed mongers, and a bunch of nudists with no moral boundaries. Plus being the only teenager in the whole community among middle aged alternative humans was not so rad. Hence me jumping at the first opportunity I got to housesit for my mom's Californian sister, Leah, for the summer.

I headed out of the terminal, my trusty pillow and cello case in tow. My hair was a beautiful mess of chestnut hair and my light green eyes hidden behind my heavy spectacles. Did I mention I'm such a nerd? The cold air emanating from the airconditioners cooled my pale sweaty body which had already been given a warm Californian welcome. Literally.

I made my way to the nearest Starbucks, the prearranged meeting place, lugging my army size rucksack and sat at the first empty table I laid my eyes on. My legs went numb as soon as I placed my abnormally large bum on the wooden seat. Stupid jet lag.

"Oh my, my little poopie is all grown up." I recognised that Southern twang and that god awful nickname anywhere. Aunt Leah. Her long legs strode gracefully towards me, and she planted her signature red lips on my cheek.

"Hi, Leah." I was pulled into a warm, heavily perfumed hug. Ah, how I didn't miss her hugs - she left me smelling like a perfume ad.

"You look beautiful, doll face. Let's get you out of here." She led me out into the awful heat, her white Range Rover parked below the shadow of large pine trees. Her metallic stilettos shone from the laser like rays, her perfect golden skin glowing under the overhead desert sun.

She drove through Los Angeles, pointing out all the, and I quote, "free WiFi hotspots for ya'll social media freakazoids." I didn't even talk like that and I was supposed to be the teenager. We were headed out to Malibu, making our way to her eccentric yet intimate beach house lining the Pacific Ocean.

Her neighbourhood consisted of a cluster of beachfront houses with picturesque sunset views. We pulled up to the house and I noticed a sleek black convertible parked in the driveway. That must be Jason's car, I thought. Jason Parker, my aunt's longtime boyfriend, is a famous musician with a husky voice and grunge vibe, his bad boy look completed with a long mop of dirty blonde curls. Ironically, he was the nicest and most awesome guy I'd ever met.

"Little Sid has finally flown the coop," Jason grinned, his toned arms pulling me into a bear hug. My heart skipped a beat when I felt his body against mine. He was technically my uncle but I had the biggest crush on him all the same. It didn't hurt that he smelt great every time he embraced me. "You look beautiful, babe."

"You smell good, too," I replied into his 6 foot statuesque frame.

"Hey, stop with the flirting you too. Sydney, he's still mine," squealed Leah, carrying my cello into the house. "It's so cute how you play this thing and all but why in the name of all that's holy is it so heavy?"

"Here, let me."

He stepped out of the ornate doors and walked towards us, running his fingers through his cropped blonde hair. He was barefoot and shirtless, his tanned wall of a chest and toned muscles flexing as he uncurled the knots in his hair. He looked like he'd just woken up - he had very cute bed hair.

"Aw, you're too sweet, Cam. Sydney, meet Cameron. That's Jason's little brother," introduced Leah. "He's going to housesit with you."

"Sydney, finally. You're a lot older than Jason described," said Cameron, walking over to me. He kissed my forehead, his soft lips brushing up against my skin before relieving me of luggage. My cheeks flushed crimson and I felt myself turn red, sweating a little more than I already was. If I was feeling hot before, I was reaching fever pitch. "Now, let's get you inside before you get sunburn."