This Town

Chapter 1 - funny how things never change in this small town

I could tell you my adventures beginning from this morning 
but it is no use going back to yesterday
because I was a different person then

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 Looking through the old bus window, Shawn watches as the small town appears in front of his eyes. The old houses with beautiful and colorful gardens, exactly how he remembers his parents house to be; the small cafe he used to work as a teenager, even though his parents were against it; and the cozy bookstore he would often find Camila in. He knows she still lives here, so they’re bound to run into each other, he just hopes she’s not mad at him for leaving six years ago. Leaving her was the hardest decision he had to make, but it was not only her he was leaving, he was leaving a predictable life running his dad business to pursue his dreams as a musician.

 Shawn spent the last six years in college, majoring in music and trying to get his shot in the city of angels, but like most do he never got there. He got a full scholarship and convinced his parents to help him financially, but once he graduated they cut him off. He was already working in a diner near the university, so he was able to survive two years by himself, until he realized he was nowhere near achieving his dreams. His parents tried to convince him to come back to Canada, where he could help them in the small hotel they owned, but he didn’t want to be stuck doing a job he didn’t enjoy.

 Once he started to struggle, he considered coming back, but who made him actually decide on that was Taylor, one his best friends. He hadn’t spoke to any of his friends from home in awhile, but Taylor was the one that kept insisting on reaching out to him, she had always been the mom of their group of friends, always making sure he was okay. Her mother is still the principal for the local high school, so Taylor convinced her to offer him a job as a music teacher when the one they had retired.

 Feeling like he had no other option, Shawn reached out to his parents and they payed for him to come back. He would be staying with them until he could afford a place for himself, and even though he felt like he failed himself, he still missed his parents. He missed everything about this small town, but especially his friends.

The bus finally stops at the old station, and he gets out with memories flowing out of his mind. He can see his mother waiting for him in a navy blue dress, her hair darker than he remembers from the last time he saw her.

 “ You look so tall.” He hears her saying as she pulls him in for a hug in the nearly empty bus station. “ I missed you, darling.”

 “ I missed you too, mom. Where is dad?” He asks as she still holds him tight.

 “ He’s working, but you’ll see him soon.” She says pulling away and taking his face in her hands, smiling softly at her only son.

 “ Oh my god, Shawnnn!” He hears a voice screaming from behind him, but he knows this can only be a tall blonde girl he knows since he was a little kid.

 “ Taylor!” He says as the girls hugs him, almost making him fall.

 “ I can’t believe you’re actually here.” She says softly, smiling at the boy she still considers as one of her best friends.

 Taylor drives them to his parents house and stays there so they can catch up, in half an hour he knows everything that changed in town and what most people are up to, apart from the ones he actually wants to know. His mother invites her for dinner, so she stays there for a long time before he asks what he knows she’s not telling him.

 “ How is everyone?” He asks, not having to say who he’s referring to, it’s clear he’s asking about their small group of friends.

 “ Well, Brian and Alessia are still together, and guess what?” She says like she’s about to drop a bomb. “ They have a little girl. Charlotte, she’s three.”

 “ Wow. I didn’t know, that’s amazing.” He says realizing how much he missed on his friends lives.

 “ I know. You have to meet her, she’s the cutest little thing and is obsessed with my cats.” Shawn laughs at the mention of Taylor’s cats, she has always been such a cat lover. “ They live in the same street as Joe and I, so when you come to meet him we can go there.”

 Taylor had told him over the phone about her fiance, they met when she went to college in a nearby town to study business and now they own a bakery together. They’re about to get married in two months and Taylor is extremely happy that Shawn will be there for the ceremony.

 “ What about Camila?” He asks after she finishes telling him everything about Brian and Alessia’s current life.

 “ Do you really want to know?” She asks knowing the history the two have, but they’re both her best friends, so she can’t pick a side.

 “ Yeah, I can handle it, I just need to know how she’s doing.” He says knowing the short brunette have probably moved on from whatever they had before he left.

 “ She’s a teacher in our old high school.” Shawn can't help but smile, knowing they’ll end up running into each other since he’ll be working there too. “ She went to community college and majored in english literature.” That makes sense, her mother couldn’t afford for her to leave town if he remembers well, and she always loved reading and writing, it seems like the perfect thing for her to study. “ She’s dating this older guy, he’s a lawyer from England who just moved in here. They’re living together, his name is Matthew.” Of course she’s dating someone. There was no way she would just wait for him, and he’s happy she’s not alone, but he knows he still loves her just as much as he did when they were just two irresponsible teenagers. Taylor can tell the information hurt him, but she knows him too well to know he’d never try to destroy Camila’s happiness.

They finally have dinner once his dad arrives, but unlike his mother, he doesn’t seem too happy to see him. He’s still not happy on how Shawn left and is now mad that he prefers to work as a high school teacher instead of running the hotel next to him.

Taylor leaves right after they eat, so he just lays down in his old bedroom, exhausted from the long fly and bus drive he had. The last thought on his mind before falling asleep is how he’s both excited and afraid of seeing Camila again.

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A/N: Just an idea that has been on my mind for a while, it's probably going to be a short story. Please, tell me what you think! 💕