The First Day of The Rest of Our Lives

Summer of Love Pt.3

"I'm a little worried about the fireworks...." Shawn admitted on the plane.

"Me too.... but the therapist said to focus on connecting the sounds to what we see in front of us. Connect the sounds to the fireworks and remind yourself they aren't gunshots," Camila assured him and Shawn nodded.

The plane ride was spent listening to music and passing baby Sofia around so she wouldn't get fussy. She particularly enjoyed sleeping in Camila's arms and that was sweet.

When they landed they all took a shuttle to the resort. They were in a suite with 4 rooms that were connected by a living room. One room was for Shawn and Camila, one for Shawn's parents, one for Marisol and Alejandro, one for Gloria and Sinu and Aaliyah would sleep on the couch in the living room. It was 11 a.m. and they got settled in and then went to lunch and then lounged around the pool at the hotel. Tomorrow was the 4th of July and tonight they would explore the wild animal kingdom, which was beautifully illuminated at night.

They held hands and took in the sights together. It was crazy to be in Florida, a place that was where Camila once called home.

They watched a movie in bed after showering,seperately, and Aaliyah joined them. She ended up falling asleep at the foot of their king sized bed.

In the morning they had brunch and then spent the day exploring the park and riding rides. When night fell and the fireworks show was upon them, Shawn and Camila braced themselves. He held her in front of him and knew that the beating of her heart would calm him down. The first couple were hard and the popping noises were startling but they were in awe at the colors and the music, so they were okay.

They spent the next day at the beach and Florida sand was quite different from the sand back home.

When they flew home, they were exhausted and content.

The month of July rolled on and they would both move into their dorms at the end of August so while time was ticking, the summer days were slow and sweet.

Gloria made blueberry pie with blueberries Shawn and Camila spent the morning picking. They reminisced about when they were young and how much they missed Tony. They listened to old records, enjoyed warm homemade tortillas, and shared the sweetest cinnamon sugar kisses.

Shawn played songs on the piano for Gloria and he sang for her too.

They spent time in the treehouse and laid out canvas and paint brushes to paint. Shawn was a much better artists but Camila's portrait of their spot by the lake wasn't bad. Shawn drew a silhouette of two small children holding hands watching the sunset go down on the beach. "It's... when we were shorter, obviously..." he smiled.

"I love it...." Camila smiled and then she got quiet.

"Spill.... something is on your mind...."

"Shawn... I don't want to hold you back...when you go to college...." Camila said seriously.

"What do you mean?" Shawn turned to face her.

"We're... going to be apart and there's going to be... other girls... and parties... and I don't want you to feel like you're not going to be allowed to experience those things. That we won't be able to experience those things. "

"Where is this coming from?" Shawn asked.

"I just.... don't want us to fall apart again."

"We won't...."

"How do you know?"

"Because we're... us... and you make me happy and I make you happy..." Shawn assured her.