by E A Owen
The houses here were amazing! I'd only seen houses like this in magazines and in the movies. I just stared out the window in stunned amazement. All the houses on this lake were pristine and very fancy. Which one is ours? I thought to myself.
“Mom, is this really where we are going to live?”
“Yes, it is!” my mom said with great pride in her voice.
“WOOOOOOW!” I replied in astonishment. My mom had this huge grin on her face. This was the happiest I think I have ever seen her. I could tell she was ecstatic when she got the promotion at work, and she and Dad went out to celebrate that night. My parents are very much in love. You can tell by the way they look at each other, even after 20 years of marriage, and they always make time for date night once a week and have for as long as I can remember. They've been telling me they do this since I was little “to keep the romance alive.”
Now that we are finally here, I think it's really starting to hit my mom. You can see the sparkle in her eyes. My mom is a pretty lady, and I hope I look like her when I am her age, but she wears her emotions on her sleeve. You know when she is happy, excited, sad, upset, angry—there is no second guessing with her and I respect her for that. She is very honest and so is my dad. I've been raised to believe there is nothing we can't talk about and how important honesty is.
Then I noticed the moving truck parked on the curb. My dad pulled the camper on the side of the road, got out and walked up to the stone gate posts and double iron gates leading to our cobblestone driveway and punched in a few numbers on the keypad. My dad, all dramatic and all, turned around to face us with his hands raised above his head like he was saying, “Ta Da!” The gates slowly opened to our massive house.
The landscaping leading to the house was astounding, a perfectly manicured lawn, beautiful array of colorful flowers, and perfectly trimmed bushes, wrapping around the house. The porch had massive white pillars on either side, with wide French doors leading into the house. I've never seen so many windows, and private balconies led out from each bedroom on the second floor. And above that, which may possibly be the attic, was a huge stained-glass window. The house also had several protruding wings, giving it a unique but picturesque look. There was a huge three-bay garage attached that looked big enough to park even our camper in one stall.
I was ecstatic to see the inside of the house and the backyard leading out to the lake. I just looked over at my mom and it's like she knew exactly what I was thinking. “Want to go check out the inside?” she said gently but with just as excitement in her voice that I felt.
“Absolutely!” I replied, just about jumping out of my skin. I ran up to the front door, but before opening it I turned around to see where my parents were. My dad bent down and picked my mom off the ground and carried her as she wrapped her arms around his neck. They both were beaming with joy as he walked toward the front door.
The inside of the house was much more beautiful than I could ever imagine possible. It was one of those houses people only dream of living in. The foyer ceiling must have been 25 feet high with an elegant chandelier made of diamonds hanging from the center of the room. Double staircases led to the second floor on either side, railings wrapping around the entire exposed second floor. Sparkling black quartz tiles covered the floor.
“So, what do you think, Julia?” my dad asked. Like he even had to ask, I thought.
“Amaaaazing!” I responded with sheer excitement. I just stood there, unable to move from Sudden Shock Syndrome, if that's even a real term, chuckling at my bizarre thoughts.
“Sooooo. Are you going to check out the rest of the house or are you just going to stand there like an idiot?” my dad asked playfully.
“I'm just trying to take this all in, Dad. Give me a break,” I replied, while punching my dad playfully in the arm.
“Isn't it stunning?” my mom said, obviously awe stricken. “
Is this a dream?” I cringed after realizing what a dumb question that is. Both my parents just giggled like little kids.
“More like a dream come true, sweetheart,” my mom said with a big smile, showing her perfectly straight white teeth.
“I can't believe we actually live here! I can't wait for Nicole to see this place. She is going to freak!” I replied, as I finally broke my frozen stance.
Where to go first? I thought, this place is gigantic. I turned left and walked through the archway made of mahogany, leading into another room. The first thing I noticed was the huge picture window directly in front of me at the end of the room. The window was almost as high as the ceiling, probably 20 feet tall by ten feet wide. There was a stone mantel, electric fireplace with a gigantic TV screen above it that had to be nearly 100 inches, the biggest I had ever seen, which was tucked inside the wall. This wall had openings on either side to get into the next room.
I walked through the left side entry and into the dining area. There were glass sliding doors leading out to a wraparound deck overlooking the lake. A chandelier hung directly above the huge carved mahogany table that dominated the vast space. To the right of the dining area was open to the kitchen. Directly in the middle of the kitchen was an island with four bar stools. The countertops were made of marble with lots of mahogany cabinets. Above the kitchen sink was a big rectangular window overlooking the lake. All the appliances were stainless steel, and the cathedral ceiling above the kitchen was covered completely with massive skylights: a looking glass to the beautiful clear blue sky with hardly a cloud in sight. All the windows throughout the house just lit up every room with a warm, inviting glow.
I continued to walk through the kitchen and to the entryway on the other side. The room was made entirely of windows, what they call a sunroom with a magnificent view of the lake. I pushed through the two wide glass doors that opened to the patio. The light breeze filled the warm air in the backyard with the beautiful aromas of lilac and flowers. The landscaping was pristine. There were lots of colorful flowers and perfectly trimmed shrubs lining the house, and a stone walkway wrapped completely around the house. There was a beautifully sculptured waterfall and fire pit, a hot tub, a patio set, and even a gazebo and swing off to the side of the yard. The swing was big enough for two people to sit and enjoy the scenic view, which was breathtaking.
At the end of the yard, was a big dock that walked out to a boat house. I pinched myself just to make sure this wasn't a dream.
“WOW!” It just seemed too good to be true. Never in a million years would I ever thought we would move into a place like this. All the moving seemed worth it now. I wanted to live here forever. I couldn’t wait for Nicole to see our new house. I skipped down to the dock, and I thought to myself, I haven't skipped since I was a kid. I just shrugged. Who cares? I walked to the end, slipped my sandals off and kicked them to the side, and sat down with my legs dangling over the edge. I dipped my feet into the warm crystal-blue water and gazed up into the afternoon sky just daydreaming of the endless possibilities.
***
I was so excited I barely slept last night. I glanced over at the clock hanging on the freshly painted wall in my bedroom. It read 7:50. Still another four hours before Nicole was supposed to be here. I laid in bed admiring the mint green paint I picked out. This shade of green, my favorite, was a lighter shade but not quite pastel. Of course, my dad did most of the work, but I did help a little. A slight paint smell still lingered in my room but that's probably because I had to close my window the last couple nights because it rained.
Last night, while I couldn't sleep, I laid in bed listening to the pitter-patter of raindrops on my window and the echoes of the thunder in the distance while my room lit up like the Fourth of July. I've always loved thunderstorms. Something about them is so peaceful and soothing. The storm was probably the only reason I was able to get any sleep last night. I stretched, let out a big yawn, and walked to a window in my room. I pulled back the curtain and squinted from the bright light that came bursting through my room. The weatherman last night on the news channel
said it was going to be mostly sunny with a high around 87 degrees today. Perfect weather to enjoy the lake, I thought.
***
The buzzer from the intercom echoed throughout the house. “Nicole!” I was so excited I could barely contain myself. I leapt off the couch in the sunroom, put my book down so as to not lose my place, and ran to the front door to open the gate. I couldn't wait to show her around.
I ran up to the car before they even had time to put it in park. The back-passenger door flew open, and the look on Nicole's face was priceless. “Julia!”
“Oh my!” Mrs. Johnson said in disbelief, as she admired the house. “This is unbelievable!”
“I know,” I replied. “Isn't it great? Follow me.” I said with a grin from ear to ear. I gave the grand tour of the inside as we made our way to the patio area and lake out back.
My mom had been preparing appetizers for our guests all morning. My mom really enjoys cooking. You'd think, with the kind of house we live in, we would have a maid and our very own private chef. But my mom takes great pride in her cooking and cleaning. She has to have things done just right. To be honest, I think she has OCD. But I'm not going to complain. Our house is spotless and always smells nice. I didn't like it so much when I was little because my mom always made me pick up after myself. The only room in the house she lets slide even just a little is my bedroom, but I think I may have picked up some of that OCD behavior from her. My bed was always made, my clothes nicely put away. All my clothes were even color coded and all my books organized by alphabetical order and size.
Nicole, on the other hand, was a typical teenager, not very clean or organized at all. She would have piles of clothes all over her bedroom floor. I don't even know if she knew which ones were clean or dirty. But that aside, we got along perfectly. I'm so glad, even though we moved, we still lived close enough to visit from time to time. Nicole was to spend three weeks with us this summer because her parents were taking a trip to Hawaii for two weeks.
“Are you hungry, Nicole?” I asked.
“I'm starved!” Nicole replied as she rubbed her belly. We sat down at the patio table while my mom and Mrs. Johnson started bringing out dishes full of all kinds of different finger foods for us to munch on. My favorite was the fresh bread my mom made from scratch, then coated with pesto and layered with baby spinach, tomatoes, and fresh mozzarella cheese melted on top. Nicole and I started shoving food into our faces like we hadn't eaten in days. I don't know why my mom never opened her own restaurant, since she loves cooking so much. My dad is a good cook too, but he usually just cooks on the grill. My dad makes a marinade grilled chicken to die for. He won't even tell my mom what his special ingredient is.
After we stuffed our faces to the point we felt like we ate a bowling ball, we decided to take a long walk along the shoreline to work it off. I overheard my dad telling Nicole's parents that the lake is forty miles long, the shore length five hundred miles, and the deepest part is two hundred fifty feet. Just hearing that gave me dreadful thoughts of floating on my back in the middle of the lake with hundreds of feet of water between me and the bottom while sharks swam just below me. It gave me the chills just thinking about it.
Nicole and I walked until our toes felt like they were going to fall off, my feet sore and tender with every step I took. We were so busy catching up that we didn't even notice how far we had walked. The air was still and the sun beat down on us like a fireball blazing in the sky. It was just too hot to tolerate anymore. And all I could keep thinking about was why we left without putting on bathing suits first—that was really stupid. Just then I felt a big shove, and I lost my balance and fell into the cool, refreshing lake that lapped against my thirst-hungry skin. I wiped away the droplets that splashed into face. Nicole was bursting with laughter. Her laughter was quickly replaced by a shriek of surprise when I caught her off guard, grabbed a hold of her ankle, and pulled her into the water next to me. She fell to her hands and knees, and we both erupted with laughter as we laid back and rolled around in the water. Our clothes were soaking wet, but the water rolling over my sunburned skin felt so good.
As I sat up and turned around, I noticed a boy sitting in a chair staring in our direction. Just as our eyes locked, he quickly looked away. “He's pretty cute,” I thought. He had short dark hair and a nice tan, but other than that it was hard to tell any other details about him as he was too far away.
I nudged Nicole. “You see that guy sitting over there?” I said quietly, like he could hear what we were saying even though we were far away.
“Yeah, he's cute!” Nicole replied. “You should go talk to him.”
“I don't know. I'm pretty shy when it comes to talking to guys. He's probably already got a girlfriend,” I said, trying to make an excuse not to go over and talk to him.
“But you never know unless you stop being a chicken shit and get up the nerve to talk to him. What’s the worst he could say: sorry, I have a girlfriend? And you'll probably never see the guy again. His family might just be vacationing here, or maybe he lives right next door to you. But you'll never know for sure unless you go talk to him.”
“I know, I know,” I replied with a slight tone of annoyance. I wish I was better at this, I thought to myself. The only way to get over this fear, I knew, was to just start walking toward him. Just then he looked my way again, but this time he held the glance for a few moments longer. There was something about him that was so captivating. I took a deep breath, stood up, and started walking toward him.
I started thinking to myself, “What am I doing? I probably look ridiculous. I'm soaking wet and burned to a crisp.” Then a little voice inside me said, “Don't be a coward. You've got this.”
The walk seemed so much further than it really was. With every step I was trying to convince myself to turn around and not make a fool of myself. But I kept walking. The closer I got to him, the more nervous I got. He was much better looking than I thought. I gulped. Only a few steps left. I could feel my face turning bright red. It was not like it wasn't already red from being sunburned, but at least my burn might hide me blushing a little.
“Hi, my name is Julia. I just moved here a couple weeks ago from Kentucky. Do you live here too?” I asked, speaking much faster than normal because my nerves were getting the best of me.
“Hi, Julia. it's nice to meet you. I'm Trevor. I actually live in Butterfield, just twenty minutes from here. My dad and I love coming here during the summer. He's at the mechanic's getting our car fixed. I didn't want to sit and wait, and so he dropped me off here instead,” he said with much more confidence than had been apparent in my voice. “Who's that girl you were rolling around in the water with? Looks like you girls are having fun.”
“That's my friend Nicole. She's visiting for three weeks from Kentucky. Her parents are going on vacation, and so she is staying with us. We live that way.” I turned to my right and pointed to the direction of my house. “I’m just not sure how far from here.” I giggled. “We've been walking for a while and our feet our killing us. We didn't think we'd walk this far but we were talking and lost track of time.”
“My dad texted me a few minutes ago and said he was leaving the mechanics and would be on his way to come get me. We can give you both a ride back to your place if you would like?”
“Let me go talk to my friend. I'll be right back.” I smiled and turned away and walked toward Nicole. I couldn't help but smile from ear to ear as I walked toward her.
“Soooooo?” Nicole asked, wanting details of our conversation.
“He offered to give us a ride back to my place. He's just waiting for his dad to come pick him up. Want to ride with them instead of walking all the way back in this heat? My feet are killing me.”
“Sure. Anything beats walking right now.” Nicole chuckled.
“Okay, I will introduce you to Trevor then.”
“Julia and Trevor sitting in a tree …
K * I * S * S * I * N * G,” Nicole started reciting.
/> “Quit it!” I said all flushed as I slapped her in the arm playfully. Nicole just started giggling.
“I think you like him,” she said as she raised her eyebrows a couple times.
“Maybe, but cut it out! Please don't embarrass me,” I pleaded with Nicole.
“I won't, I promise,” she said with a sincere tone, which was reassuring.
We started walking in Trevor's direction, and I noticed an older man standing next to him with a big smile on his face. He gave us a little wave. We both smiled and gave a quick wave back.
As we approached, Trevor's dad spoke up. “Hi. Nice to meet you. I'm Travis, Trevor's dad,” he said as he held out his hand for a shake. I put my hand out and noted Trevor's dad had a firm grip.
I cleared my throat. “I'm Julia,” I said shyly, “and this is Nicole.”
“Trevor said you two young ladies need a ride back to your house.”
“Yes, if you don't mind—our feet are killing us. We're actually not too sure how far it is from here, but we've been walking a long time.” I replied.
“Not a problem at all. We are in no hurry. My car is this way,” Trevor's dad said as he pointed toward the parking lot. We followed behind him, trying to keep up. As we made it through the crowded parking lot, Travis pressed the remote key as his car lights flashed on and off and unlocked all the doors. We climbed into the backseat of the roomy black SUV that smelled of leather and cologne. “So which direction, ladies?” Trevor's dad spoke up as he slid his sunglasses up the brim of his nose.
“Take a left here,” I said, focusing on the road. We drove in silence as I was searching the massive houses around the lake, trying to find mine. After driving for ten minutes, I spotted it. “We're right here.” I pointed at the beautiful house we were approaching.