Summerfield (7 page)

my hand and a pirate like growl.
He laughed with good nature, giving me a one armed hug.
Everyone was talking and discussing everything excitedly as I heard my
phone ring. I still had a big smile on my face as I stepped away from
the table to answer. I smile only widened when I saw that it was Kara.
"Hola, best friend." I answered with cheerfulness.
"Belle." I heard Kara whimper. I was immediately alarmed.
"Kara, what's wrong?"
Her voice cracked, followed by the sound of choked sobs. "I need you."
I glanced over at the table where my family were all talking and
laughing, then at Ben. He was looking back at me with a smile on his
face. I did my best to smile back. I took a deep breathe. "Dad!" I
called.
"Yeah?"
I bit my lip. "I need to go to California."
***
Dad had been surprisingly supportive of my idea to leave for a week to
go see Kara. I had told him how upset she had been and he agreed
instantly. He had even said that he was proud that I was doing this to
help a friend. He had even called and booked my flight for tomorrow
morning. As much as I didn't want to leave Ben, I knew that I had to
be there for Kara. She was heart-broken and I just wanted to be there for her.
I sighed. Ben was a bit of a different story. I hadn't talked to him
since I explained my reasoning to go to California. I was just hoping
he understood how much I needed to go for Kara.
After I had told everyone at dinner, he had kept silent, not saying
much and not making eye contact. I had been sure to point out that I
would only be gone for a short week and I'd be right back again.
"Mara Belle?" I heard Dad ask as he knocked my bedroom door.
"Yeah, Dad?"
He opened the door, giving me a small smile. "Ben said that if you
wanted to go for that night drive that he's downstairs."
I smiled, truly glad to hear that. I needed to talk to him. "Yeah,
I'll be right down."
He nodded. I expected him to shut the door, but he only opened it
wider and began looking around, dazed. “I haven't been up here in so
long."
I glanced at him and then around my room. "I guess not. It's still
pretty much the same from before I moved. Actually, it's still pretty
much the same from when I was a kid."
Dad chuckled a bit, looking back at me with an uncertain look in his
eyes. "I'm sorry I haven't been able to spend much time with you since
you got back."
I shrugged. I had been so used to not seeing him every day that I
didn't notice how little I saw him now during the day. "It's okay."
"How about when you get back home we go spend the day together. You
haven't been in town much since you got back."
I smiled. "That sounds great Dad." And it really did.
Coming home hadn't been near as bad as I had expected it to be.
In fact, it was turning out to be quite nice.
"Me too kiddo." He said, leaning down and kissing my head. "I'll go
tell Ben that you'll be right down."
"Thanks."
He left the room and I instantly went towards my closet. This was the
last time I would see Ben for a week, and I wanted to be sure I looked
cute.
Wow...I sound like such a girl.
***
"Why are you wearing a dress?" Dad questioned as I came downstairs.
Ben was sitting on the couch, not really paying much attention until
Dad had said something. He looked up to find me there, smiling.
I shrugged casually. "It's comfy." And it was. The dress was my
favorite and one of the few dresses I would really wear. It was a
light blue with silver flower designs throughout. It was a spaghetti
strap that came down to slightly below my knees.
Dad seemed a bit unsure, like he was debating if he should tell me to
go change or not. "Okay, you two be careful."
I breathed a sigh of relief that he hadn't made a fuss over the dress.
"We will. You ready Ben?" I noticed my voice softened when I spoke
towards Ben.
He nodded, smiling. "Yeah, let's go."
He led me to the door, even holding it open for me. He had finally
begun trusting my driving enough to let me drive his own truck, which
had made me considerably happier than driving that old rusted hunk of
junk that we had been using.
I climbed into the passenger side, glancing at the silent Ben every
once in a while as we began to drive towards the field that had now
become ours. We went there when we would go to drive or just when we
wanted to be alone. It was open and free with no one else in the
world.
"Are you mad?" I broke the silence in question, gazing at him as his
eyes focused on the dirt road ahead of us.
He shook his head, glancing toward me with a small smile. "No, I'm
not. Sorry if you thought I was. I was just surprised. I'm going to
miss having you around."
I shrugged, smiling a bit to myself. "I'll miss you too, but it's only
for a week. Then I'll be back and bugging you like normal."
He chuckled softly. "You never bug me." He said, throwing me a
sideways glance. "You amuse me more than anything. By the way, you
look very pretty."
I could feel warmth come to my cheeks and smiled. "Thanks. So do you."
He laughed. "I'm pretty, huh?"
"Oh, just about as cute as a puppy." I remarked, pinching his cheeks
like so many grandma's like to do to kids.
***
"This is most definitely better than driving." I commented in a daze.
Ben and I had made it to the field, but we had decided instead of
driving that we would simply lie out in the bed of the truck and look
up at the stars. There weren't any lights around for maybe a quarter
of a mile, so the only light we had was nature wise. The stars and the
beautiful full moon. Plus, the flashlight we had brought in case we
had needed it.
This moment, just lying next to Ben, alone in an open field
underneath the most beautiful night sky I'd ever seen, was about as
perfect as I ever could have imagined life to be.
"I thought it would be." He grinned, turning a bit to see my face.
"You're beautiful, you know that?"
I smiled gently as I reached up to stroke his cheek. I was almost
afraid that he would vanish and I'd wake up to find this had all been
some kind of dream. "You're amazing, you know that?"
He simply smiled in return, bringing his lips to mine with a kiss. My
hand moved to the back of his neck, wanting to keep him there. I
didn't want this moment to fade. I almost wanted to just stop time and
keep this moment captured. I didn’t figure any other moment would ever
come close to this.
The kiss was slow and sweet, with a certain passion. I know it sounds
like a cliché and that fact that I'm seventeen year old girl, I'd
wondered myself if I had only drummed all this up in my own mind, but
when I looked at Ben, in his eyes, I felt like I was flying. I felt
like I was soaring in clouds and hanging over the world with open
arms. It was incredible.
When breathing was necessary we pulled away. He lay back down, but
brought me closer this time so that my head was against his chest.
"Can I tell you something?" I whispered.
"Anything."
I bit my lip. "Sometimes, when things are like this. Nearly perfect. I
start to think that I've either gone utterly insane or that at any
moment I'm going to wake up, like it's a dream."
"Well, you're not dreaming. As for the insane part, well, that may be."
I looked up and stuck my tongue out at him. "Well gee, that makes me
feel all warm and fuzzy inside."
I heard him chuckle before kissing my head. "I like that you're a
little crazy."
He didn't see me roll my eyes.
"Can I ask you something?" He questioned, his voice echoing through my
head. I just loved the sound of his voice.
"Anything." I answered, grinning up at him.
He chuckled a bit, but his features more serious. "You said that
everything was nearly perfect. Why only nearly?"
I looked up at the stars again, waiting until I thought of just how to
answer. "It's just...the only other time in my life when everything
was perfect was when my mom was still alive. Now that she's gone...I
just feel like there's always that small part of me that's never fully
going to be there. The only thing to make this perfect were if...if I
had my mom back." I muttered, avoiding eyes contact. It had been a
hard thing to admit, to him and to myself. I had spent the last two
years thinking over and over about everything to do with my mom, but I
had never really talked about it with anyone.
"You know that's the first time you've ever really talked about her."
He said, possibly more so to himself than me. "You can always tell me
anything you want Belle. I'm always here for you. If it's about your
mom, your dad, Aunt, friends, shampoo, I'm here."
I couldn't help but smiled. I leaned up, capturing his lips this time
with my own. "You sure you're not a dream?"
He grinned; his only response was a kiss.
"One thing." I said, leaning in more to his chest. "Shampoo?"
He shrugged with a smirk. "It seems to be a girl thing."
***
"You nervous about the plane ride?" Dad questioned, looking
uncomfortable as we waited for my flight to get here. I had told him
that he didn't need to stay to see me off, but he had insisted.
I shrugged. I actually hated flying, but I didn't find the
need to make Dad worry about me. "Not really. I'll probably sleep most
of the ride."
"Did you sleep at all last night?"
"A couple of hours off and on."
Dad looked a bit concerned as he looked closely, like trying to find
some kind of hint in how I was feeling carved into my skin. "If you
have any problems or you want to come home early give me a call,
okay?"
I nodded. "Sure will."
I tried my best to give the most reassuring smile I could give. I gave Dad a hug and kiss
on the cheek before gathering my things and heading off to California.
And I had been right. I slept for over half the flight.

Chapter Six
Lander California was beautiful in the summer. The weather was
extremely hot, but the flowers were in full bloom, people were all
around and smiling and the place looked like a garden magazine.
Kara met me at the airport. We decided that we wanted to hang out a while in town before going back to her
house.
She showed me all around town. Every place she would go while she was
living here all year round and she introduced me to some of her family
friends and people she knew well around the small town.
We had decided on the ice cream shop for the moment, to talk about things.
"So, what happened?" I questioned as we sat across from each other in
a booth. She was playing with her root beer float, lifting the straw
in and out.
Her mood seemed to change every now and then. She had been happy when
she met me at the airport as she showed me around her hometown, but
when I had suggested we go somewhere to talk about what happened she
seemed to lose herself in thought and her mood would sadden.
Kara sighed, finally just setting the straw down. "Well, you know that
guy I've been dating?"
"Anthony, yeah." I nodded, glad to finally be breaking some ground.
"Well," She sighed again, a sadness running through her voice. "We
broke up. I found out that he was already dating some girl and-" She
paused, looking out the window with a faraway look. "I'm so stupid,
Belle."
She began to tear up and then before I knew it she had completely
broken down. She had her head on the table and I could hear her
muffled cries.
I quickly moved to sit beside her, hugging her in a comforting matter.
"Shh, it's okay."
"I feel so stupid. I thought he loved me. I thought I loved him."
"I know, it’s okay." I tried my best to soothe. I hated seeing her so
torn up. She didn't deserve this in the slightest. "But you know what?
That guy is a loser if he doesn't see what he's missing out on." I
said, lifted her head so she was able to look at me. "You're an
amazing and beautiful person who doesn't deserve someone like this.
You deserve someone who really loves you and just adores you."
She sniffled, smiling a bit. "Thank you so much." She said, hugging me
tightly. "For coming and for everything. I don't know what I would do
if I didn't have you."
I shrugged. "Probably live without a lot of bad jokes."
***
"So, how's your boy situation?" Kara asked as we lay at the beach two
days later. The last two days had been great, but I already missed
Ben.
An involuntary smile played on my lips at the thought of him. "Ben's great."
Kara simply smiled. Even though she was currently heartbroken over a
boy, she was still truly happy for me for finding Ben. Of course, I
tried not to bring it up very much because I didn't want to remind her
of Anthony. The scum bag.
Even though she kept a cool exterior I could see that she was still
completely torn inside. She had honestly been falling in love with
him. She had thought he was this romantic, sweet, great guy and then
he just broke her heart.
I felt a slight tremble through my body thinking about it. Ever since
I had gotten here and heard her story I couldn't help but wonder about
Ben and I. Besides that he works for my dad, his family, and what I
had learned while being with him, I wasn't well informed on his life.
It started to get me wondering. What if he did have a girlfriend that
he was too afraid to tell me about? What if he was cheating on her
with me? What if he was cheating on me with her? We had never really
questioned each other’s past relationships. Friendships even, for that
matter. Hell, I wasn't even sure he had friends!
And the more I thought about it, the more I started to second guess it
all. Ben was gorgeous and amazing. He was talented, down-to-Earth,
caring, loving...perfect, almost. And I was, well, dull. My friends
would call me pretty and things, but I was never anything more than
possibly pretty in my own mind. I was nothing more special than any of
the random girls walking past. Ben could have any girl, so what on Earth had possessed him to ask me to be his
girlfriend? Why me? Quite honestly, I didn't want to ask that question anymore. I was getting a migraine.
"Belle, you okay?" She asked. "You have this really faraway look on your face."
I was debating if I should confide in Kara or not. Maybe with her current
situation it was best to keep my own petty fears to myself, but my
curiosity always got the best of me. "It's just...since you've been
telling me all these things about what happened with you, I start to
wonder if maybe that's what Ben might be doing. Just playing with me
until something better girl comes along?" I always did
seem to ramble on effortlessly when I was worked up.
Kara shook her head, seeming confident in her upcoming answer. "Ben
may be completely different than Anthony." She slightly choked over
her ex's name. "Don't judge one guy because of another."
I nod, taking a deep breathe. My head was a bit dizzy now. "Yeah, I
guess, thanks." I try to make an effort with a smile, but as they say,
epic fail.
She reached over and placed a cool hand over mine. "Hey, trust me, its
fine. Why don't you call Ben? You'll feel better."
Suddenly, as if tipped off by a physic, my phones rings and the caller
ID reads Ben. I smile a bit. "Looks like there's no need." I said,
giving a bit of a tense laugh, cut short by my answering the phone.
"Hello?"
"Belle, hey." My nerves seemed to extremely decrease when I heard
Ben's soothing and happy voice. It was like a wave of refreshment.
"Hey, what's up?" I ask, standing from my position on the beach towel,
giving Kara a smile, silently telling her that I'll be right back. She
simply nodded, smiling knowingly.
"Well, for one, that line is tiredly overused." He jokes and I begin
to ease. But somehow, I just can't shake the bad feeling in my gut.
Had I been right about the Ben thing? "Two, I've missed you."
I smile, quite widely. He had said it so sincerely that my former
doubts seemed to vanish to the very back of my mind. Like the thought
had been put on reserve. I was a tad disappointed that I hadn't been
able to rid it completely. "I've missed you too."
"So, having fun?"
"Yeah, actually, quite a bit. It's amazing here."
"Good," He said casually, like he too was easing into the
conversation. I hear him clear his throat and take a small breathe.
"So, um...have I been replaced yet with some California surfer dude?" His
voice was joking, but I smiled when I noticed how tense and forced it
seemed to be.
"Nah, I've never really been into babe magnets." I tease, rolling my
eyes a bit playfully, though he can't see me. I found it odd how he
worried that I would meet someone new. How could I ever give up a guy
like him for someone else. I wasn't even aware of other guys, quite
frankly. Not like I use to be anyways. Ben was quite honestly the only
guy in my sights...even if my suspicion may turn out to be true, and I
may not be the only girl in his line of view.
I shook my head, trying to rid the diseased thoughts. I trusted Ben, I
believed in him, I...loved him.
"Aw, thanks Hun." He remarked, his voice a bit more casual. I smiled
at the small gesture he had made of calling me Hun.
"Anytime dear." I mimicked.
He chuckled through the phone line. "So, when you get back there's a
surprise waiting for you."
"What?"
He laughed a bit more. "I'm not saying. It would ruin all my fun."
"You're evil." I remarked, obviously lying, as I glared at a surf
shack off to the distance.
"You think that now?" He continued to laugh, amused by his own joke.
"Just wait."
I rolled my eyes, shivers running through my veins. I froze, the
feeling rushing through my body about shocked me. It was nearly 90
degrees out here. I was suddenly very aware of how bad I currently
felt. My stomach was queasy, my head pounding, and my vision was
blurring. I blinked a couple of times, trying to keep myself steady.
"Listen, Ben, um...I have to go. I'll talk to you later." I hung up
quickly, knowing that I couldn't hold on much longer with any kind of
composure.
My knees buckled from beneath me, my pain seizing. The last thing I
could comprehend was falling to the ground, then everything was black.
***
"How long have you been having headaches?" The nurse at the hospital
was maybe near thirty, quite pretty, and a nice warming smile. She
wore her blonde hair in a bun, as did most nurses. Her hazel eyes
looking questioning, and a tad worried for my well-being. All and all,
she seemed nice enough to me.
I shrugged, the pain relief they had put me on starting to calm my
system along with the pain. "About every day for the last two or so
weeks."