A Summer To Remember

Chapter two

My first night in Laguna Beach was very uneventful like I had expected. My aunt made some tuna fish sandwiches for dinner and we chatted about everything you could think of. I was happy to catch up with my aunt. After dinner we ate some ice cream and watched an episode of the bachelor. I took a quick shower afterwards and headed straight to bed. I had such a long day so it didn't take long for me to drift off to sleep.

The next morning I woke up to the blinding sun in my eyes and the smell of pancakes and bacon. I slowly lifted myself up and squinted as I reached for my phone, I scrolled my newsfeed and looked at my messages. I had gotten 10 missed calls from my mom but instead of calling her back I just shot her a quick text saying good morning. I still was not up to talking to my mom. I rubbed my groggy eyes and took the covers off exposing my bare legs. I wasn't cold because the sun poured into my room making it pretty warm. I got out of bed and walked to the bathroom. I just stood there for a minute looking at myself through the oval mirror. I looked horrifying with my long dark brown hair in a messy bun and my eyes had bags under them. I groaned and ran cold water over my face. I was still grumpy about being here all summer but I knew I had to get over it eventually. My aunt was being nothing but nice to me and I needed to stop acting like a brat. I knew I wasn't being a pleasant guest and I needed to get over myself. I couldn't take my anger out on my aunt. I sighed as I turned the shower on and immediately stepped in. The warm water hitting my skin felt very refreshing. As I started to scrub my body I began to get lost in my thoughts. I had to find something to do to keep myself occupied, I didn't want to keep looking on my social media seeing my friends have so much fun without me. I had to find someone to hang out with in this town. I'm sure there had to be people my age around here. I quickly finished up my shower and wrapped the fluffy towel around me. I put my wet hair in a bun and sauntered out of the bathroom into my room. I decided I would put something simple on for my first day in town. I rummaged through the closet and put on a cute yellow floral dress. I dried my hair with the towel and decided to leave it in its natural wavy state. I ran my fingers through my hair and put it in a neat wavy pony tail. I slid on a pair of brown sandals and made my way down stairs.
  When I reached the kitchen Aunt Carrie had her back turned away from me. She was finishing  up the pancakes. She whirled around and almost dropped the plates when she saw me. "Oh my gosh Nina you scared me" she said while laughing. I laughed along with her "I'm sorry I probably should've said good morning" I said with a teasing smile. "I am so excited for today" she said with a grin. "What's happening today" I said as I was sitting down at the table across from her. "I am taking you on a tour of the town" she said in a chipper tone. "That sounds like fun" I said trying to match her happiness. "It will be fun, there are so many people I want you to meet oh I just know everyone is going to love you" she said in a knowing way. " Yea I definitely can't wait, I've decided to really give this place a chance so I'm happy to meet anyone who you're friends with" I said, feeling proud of myself for being mature. My aunt beamed at me and she was excited about my choice to give her home a chance. " There are plenty of things to do and I promise this place will grow on you, and speaking of friends there is someone I really want you to meet and I think you'll really like her" she said as she took a bite of her bacon. I chewed my food and then asked if she was sixteen like me. Carrie nodded while drinking her orange juice. I got a little excited. Aunt Carrie and I talked about the bachelor while finishing up our breakfast. Afterwards we both grabbed our purses and headed out into the sun. I took in the fresh smell of the sea and looked around the neighborhood. There were kids playing in their front yards and an old couple sitting on their front porch and reading the newspaper. It was a very picturesque scene and in a way it was very satisfying. I walked towards the car but aunt Carrie directed me to walk the other way. She smiled as she locked arms with me. "I want you to meet Mr. Philips he's the nicest man I've ever met, he was one of the first people I talked to when I first moved here"
" Ok can't wait" I said in a flat tone.
We walked about six houses down from my aunt's house and my aunt led the way to a little yellow house. Carrie bounced up the stairs and I followed behind her with a slight smile. My aunt knocked three times on the front door and moments later an old man swung the door open. He had the biggest smile on his face when he saw my aunt. They hugged and my aunt asked him if he had been working out.
" Oh my how'd you know Carrie I've been watching those exercise videos" he said with a smile. I couldn't help but let out a small giggle.
" Mr. Phillips there is someone I want you to meet" my aunt gestured at me and I smiled politely and said Hi to him.
" why hello there " he said with a big grin
"This is my niece Nina" she said in a proud way.
  " so nice to finally meet you I've heard so much about you" he said while reaching out to give me a big hug. " I'm about to give Nina the grand tour of our town and you were the first person she needed to meet" said Carrie with a huge smile.  Mr Phillips grinned and winked at us, he then faced me and told me that I would love living here for the summer. I smiled back at him and said " I sure hope so".

After chatting with Mr. Phillips for a few more minutes me and aunt Carrie descended down the steps and walked towards her car. We hopped in the car and my aunt immediately cranked up the air conditioning. She turned on the radio and pulled out of her parking spot slowly as she eased onto the street. There was a comfortable silence for about five mins until I began to speak.
"I really liked mr Phillips he's really nice"
"Yes he is a really sweet man" she said with a slight smile. He was the first person to really make me feel welcome and he's just as funny as they come" she said with a small laugh. I smiled as I thought about him watching work out videos. I was excited to get to know him more.
After driving for about ten minutes we pulled into a Main Street with little shops and restaurants lining either side of town the street. I stared out the window and gazed at the small town center, it had beach vibes to it and the air smelled like sea salt. There were many people walking around in bathing suits and almost everyone was tanned. I subconsciously looked down at my own skin and quickly realized I needed to get a tan as soon as possible. I wasn't terribly pale, but compared to these people I would probably look like a ghost. My aunt parked in front of a small shop that sold beach wear. We both got out and my aunt had her signature beaming smile across her face as we walked into the shop. I followed my aunt as she   immediately went to the front counter and her and a girl who looked to be the same age as me embraced each other. The girl and my aunt chatted a little while I stood off to the side feeling a little awkward. My aunt quickly turned around and introduced me to the girl. " Mia I want you to meet my niece Nina she's going to be staying with me for the whole summer". Mia gave me a big smile and we shook hands.
" It's so nice to meet you Nina I've heard so much about you" I gave her a smile back and told her it was really nice to meet her too.
I couldn't help but to feel a little jealous of her beauty. He super long hair was so shiny and neat and she had a nice tanned glow to her skin. She was definitely model worthy, to top it off she seemed super nice. My aunt explained to me that Mia and her dad owned the shop and they lived only two doors down from her house.
We all chatted for a little bit and Mia invited me to a beach party later that night. I was a little skeptical at first but I agreed to go and we would meet at her house around seven. I was grateful to be invited to a party so soon even if it was most likely going to be lame. Me and aunt Carrie left the shop to get lunch and I was having mixed feelings all day about the party. This party was going to be my chance to have a little fun this summer. I was hoping it would be worth my time.