How We Were | ✔️ (Complete)

4. Dinner and a Swim

The evening hours brought the temperature down, but not by much. I sat on the dock alone, drawing circles on the surface of the water with my big toe. Peyton lay on the lawn on top of a blanket, thumbing through his worn copy of Catcher in the Rye.

I scooped some water in my hands and splashed it against my arms and legs, trying in vain to rub some of the grime off. If he weren't here, I would be naked in a heartbeat, diving into the cool water. I sighed, thinking how nice it would be to get all the dust and filth out of my hair.

"Just do it Layla," he said without looking up, "I won't look."

I laughed. "The hell you won't."

He smiled, but he was distracted, poring over some passage in the book.

Wistfully, I watched him for a moment.

He was the most beautiful boy alive, both inside and out. I loved him, loved every moment of being around him and would do anything in the world for him.

And I knew he felt the same way about me.

If only he wasn't who he was.

I swallowed the lump in my throat. I scratched a dot of mud off my thigh with my torn fingernail. And I imagined the kind of girl he belonged with, the kind of girl he would end up with.

She'd be beautiful, of course.

Her nails would be perfectly manicured, her hands soft and unblemished. Her hair would be brushed to a shine all the time and her clothes would never be wrinkled or dirty. No, she would wear beautiful clothes that complimented his. She would complement him.

And she'd be smart. She'd know just what to say and when to say it, and would know how to handle herself with dignity in any situation.

Yeah, she'd be a real class act, that one.

I hoped she would be sweet too. And honest. I hoped she would really see him and appreciate the person he was and the person he could be. I hoped she would also understand what he wasn't and be okay with that. But most of all, I hoped that she would love him and make him happy. Because he deserved to be loved. Deeply, truly, and forever. He really did.

I poured some more water over my thigh as my mind wandered further. Her name would certainly be something rich and classic like Caroline, or Victoria, or Emily.

With a name, she came alive, the image of her, a young and modern version of Jacqueline Kennedy dancing in my mind, the ocean winds ruffling her dark hair as she stood laughing on the beach in Hyannis Port.

And then I allowed myself to dream a little, imagining myself in her place. That I would change when I left this town. That college would give me the opportunity to discover myself. And that I would undergo a magnificent metamorphosis, blooming into someone who would be worthy of Peyton Bishop.

Jacqueline laughed, the sound of it as clear and melodious as the crystal drops of a trembling chandelier. "Oh dear," she said, patting my hand. "That's a really sweet thought, but it takes good breeding to be accepted into society. Families like ours go back generations."

I glanced at Peyton.

No, the love child between a Rodeo Cowboy, no matter how legendary, and the town bicycle would never do.

"You can take the girl out of the trailer park, but you can't take the trailer park out of the girl." It was one of Kylie's go-to insults.

I shoved both of them aside and called out to him. "Hey Peyton, I saw a ninja riding a unicorn at the stables today."