What If

19. Marshmallows and Chocolate

Thursday July 15th 10:40pm
San Elijo State Beach

"You're not supposed to put the whole thing in your mouth, Lydia."

"Give me a break, Sean. This is my first time."

I couldn't hide my laugh as she tried to eat the extremely hot roasted marshmallow. After the distressing call I got from Anne, I brought Lydia to the San Elijo State Beach, where we were sitting around a campfire. I wanted some peace and quiet, and this late at night, there was barely anyone here. I stopped at the store on the way and got everything from firewood to ingredients for s'mores.

"Alright. Try this," I said as I put a fresh roasted marshmallow and chocolate between two graham crackers.

She took the desert from me and moaned as she took a bit. "This is so good!"

"I still can't believe you haven't had s'mores before," I said to her with a shake of my head.

She scoffed as she grabbed another marshmallow and put it on the poker. "Yeah? Well, my parents didn't have time for camping between shooting up with heroin or sniffing cocaine."

I watched her as she held it over the fire. "I'm sorry, Lydia."

She met my stare and gave me a sad smile. "It's okay. That was a long time ago. It's...different now."

She definitely seemed different. More optimistic, strong, and definitely more sure of herself. In this moment, with everything going on, I've never felt more unsure about myself.

"Do you want another?" She asked me as she held out a marshmallow.

"Absolutely," I replied as I took what she offered.

As we both continued to roast our marshmallows, my phone call with Anne replayed in my mind. I really needed to tell Lydia.

"Do you remember that guy I punched? In Atlantic City?"

She seemed surprised by my question. "Yes. The asshole who said that horrible thing about your parents."

I rotated the marshmallow and didn't meet her gaze. "It appears he may press charges against me."

"What!" She yelled, just like I knew she would.

"Yeah. That's what the phone call was earlier at dinner. He's trying to charge me with assault."

"Wha- He- You...He can't do that! He deserved it!"

Finally meeting her stare, I said firmly, "Even if he did deserve it, I shouldn't have hit him. It doesn't make it right."

"So, what? You're going to go to jail now?"

I looked back to her and frowned. "Your marshmallow is burning."

Startled by my statement, she looked down at the marshmallow that was now charred and pulled it from the fire.

She set the poker down before looking back at me. "What are you going to do?"

I was honestly surprised by how angry she was. But, I knew she cared about me, just like I did her.

"Anne has my lawyers working on it. They'll probably have to work out some kind of settlement with him and I'll have to pay a shit ton of money. Or, he's going to draw this out and there's a good chance I could end up in an orange jumpsuit."

"There has to be something we can do," she said with determination and a hint of worry in her voice. "You can't go to jail. There has to be a-"

"Lydia?" I called, interrupting her. I didn't want to talk about it anymore. With everything we've been through so far, I couldn't keep it from her. But, I didn't want to keep talking about it.