Secrets Until Someday

Chapter 13

3 years ago

March

    It was the first night of spring break and I was spending the night at Quinn's house. We both had all intentions of sneaking out of the house and it was a hell of a lot easier to sneak out of her house than mine. Her mom was fast asleep and her dad was gone working late plus he never came upstairs so he would never know we weren't there.

    Just around 11 pm, we both snuck down the steps and out the back door. Her mom's tv was so loud coming from the bedroom she never would have heard anything but we've done this so many times it's a piece of cake at this point. She takes off to the backyard where Sam will be waiting, neither of them having a car makes sneaking any farther than that impossible so they climb up into the family tree house.

    I make a dash for the road and see Brooks's car pulling up out front and as he slows down I jump in. We drive about two blocks to an empty parking lot that faces the backside of town. It's tucked away behind our local church and unless it's Sunday no one will be back here. 

He parks the car and cuts the engine. Per usual we kick the seats back and lay down facing each other. He reaches across and brushes his hand across my cheek. I smile and he reaches over to kiss my forehead, looks me in the eyes, and says, "When you graduate we're going to be together, out in the open, tell everyone, and never think twice about it."

 I felt a rush in my body that ignited the deepest parts of my soul. "You'll change your mind about me by then," I reply my eyes shifting away from his.
   
    "Not a chance, there's no one else out there like you." He says lifting my chin back up to face him.

    "Exactly, and that's why I'm last on the Dawson parent's approved list. I've always been too wild and unpredictable for their taste." I say a lot more snippy than I intend to. 

They judge me so harshly without truly knowing me and it sucks, it makes me feel like I have something to prove so that I am deemed worthy. 

I guess it should make me thankful for my parents, half the time I feel like a bother to them but at least they don't judge my friends. Heck, they probably love them more than they love me.

 "They just don't like surprises and let me tell you Sydney Elizabeth Graves you are always full of surprises." He says smiling.
"After you graduate you can come to school at Louisville, you can cheer and we can be together without the eyes of everyone in this town on us."

    "That's some pretty big promises you're making," wishing for them to become reality but also afraid to really believe it.

    "You'll see. And until then we have all the time in the world to sneak around this sleepy town." He tells me with a kiss.

    "Until you leave for school or your parents wonder why you aren't dating in college." I quip.

 The reality of his impending departure has really started sinking in. I always knew he was leaving but just like every other girl who falls for the boy who is about to leave for college, it doesn't quite have its full effect until you are sitting here staring at him with only months remaining of his company.

    "Let's not think about that. You could meet some guy too, who knows what will happen. I mean, we can't do anything about it until you graduate anyways." He says so matter of factly it stings more than it should because I've always known the rules Brooks operates under.

    "I know but still, you can't expect both of us to just wait for 3 years. That seems kind of crazy." I tell him. "I mean come on Brooks, you have Prom in less than a month. How will you even explain not going to your parents? Let alone 3 years of no dates, no girlfriends ?"