A/n: Okay so I know that this imagine isn't going to fit to everyone because not everyone has had this experience, however the idea popped into my head because I've never been to my grandfather's grave since it's very far away (legit almost six hours away) so I wanted to write this. Okay, anyways, let's begin!
I sat in the living room with my fiancé, the singer and songwriter, Shawn Mendes. I am so beyond in love with Shawn, and I can't wait to marry him. I was cuddled up to Shawn's side with my head on his chest as I began to miss my family. My mom is from way, way, upstate New York, like, less than an hour away from Canada, and I haven't seen my aunt and two uncles in many years. Even though Shawn and I have been together for almost four years, he still hasn't met these family members. We've just never had the time. Suddenly I felt Shawn gently squeeze my shoulder. I looked up at him and faked a smile.
"What's up baby boy?" I asked.
"What are you thinking about? You seem quiet." Shawn asked and said. I sighed and then sat up. I took his hands in mine and he gently squeezed. I looked him in the eyes as tears formed.
"I miss my family. My family in New York I mean. You've never even met them and I hate that." I said. Shawn nodded before picking me up and putting me on his lap.
"Honey, I'll meet them someday. I promise." Shawn said. I nodded. "What else is on your mind? I can tell that there's more." Shawn asked and said as the tears came out of my eyes.
"Pappy." I said. Pappy is what I call my grandfather, but he died way before I was born due to cancer. Shawn pulled me closer to him and started to rub my back.
"Oh honey. You know that your grandfather loves you right? And that he's looking down at you and watching you from heaven?" Shawn asked. I nodded.
"Yeah. I just feel so bad because I've never even been to my grandfather's grave." I said. Shawn shook his head.
"Don't feel bad. Your grandfather would understand." Shawn said. I nodded.
"Okay. Thank you." I said. Shawn nodded.
"You know what? Let's go up to New York for like, a week, and I can meet your family and you can go to Pappy's grave." Shawn said. My eyes widened.
"Seriously? You would do that for me?" I asked. Shawn smiled and nodded.
"Honey, I would do absolutely anything for you." Shawn said. Tears continued to fall, however by now they were happy tears. I hugged my fiancé who I love more than anything in this whole entire world.
"Thank you Shawn. I'll call Aunt Margaret right now and see when she's available." I said as I got off Shawn's lap. I grabbed my phone and called my aunt. She said that she was free next week and that her and her husband, my Uncle Lynn, were so excited. She also said that she would tell Uncle George that I would be coming to town, and she said that he would be excited too.
"Honey, I am so happy for you. My granddaughter, Paxton, tells me about you and your fiancé, Shawn, all the time. She sends me screenshots of pictures that you two post and you guys look so in love." Aunt Margaret said. I looked towards Shawn and smiled.
"We're very in love. I love him with everything in me. He's the love of my life, my best friend, Aunt Margaret he's my everything." I said. Shawn looked over at me and gazed at me lovingly.
"Awww, that's so sweet. Will we be able to meet this man of yours?" She asked. I nodded even though she couldn't see me.
"Yes. I can't wait for you guys to meet him. He's amazing." I said. Shawn smiled at me.
"Well that's wonderful and we can't wait either. We'll see you guys next week!" She said, and we soon hung up. Shawn pulled me back onto his lap.
"So I'm amazing, huh?" He teased as he nudged his nose against my jaw. I giggled and nodded.
"Yup. You are. You're the most amazing man that I've ever met. I mean, remember that time that I was raising money for a charity and my family had raised three hundred dollars, but you wanted to get it to two thousand dollars, so you donated $1,700? That was amazing and I remember when I saw that you had done that, I called you crying and I just kept saying I love you and that you're the most amazing man ever and I kept thanking you." I said. Shawn nodded.
"Well it was for a good cause and I just wanted to help." Shawn said. I smiled at him and kissed his cheek. When I looked at him, he was frowning and pouting.
"What?" I asked.
"You didn't kiss my lips. And my lips like your lips." Shawn said, I threw my head back with laughter.
"Well then, your lips will get my lips." I said before putting my lips on his. I felt my heart race as if I had just run a marathon, I felt sparks shoot through me like fireworks, and I felt butterflies erupt and fly around in my tummy. Shawn and I kept kissing until it was like we couldn't possibly kiss anymore. We then pulled away and smiled at each other as we both tried to catch our breath.
"We probably shouldn't do that in front of your family members." Shawn said. My eyes widened but I laughed.
"No! You're going to meet a woman, my Aunt Margaret, who thinks that the f word is fart!" I said. Shawn chuckled. Aunt Margaret had taken after her mother, my great-Grandma Lucy, who was practically a saint. The next week Shawn and I got in the car and started the roughly five hours and forty two minute drive up to New York.
"Are you excited baby girl?" Shawn asked as he drove with one hand on the wheel and held my other hand. I interlaced our fingers and put them in my lap.
"Yeah. But I'm also nervous." I said as I looked out the car window. Shawn squeezed my hand and I looked at him. Oh my gosh he's so handsome.
"Why darling?" Shawn asked. I sighed.
"Shawn, I haven't seen my family in years and I might be going to my grandfather's grave for the first time -" I started.
"I will do everything in my power to get you to your grandfather's grave." Shawn said. I nodded before I began speaking again.
"And plus we're bringing their wedding invitations but we're not bringing one for my cousin Katie." I said, mentioning Uncle George's granddaughter. Shawn squeezed my hand.
"Yes but we have our reasons for that. Your Uncle George will understand. We'll just explain to him our reasoning behind it." Shawn said. I nodded and then brought his hand to my lips before placing a gentle kiss there. Shawn smiled at me before looking back out at the road.
"You always know the right things to say to make me feel better." I said.
"Well I'm glad that I could make you feel better honey." Shawn said. I nodded and after a few hours, we arrived at the hotel and checked in. I texted Aunt Margaret and told her what hotel we were at and what room number we were in. She said that her and my uncles were on their way. I looked at Shawn.
"Remember, do not say fart! It's the f word to Aunt Margaret!" I said. Shawn chuckled and nodded.
"Okay. I won't say it. How are you feeling baby?" Shawn asked. I sighed.
"Excited but nervous. But as long as I have you by my side, I'm good." I said with a smile, and Shawn smiled back.
"I love you." He said, causing my smile to widen.
"I love you too." I said. Soon, there was a knock at the door, and I opened it to reveal my family members.
"Hi sweetie!" Aunt Margaret said before she gave me a hug.
"Hi! Hi Uncle Lynn! Uncle Georgie! You're here!" I said. He laughed as he hugged me and they all came in.
"I wouldn't miss seeing you for the world." Uncle George said. I smiled and we all sat down.
"This is my fiancé, Shawn Mendes. Shawn, this is Aunt Margaret, Uncle Lynn, and Uncle George." I said. He shook their hands.
"It's so nice to meet you guys. I know how much Y/n loves and adores you all." Shawn said and they smiled.
"So, considering the fact that you two are engaged, I take it you're treating my niece properly?" Uncle Lynn asked. Oh God.
"Lynn!" Aunt Margaret said.
"No it's fine. Yes, he treats me like I'm a princess and he spoils me even though I don't deserve it." I said. Shawn gave me a look like I was crazy.
"What are you talking about baby? You're my princess and you deserve the world and more." Shawn said. I smiled at him and kissed his cheek, which made him smile. I then turned to my family.
"We actually wanted to tell you guys something that no one but us knows. We're not pregnant right now - we want to be married for a year before we start trying for a family - but we already know what we would like to name our future daughter, and we wanted to tell you guys. However, you can't tell anyone, not even my mom." I said. They all nodded.
"Okay. We won't tell anyone." Uncle George said. I held Shawn's hand and squeezed. He squeezed back.
"So, being her daughter, son, and son-in-law, you guys know that Gramma Lucy was practically a saint. So, when we have a daughter, we want her middle name to be Lucille. What do you guys think?" I asked nervously. Aunt Margaret started to cry. She was close to her mother so I got up and gave Aunt Margaret a hug.
"That's beautiful. What would the first name be?" She said and asked.
"Rose, after my great-great aunt who lived to be 102." I said. They all nodded.
"Well I think that that's beautiful that you would do that for her. Have you ever been to Gram's grave?" Uncle George asked. I shook my head no.
"No. But I would really like to at least go to my grandfather's grave." I said. They nodded.
"Well we can take you there." Uncle George said. Tears formed in my eyes.
"I miss him so much. I know that I never met him, but I still miss him. Do you think that his spirit will be with me on mine and Shawn's wedding day?" I asked. They all smiled and nodded.
"Of course." Aunt Margaret said. Shawn rubbed my back and kissed the side of my head.
"Do you think that he would understand why I've never been to his grave before?" I asked. Everyone, including Shawn, nodded.
"Honey, your grandfather would completely understand. Come here." Shawn said as he pulled me closer to him. I leaned my head on his shoulder before picking it up to look at my amazing fiancé.
"Are you going to come with us to Pappy's grave?" I asked. Shawn thought for a moment before shaking his head.
"No, why don't you just go with your family. I would feel out of place." Shawn said. I frowned.
"Honey, you're about to be my husband. Let me rephrase the question: will you come with us to Pappy's grave?" I asked. His eyes widened.
"You want me there?" He asked. I nodded.
"Yes please." I said. Shawn kissed my forehead and I closed my eyes at the feeling of the warmth from his lips. The spot that he kissed was left feeling tingly even after his lips were no longer there.
"If you want me to go, I'll go. I'll go anywhere and do anything for you honey." Shawn said, and I smiled and then turned to my family.
"I almost forgot! We have something for you guys." I said and went into one of my suitcases. I grabbed the wedding invitations and handed it to them. I handed one to Aunt Margaret, and one to Uncle George.
"Thank you." They said.
"You're welcome." I said, and sat back down next to Shawn. Aunt Margaret and Uncle George looked at me with wide eyes. Uncle Lynn wasn't able to see what it was because of his bad eyesight.
"What is it Margaret?" Uncle Lynn asked.
"It's an invitation to Shawn and Y/n's wedding!" Aunt Margaret said. She found a pen, wrote that she would be there, and handed it back. Uncle George did the same thing.
"Oh yay! My family will be at our wedding Shawn!" I said. Shawn smiled at me and then at them.
"Good. I'm glad that you guys will be there." Shawn said. They nodded. I then looked at Uncle George.
"Uncle Georgie, I've told Shawn about Katie, and we both agreed not to give her an invitation. I love her, I really do, but when she stayed with my parents and Thomas and I all those years ago, it was crazy how she acted. Plus, my mom said that the last time you and my mom talked, you said that you had been trying to get Katie to call me, but she wouldn't. Shawn and I don't need that negativity at our wedding. I never did anything to hurt my cousin." I said. Uncle George nodded.
"I know that. I don't know what her problem is. I tried to get her to come today to surprise you but she refused. Do you want me to try again?" He asked. I thought for a moment before nodding.
"Yes please. As confused as I am with her, I still love her, and I still want to see her." I said. Uncle George nodded. Aunt Margaret then got a text.
"Y/n sweetie, would you and Shawn like to go out to lunch?" She asked. I looked at Shawn and we nodded.
"We would love that." I said. Shawn and I then got in the car and followed my aunt and uncles to a cute little diner. When we got there, I saw a few familiar faces already at a table and held in a shriek of joy.
"Y/n!" My cousin Paxton practically yelled and we ran into each other's arms. I hugged her, then I hugged my cousin Allison, and then I turned to Katie.
"Hey girl! How are you?" She asked. I smiled and hugged her.
"I'm good. How are you guys?" I asked.
"Good. Let me see that ring!" Paxton said. I laughed as Shawn put his hand on my back and I showed them the ring.
"Oh my gosh it's gorgeous." Allison said. I smiled.
"Thank you. Guys, this is my fiancé, Shawn Mendes. Shawn, these are my cousins! This is Allison, Paxton, and Katie." I said.
"Hi, nice to meet you guys." Shawn said, and we all sat down. I sat in between Katie and Shawn.
"I haven't seen you guys in forever. I've missed you guys." I said. I heard Katie laugh a little and I looked at her. "What?"
"Nothing. It's just funny how you never message or call or anything yet you say that you miss us." Katie said. Welp, here we go. I pulled out my phone and pulled up my text messages with Katie. There were quite a few, and in all of them I asked how she was doing with absolutely no response from her.
"These are my messages to you, and as you can see, there's no response. I message with Allison and Paxton all the time and they respond." I said. Katie nodded and Shawn squeezed my thigh, reassuring me that everything was fine. Katie nodded.
"So have you picked out your wedding dress yet?" Paxton asked. I nodded.
"Yes. I would show it to you because I have a picture of me in it on my phone, but Shawn is right here. Actually, Shawn, could you close your eyes please?" I asked. He nodded and covered his eyes.
"Sure." He said. I then pulled up a picture of me in the dress. Paxton's eyes widened.
"It's beautiful! Do you mind if I pass it around so everyone can see it?" Paxton asked. I shook my head.
"No, go ahead." I said.
"This is torture." Shawn said, causing us all to laugh. Aunt Margaret got choked up when she saw the picture.
"Oh my gosh you look like a princess." She said. I smiled and the phone was soon handed back to me. I exited out of the app and put my phone away.
"Thank you. Shawn, you can uncover your eyes now." I said. He did and smiled at me. We soon ordered our food and ate. After we ate, we all looked at each other.
"So who is going with us to Y/n's grandfather's grave and Gramma Lucy's grave?" Uncle George asked. I squeezed Shawn's hand and he squeezed back.
"I would like to go to Gram's grave." Paxton said.
"I'll be honest, I don't know how long I'm going to take at my grandfather's grave." I said. Everyone nodded. We then decided to go to Gram's grave first and then my grandfather's. When we got to Gram's grave, Shawn put his arm around me and I leaned on him. I then kissed my fingers and put my fingers to the stone. As we were all walking back to the cars, Katie pulled me aside.
"So where's my wedding invitation?" She asked.
"Katie, we barely even talk anymore. Why would I invite someone to my wedding who won't even respond to my messages?" I asked. She sighed and shook her head before walking away. Shawn came over to me and I told him what happened.
"Try not to let her get to you babe." He said. Shawn and I then got in the car and followed my cousins, aunt, and uncles, to my grandfather's grave. When we got there, my aunt pointed it out to me before they all stayed back a little and let me go over to his stone. I got to it, looked at it, sat on the ground, and cried.
"Oh Pappy. I miss you so much. I'm going to get married soon. That's right, your youngest grandchild is getting married. You should be there at the wedding, not watching it from heaven. I hate cancer. I hate it. It took you away from all of us." I said as I cried. I then turned and saw that everyone was looking away from me - except for Shawn. I held my hand out to him. He gave me a confused look, so I waved him over. He nodded and sat down next to me and put his arm around me.
"You okay?" Shawn asked. I leaned on him.
"I miss him. I hate cancer. I hate it so much." I said as I cried.
"Shhh baby. Think about it like this: he's not in pain anymore." Shawn said. I nodded.
"I want to call my mom. Pappy was her dad." I said. Shawn nodded.
"Go ahead honey." Shawn said. I pulled out my phone, called my mom, and she quickly picked up.
"Hi honey. How is everything going?" She asked.
"I'm currently sitting at Pappy's grave with Shawn. I miss him mom." I said. I heard her sigh.
"I know honey. I miss him too. I know that you two never met, but he loves you." She said, and I started to cry a little harder.
"Okay, thank you. I think I'm going to go now. I'll call you later." I said.
"Okay honey." She said, and we soon hung up. Shawn rubbed my back. At Gram's grave, I had kissed my fingers and then placed my fingers on the stone. This time, when I stood up, I leaned down and placed a kiss on the stone.
"I love you Pappy." I said. I wiped the dirt off my butt, held Shawn's hand, and walked away and back over to my family. My aunt immediately pulled me in for a hug, and then my Uncle George hugged me too.
"Let's all go back to my house." Aunt Margaret said, and Shawn and I got back in the car and drove to her house.
"There's no way that I'm parking my car in that driveway." Shawn said when we got to their house. You have to know something: Aunt Margaret and Uncle Lynn's driveway is extremely steep. I laughed.
"Okay. Just park in the street or something." I said. Shawn nodded and did just that. We then all went inside the house and I saw my cousin Tristan sitting at the table. He smiled when he saw me.
"Y/n!" He said.
"Hi! How are you?" I asked.
"I'm good. How are you?" He asked. I smiled.
"I'm good. This is my fiancé, Shawn Mendes. Shawn, this is my cousin Tristan, Paxton's brother." I said. They shook hands.
"Hey, let's all get a cousin's group picture to post on Instagram." Paxton said. Paxton, Tristan, Allison, Katie, and I all squished onto the couch, and those who couldn't fit on the couch, sat on the floor. Aunt Margaret then took the picture on my phone.
"Wait! We're about to have another family member that needs to be in at least one or two pictures. Shawn, get in here!" Tristan said. Shawn smiled and sat on the floor next to me. Paxton, Katie, and Allison sat on the couch while I sat in between Shawn and Tristan. Shawn had his hand on my knee and I wrapped one of my hands around his bicep. We took some more pictures and later on I showed Tristan a picture of me in my wedding dress. He said that I looked nice and I smiled at my cousin.
"Who wants to post the group pictures and tag everyone? Y/n, it's on your phone, do you want to post the photos?" Paxton asked. I nodded and as we all sat in the living room, I posted a picture of just the cousins, and then the one of the cousins and Shawn, my soon to be husband. Shawn got a notification and read the caption out loud.
"Posting this because who doesn't love a Campbell cousin (plus @shawnmendes) group picture? I'm also posting this because Paxton told me to, lol, love ya Pax! Also, a big thank you to my cousin Tristan (sitting next to me) who pointed out that Shawn is about to join the family, so why not get him in the picture?" I captioned it and everyone laughed.
"That's great Y/n, I love it." Allison said. All of the cousins who had an Instagram had been tagged in it and they all went on their phones and liked the picture. I then went on Snapchat and recorded a video of everyone. Shawn, Tristan and I were still sitting on the floor. Both Tristan and Shawn made funny faces when they realized that they were being videotaped. I captioned it. "Love my family."
"Aunt Margaret, you know what I would love?" I asked.
"What is it dear?" She asked.
"Stories of Gramma Lucy and great-grandpa George." I said with a smile. All of us cousins smiled and listened intently as we heard stories of her and Uncle Georgie's childhood and our great-grandparents. After those stories were over, Uncle George stood up.
"Y/n, let's go for a walk." He said. I nodded but looked over at Shawn, who had a look of panic on his face. I kissed his cheek.
"You'll be fine. They love you." I whispered in his ear.
"Okay." He said as he nodded. I stood up and walked outside with my Uncle Georgie.
"How are you holding up with Katie and seeing your grandfather's grave?" He asked. I sighed and told him what Katie said to me at the cemetery. He sighed and shook his head.
"But I'm glad that I went to Pappy's grave." I said. Uncle George nodded and I could tell that there was more that he wanted to say.
"You really love Shawn, don't you?" Uncle Georgie asked. I smiled and nodded.
"Oh yes, definitely. I can't wait for the wedding. I swear, Shawn's the most amazing man ever. He's my best friend and my everything and I love him more than anything. I don't know if you saw, but when we were at Pappy's grave, out of everyone that was there, it was Shawn that I called over to sit with me. He reminded me that my grandfather isn't in pain anymore. He always knows what to say to make me feel better which just makes me love him even more. Do you like him Uncle Georgie?" I asked. He nodded.
"He seems like a good guy. Honey, your grandfather isn't around, and don't tell anyone this, but there have been times when I've accidentally called you my granddaughter, because that's what you really are to me. If he ever hurts you, call me, and I'll take care of it." Uncle George said, and I smiled.
"Thank you, but he would never hurt me. Him and I rarely fight, and when we do, we always make up almost immediately. There was one time that he went clubbing with his friends in Toronto and his ex was there. She even went back to his condo with him and his friends. I got so upset when I found that out that I wouldn't respond to his texts or calls, he even tried tweeting to me. So, because I wasn't answering and he wanted to fix it, he flew back to Boston from Toronto. He let me scream at him and throw pillows at him, and then we made up. He said that he stopped being friends with the ex because she tried to get him to sleep with her. Whenever he gets back from tour, he showers me with gifts and then we cuddle. I love him." I said. Uncle George smiled.
"Good. You deserve that love. You're a good girl. Now, don't you get hate from his fans?" Uncle George asked. I sighed and nodded.
"Yeah. But whenever I do, and I tell Shawn about it, he comforts me. Sometimes he has to do livestreams on Instagram to tell his fans to stop. But I know that as long as I have Shawn, I'm okay. He makes me the happiest woman alive." I said with a smile.
"Good. If you don't mind me asking, what do the fans say?" He asked. I sighed.
"They say that I'm fat, that I'm ugly, that I'm not right for Shawn and that he should just leave me. The one that hurts the most though is that some of them say that I'm just with Shawn because he has money. I'm not. I'm with him because I love him. Uncle Georgie, he could be homeless and broke, and I would still love him just as much as I do now." I said. Uncle George nodded.
"Well I'm glad that you found the one and I'm excited for the wedding. Let's go back inside sweetheart." Uncle George said, and I nodded. Shawn smiled when he saw me. We all had dinner, and then Shawn and I said goodbye for the day and went back to our hotel.
"So what was that all about when you and Uncle George stepped outside?" Shawn asked. I smiled and told him about the conversation.
"I'm so happy that they're going to be at the wedding." I said. Shawn nodded and wrapped his arms around my waist as I wrapped my arms around his broad shoulders.
"Me too." He said. I smiled.
"They seem to love you." I said. Shawn smiled and nodded.
"Yeah, but when you stepped out with Uncle George, Tristan took me aside and told me not to hurt you or else he'll come after me." Shawn said.
"Oh God. Well, that's Tristan for ya." I said. Shawn laughed and kissed my shoulder and then my cheek. I thought for a moment. "Do we have room for one more bridesmaid?" I asked. Shawn thought for a moment before nodding.
"Yeah. I could always find one more groomsmen. Why?" He asked.
"Out of all of the cousins, I'm the closest to Paxton. I want to ask her to be a bridesmaid." I said. Shawn smiled and nodded.
"Okay. I'll ask Tristan to be one of my groomsmen." Shawn said. I smiled really wide at him.
"Really?" I asked. Shawn chuckled and nodded.
"Yup. I like him and I like that he's protective of you." He said. We soon went to bed and the next day we invited Tristan and Paxton to our hotel suite.
"Hey guys!" I said when they got there.
"Hey! Are we, like, meeting in secret or something? Because I can totally dig that if that's what's going on." Tristan asked and said. Shawn and I laughed as we all sat down.
"Kind of. Listen, out of all of the cousins, I'm closest to you guys. So, Paxton, and you don't have to say yes, but would you like to be one of my bridesmaids?" I asked. Paxton's eyes widened.
"Are you serious?" She asked. I nodded.
"Yup." I said. She nodded.
"Of course! I would love to be one of your bridesmaids!" She said. I stood up and hugged her.
"Great! We'll get you a dress." I said. She nodded and I went to sit back down next to Shawn.
"So, Tristan, I know that we just met yesterday, but Y/n has told me about you and you seem like a great guy. Would you like to be one of my groomsmen?" Shawn asked and I could tell that he was nervous. Tristan's eyes widened and he nodded.
"Yeah, sure dude." Tristan said, and they bro hugged. After a few more days, mine and Shawn's trip came to end. I said goodbye to my family and took Shawn's phone so we could use the GPS. I then punched in an address but didn't tell Shawn what it was. He thought we would be heading straight home.
"Is this taking us to the cemetery?" Shawn asked as we approached the cemetery. I nodded.
"Yeah. There's just someone I need to say goodbye to." I said. Shawn nodded and I asked him to stay in the car. I went into the backseat and got the flowers that I had secretly purchased earlier.
"When did you get those flowers?" Shawn asked.
"While you were sleeping. There was a place not too far away from the hotel. I'll be back." I said. Shawn nodded.
"Okay hun. Take your time." Shawn said. I nodded and went to my grandfather's grave and sat down. I placed the flowers on the ground.
"Um, I know that you probably weren't one for flowers and I know that you weren't one to get emotional, but I just wanted to stop by and say goodbye before Shawn and I head home. I miss you Pappy. I'm sorry that it took me so long to get here, but at least I finally made it here, right? I'm getting married in May. Your little granddaughter is getting married to the love of her life Pappy. Can you believe it? Well, I don't know when I'll be visiting you again but I just wanted to stop by before I went home. I love you Pappy." I said. I stood up, kissed his stone, and got back in the car.
"You okay my love?" Shawn asked. I nodded as I looked at him.
"Yeah. I love you. Thank you for this trip." I said with a smile. Shawn smiled back.
"I love you too and you're welcome. Are you ready to go home?" Shawn asked. I nodded.
"Yup." I said.
"Okay. Let's go home." Shawn said. I put our address into the GPS and we went home. I'm so thankful for Shawn and my family.