TRUE LOVE [Chapter 5: Cherry Blossom Cliff]

Cameron lived on the opposite side of town. He lived in a two story colonial style home with columns in the front, a fountain in the center of a circle driveway. I came to a stop and as Cameron unbuckled his seatbelt, I did mine as well. I jumped out and ran to his door before he could open it. I look at him. He had a smile on his face and what looked like to be shock. I slowly opened his door and gave a slight bow.

“Thank you, kind Sir.” He said

“I will be there too.” I said

“You will?” he asked

“Just like you will.” I smiled

We gave each other a patted hug and I got back in my car as he walked towards his front door. He turned around and waved at me before he walked inside.

As I was about to drive off, I noticed something in the passenger seat. There was a napkin from the pizza place and something was written on it. I picked it up and read it.

Next week’s forecast calls for warm sunshine.

Meet me at the beach on Saturday.

 - Cam

I’m not sure why he just didn’t tell me while we were in the car, or at school on Monday. Maybe I was missing the point of the note? There was something going on. In my gut. I could feel that there was some sort of…feeling. I wasn’t sure what it was. I’ve never had a friend this close before. Maybe this was normal? I knew that I enjoyed my time around Cameron. And Natalie. But…I enjoyed Cameron’s company more. Maybe it’s natural bonding? All these thoughts and emotions ran through my head on the way home. Even worse, they ran through my head all week long. Even though I went to school with Cameron, he didn’t always have time to hang out. He was busy at practice. When the weather got nice, he would usually run track. His water polo practice wouldn’t start until the late spring or early summer.

            That long awaited Saturday afternoon came and I was ecstatic to head to the beach. The weather was unusual for February. I wore board shorts, a tank top, flip flops, sunglasses and carried a towel around my neck. The drive to the beach was about thirty minutes. There was a good amount of people at the beach, however I expected it to be packed. The beach strung along the coastal cliff of Depoe Bay. Three piers stretched out into the ocean, standing high above the blue water. I raised my hand over my eyes to shield the sun as I scanned the beach for Cameron. Almost not recognizing him, I saw someone waving at me. It was Cameron. He was in white and blue shorts with a Hawaiian print and shirtless. He must have just come out of the water as his body sparkled with droplets. He had defined abs, his tattoo now visible of a tribal vine like design. His pecks bounced as he jogged towards me. I began to feel a tingle run up and down my body. I felt as if I was free falling and my stomach turned.

“Hey!” he said finally reaching me and embracing me with a hug

“Hi. Wow.” I said before I could stop myself

“What?” he asked

“Oh…um. You…really work out.” I laughed

“Yeah. Gotta stay fit.” He said patting my back, “Come sit with us.”

“Us?” I asked as I stood still in place

“Oh…my sister and Phillip are here too.” He said

“Oh.” I said relieved

“Don’t worry, I asked Nat not to invite Jasmine this time.” He laughed

Natalie and Phillip were snuggled up next to each other on a large beach blanket facing the ocean. I snuck up on Natalie, even scaring Phillip.

“Boo!” I shouted

“Oh Jeez.” Natalie yelped, “You made it!” she hugged me

“Hey man. Get comfortable, sit with us.” Phillip said shaking my hand

I took off my sunglasses and then my shirt. As my shirt came over my head, I noticed both Natalie and Cameron were looking at me. Well, my body actually. I realized it was the first time I had gotten this naked in front of them.

“Shit.” Cameron let slip out

“What?” I asked with dismay

“Oh nothing bad. I just didn’t realize you were that toned.” Cameron said

“Ditto.” Natalie said

“Oh. Well…I like to keep fit too.” I admitted

“What do you do?” Phillip asked

“I lift a little, but mostly I jog and do a little cardio at home.”

“Want to go for a swim?” Cameron asked me                                       

“Is the water cold?” I asked

“At first, but it’ll warm up quick.” He smiled

We stood up and walked towards the water. The wet sand began to stick under my feet. Shells were lined up along the beach, seagulls flying above us. The waves coming in and out removed sand beneath me, giving the illusion that I was moving. We continued to walk further until the water was half ways up my leg.

“Watch out!” Cameron shouted

He startled me, I lost my balance and fell into the water.

“Oh fuck. I’m so sorry.” Cameron said with concern grabbing my hand to lift me back up

“It’s okay. Why did you say watch out?” I asked combing my hair back with my hands

“Oh…uh. Take a look.” He said pointing down

It was a blue starfish. I had never seen a blue starfish anywhere on television or in real life. It was actually stunning to see. Cameron leaned down and picked it up gently. He began to walk deeper into the ocean and I followed closely.

“I’ll be right back.” He turned to look at me

I nodded. Cameron then dove into the ocean with the starfish in his hand. A few moments later I could see Cameron a few yards further out, bobbing. He looked at me and then dove straight down. I waited. Waited for a few moments, which turned into seconds…and then it was a minute. My God. Where was he?

“Cameron?!” I called out

Shit. I began to panic. Just as I was about to dive under, I felt something yank me down and deeper into the ocean. As I tumbled under the surface, I felt hands around my waist. I reached out in front of me, my eyes closed to prevent salt water front entering them and felt a firm object with ripples. I realized it was Cameron. We both popped up at the surface as a wave crashed into us. We jerked our heads to get our wet hair out of our face. Cameron’s hands were still on my waist.

“You jerk!” I yelled

“What?” he laughed

“I thought something happened to you!” I said with anger

His smile turned into a slight frown. I could see he felt guilty. His grasp on me loosened and we bobbed next to each other.

“I’m sorry. I was just taking the starfish to the bottom so nobody stepped on it.” He said

“I thought something happened.” I said with less anger

“I’m fine.” He smiled

“Good.” I finally cracked a smile

We just looked at each other until another wave hit us.

“I want to show you something.” He said grabbing my wrist under the water as a gesture to follow him

We swam back to the shore. As we walked out of the water, our soaked shorts were stuck to our bodies. I was behind him and couldn’t help but notice his muscular thighs and what looked like a perfect ass…for a guy of course. Fuck. What was I doing? He’s my friend…maybe its just envy?

We walked away from the beach, heading towards the parking lot.

“Where are we going?” I asked finally catching up to him

“It’s a special place.” He said with a grin

Next to the parking lot was a pathway that lead up to the cliff which overlooked the beach and the whole ocean. The hillside was grassy and at the tip top of the cliff was a pink tree. After about a ten minute walk, we reached the top of the secluded area. The tree was a cherry tree and full of pink blossoms.

“This is beautiful” I said looking up at the tree

“It’s the only cherry tree within a hundred miles of here. It was planted by a local over sixty years ago. It started as a seed and finally became this magnificent tree on this cliff.” Cameron explained, “The cherries are said to be the sweetest in the state.” He said looking into my eyes, “People come here to make wishes.”

“Wishes? How?” I asked curiously

He smiled, “I’ll show you.” He said leaning towards me, but I noticed he plucked something from the tree.

In his hands was a small twig with a bundle of cherry blossoms. The pink flowers smelled sweet.

“I have to confess something.” Cameron began

“Okay.” I said unsure of what was to come

“You are such a good friend. I’ve grown very fond of you.” He smiled

“You have?”

“Yes. You’re special to me. It’s rare I am able to have this strong of a bond with someone. We have a lot in common, I always find myself smiling when I’m with you and…best of all. I can be myself.” He admitted

“Cameron…” I said unsure of how to respond

“I just felt like you needed to know that.” He said

“I feel the same way.” I confided, “I don’t think I would have been able to bare this much change in a new town if it wasn’t for you…you and Natalie.” I included

“I want to make a wish with you.” He said pulling of each blossom and tossing the twig

He placed the bundle of flowers in his hands and stepped behind me. I looked down, not knowing what he was doing and then I saw his arms appear on either side of me. In each hand was a handful of the blossoms.

“Raise your hands and cup them together in front of you.” He said

His hands reached mine and he placed the blossoms in my hands. His soft hands were now resting against mine. I could feel his chest against my back and his breathing on my neck. Every time he inhaled, I could feel his flat stomach against my lower back.

“When we make this wish…we will release the blossoms into the wind and they will be carried away, granting our wish.” He said

“What should we wish for?” I asked standing still

His mouth was close to my face…I could feel his breath now on my cheek. At the corner of my right eye, I could see him glancing at me.

“I hope I speak for both of us, when I make this wish, but…” he began, “your friendship means so much. I wish that we both stay in each other’s lives.” He said

I turned my face towards his…we were inches from each other and I responded, “Forever?”

He smiled back at me and said, “Forever.”

He turned and faced the ocean, as did I and we slowly released the blossoms as they floated on the current of the wind, dancing through the sky and above the ocean.

            After we stood and admired the scenery from the cliff for a few minutes, we walked down the hillside not saying a word, just taking in what we both just experienced. At the parking lot, we ran into Phillip and Natalie.

“Hey, what were you guys up to?” she asked

We looked at each other and smiled.

“Just took Joey up to Cherry Blossom Cliff to see the view.” Cameron said

“Oh. It’s beautiful, isn’t it, Joey?” she asked

“Yeah. Absolutely beautiful.” I smiled

Cameron and I were about to head back to collect our things on the beach, as it seemed Phillip and Nat were ready to call it a day.

“Oh I got your guys’ stuff.” Phillip said

“Thanks.” I said, not realizing I was still smiling

“You okay man?” Phillip leaned in to ask in a low voice

“Yeah.” I shook my head, “Why?”

“Oh. You just seem flustered.” He said pointing at my face

“Eh. It’s the weather I guess.” I said turning my head away

“Cameron, did you tell Joey about the camping trip?” Natalie asked

“Shit, I knew I forgot something.” He responded

“Well, I’ll tell him.” She said walking over to me as we packed the car back up, “My dad likes to take us camping twice a year; in the spring and fall, we’re going next month and we were wondering if you would like to come?”

“Oh…umm.” I started

“My dad said its totally fine, if your parents are cool.” She said

“Sure. I’ll ask my folks.” I said

Cameron stood behind Natalie smirking at me.

“Sorry, Phillip. I tried to talk my Dad into letting you go, but he said no boyfriends allowed. Maybe, I’ll have to invite Jasmine…” she paused

Cameron uttered under his breathe.

“Oh. Nevermind. Looks like its just me and the boys.” She said

“I’m excited.” Cameron said


© 2015 Copyright J.M. Casas Jr. Royalty Novels / True Love Saga. All Rights Reserved.

TRUE LOVE [Chapter 4: Double Date]

  

The drive with Cameron only lasted about twenty minutes before we pulled up to my house.

“Can you turn off the headlights?” I asked him

“Sure.” He said leaving only his parking lights on

“Thank you for the ride.” I said

“Anytime. I’m here if you ever need anything.” Cameron said

“Really?”

He nodded in response.

“I am too.” I said

“I’m glad you came to the dance.” He smiled

“Me too. It was pretty fun.”

Our small talk was interrupted by Cameron’s cell phone ringing.

“Hold on.” He said looking irritated by the interruption as he dug into his pocket for his phone.

He answered his phone, “Hello?” with a slight coldness, “Oh, hey Nat. Everything okay?” he asked his sister

He smiled on the phone and looked at me, “Sure. Here he is.” He handed me the phone.

“Hello?” I answered

“Oh My God! You will never guess what happened?!” Natalie said with enthusiasm over the phone

“What’s going on?” I asked trying to sound excited as well

“I asked out Phillip.” She said in a loud whisper

“Really?! That’s great Nat.”

“Yeah. We have a date tomorrow night at Sand Dollar Pizza. But…” she hesitated

“But? What’s wrong with that?” I asked

“Can you come too?” she asked in a plead

“Oh. Nat. That will be really weird. I don’t want to be a third wheel.” I said

From the corner of my eye, I could see Cameron turn his head looking at me when I said that.

“Oh you won’t,” Natalie said, “Jasmine would love to go on a date with you too. We can double!” she said with excitement

“Oh. Nat. That’s a little soon for me. I just met her…plus, this should be about you and Phillip.” I tried to weasel out of it

“Please Joey!” she whined

“Okay, okay. But I’m only going as a friend to Jasmine. Nothing romantic will come out of this, I’m telling you.” I said with confidence

I could hear Cameron chuckle under his breath.

“You never know.” Nat laughed, “okay, let me to talk to my brother. I’ll see you tomorrow!”

I handed the phone back over to Cameron. He quickly ended his conversation with Natalie and hung up.

“So you got sucked into a double date huh?” Cameron laughed

“Yeah.” I said with a sigh

“You’re a good friend to Nat.” Cameron said looking at me with a crooked smile

“Well, she’s been really good to me too.” I said honestly

“Why couldn’t you see yourself with Jasmine? She’s pretty…don’t you think?” he asked

“Uh…” I began to find the right words, “Well, yeah, she’s pretty…but. I’m not sure if she’s my type.”

“Hm.” Cameron pursed his lips, “I know the feeling.” He said

We sat in silence for a few seconds, not knowing what else to talk about.

“Well, I should get going. I know you are a tired, and I forgot that you still have a long drive home.”  I said

“I don’t mind. Unless you want me to go.” He said with a chuckle

“Um.  Well, I just didn’t want you to be to sleepy. Don’t want you to fall asleep at the wheel.” I said now looking straight ahead, feeling a little uncomfortable

“That’s very considerate of you.” He said leaning towards me

I flinched. My jump scared him as well.

“Are you okay?” he asked

“Um. Yeah. I…” I didn’t finish

“I was just going to get my phone charger.” He laughed

“Yeah. No, I know.” I lied

He sat back and gave a small smirk.

“What?” I asked
“Do I make you uncomfortable?” he asked

“No. Of course not.” I lied again

“I can tell when you aren’t being totally honest with me.” He said seriously

“What? I am being…”

“Joey.” He stopped me

I sat in silence and finally said, “Thank you again for the ride.” As I unbuckled my seatbelt, so did Cameron. He sprung out of the car and ran around the front towards my door. He opened it for me and gave a small bow.

I laughed and said, “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.” He smiled

“Goodnight.” I said beginning to walk towards the front door

“Night. Talk to you tomorrow?” he asked

“Yeah.” I smiled

I walked inside to find my parents sitting in the living room watching television. They immediately swarmed me with questions. I couldn’t even answer them; my mind was still in daze from the ride home with Cameron.

“It was fun.” I finally answered and ran upstairs to my room. I got up in time to see Cameron’s car tail lights disappearing into the thick tree’s that surrounded our property. I could hear his car rev off down the street.

            I woke up the next morning not event remembering when I went to sleep. I did however find myself in bed completely naked. A little unusual for me. I’m not one to sleep in the nude. The day dragged on as I tried to mentally prepare myself for the double date of doom. I agreed to meet Natalie, Jasmine and Phillip at the pizzeria, which meant I had to figure out a way to get there.

“Mom, Dad. Is it okay if either of you drop me off at the pizza place in town? I’m meeting a couple friends.” I asked as they sat around the breakfast bar as my mother baked brownies.

“I don’t think so bud.” My dad said calmly

“Oh. Um. Okay.” I said in shock, but before I could even react further my dad continued

“How about you get yourself there.” He said with a smile

“Um? Huh?” I asked confused

“Why don’t you take my jeep?” he said tossing me the keys

“Really?!” I asked

“Yeah. In fact…why don’t you hang onto those keys.” My dad said

Wow. I was in total disbelief. I mean, I did have my license; I just didn’t have a car. My dad never let me drive his jeep solo. I ran and hugged him and my mother. This was such a great gift.

“Consider it an early birthday gift.” He smiled hugging me again

“Thank you so much dad. But wait. What are you going to drive?” I asked with sincerity

“I got my eye on a car at a local lot. I’m just so proud of you, Joe. You’ve really adapted to this place, you made friends, you have been such a good kid and we’re blessed.” He said almost teary eyed

“Dad. Thank you. Am I okay to drive it now without insurance?” I asked

“All taken care of. She’s got a full tank of gas. She’s all yours, but drive safe and don’t go crazy down these mountain and cliffside roads.” My dad said

“I won’t, I promise.” I smiled and ran out the door

I jumped into my new toy; I started her up and headed down the gravel path towards the main road. I considered myself a good driver, obviously my parents trusted me anyways. I drove down the windy road of the mountain towards town. I had a smile from ear to ear as I drove. As I pulled up to the pizzeria I saw Natalie, Phillip and Jasmine about to walk in. I honked and they all saw me pulling into a parking spot.

“Joey?” Natalie said with a smile

“Hey!” I yelled back

“You’re dad let you drive his Jeep?” she asked

“My Jeep. My parents just surprised the hell out of me and gave it to me as an early birthday gift.”

“Wow! That’s so awesome! Suits you!” Phillip said shaking my hand

“Hi.” Jasmine smiled at me

And then my joy disappeared.

“Hi.” I suddenly remembered that I was there on a double date.

We all walked in and got a table. Jasmine kept finding ways to touch my arm or scoot closer to me. I ignored her antics and would join in the laughter that Phillip and Natalie shared. Our double date was then interrupted by a loud obnoxious voice.

“Go get us a table, babe.” said Nick to his girlfriend, who I assumed was Stephanie

A group of his jock friends joined them with their girlfriends. Not far behind them was Cameron. As he walked in he began scanning the room. He noticed our table and looked directly at me. He smiled. I smiled back.

“Fuck.” Phillip said irritably

“You guys want to leave?” Jasmine asked

But before we could answer, Nick pulled up a chair and sat right next to Natalie.

“Hello.” He said calmly

“Hi, Nick.” Natalie said with distaste

“So, who said you fuckwads could sit at our table?” he said with a horrific grin on his face

“Nick, leave them alone.” Cameron said laughing as he pulled up a chair between Nick and Natalie

“What are you doing here?” Natalie asked with coldness

“Came for the pizza.” He smirked

“I got us a table.” Said Stephanie standing behind Nick

“Hi, Stephanie.” Natalie said with kindness

“…Hi.” Stephanie responded short and cold, “Babe, are we going to eat or what?”

“Alright, alright…damn woman.” Nick snapped getting up and tossing the chair back to its original table

“Cameron, you should go join them.” Natalie suggested

“Oh come on. You don’t want big brother around?”

“NO THANKS.” She snapped

“Jeez. Alright, I’ll go. If anybody wants to join…you are more than welcome to.” He said as he looked directly at me

The remainder of the night was okay except for the fact that Nick would toss croutons at our table, trying to aim for Natalie and Phillip. Meanwhile, olives were being tossed at Jasmine and me by Cameron, who I think was just trying to be funny. We decided to call it a night. The four of us headed outside to the parking lot and I waved goodbye to them as they drove off in Phillips SUV. I was about to get into my Jeep when I noticed Cameron standing by the front door.

“Nice ride.” He said with his arms crossed, “So you had a car, but you just wanted to ride with me last night?” he smiled

“No.” I blushed, “I just got this today, well, it was my dad’s but he gave it to me as an early birthday gift.”

“Oh, sweet. Well maybe, this time you can give me a ride?” he asked

“Oh. Um, yeah. I thought you were hanging out with your friends?”

“I am…you.” He smiled getting into the passenger side of the jeep before I even got in

I laughed and got in as we pulled out of the parking lot.

“You know where I live?” Cameron asked

“Oh. No. Sorry. I just started driving.” I laughed embarrassed

“It’s okay. I don’t mind you taking me for a ride…its how it should work right?”

“What?” I asked confused

“You know…I take you for a ride….you take me for a ride.” He chuckled

“Sure.” I wasn’t sure what he meant

He gave me directions to his house. As we were driving, he got a text on his phone. He ignored it.

“You can answer that.” I said

“I know.” He laughed, “I just don’t want to.”

“Oh.” I said not sure if he was irritated

He must have felt like he offended me and gave an explanation, “It was Nick. Asking why I left? I just don’t like the way he acts sometimes, especially towards you.” Cameron admitted

“Why would that bother you?” I asked

“Because you are my friend. A much better friend that I think I deserve.” He looked at me

I smiled and just accepted the compliment.

“So why did you go to the pizza place? Really?” I fished for an answer

“Because of you.” He said with confidence

“Huh?” I slightly swerved

“Oh jeez.” Cameron laughed, “Careful there…”

“Sorry.”

“Yeah, I mean. Last night I could tell you didn’t want to be there, so I thought I would help you out.”

I took a quick glance at him. He was looking right at me when he said that.

“Remember, when you need someone. You just turn around and I will be there.” He said with a smile

“That almost sounded creepy.” I laughed, trying to lighten the conversation

He joined in the laughter, but I knew he meant it in a sincere way.


© 2015 Copyright J.M. Casas Jr. Royalty Novels / True Love Saga. All Rights Reserved.

TRUE LOVE [Chapter 3: School Dance]

During art class, Cameron sat across from me. He was focused on his sketch pad, slightly hunched over drawing what looked to be a human figure. Cameron was a little taller than me, probably five-ten or five-eleven. It looked like he lifted weights; his arms and chest were toned. He had dark blonde hair, hazel eyes and a killer smile. His ears were pierced, his shirt was fitted, his jeans were boot cut, but they seemed to compliment his backside and…front side. Wait. What the hell was I doing? Was I checking this guy out? Honestly, how could I not? Even the straightest man on earth would have to agree that Cameron Harris was one good looking guy. I continued to analyze his body. “Hey” said a voice that startled me

I looked up to see Cameron looking at me confused and gave a crooked smile, “Are you okay? Don’t space out, not sure if the new teacher is cool enough to give you a warning.” He chuckled

“Oh, it’s okay. She’s my mom.” I admitted

“No. Really?” he asked

“Yeah, why?” I asked

“Oh. I thought you were joking.” He said

“What are you sketching?” I asked, changing the subject in hopes he didn’t think I was staring at him earlier and to remove focus on my mother

“Oh, it’s Hercules.” He said spinning his sketchpad around so I could get a better look

“He’s naked.” I said

It was a sketch of a nude male torso, Greek God like, a leaflet crown on his head and holding what looked to be a disc.

“Well duh,” Cameron laughed, “it’s a sketch of Hercules, the way he’s portrayed as a Greek statue.”

“You drew that from memory?” I asked impressed

“Yeah. I have a photographic memory.” He smiled

“Wow. You are far more talented than…” I paused

He tilted his head, waiting for me to finish my sentence, “you thought?” he guessed

“Than me.” I said honestly

“Well I hope so.” He laughed looking down at my blank sketch pad

I was embarrassed. I hadn’t even sketched I was so busy looking at Cameron. He leaned over and stretched out his arm to grab my sketch pad, as he did I noticed something black on his upper arm. He had switched me sketchpads and began drawing on mine.

“You can have mine, turn it in as yours.” He smiled

“What? I can’t do that. Besides, my mom will know it wasn’t me who did this.”

“Tell her I taught you a little something.” He smiled and winked at me

He winked. The gesture gave me tingles and I felt a warm sensation overcome my body. My stomach began to turn as if I was freefalling. I had to get rid of this feeling quick.

“Do you have a tattoo on your arm?” I panicked

“Um. Yeah.” He whispered caught off guard

“Oh, sorry. Is it a secret?” I asked

“No. Well, not really. Some people just don’t know that I’m 18. I don’t want to explain the fact that…” he paused and looked back down at the table

“You don’t have to tell me it’s okay. I’m sorry; I guess it’s none of my business.” I apologized

“No, it’s okay. You seem cool. I was held back my freshman year.” He admitted

Held back? Holy shit. Was this Natalie’s brother? There were some good genes in this family. I contemplated asking if he was related to Natalie. I’ve already asked too much. But why would that be a secret or bother him? I’m just overanalyzing things at this point.

“Do you have a sister named Natalie?” I asked

“Yeah, how did you know?” he asked curiously

“Oh, we have first period together.” I smiled

“Oh nice. Yeah, she can be a handful sometimes.” He rolled his eyes

“She seems nice. But I mean, so do you.” I said with a chuckle

“I am nice. I try to be at least.”

We chatted back and forth for the rest of the class. As Natalie had mentioned, we had two other classes together and it looked like they were back to back. Our third period was English, followed by History. My fifth and last period was P.E. since I had an open sixth period, being a senior and all. Natalie had a free sixth period as well; Cameron had fifth and sixth open periods which he used to go to water polo practice or cross country practice. During my time with Cameron I got to learn more about him. He had a black Nissan Z, his tattoo was a tribal that he eventually wanted to connect up towards his shoulder, his parents were divorced, he didn’t have a girlfriend and he worked part time at one of the local grocery stores. After P.E., Natalie and I walked through the quad towards my locker. As we walked passed the main office, we noticed a couple students hanging up a painted banner that read, “Sadie Hawkins Dance Friday”.

“Oh, you should go!” Natalie said with excitement

“I just started school. I don’t know. I wouldn’t feel comfortable” I laughed

“Come on. It’ll be fun. You’ll get to meet a bunch of my friends.” She pleaded

“I don’t even have a date.” I said

“Go with me!” she screeched

“What?!” I said in shock

“Yeah. I mean, the girls ask the guys. I don’t have a date; I was just going to go with a group of friends.” Natalie said

“Um.” I hesitated, but the smile on her face just didn’t allow me to deny her, “Okay. Pick me up at 8.” I smiled

“I’ll even bring you flowers.” Natalie joked

            As the week progressed, Natalie, Cameron and I got closer as friends. There were moments of discomfort when Nick would join us, due to his friendship with Cameron. Rumors and gossip spread fast and people began to think I was dating Natalie, which made Nick dislike me even more. Cameron even asked me if I was with his sister. I quickly denied it. Cameron was going to the dance with a friend and even offered to pick me up.

“No, don’t worry about it. My date has to figure that out.” I laughed

He also laughed knowing his sister would somehow have to get herself and me to the dance. The night of the dance was finally upon us and Natalie had come over to my house to help coordinate our look for the evening. My mother and father loved Natalie. Of course, they also thought she was my girlfriend. Natalie and I were wearing blue tie-dye shirts, a red, white and blue stripped sweatband and jeans. Nothing too crazy. My dad had offered to drop us off at the dance, but Natalie asked her friends Phillip and Jasmine to pick us up. Just as we finished getting ready, we heard a car horn honking sporadically. We grabbed our ticket stubs and scurried downstairs. My mother stopped us because she had to do the typical mom thing.

“Say cheese!” she said with glee snapping our photo

We ran outside and I noticed a blue ford explorer with loud music playing. We jumped in the back seat and noticed the driver and passenger turned around staring at us.

“Hey Nat, you guys look great!” said the female passenger

“Thanks!” Natalie squealed, “This is Jasmine.” She gestured with her head

“Hi nice to meet you.” I smiled and shook her hand

“And that is Phillip.” She said pointing to the driver with a bashful smile

“Hey bro, what’s up?” He said shaking my hand

“Thanks for picking us up.” I grinned

“No prob.” He smiled, turned around and sped off into the night

When we got to the school, there were teachers guiding students to the gym where the dance was being held. We handed the teacher at the door our tickets and walked into a semi dark gym with flashing lights, fog and music so loud, my feet were vibrating. Natalie latched onto my arm and pulled me in. We walked through the tight crowd of dancers to make our way to tables and chairs set up.

“Who are you looking for?” Natalie screamed, although I barely heard her over the music

“What?” I screamed back

“It looks like you are looking for someone.” She said

“Oh…Nobody.” I said

We sat down realizing that Jasmine and Phillip weren’t with us. A few minutes after, they suddenly appeared emerging from the thick crowd of dancing students with a cup in each hand.

“Punch?!” screamed Jasmine, handing me a cup before I could answer

“Thanks!” I yelled back

The two had sat down at the table. Natalie was fidgeting in her seat. She looked like she wanted to go dance. I hadn’t really gotten comfortable enough yet. I didn’t want her to have a bad time though.

“Want to go dance?” I asked Nat

“Sure!” she said

Jasmine and Phillip followed us. Just as we entered the crowd a fast beat hip hop song came on. At least it wasn’t a slow song. We staged ourselves next to the deejay booth and began dancing. Mid-way through the dance, I felt someone bump into me. I turned around and saw Cameron with his date.

“Hey!” he said grabbed me by the neck and pulling me in for a hug, he smelled like expensive cologne. He wore a cut off t-shirt with a yellow peanut M&M on it. His date wore a similar shirt with a regular red M&M on it.

“Hey man. Are you drunk?” I asked jokingly

“No, it’s just good to see you here.” He said with a smile

We ended up dancing in a group circle. Natalie was on my left hand side, Cameron was on my right. A different song came on, a remix of “L ’Amour Toujours by Gigi D ’Agostino”.

“I love this song.” Cameron said into my ear

I leaned into respond back and as I did, his arm reached around by lower back as he pulled me in as if he knew I was going to tell him something, “I do too.”

As he released me, he patted me on my ass, which made me jump slightly, but I don’t think he noticed. After a few more songs, Phillip leaned in between me and Natalie.

“You guys want to go outside and get some fresh air for a bit?” he asked

“Sure.” Natalie said, looking at me for agreement, I nodded

“We’re going to head outside for a bit.” I told Cameron

“Okay.” He said continuing to dance

Phillip, Jasmine, Natalie and I headed out towards the back of the gym which leads to the basketball courts. The fresh air felt nice after dancing. The gym was extremely stuffy and claustrophobic.

“Can we go get some refills really quick?” Jasmine pleaded with Natalie

“Sure.” She said. They locked arms and headed back inside

Phillip and I stood against the outside wall of the gym staring out into the field beyond the basketball courts.

“So Natalie is pretty cool.” Phillip said out of the blue

“Yeah. She’s a really good friend. Jasmine seems nice.” I responded

“She is. She’s a good friend too. But, she’s not as cool as Natalie.” He said

“Why would…Oh.” I said, “You have a thing for Nat?” I asked

“No, I mean. She’s…I don’t know. Not if you and her…” he stumbled over his words

“No, no, no. She’s just a friend.” I laughed, “You should go for it. I saw how she smiled at you when we got in the car.” I admitted

“Really?” He asked surprised

“Yeah.”

“Well Jasmine thinks you are really cute. Those are her words by the way.” He giggled

“She does seem nice.” I said plainly

“Not your type?” he asked

“No. I don’t know. I mean, I just met her. I’m not sure what I want. I just moved here.” I said with a little frustration

“Well it seems you have a few people wanting your attention.” He said

What? I said in my head. Who else would be wanting my attention? I didn’t even know Jasmine wanted my attention, let alone think I was cute.

“Like who?” I asked curiously

“Oh come on man. It’s so obvious.” He looked at me hoping I would solve the puzzle.

I shrugged.

“Cameron.” He said loudly

“What?! Dude!” I snapped embarrassed

“You didn’t know?!” He asked with enthusiasm

“No. It’s not even like that man.” I said looking around hoping nobody heard

“Come on, Joey. Didn’t you know Cameron is gay? And I saw how he grabbed you in there. It kind of looked like you didn’t mind.” He laughed

“Dude, he’s just a friend.” I tried to convince him, “And why would you think he’s gay?”

“Everybody knows. When he’s asked about girls, he just brushes the subject off. He hasn’t had a girlfriend, just dates and when people ask him if he’s gay, he doesn’t deny it.” Phillip said

“But does he confirm he is?” I asked

“Well, no, but…”

“But WHAT!?” snapped a deep voice behind Phillip

We both jumped. Phillip turned around and I leaned away from the wall to see who it was. There stood Nick who seemed to be smoking a cigarette.

“You got something to say about my friend?” He shouted

“Dude. Relax. Go smoke another cancer stick.” Phillip said with a grin

Nick slowly walked towards us dropped his cigarette. He got in Phillips face.

“Only a pussy talks shit about other people behind their backs. You need to lay off my friend. He aint gay!” Nick continued to shout

“Nick, back up from him please. We were just talking.” I said calmly

“Fuck off, pretty boy!” he said staring me down

“Nick!” screamed Natalie as she came out of the gym with her cup, Jasmine soon followed

“What?!” he screamed back, not realizing who it was

“Leave him alone!” she yelled back

“Natalie.” He said in a calm voice taking two steps back from Phillip, “These ‘friends’ of yours are fake as hell. Tell her what you said.” He said looking at Phillip

“Go away.” Natalie said shaking her head

“No. Listen to what he has to say.” Nick pleaded

Natalie and Jasmine looked at us with concern in her eyes.

“Phillip?” asked Natalie hoping to hear nothing

“I told Joey that your brother was gay.” He said in a low voice

“She cant hear you!” screamed Nick

“What is going on out here?!” yelled a female voice behind us.

Principle Hawkins came out to investigate.

“Principle Hawkins!” Nick said surprised

“What is the meaning of this?” she asked with a stern voice

“I don’t know. Nick, why don’t you fill in Principle Hawkins?” Natalie said leaning on her right leg and arm on her hip

“Nick.” Waited Principle Hawkins

Nick looked at the principle, then at me, then towards Phillip.

“Nothing. I was just leaving.” He said

“Good. You four,” she said looking at Phillip, Jasmine, Nat and myself, “I expect you wont be any more trouble? I need you to either get back inside or leave the dance.” She said fiercely

We all headed back inside and towards our table. Natalie was quiet. She seemed bothered.

“Natalie,” began Phillip

But Natalie put up her hand in a response that she didn’t want to hear anymore.

After about 30 minutes of silence and watching others dancing, I finally got the courage to speak.

“Natalie, do you want to go home? I can have my parents pick us up.”

“I’ll have my brother take me home. You go ahead.” She said coldly

“Nat. Can we please talk?” Phillip pleaded

“Fine.” She said as they got up and headed to the corner of the gym where there wasn’t anybody around

Jasmine got up and danced with some of her friends. She asked me if I wanted to go, but I wasn’t in the dancing mood anymore. I just watched from a distance. I didn’t see Cameron around. I wonder if Nick told him what we were talking about? The last thing I need is for my two friends to be angry with me. They were all I had so far. After about ten minutes, Phillip and Nat came back and sat down. She turned to me and smiled.

“I’m sorry.” She said

“For what? I should be sorry.” I said with guilt

“No. Phillip told me what happened. You didn’t say anything wrong. Phillip apologized and, well. Everything is okay. I just don’t want you to be like other people who like to spread rumors, or fake, or mean.” She said heavy hearted

“I’m not like that.” I said confidently

“I know. I can tell. Nick is a jerk. He thinks he’s better than a lot of people, but he’s such a hypocrite.” Natalie said

“Yeah.” I nodded

After talking, we decided to stay for a while longer and I ended up seeing Cameron and his date once again. They were gone for a while. They came and stood next to our table.

“Hey.” Cameron said to his sister, he didn’t acknowledge me

“Hey!” she said

“Are you okay?” he asked

“Yeah why?” she responded

“Someone told me you were outside arguing with Nick.”

“Oh. No I’m fine. It’s all over and done with.” She said

“Anything I need to know?” he asked concerned

“No. Old news.” She said softly, but it was loud enough where I could hear

Cameron looked over at me. He shuffled closer.

“You having fun, Bud?” he asked grasping my shoulder

“Yeah.” I smiled

“Good. You take care of my sister!” he said smirking

“Of course.” I said

He looked up towards Phillip, dropped his smile and walked back into the crowd. After a couple more hours of dancing, laughing and hanging out; the dance ended. The four of us gathered outside. Cameron and his date were outside already. They hugged and she got into a waiting car by the curb. Cameron came and joined us.

“That was fun.” He said smiling

“Hey Cameron, I wanted to…” but before Phillip could finish his sentence, Cameron interjected

“Don’t worry about it man. I don’t sweat the small stuff. Just be better than most of the assholes at this school.” He said

That was extremely mature of him, I thought to myself. If it were me, I probably wouldn’t have talked to Phillip anymore or even contemplated kicking his ass.

“So who is hungry?” Jasmine asked

“Yeah, I am.” Phillip said

“Want to go grab a bite?” Natalie asked nudging me

“I’m actually kind of beat. But you guys go ahead. I’ll have my folks come get me.” I said

“I can take you home.” Cameron offered, “I’m actually tired too. I was going to head home.” He looked at Natalie as he spoke

“Really? Well, if you’re sure?” she said

I nodded. We all hugged each other one at a time and they got in Phillips car and drove off, playing his loud music. Cameron and I stood there watching their tail lights vanish into the dark night.

“So. Wanna take off?” I asked

“Yeah, if you’re ready?” he said, digging in his pocket for his keys

As we walked to his car, I saw Nick and his other jock friends standing next to a pick up truck. I turned my head pretending to not see them. We got into Cameron’s Nissan Z. It smelled like a new car. I looked around the black interior with its leather seats and cleanliness. I looked behind my seat to see that this car was only a two-seater.

“Oh.” Cameron said, he reached over my waist and next to my door, he tugged on the seatbelt before I could reach for it, “It gets stuck sometimes.”

I didn’t respond. I just smiled. I grabbed the seatbelt from his hand and buckled myself in. As we pulled out of the parking lot, Cameron honked his horn twice signaling Nick. Through the tinted windows, I could see Nick cocking his head back acknowledging his friend. We began to drive down the lonely road lit by street lanterns.

“Do you like it fast?” Cameron asked

“What?” I questioned him

“Driving. Do you like driving fast?” he smiled

“Um. Sure. Whatever you like.” I said with a grin and uncertainty

Cameron laughed, grabbed the gear shift and said, “That’s what I like to hear.” As we sped down the road.

© 2015 Copyright J.M. Casas Jr. Royalty Novels / True Love Saga. All Rights Reserved.

TRUE LOVE [Chapter 2: The New Kid]

The road to our new home was almost forest like. Tree’s as far as the eye can see, houses were spread out with a large range of acreage. I was so preoccupied looking out of the window at everything else that I didn’t realize we were finally at our destination until I felt the motion of the van turning left. We got off the main asphalt road onto a loose gravel path. About 500 yards down the way was a beautiful two story home with lots of windows, a wrap-around porch and a small bird bath near the western end of the lawn. The house was a very light cream color with a burgundy trim and dark grey roof. We came to a stop and before my dad could even turn off the car, he opened his door to get out, snatching the keys out of the ignition. My mother hurried around the van and met my dad to join him in his joyfulness. I slowly opened the sliding door to the van and walked out. It was actually a beautiful house. Much better than the apartment we lived in for six years in Fresno.

“What do you think, Joey?” my dad asked me
“It’s perfect.” I said with a smile
“I want to give him the tour.” My mother said with her hand out automatically wanting the keys
“Okay, I’ll unload the van.” He said as he kissed her on the temple

My mother latched onto my arm and dragged me to the front door. We walked up the three steps to the patio which gave a slight creek and she jingled through the keys to find the one for the house. As the door opened, the first thing I noticed was the huge fireplace in the large open living room. It flowed right into the kitchen that had an island. My mom let go of me, walked near the center of the room and with a smile gave a small spin to observe the new place. She looked like she was replicating a scene from The Sound of Music. The floors were hardwood, crown molding lined the ceiling, large windows and a beautiful spiral stair case that lead up to the second floor. The first floor contained a formal dining room, powder room, laundry room and a guest bedroom or office. There were two French doors next to the kitchen that led out to the back of the wrap-around porch, the back yard was magnificent with a small man made creek and what looked like a custom shed to match the house. I continued my way upstairs as my mother glorified the kitchen. The first room to the left was a small bedroom, possibly a nursery at one point. The next door on my right was a large bathroom, most likely mine. Right next to that was a large bedroom with two corner windows overlooking the forest and a small peak of the town; we were on a large hill of course. Across from my room was what looked like a linen closet? At the end of the hall was the master bedroom with two walk in closets and a master suite which included a bathtub with jets, a full glass shower with rainfall showerhead and double vanity. It must have just been recently renovated. It looks like something right out of a HGTV show.

We spent the rest of the day unloading, unpacking and organizing. The moving truck and my dad’s Jeep arrived two hours after we did. My mother is a moving machine. She will literally work on unpacking and organizing until everything is done. The last time we moved, everything was done in 32 hours. In just under two days, it looked like we had been settled in our place and lived there for a while. By the time I knew it, that’s exactly happened.

After three days, my mother had put our place together; yes there were some things that my family needed to purchase to fill up the house since we were moving from a two bedroom apartment of a thousand square feet. Our family had a week off to get settled before they had to start working, which meant, I had to start school as well. I wasn’t excited since I was starting the middle of the school year. Cliques had been formed, friends bonded, bullies bullying. My mother was going to be the new art teacher for the school and my dad was going to teach Biology.

The time had finally arrived…Judgment Day. It was Monday morning and my mom, dad and I were driving to the school. It was about twenty five minutes from our house closer to town. Driving up to the school, I noticed it was an outdoor campus and on the side of a large building, which I guess is the gym, had a mural of a sea lion with a football helmet on. Above it in bold green and orange letters read, “Home of the Depoe Bay High School Sea Lions”. That’s intimidating I guess? I came to find out later that the rival high school mascot was The Pelicans. My parents parked in the faculty parking area and I stepped out of the car first. The early morning fog was beginning to lift and I could see that beyond that another set of grey clouds were rolling in. A woman with a clipboard was walking towards me, she had a stern smile upon her face, her dark brown hair with glimmers of silver in it, wrapped in a tight large bun near the crown of her head. She was wearing a navy blue blazer and matching business skirt along with black pumps. She stuck out her hand as she got closer and finally met my hand.

“Hello Joey, nice to finally meet you. I’m principle Hawkins and welcome to Depoe Bay High School.” She said crinkling her eyes. She glanced down at her clipboard, pulled a pen from her front blazer pocket, clicked it and made a quick gesture in the design of a checkmark on the board.

“Nice to meet you as well Principle Hawkins.” I said with a crooked smile

She acknowledged me and continued towards my parents.

“Marie, Joseph. It’s nice to see you again. So glad you are finally here and a part of our team.” She said hugging them as if they were lifelong friends

“Sandra, Hi!” my mom said squeezing her back
“If you will please follow me, I’ll show you, Joey, where your first period class is and I’ll take your parents to their classrooms. Here’s a map of the school that might help you out.” She said handing me the paper which she highlighted every class of mine.

As we began walking down the busy hall of screaming teens, cell phones beeping, cliques clicking, gossip and running, I began to feel the eyes upon me. I could only imagine what they were thinking or saying; who is he? Why is he walking with his parents and the principle? He’s brown. I couldn’t think about it anymore. As we passed the quad of the campus, a girl came in a haste to greet the principle.

“Good Morning Principle Hawkins.” She said with a smile.

The girl was about half a foot shorter than me. She had on fitted jeans with what looked like wedge boots. She had a pink and white stripped top on and brown leather jacket. Her hair was a dirty blonde, wavy, possible from curling. Her makeup was simple and light as she had a natural beauty about her.

“Good morning Natalie.” She smiled, and before the girl could respond, principle Hawkins continued, “And yes, I read your email regarding your suggestions for the theme of the Prom. I’ll consider it and get back to you and the rest of the student body.”

“Thanks.” She said, I thought she was about to trot off, but she stayed and stuck her hand out in a jolt, “Hi, I’m Natalie.”

“Hi, I’m Joey.” I said shaking her hand

“Oh, I’m sorry, how rude of me.” Principle Hawkins said, “Joey is starting school today, and these are his parents and new teachers. Mrs. Ramirez will be teaching Art II and Mr. Ramirez will be teaching Biology I”

“Totally awesome to meet you! I’m taking Biology this semester. My brother is taking Art II.” She said engaging my parents

“Natalie, you have Algebra II for your first period right? With Mrs. Keller?” asked the principle
“Yes!” she said with perkiness
“Would you mind guiding Joey here to his first period, it seems you two are in the same class.”
“No problem Principle Hawkins.” She turned on her heel and waited for me to step with her

We began walking down the rest of the hall. I looked back to catch my parents waving at me as if I were a five year old entering kindergarten for the first time. I quickly turned my head in embarrassment but I also felt scared and their waves felt warm and loving.

“So, Joe.” Began Natalie, “How did you end up here in Depoe Bay? Where are you from anyways?” she asked curiously

“I’m from Fresno, California. Was born and raised there. We moved here because the teaching positions in California are become more and more scarce.”

“Wait what?” She interrupted, “Fresno? Never heard of it. And I can’t believe your parents came all the way to Oregon just for a job. Must be pretty bad where you are from.” She said

“It was getting pretty bad. My parents picked this place because they drove through here by accident trying to get to Seattle and they just loved the small coastal town feel of it I guess.”

“Well, it’s not so bad. Everyone is pretty cool and friendly.” She said

We eventually had to turn a corner and headed down a smaller corridor that housed what looked like about three to four classrooms.

“That’s it. Room 107. Algebra II. Hey, let me see your schedule. I wonder if we have any other classes together?” she snatched my class schedule from me, “We have gym together, 5th period. That’s about it. You do have your mom’s class with my brother though. It looks like you also have history and English together as well.” She said

“Oh, that’s cool. So are you and your brother twins?” I asked
“No.” she laughed, “Why would you think that?”
“Because we all have the same teachers and class levels.” I said annoyed
“Oh, no I’m 16, my brother is 18.” She smiled
“How does that work?” I was confused
“I jumped a grade…and…well, he fell back a grade. He wasn’t too happy about it, but it is what it is. I take it you are 17 right?” she asked
“Yeah. I turn 18 in May.”
“Oh, May what?” she asked curious
“May 9.”
“Right before Prom. That’s awesome. You better pick a girl quick, slim pickings here my friend. You only have four months.” She laughed
“Any recommendations?” I asked with a smirk
“Not yet, don’t know your type. What kind of girls are you into? Well wait a minute. Are you even into girls?” she asked with a straight face
“What? Yes! Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?” I asked with offense
“Hey, relax.” She giggled, “Nothing wrong with that. These days, it’s more common.”
“Really? How common? Are there gay students in this school?” I asked
“You would be surprised.” She said

As the clock reached for 8:00am, we headed inside the class room as Natalie introduced me to Mrs. Keller. She had mercy on me and let me sit next to Natalie in the third row. Fortunately there was an empty seat next to her. The bell rang and the students began to pour in one by one. The nerds at first, eager to learn and collect more knowledge and expand their brain cells. Next a small group of Goth’s walked in, almost floating like the spirit world they lived in. Next the cheerleaders and jocks came in.

“That’s Nick.” Natalie said with a grotesque face, “I was hoping he was out sick today.”

She was giving the stink eye to a tall guy, brown hair, smooth skin, green eyes, an ear piercing. He wore a green letterman jacket with orange DBHS letters on the right chest area. He had on jeans and some white sneakers that were so clean, they looked new. He glanced over just as I was analyzing him, however I think he noticed Natalie before he did me.

He walked over to his seat, which so happened to be a row behind us. He sat in a desk directly behind Natalie. As he squatted into his chair he leaned close to Natalie’s ear and whispered, “Good morning.” With a deep smooth voice.

“Not anymore.” She whispered
“Who is your friend? Not my replacement right?” he said with a stern voice
“Nick,” she said spinning around in her chair, “you need to not worry about my friends.”
“As long as he’s not your boyfriend.” He said glaring at me

I didn’t look at him, but from the corner of my eye, I could feel the stare.

“It shouldn’t matter.” Natalie said calmly turning back around, “How’s Stephanie? Your girlfriend at South Bay High?”

He gave a small grunt and leaned back in his seat, almost defeated.

“Don’t you pay any mind to him, Joey. He thinks he’s mister tough guy because he’s on the football team.” Said Natalie

“I can drop any one of these guys in here.” He said shamelessly, “Especially you, pretty boy.” He said towards me

“I’m sure my brother wouldn’t like you talking to me or my friend like this. So back off, asshole.” She said with an intensity in her voice

“Relax, I’m just fucking with you.” He said laughing

“That’s as much of that you’ll get from me in a lifetime.” She said in a low voice

I was stunned. Stunned at the fact that on my first day, within the first 20 minutes of my arrival at school, I was already picked on, I made a friend, my parents embarrassed me and what shocked me the most, was to hear Natalie curse.

After class, we headed back down to the main hall. We were going in the same direction, however she was going to English and I was heading towards Art.

“He’s right you know.” Natalie said out of nowhere
“Who?” I asked without a clue
“Nick. You are.” She smiled
“What? I’m what?” I asked with confusion and fright
“A pretty boy. With your looks, you’ll get a girlfriend in no time.” She said nudging me and then taking a right towards her class

A pretty boy? Me? I mean, I guess I was. Nobody ever called me that back home. To be called that here was a huge compliment because I felt the people of this town were beautiful as it is. I knew I wasn’t ugly. I’m 5’9, lean and toned body, tanned skin, strong calves, a nice chest. I didn’t have facial hair just yet, but I had black hair, in a fauxhawk, brown eyes and a nice smile, which was complimented by my dimples. Natalie was right, I never had a problem with girls, I was just picky. I liked to flirt too much, or…maybe. I don’t know. I just didn’t find the right one.

I headed towards my mom’s classroom and walked in to find a large work room with ten large tables. Each table seemed to sit two people. My mother walked towards the door and welcomed me to her class as if I were a stranger. Was she as embarrassed of me as I was of this situation? No. I think she was just trying to be courteous to my social life.

“Mom.” I said rolling my eyes, “How was your first class?” I asked
“It went really good. I’m going to like this school. The kids are much more enthusiastic about art here.” She said as she walked away to greet another student who walked in, she quickly came back to show me to my seat. “You will sit here and share this work station with your partner.”

My mom headed back to the door to greet more students. I got myself situated, not paying attention to someone next to me, I saw a shadow and I quickly looked up startled.

“Oh, sorry. Didn’t mean to scare you.” He said
“Oh, no, you didn’t.” I lied, “Am I in your way?” I asked
“No, not at all. I thought you needed help with something. I was going to lend you a hand.” He said generously
“Oh thanks, I’m okay. I’m just looking for my sketchpad.”
“I’m Cameron Harris by the way.” He shook my hand
“Ramirez, Joey Ramirez.” I said stupidly
“Very James Bond of you.” He laughed
“I don’t know why I said my name like that.” I stuttered
“No, it was cool. I liked it.” He smiled
“So it looks like we’re partners?” I asked
“Yea.” He tilted his head with a smile, “Looks like it.”

© 2015 Copyright J.M. Casas Jr. Royalty Novels / True Love Saga. All Rights Reserved.

TRUE LOVE [Chapter 1: Depoe Bay, Oregon]

Startled by the rattling and turbulence of my environment, I woke up from what seemed to be an eternal sleep. I lifted my head from its strained position as it leaned against the rear passenger window of my parent’s car. I rubbed my eyes and yawned as my ears popped, probably from the mountains we were driving through. My parents were talking about their new positions, which is why we are on this road trip in the first place. Well, more like relocation. I peered out the window to see the grey overcast sky and steady drizzle of rain. The windshield wipers providing a rhythmic tune which caused me to start bopping my head idiotically. I began looking through a bag I had near my feet which contained a bag of trail mix, a water, two books, a magazine and my iPod. I needed to drown out the parental talk and sound of the wiper blades. But my focus quickly changed as I realized I needed to go to the bathroom.

“Dad, can we stop somewhere? I need to pee bad.” I asked him as he glanced in the rear view mirror while he drove.

“Yeah. Sure, bud.” He said with a smile. I didn’t see his smile, but I could tell by the tone of his voice and the crinkle in his eyes.

I wasn’t sure why he was smiling. But perhaps it meant we were almost there? Perhaps it was excitement? Perhaps…man I really have to pee!

“Dad, make it quick.” I panicked

“It’s right around the corner, Hun.” My mom reassured me

What’s right around the corner? A bathroom? A gas station? A restaurant?

As we pulled into the parking lot. My mouth dropped. I was flabbergasted.

“Mom…Dad…No please.” I pleaded

“What? I thought you liked this place?” my mom asked

“Yeah, that was before…”

“Oh, come on Joey. Nobody will remember that.” My dad said

“Dad that was last August. I can’t be seen back in this place?!”

“Stop it. If you have to pee, you better do it now. It’s another half hour or so until we get to the new house.” My mom said

“I’ll pee in a cup, on the side of the road.” I said

“You are being dramatic. Let’s go inside and grab a quick bite.” My dad said

I was so desperate to relive myself that I had no choice. I stubbornly got out of the van and followed my parents…closely behind them like a young penguin seeking warmth from their relentless parents. The rain was slowing down and became a light sprinkle, almost mist like. We approached the doors. The sign above read, “Guy’s Diner”. A host greeted us at the door, opening it for us. I looked down with shame. We walked towards the counter.

“Hi, for two adults and one child?” she asked with significant perkiness

“I’m 17.” I said with a bothered tone

“Oh. Sorry. Three…adults.” She said as she grabbed a third menu

The host sat us at a table not too far from where the incident occurred. I flipped through the menu quickly and told my mother my order so I could go to the bathroom.

“I want spaghetti and meatballs. Extra sauce, garlic bread and a lemonade.” I said as I quickly scurried to the bathroom.

I unzipped my pants as soon as I walked in the door and headed for the nearest urinal. I felt like I hadn’t pissed in days. I almost didn’t realize there was someone else in there with me as I sighed with relief. I could see out of the corner of my eye a guy a little taller than me. As soon as I finished, I washed my hands. In the reflection of the mirror I could see the man who was at the urinal. Oh no. Please don’t let it be. I quickly grabbed paper towels and dried my hands as I walked out of the bathroom. I swerved through the tables towards ours. I accidentally scared my mother as I leaned in from behind her and next to her ear whispered, “Give me the keys.”

“Joey!” she jumped, “what for?” she said with irritation

“Please, I just need to go sit in the car for a bit. In fact, I’m not even hungry. I’m going to just take a nap.”

“Joey, sit down please. Stop acting like such a baby. Nobody is going to…” my dad was interrupted by our server

“Hello, welcome to Guy’s Diner. My name is Brad and I’ll be your server today. What can I get you sir?” he said looking directly at me.

It was then I realized, it was the same person in the bathroom, the same person that witnessed the last incident. The smile on his face told it all.

“Um…” I hesitated, “I’ll take the spaghetti and meatballs with…”

“Are you sure?” he asked

“What?” I said

“Well, that’s what caused you to throw up everywhere. We wouldn’t want a repeat of that now would we?”

Oh…my…God. I slouched down into the chair. My parents were shocked that the server even remembered.

“That won’t happen again this time. He was sick last time, he had a fever,” my mom began

“Mom!” I snapped

“He’ll take the spaghetti and meatballs, extra sauce, garlic bread and lemonade.” My dad finished my order

Brad continued to take their orders and finally left. My face was hot. I was utterly embarrassed. The feeling eventually passed. I guess I was being over dramatic, but I’m 17. I don’t have friends here and the last thing I would want is for my future school mates to title me, “Vomit Boy”. The last time we were at this diner, was last August. That’s when my parents came for a meeting with the school board and interviewed with the school that they will both be working at. During our visit we stopped around town to get familiar with it just in case they did get accepted and fortunately for them, they did. Unfortunately for me, it meant I had to leave my friends and whole social life behind. But I saw this as an adventure and I was going to make the best of it. My dad hoped for me to get a girlfriend in this new town. I hadn’t had a girlfriend in a long time. Well, my last girlfriend was in 6^th grade. Ah, the quaint town of Depoe Bay, Oregon. It’s a coastal town; filled with fisherman, mom and pop shops, and seagull shit on every roof top. Dream come true. All kidding aside, it was beautiful. I love the coast, but I pictured a big city move. One thing that did bother me was that the diversity of this town was…almost nonexistent. Here we were, a Hispanic family in a town with 90% Caucasians, we didn’t speak Spanish, we didn’t know how to fish, and we just didn’t know much of the town at all. One thing is for sure, last time I was there, the people were actually very attractive looking. It was like God said, “Here you go beautiful people, a quaint town just for you.”

After we finished our meal, I shuffled out of the diner and patiently waited outside as my parents paid the bill. I looked up to see the clouds beginning to break. The sun shining rays through the cracks and holes of the overcast. An opening shifted directly over where I stood, the warmth of the sun kissed my skin. I closed my eyes with delight and smiled. I jumped as my parents creeped up on me.

“Having a moment?” my dad poked fun at me

“I just love when the sun comes out after a fresh rainfall.” I said

“Okay,” he laughed, “Let’s get going rain man.”

“Dad, that reference doesn’t even make sense.” I said as my mother laughed

We got back into our minivan, which was actually my mothers. My dad drove a Jeep Wrangler. The jeep was being transported by the moving company along with much of our other furniture later today. Finally back on the road, we headed for our destination. I plugged my ears with my headphones and played some music. By the time I knew it, we were in Depoe Bay. The hills, the seagulls, the smell of the ocean breeze. Maybe this wasn’t going to be so bad.

© 2015 Copyright J.M. Casas Jr. Royalty Novels / True Love Saga. All Rights Reserved.

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