Two weeks later, we’re invited to another cookout at Ben’s. Our parents, along with Cary’s and Ben’s parents, have a long conversation. They decide that over summer vacation, all of us will have a joint trip to Seven Flags over Texas.
As busy as life is for me, time seems to almost fly by, and we are quickly approaching the end of the school year. Ben invited me to the Junior/Senior prom at his school, to which, of course, I said yes, and we have the end-of-year formal at my school as well.
Formals require a lot of primping and preparation for girls. Most notable is shopping for our dresses. I was content to merely get one for both formals, but Mom nixed that idea. There’re a lot of reasons she states as to why, but you can sum all of them up in one phrase: “She wants us to be the belles of the ball.” So, we spend hours going through shops to find the perfect dresses for us.
At Ben’s prom, I meet many of his friends. Most of them I’ve never met for the simple reason that generally unless Megan and Cary are with us, we are alone, doing whatever. It was nice meeting most of them. However, there is always at least one boy that can’t look a girl in the face when he’s talking to her to save his life. He didn’t make the best impression on me. Ben and I did have fun, though, and I enjoyed the steakhouse he took me to before the dance.
Our end-of-year formal ended up about the same. It was fun, and Ben and I spent the majority of our time on the dance floor. It darn sure made me glad that I didn’t opt to wear 5” heels, as my feet would have been killing me by the end of the dance.
After that is finals, and then we turn in our laptops and are released for summer vacation.
A week after school ends, we meet everyone at the airport to fly to Texas. That is something I am rather glad about. 4 hours on a plane versus 20 hours of driving? Yeah, nothing more needs to be said.
Florida is hot and humid, but Texas is a whole different kind of hot and humid. Ugh!! Very light short skirts, or skimpy shorts and tank tops are the order of the day there. That, and slathering ourselves with sunscreen. When we weren’t at the park, we were at the pool. We also went to some fairly high-end restaurants, so cocktail dresses and heels were required. Though the food was fabulous and made our prep-time worth it. In Texas is the only time I have ever worn cocktail dresses with bare legs, though Benny seemed to enjoy it.
The remainder of the summer literally feels like it disappears to me. We were busy with our usual things, but we always made time to drive over to the beach, or lake. We even went camping for a weekend. We also have cheer camp that we attend as well. It was rather nice to see some of the girls again that I befriended last year.
This brings us back to cheerleading tryouts, and again, Megan and I made the squad. Not long after that, school starts up. I’m not really going to say much about this school year. Everyone has been in high school, so you know how it is. Although, I was voted to be a homecoming princess this year. That made me happy. Megan and I also turn 16, take our driver's tests, and pass them. Mom and Dad got us cars as a present for passing. I told them I could very well buy my own, but they wouldn’t hear of it. So, Dad takes us to an Audi dealership and buys us both an A6, blue for me and white for Megan.
Finally, Ben asks me to be his date at his senior prom. Why he asked, I don’t know. I’m his girlfriend, so of course, I am going to go with him. Seriously, did he think for one second that I wouldn’t?
I drive up and attend his graduation ceremony as well. After it, we sit down in his bedroom and have a long talk about our relationship.
Now, I’ve told you he wanted to go to FSU, and he was accepted. Therefore, the conversation we’re having. I need to know what he plans to do about us. I have to say that his initial reaction would have been funny under other circumstances.
So after we sit down on his bed, I ask, “Benny, are we breaking up now that you’re going to college?”
“What? Why?”
He looks confused for a few moments, and finally relaxes after he figures out that this isn’t me breaking up with him.
“No. I planned on either you driving up to see me or me coming down to see you every weekend. Lil’ bird, there’s no way on Earth that I would break up with you just because I’m going to college. You’re planning on attending FSU when you graduate, right?”
“I am, but it’s still 2 years until I do. I could talk to my parents and see if they will allow me to take the advancement test, but I can guarantee you Megan won’t like that one bit. Even if I do, it will still be a year before I graduate. Benny, long-distance relationships are hard. I’m worried that when you get to college, you’ll see all those hot, available college girls, consider how far it is to drive to see me, and decide that you’d be better off dating one of them.”
He looks at the ceiling as if he is considering how to answer. A minute or so later, he looks back at me. “Lil’ bird, I won’t tell you not to worry about that because it will never happen. We both know how surprising life can be, so I would be stupid if I said it will never happen. However, I will say that I love you, and have no intention of breaking up with you.”
I gasp and cover my mouth because this is the first time he has told me he loves me. I recover quickly though, and reply, “I love you, too, Benny.”
He smiles and nods. “I knew that already, even without you saying it. Okay, listen, we’ve been together for two years now, whereas most of the other couples we’ve known have long since broken up. I think our relationship can withstand my attending college. Could I meet someone at college? Yes, but at the same time, you could meet someone while I’m away. We never know what can or will happen. That said, I have faith in us. Don’t you?”
“Of course, I do!”
“I’ll be further away, but it’s not going to change anything. I’ll still see you on the weekends, okay?”
“Okay. I just… Well, I don’t want to lose what we have. We’re good together.”
“We are, and I need college to be able to provide for us in the future.”
“I know that… Wait! Are you proposing to me?”
He chuckles. “Not in so many words, though I’m stating my intentions. As I said, I love you and want to be with you, so it’s not a stretch to say that I’ve thought about us getting married. Knowing you, you have as well.”
I chuckle this time. “Duh! Of course, I have. I’ve imagined us married, and having a large family.”
He snorts. “We haven’t even had sex yet, and you’re thinking about babies? How about we hold off on that, at least until we graduate college? I’ll tell you what. How about we plan on you talking to your parents, and we’ll assume they’ll let you take the test. Then, next year, I’ll get us an apartment, and we can live together while we attend school.”
I grin at him and stick my hand out. “Deal!”
Later that evening, I have a conversation with my family about taking the advancement test. I knew she would, but Megan adamantly objects to me doing that. She and I are close, so I expected nothing less.
Megan gets good grades, but I placed 4th, whereas she placed in the upper-middle of our grade. I never brought up Benny during the conversation as a reason why I wanted to do it, but I’m fairly sure that Mom knew that was a primary reason for me wanting to.
Finally, they agreed to allow me to take the test. When they did, Megan stormed off to her room. I excuse myself and head upstairs. Tapping on Megan’s door, I go in and lay down beside her on the bed.
“I’m sorry,” I state.
She rolls over and faces me. “I get it. You want to be with Ben. I can’t say that I wouldn’t feel the same way if it was Cary, but I just got my sister, and now she’s talking about graduating early and leaving. I don’t want to lose you.”
Pulling her to me, I hold her, and murmur, “Just because I’ll be in a different grade doesn’t mean you’re losing me. I love Ben, and he loves me. We want a life together, but I’m afraid that if we wait too long for me to graduate, he might drift away from me. No matter what happens in our lives, you will always be my sister, so you can’t lose me.”
“I know. It’s just, I thought that we’d have these next couple of years together before you head off to college.”
Mom calls and arranges for me to take the test before school starts. So, the next Wednesday, I drive over to the school, have to show my I.D., and take the test. Afterward, they tell me that they’ll mail the results to me.
Monday, we receive the results. Unsurprisingly, I pass with flying colors. Immediately, I call Benny and tell him the good news. So, when school starts again, I’ll be a senior.
Again, I won’t go into any detail about the school year, but I will say that everyone is surprised when I begin classes as a senior.
On December 11th, Megan and I are pulled out of classes by Dad because Mom is in labor. They opted for the baby’s gender to be a surprise, so Dad is extremely happy when baby Aaron Levi Mason is born kicking and screaming his little head off. The birth was really hard on Mom because she refused to have a c-section. He’s a darling little redhead with bright blue eyes.
Megan and I also turn 17 this year, and our parties are outrageous. Dad made sure of that.
It’s hard for me and Ben to be so far apart, but we’ve worked it out. One weekend, I will drive up to stay the weekend with him, and the next, he drives down to stay the weekend here. It’s not easy, as I said, but we’re making it work.
Finally, school ends, and Ben comes home for the summer as I finalize my plans to begin classes at FSU this fall. We spend most of our time together when I’m not busy, which unfortunately isn’t much more than the weekends. I have so many things to set up for the move. Finding a dojo there because Dad is adamant about me continuing my self-defense classes, a ballet school, and making arrangements for me to try out to be a cheerleader.
I really enjoy cheerleading, so of course, I will continue if I can. I’m hoping that I pass the tryouts. Ben and I also have to find an apartment. Money isn't an issue, as you well know, but we still have to have a co-signer, meaning Dad.
So, three weeks before registration, Benny and I say goodbye to our families and drive up to get our new place set up. That means shopping for furniture, dishes, and the like. I also introduce myself to my sensei at the dojo and my dance instructor. Cheerleader tryouts follow a couple of days later.
Happily, I make the squad, and from what I’ve seen so far, I like the others. It’s also my first time working with male cheerleaders, though they seem to be nice as well.
Benny and I register for classes, and then he takes me on a tour of the campus and introduces me to the people he knows. Some of them know me, but most don’t. The looks from some of the girls I’ve never met until now tell me they aren’t happy to meet me. Well, they can suck it up and find someone else to target because Benny is mine.
About a month into the first semester, Benny and I attend a party. I don’t drink much, and you know why, but I did that night and ended up more than a little drunk, and a lot horny. With us living together, there’s nothing to stand in our way. I’m on birth control, and so, finally, we make love that night when we get home. Benny is so sweet, and he tries his best to be as gentle as he can. Even so, it’s awkward and somewhat painful at first, but I’m hoping that won’t be an issue before too long.
My birth mother called me just before I got my Bachelor’s degree. She told me that my birth father had died of a massive heart attack. Apparently, after my decision, he began drinking heavily. I feel sorry for her loss, but as much as you might think it would’ve upset me, it didn’t. I really didn’t feel anything. She goes on to ask me to attend his funeral and then says that she’d like to reconnect with me. I considered it, but in the end, I kept to my decision to never see them again. I was polite about it, but I turned her down and explained that it was far too late in the game for her to attempt to reconnect with me. They discarded me simply because I couldn’t be who they wanted me to be.
Over the next few years, Benny constantly asks me to marry him, and I always tell him, ‘after we graduate.’ Ben goes on to attain a Master’s degree in Engineering, and I get a Master’s in Mathematics. A month after we graduate, I work toward attaining my teaching certificate while Benny gets a job with a civil engineering firm in Miami. As a teacher, I can work just about anywhere, so I look in and around Miami and settle on a private school that’s hiring. We buy a fairly large house on the outskirts of Miami and busily begin setting up.
Of course, the day after he gets the job, he takes me out to dinner and proposes to me. As everyone knew I would, I say yes. When we get home, I immediately call my parents and tell them. Next, I call Megan and tell her, then ask her to be my Maid of Honor.
Six months later, we get married in a little church in my hometown. You wouldn’t believe the number of people that attended our wedding. After the reception party, we fly out for our honeymoon in Aruba. I also quit taking birth control a few weeks before our wedding, so we’re quite sure that our first child, Scarlett Elizabeth Devons, is conceived during it. She’s a beautiful little green-eyed blonde, just like her mother.
I’m now 35-years-old, we have 4 children, 2 girls, and 2 boys. I still teach AP Math at a private high school in addition to coaching our cheerleading team, and Ben has become a junior partner at his firm. We have a wonderful life together and are very happy.
I’ve often thought over the years that without my accident, I’d most likely never have become the happy woman I am now. Is it fate? Or, merely happenstance? I may never know, but I love my life, so even if I could, I wouldn’t change a thing.
~Fin~
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that was a nice relaxing story.
Loved it thanks. :)
thanks for the fun story!