~Melanie~

The sun blinded me as I watched a giant brown hawk fly over us on the dock.

"Come on, let's jump in the lake," a nine-year-old Bianca yelled in her tie-dyed one-piece bathing suit.

"I have to take all the butterfly clips out of my hair first," I responded, already reaching up to remove the first of many glittery colorful butterfly clips.

I had begged my mother to put them all in my hair that morning, even though we planned on going swimming.

"Last one in is a rotten egg!" Graham, Bianca's youngest cousin, declared.

"Not fair!" my youngest cousin, Kara, cried as she attempted to pull off her shorts, but her foot got stuck. She had forgotten to take off her sandals first.

I began mumbling bad words as everyone eventually jumped into the lake without me.

Ethan arrived from the cabin behind me, sipping a cold Capri-Sun. "What are you doing?"

I looked at him with my lips in a pout. "My mom put too many butterfly clips in my hair, and now everyone is in the lake but me."

"I'm not in the lake."

"Well, duh!" I put my hand on my jutted-out hip.

"Let me help you."

"Really?"

Ethan nodded with wide eyes.

"Okay then," I said, then sat down on the hot wooden dock so he could reach the top of my head.

Butterflies weren't just in my hair. A whirlwind of them fluttered in my stomach as my heart rate sped up. I held my breath as he reached for my hair.

"They keep getting caught," he said after some time.

"I know, you keep pulling my hair- Ouch!"

I pulled away and rubbed my head where it stung – tears collected in my eyes.

Ethan laughed and pointed at me, "Hey, everyone! Mel's a big crybaby!"

"Am not!" My face burned red as I clenched my jaw.

Ethan put his Capri-Sun down on the dock, then cannonballed into the lake, making a large, cold splash, the majority soaking me in my clothes that still covered my bathing suit.

Tears began to fall as I stomped back to the cabin, drenched, butterfly clips in hand.

That was the first time most of our families had been together at the cabin, and we've returned every summer since.

"Can you believe I'm nervous about meeting Bianca's family?"

I turn to James, "Why?"

"Well, they're, like, your second family that still needs to approve of me." He blushes.

"I'm sure they'll approve of you just fine. You have to worry about getting approval from my dad's mom, grandma Hansen. Marisa and Kevin have been dating for, like, five years. They're practically engaged, and she still doesn't fully approve of Kevin."

James lets out a puff of air, "Oh, great! I never thought about worrying to get the approval of your grandma..."

I rest my right hand on his leg as my left-hand steers the car around a bend. "It's okay, James. Don't worry so much."

He runs his fingers through his dark brown hair. "Well, if we're going to start a life together in Boston, we're eventually gonna marry, so I'll need all of your family's approval. And you already have all of my family's approval. They love you!"

I gape, unsure of what to say.

"Talking about Boston, do you think we should look at one- or two-bedroom apartments?"

Suddenly, I start choking, and I don't even know from what.

James pats my back, "Are you okay?"

I nod, still choking. My eyes begin to water, and the road blurs a bit. I almost miss the turn onto Main Street while I blink the tears away. Why is he bringing this up now?

"James, we've just barely graduated. Sure, you already have a sales job waiting for you at a great company, but I haven't even heard back from Boston's Department of Public Health yet for that admin job. Let's just enjoy celebrating our graduation before thinking about the future, okay?"

"Okay, if you insist," James says, then looks back out the window as we pass over Lake Pauline and drive by the best place in downtown Ludlow – Mojo Cafe.

As I turn right onto Route 100 and drive next to where Lake Pauline widens, I realize I don't know the answer to his question. I have never considered it before. I still don't understand why he talks about marriage every now and then when he hasn't proposed, either. Then again, I don't even think I'm ready to be a wife, let alone a college graduate...

We continue up the road until Lake Pauline opens up into Lake Rescue, where my family's cabin is. I'm not even thinking of going back to Boston yet. It's still way too early. I just want a break from all the chaos of city life before returning to the real world of adulting and responsibilities. Can't he understand that?

~~~