Cayden's POV

    Time flies when you're having fun.

    Isn't that the truth? Our vacation here in Hawai'i just ran by right before my eyes. It feels like we landed only yesterday. And here we are, one day before our flight back home.

    On our first full day, the girls took Cayleigh and I to Sea Life Park. We learned about the different sea animals, watched a sea lion and dolphin show, and walked in a cage full birds, where they were literally sitting on our hands. Leila and Kelsey even surprised Cayleigh with tickets to go swimming with the dolphins. She was very excited for that. Brooke and I watched from the side as the three of them got to spend quality time together. 

    As the sun started to go down, we made our way back to the car. When I went to open the back door for the girls to get in, they instead stopped at the trunk and looked inside. Brooke pulled a bag full of matching aloha attire for the three of us out, handed me a button up collared shirt, and instructed me to put it on.

    "What's this for," I asked while Leila and Kelsey began to pull they're own clothes out of the trunk.

    "You didn't think I'd bring you guys all the way to Hawai'i and not treat you to a luau, did you," she answered.

    I've never actually ate Hawaiian food before. But by the way Brooke and Jake talked about it, you'd think that God prepared the meals himself.

    "I'm gonna eat like a king tonight, aren't I," I smiled at her. Then I looked over at Leila and Kelsey who were both looking back at me. "And right beside my two favorite court jesters." Kelsey responded by flicking me off while Leila threatened to make me walk back to the hotel.

    The next day, I met up with Dylan and a bunch of other kids from his school. Since they were in the off season, the boys wanted to put some time in by doing drills and playing a quick pick up game. I helped out as much as I could, giving advice where I saw necessary. While they all believed playing college ball was a long shot for them, I thought they were pretty good. A lot of them had skills and natural talent that could easily get them picked up by D1 schools.

    The third day was the most nerve wrecking of all. It was the day I was going to meet Brooke's parents and Leila and her siblings' mom. 

    The cousins and Brody all spent the night before with us, so we all decided to eat breakfast at the restaurant in our hotel. It was a buffet. Cayleigh was literally in bacon heaven. At one point, Dylan even challenged her to a bacon eating contest. I swear she ate almost as much as she weighed.

    We met up with the parents at the beach right outside our hotel a little after noon. According to Brooke, the six of them were practically raised at that beach. Every weekend, every break, every birthday or holiday occasion - basically anytime they weren't at school - they were at that specific beach.

    After arriving, we stopped at a bunch of pop up tents that were all standing next to each other. There was also a lot more than just three people there. There had to be at least 20 people. Minimum.

    "Who's all those people next to your parents," I asked.

    "Our aunties and uncles," Brooke responded.

    "All of them? Your mom and dad has that many siblings and cousins?"

    "No. Most of them are family friends."

    "And I have to meet all of them?"

    "Why? You scared, Cayd," Kelsey goaded. I could always count on her to give me shit.

    "Wouldn't you be if you had to meet 50 of your boyfriend's family members all at once?"

    "Oh, stop being a baby," Brooke rolled her eyes. She grabbed on to my wrist and began to pull me to the tent her parents were under. "Let's go." 

    Long story short, I ended up meeting her family and then some that day. Brooke's parents are great. It should have been no surprise to anyone that Brooke ended up being such an amazing person because she was raised by pretty amazing people.

    However, what was a surprise to me was how different Leila and Kelsey are from their mom. Dylan, too. If anything, Noa is the most similar to her out of all her kids. Aunty Kelly, which is what Cayleigh and I were instructed to call her, is so sweet and quiet, while her daughters are -- the exact opposite of that. 

    But if anyone was to say I said that, I'll deny it.

    Also, on the contrary to what Brooke believed, her parents weren't mad at her at all for bring me and Cayleigh along for Spring Break. However, they did express to me why they were hesitant on being supportive of Brooke and Cayleigh's relationship. 

    To be honest though, I always saw and understood where they were coming from. But I guess when they saw with their own eyes how much Cayleigh really means to Brooke, and vice versa, they changed their mind.

    And let's not forget how charming our little girl can be. 

    Brooke's parents ended up being worse than Brooke and I when it comes to spoiling Cayleigh. Especially Brooke's dad. And when Cayleigh started calling him Papa, which is what Brooke's family call their grandfather, you could just see his hard core demeanor melt off of him, leaving him to be nothing but an undercover softie. It was like his life long dream was to become a grandparent.

    "Hey Cayd? You gon' come jump off the wall with us," Brody asked, talking about the sea wall at the beach that extended from the shore out into the ocean. "Or you just gon' keep using Cay as an excuse to get out of it."

    "Yeah," Dylan smirked. "You know, because you're scared."

    I brought my hand out of the sand beneath me and directed my middle finger up at them. "Fuck you guys. I'm just trying to spend quality time with my woman and daughter."

    They all started to laughed at me. "Yeah. Yeah. Yeah," Dylan said as he, Brody, and Noa began to walk away. "Chicken shit!"

    I was just about to throw another great comeback back his way but got distracted when I heard one of my favorite sounds. Brooke's laugh. She was a few yards away, in the water with Cayleigh, staring right back at me while shaking her head. Clearly she just heard the conversation between the guys and I.

    Isn't it great knowing that your girlfriend is so supportive of her family bullying you?

    I pouted my lip at her, knowing if I did she would come to me and stroke my bruised ego. And as if on command, she stood up with Cayleigh in her arms and made her way out of the water and over to me. She whispered in Cayleigh's ear just before she was in front of me.  

    "Daddy, mommy said if you keep that face on, it's gonna stay like that forever," Cayleigh laughed.

    "It's okay. Tell mommy I said the ladies love sad looking guys."

    She gave me a confused look. "But mommy's a lady and she thinks you look like a cry baby."

    Brooke gasped at her. "I did not say that," she told me with wide eyes.

    "Yeah. Yeah. I see how it is."

    Before she could respond, Brooke's dad walked to the three of us and immediately took Cayleigh out of her hands. I swear, he's only known Cayleigh for three whole days and he's already so in love with her. 

    "Papa's going to the store. Do you wanna go with me and get candy or ice cream?"

    "Yes," she screamed.

   "Okay. Then let's go!" They began to walk away, Cayleigh still in his arms. When they were a few yards away from us, Brooke's dad stopped and turned around. "Cay's sleeping over at the house tonight so mom and I can take her out in the morning. You guys can pick her up before you go to the airport."

    "Wow. I guess that means we weren't invited," Brooke murmured under her breath.

    "I guess not." I wrapped my arms around her hips and pulled her against me. "But on the bright side, at least now we'll be able to experience our first Cayleigh-free night. Maybe even our first Cayleigh-free dinner date."

    "That's a bright side?"

    I gave her a pointed look. "Baby, I know you love eating at places that serve chicken fingers. But for once I want to take you to a restaurant where we both can drink some kind of alcoholic beverage with dinner. Not chocolate milk."

    "What do you have against chocolate milk?" Then she gave me the same kind of look I was giving her. "And why do I feel like you're low key shading me right now?"

    "I'm not, Little Miss Can I Get A Grilled Cheese Sandwich And French Fries!"

    She roughly shoved my shoulder. "Okay, where's Leila and Kelsey? I need their help putting you in your place."

    "Ask and you shall receive," Leila said behind me, scaring the shit out of me in the process.

    "What's up," Kelsey immediately followed after her. "Is Cayd being an asshole again?"

    I scoffed at her. "Me being an asshole? Do you really get to say that?" She shrugged at me in response.

    "He's teasing my dinner preferences," Brooke tattled.

    "Well, bitch, you do choose your food like a five year old," Kelsey teased. "Hell, we did have a five year old with us last night and even she had a grown up meal." I gave Brooke an I told you so look, forcing her to roll her eyes back at me.

    I quickly turned her around, pulled her against my body, and sat down on the sand making her sit down too. Leila and Kelsey joined us and sat while the three of us fell into another easy conversation, which yes, concluded in one of us teasing someone else in our group.

    "When we went to Chili's in California," Brooke started on a new story. "I got this thing where you could make your own tacos. And when they brought my meat, it came with this really hot dish-" Kelsey's loud ass, obnoxious laugh cut her off. "What?"

    "I thought you were gonna say really hot guy," she continued to laughed. "I was gonna be like, Really, girl? Right in front of your boyfriend?" I smirked at the three of them, which was clearly the opposite expression Brooke expected me to have on by the look of the one she was wearing. 

    "Nah. Look at him. He ain't worried," Leila mocked. "He knows he's as hot as it gets. Even if he is a shithead."

    Brooke hit me with an evil glare when she saw I didn't remove the smirk from my face. Then she jabbed her elbow into my stomach. Luckily, my abs of steel protected me from her attack. 

    "Don't make me wipe that smile off your face for you," she threatened as she stole my hat and adjusted it to her size. "Btw, you a big head."

    I wrapped my arms around her chest, squeezed her as tight as I could, then kissed her all over her face. "That's not my only head that's big." I kissed her again. "But that's my bad since I never gave you the pleasure of seeing it yet."

    I could sense her retort on the tip of her tongue. However, I stopped paying attention to it when I saw a commotion on the wall through the corner of my eye. Usually, I pay no mind to other people's drama. Especially, when I have Brooke and Cayleigh with me. Actually, I usually make it my mission to get them as far away as possible from it. But this specific situation attracted me because it was Brody who was in the middle of it.

    Instantly, I saw Brody draw his elbow back slightly and sailed a punch right into another guy's face. On contact, the guy was knocked back a few steps. "That was for my sister." Immediately, both Brody and the guy looked in mine and Brooke's direction. Turning his head back to the guy, he yelled, "Don't even fucking think about trying to talk to her. Leave her the fuck alone. She's happy."

    Brooke's arm slowly began to wrap around my waist while she started to hide against my body. Feeling that she for some reason needed my comfort, I wrapped my arm around her also and pulled her tightly against my body. Before kissing her on the forehead, I asked, "Who is that?" 

    She didn't have to answer. I already knew.

    "Maddox."