Summer Sun

2 days left. And then he would be gone. The house would be back to normal, but she would never be the same. 

Saturday

The sun’s warm rays danced playfully around her room as Alison woke up. It was bright, too bright, and didn’t match the hole she was digging in her heart. She had grown fond of Derek’s strange ways and rather disliked the idea of him leaving at the end of the summer. 

Slowly she sat up and heard two chimes. Oh shit! I’ve already wasted time, she groaned. Breakfast was going to start in 5 minutes which meant it was 9:55 in the morning. Why hadn’t Derek come to wake her? With time waning short she thought he would want to spend his last days with her… She stumbled around quickly throwing on a bathing suit, some shorts, and grabbing her sunglasses went downstairs. 

“Someone slept in late”. 

Alison could hear the smirk on his face without turning around. They had really gotten to know each other very well these past two months, it really us such a shame all good things tend to come to an end. “Someone didn’t wake me up” she responded and spun around to look into that face she’d grown to love. 

The relationship these two shared was as special as they come. There’s nothing quite like young love, passionate, and fiery. Anyone who saw these two on their morning walks or afternoon swims would say they were soulmates and the only people who denied it were Alison and Derek themselves. Besides, what’s the point of falling in love when the person you love is going to leave anyway. 

“Come on” and with a sly smile they went down for the third to last breakfast they would ever have together. 

Though to Alison it seemed that the world was slowly collapsing, no one stopped to acknowledge the family member who was leaving soon. Perhaps it was because they were used to having guests for the summer that always left, or perhaps it was because Derek really was different. He was much more like family than the other guests over the years. He never missed a family meal, he never opposed their family traditions or imposed with his. He learned from them, and they learned from him. It was different, but especially for Alison. 

As a girl of 20, she was newly becoming interested in real relationships in life, and though the guests for the summer were never exceedingly old, they never were really her age or paid any real attention to her. Not the way Derek did. 

The rest of the day was just as normal as breakfast. They lounged about the yard until lunchtime, Alison working on her latest designs, and Derek assisting her parents’ studies for the third to last time. At 2:00 pm they went for lunch the third to last time. Alison and Derek walked into the town for the third to last time and drank coffee at their favorite cafe for the third to last time. And eventually, they wandered back home and lazed about in the pool area for the third to last time. 

Looking back on it, Alison would remember the golden summer haze and wonder why she didn’t say anything. Why hadn’t she just gotten up and told him that she couldn’t stand him leaving? And for years to come, she would sit at all those normal spots, the cafe, the pool, the sofa, and wonder why they waited ‘till the last minute to be real. 

Laying in bed that night she tossed and turned. She could feel every second being wasted as Derek slept in the other room. How is it that he can sleep, she would ask herself. Of course, little did she know that he was awake. For several hours she lay in bed, and though her heart was screaming at her to run into the room next door, her unfaithful head kept her still. Tears streaming down her face she imagined all the things summer could’ve been, had she the courage to act on any of her feelings. Alas, courage she had not, and so eventually she fell into a slumber filled with darkness and loneliness, preparing herself for the last day she would ever have with Derek. 

Sunday

This time, her anxiety woke her up nice and promptly at 7:00 am. Approximately 5 hours of sleep, yet as her heart was racing, she was wide awake. She sat up stiff and still in her bed trying to hear any movement in Derek’s room. Upon hearing nothing, she decided he was still asleep. Drowsiness immediately settling in her bones, she crawled out of bed and put on a dress. In her head, she rationally knew that a dress wouldn’t make Derek leap with joy and confess his love for her, but in her heart, she couldn’t help but imagine and hope. 

It would be around noon with the sun high in the sky. There would be a gentle wind lifting the body of her dress in the most magical way. She would be standing in her flower garden surrounded by only the most vibrant colors and sweet-smelling plants as she would turn around to face him. The wind just catching her hair perfectly, and her smile gentle but wide. He would blush, and through some kind of romantic movie, speech get to the fact that this whole summer has been agony for him as all he wanted was to be with her, but was unsure she felt the same way. She would step closer and say, of course, I do, and maybe they would kiss. He would tell her that he will come back for her, and maybe in a few years they’ll both live here forever. 

A harsh knock on the door made Alison jump. As the door creaked open she saw the boy she’d just been daydreaming about. 

“Wanna talk a walk?” he said in his cool tone.

“Sure.” 

Together they left the house as they always had done, except yesterday of course, and walked into town. They walked in silence. Both of them knew that this would probably be the last time, as he was going to early in the morning tomorrow, but neither wanted to say it. But it weighed heavily on their little hearts. Some small conversation, lots of long pauses of thinking, and some laughing lead them in a full circle back to the house. Just before they entered back inside to prepare themselves for the approaching meal, Derek began to slow down. 

“What?” asked Alison innocently, hoping it was finally the moment she’d been waiting for. 

There was a long silence. 

“I’m going to miss you.”

“Oh. Me too.” 

And they walked back to their rooms hand in hand, which was not unusual for them to do. 

To her dismay, today was not as special as she thought it would be. Her mother spent the day making sure all of Derek’s things were packed. Her father spent the day organizing all the notes he and Derek had taken. And Alison spent the day in her flower garden. Stalling. Whether she was actually picking flowers to put on the dining room table for the last dinner, or she was simply sitting there waiting for her turn to say goodbye to the man of the hour. Her parents love each and every houseguest that comes through their home, so to them, Derek was no different. But he really was different to Alison. Derek never came into the flower garden, so the only times she saw him was that morning, breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Dinner was hard for everyone. Well not as hard as it was for Alison. She just couldn’t stop looking at him, remembering this would be one of her last memories with him, getting misty eyes, and looking away. Her father made a small speech about how helpful Derek had been. Her mother made a little speech about how kind he had been. He made a little speech about how grateful he has been. And Alison sat their silently. And everyone was okay with it. 

That night, just as she was walking into her room to turn in after watching a final movie altogether, Derek stopped her in her tracks. 

“Ally…” This was one of the few times there was uncertainty in his voice.

“Yes?”

“...good night” and with a little sigh, he walked into his room and closed the door leaving Alison in the dark hallway with her thoughts. 

That night, she really couldn’t sleep. And she could hear pacing in Derek’s room too. Eventually, she heard her old bed give a little squeak and she knew he was in bed and perhaps already fast asleep. But she couldn’t even close her eyes. In just a few hours he would be gone. There would be a new guest next summer but no matter who it was it would never be like this last one. She had never felt so special in her life as when she was with him. Everything from fishing at the lake, dancing in the streets, hanging with her friends, drinking a little coffee, just seemed so dark and depressing without him. And that’s when her door opened. 

Monday

“Allie. I couldn’t sleep, can we talk?”

It was one in the morning when the two of them walked out into her flower garden. They sat down in their pajamas and looked into each other’s eyes. There was no need to talk. They just sat. And their hearts spoke to each other in a way they just couldn’t bring their mouths to do. After a few minutes, Alison finally spoke. 

“You’re not going to come back, are you?”

There was a pause. It felt like it lasted for an eternity when in reality it only lasted a few seconds. 

“I don’t think so.” Derek broke the eye contact. 

All of a sudden Alison was mad. Really? He couldn’t even look her in the eye to tell her that he was never going to come back? 

“Why?” The word came out sharp, and the look in her eyes pained him greatly. 

“I don’t know.” But as Derek looked back at her they both knew. It was just too hard. She understood. 

The whole weekend Derek had been thinking about the things the summer could have been. It wasn’t just Alison. And on their walk, Derek also had wanted to say a thousand things, but he too didn’t have the courage. And so all that was left was sitting in the garden for hours. Talking about all their favorite memories, and the things they would miss the most. And they watched the sunrise together. Which was new. And that would stick with her forever. Or at least as long as forever seems in a young girl’s mind. 

That morning went by quickly. Her family was up early to make sure everything was packed and ready to go. Eventually, though she can’t remember when, Derek left her side to get dressed.

As they sat on the bench in front of her house, there were no words to say. Unlike the days before, this Monday was unnaturally foggy. They sat on the wooden bench, legs slightly touching each other, and said absolutely nothing. The taxi was meant to arrive in nine minutes. And he would be gone.