Every summer has its own story

Abigail was a fifteen-year-old girl with dirty blonde hair that fell gracefully over her shoulders. Her eyes, a light brown, were placed gently over her dispersed freckles. She was a misfit in school, not too many friends by her side. Sure, there were her best friends Kaitlin and Monica, but they were always leaving her out, and she barley even considered them her best friends anymore.

Her life was all but exciting. She went to school every day studying hard to achieve good grades. With soccer and track, which she barley even liked anymore, she had minimal time to have a life outside of school. Her parents were strict, not allowing her to do much and contributing to her to her status as an outcast. No, she was not the victim of bullying. Yet she still felt out of place and unwanted, considering she was one of the few people in the grade that didn’t go out every weekend and act like an adult. Of course, she would have loved to be one of the girls like Jess and Lea, who was loved by everyone and wanted by every guy. However, she was not that fortunate and she has come to accept it.

Jess was her neighbor; they lived in a small neighborhood consisting of small older looking homes. Jess has been much like the evil side of her since she moved in. They were so similar in so many ways that it has become a competition that Abigail never won. Every day, Abigail would become more and more tired of the average everyday life. Nothing exciting ever happened that at least called for bragging about. So instead, she just followed her every day routine and it was getting old. All she had to look forward to was summer. Summer was the only time Abigail could really get away from everything because she went to California every summer to visit her great-aunt, Shelby. This was one of the few things her parents actually let her leave the house for.

It was Wednesday afternoon, June 12th, with only one week of school left until Abigail could finally escape. The day was scorching hot and she could feel the heat pounding through the window of her math classroom. She didn’t want to go to her soccer game after school, but she had no other choice. The clock was taking forever to hit 2:30, and she had been focused on her teacher blabbering on for so long that it had become gibberish to her. The bell finally rang and Abigail had to rush to the locker room to change for the game, so that she wouldn’t miss the bus with it being an away game. Once she finished getting ready and made it to the bus, she noticed that the boys’ team was also going with them. It was just her and Logan on the bus at first. Logan was the captain of the varsity team and every girl was in love with him. However, Abigail never found much interest in him until he noticed her.

“Hi, Abigail, right?” Logan said

“Uhm, yeah… hi” Said Abigail

“I’m Logan, but you probably already know that,” Logan claimed as her flipped his thick blonde hair.

There was silence for a while and then Logan disturbed it.

“You’re pretty good, I heard.”

“Thanks,” Abigail smirked.

“For a girl,” Logan snickered.

Then, Jesse and Lea got on the bus along with the rest of the girls, and they all chuckled as they noticed the two of them talking. Abigail immediately turned away, but before she could zone the girls out one of them said,

“Ha! Logan what are you doing talking to tha…That…Abigail.”

“Oh c’mon she’s not that bad, and she’s a pretty good soccer player,” he replied adamantly.

Abigail struggled to keep back the smile, but managed to give the rest of the players a sarcastic smirk. They proceeded to the game, with the other kids having already forgotten about her. She just put in her headphones and daydreamed about what had just happened. No boy has even acknowledged her before. She knew he wasn’t interested, but it was nice that someone even knew her name for once.

Once she got to the field, all the thoughts of Logan had vanished and she was only focused on the game. Both Jesse and Abigail were considered the best players on the team, so the competition was intense. The game started and each time Abigail got the ball she struggled to dribble it to the goal. For some reason, she didn’t bring her A game, today. Jesse was doing amazing as always and it was just creating more tension in Abigail. She was open right for a goal, but Jesse would not pass the ball to her. They were down by one goal and if Abigail could get her foot on the ball, she knew she would be able to tie the game. But, as always, Jesse passed it to Lea, who was not even good and just playing for the reputation. Lea lost the ball and turned it over to the other team. Their team lost, it left a horrible feeling inside of Abigail since she is supposed to be this great player. She knew that she was too focused on leaving for California next week that she could not concentrate on the game. As she got on the bus, she was feeling extremely disappointed and did not even want to see Logan’s face. She sat in the back seat and put her head down with her music on, waiting for the rest of her teammates to return to the bus. Everyone looked at her in hateful ways, or at least she felt they were. She knew she should have competed better, but she didn’t even care about soccer anymore. Jess sat in the seat directly behind her with Logan. She could hear them talking about the game and as she pretended to listen to music, she focused in on their conversation.

“… yeah, it was a pretty bad game. I was the only one trying,” Jess said

“It was pretty bad, but I don’t think you were the only one trying,” Logan replied

“Yeah, I was. Abby ruined the game for us all.”

“Leave her alone, Jess, she just had an off game. Everyone has off games,” Logan responded.

Jess bragged, “Not me!”

“Uh, yeah…okay, you keep on thinking that,” Logan said annoyed as he moved to another seat with his friend.

Abigail knew Jess was a b**ch, so the rude remarks about her playing did not surprise her. But, she didn’t think that someone would actually stick up for her. Why her? Why does he even care? She’s nothing compared to him. These thoughts flowed through her mind the entire way back to the school. She couldn’t find the answer for anything, but it made her feel something she’s never felt before.

It was finally the last day of school and Abigail left early to get her nails done with her cousin, who she would be leaving for California with in exactly six hours. All her bags were packed at home, so she could spend the rest of the day fantasizing about her get away. California was a paradise to her. It was her happy place where she did not have to worry about grades or sports. She could actually be a normal girl for once. She loved relaxing in the sun and coming home with golden, bronzed skin. As she was getting her nails painted, a weird thought came through her mind. She was thinking about Logan. She was imagining what it would be like to be his girlfriend. She had never had a boyfriend before. Of course, she had crushes, but these were thoughts that had never crossed her mind before. She brushed it off before she could go into depth with it.

“Yes, I want a design,” she replied to the woman, who was inquiring about her nails.

Abigail tried to stop thinking about Logan, focusing on the television above her. Somehow, though, he kept being brought up.

“Do you have a boyfriend, sweetie?” the women asked genuinely to start a conversation.

“Oh, no, I don’t,” Abigail replied as she thought deeply about the word boyfriend.

As soon as she replied, her thoughts on Logan were being revisited. But they were dismissed later as she paid the cashier and left the salon with her cousin.

“So, you really don’t have a boyfriend?” her cousin, Gabby, questioned.

“No, I don’t. Gabby, you know that,” Abigail hit Gabby playfully and they drove home.

The car was already packed thanks to her mother, so they headed to the airport moments after they got home. Her mother had this gloomy look on her face as they drove there. However, Abigail and Gabby couldn’t contain their excitement about going to California.

“Turn on the radio, Mom,” Abigail said.

Her mom did as she asked, and a song about love, as always, was playing.

Boyfriend. Boyfriend. Logan. Boyfriend. These thoughts were on replay in her mind.

She somewhat wish she could have talked to Logan more on the bus. She threw curses at Jess in her mind because she was the one who ruined the moment her and Logan were having. She could see the planes in the near distant and that’s when it hit her. She was more excited than ever that she was going to California. Her and Gabby gave their parents hugs goodbye and boarded the plane. During the ride, she didn’t realize until Gabby pointed it out that the boy sitting across from her had been staring at her for a while. Gabby was always an obnoxious girl, so she whispered to the boy

“She’s a pretty one, right?

“Uhm, yeah. She’s okay” the boy replied in a muffled voice.

“If she was just okay, then why are you staring?” Gabby replied.

The boy seemed shy with his beet red face, and he replied “Yeah, okay. She’s pretty cute.”

Abigail didn’t understand. Boys NEVER noticed her. She wasn’t the kind of girl that boys stared at. Gabby winked at her and giggled,

“You’re going to get a boyfriend.”

Abigail brushed off the comment, but she felt happy the for once she was standing out.

The taxi brought them to their great-aunt’s house and she was waiting for them with a bright, welcoming smile. Her house was huge with an underground pool. There was also a beautiful relaxing room with the view of the nearest beach that Abigail loved to get lost in a book at. Every year, her aunt bought her new books for her to read and she loved it. The two girls and their aunt spent some time together and ate dinner. It was late when they had first gotten there, so by the time they were done eating, it was already about 8:00 pm. Usually, they would all do something together but this year, the girls were older. Instead of taking them to see a movie or walk on the boardwalk, their great-aunt gave them permission to explore on their own for the night. They were required to be home by 11:45, but they both knew their aunt didn’t actually care. She was a cool aunt she loved the idea of allowing them to have fun. Abigail and Gabby both rushed quickly into their two guest rooms, so that they could quickly prepare themselves for the night ahead. Abigail unpacked her suitcase and began putting some clothes out on her bed to choose from, considering the clothes she was already wearing weren’t particularly cute. She threw on a soccer tournament t-shirt and a pair of denim shorts. She put her hair in a ponytail and entered Gabby’s room to check if she was ready.

“Oh, no, Abby. You are not going out like that tonight. Come here, I’ll fix you up” Gabby said confidentially.

Gabby was always the more mature cousin. She was one of those girls that Abigail wasn’t. She went to a different school, but she still was friends with people in her grade that wouldn’t even talk to Abigail. She proceeded into Gaby’s room and sat on her bed while she patiently waited for her to finish straightening her hair.
“YOUR TURN!” Gabby said enthusiastically

Abigail gave her a sarcastic look and then let her do her job. She picked out a new outfit for Abigail. Instead of her t-shirt, she gave her a peach colored tank top that fell just below her belly button, so that her skinny hip bones were showing. She also gave her a pair of slightly high wasted black shorts that were just a slight bit baggy considering Abigail was a size 4 and Gabby was a size 6. But, it was okay because the peach belt brought it all together perfectly.

“Now take down your hair, girl.” Gabby commanded.

Abigail slowly removed the hair tie from her hair, letting it fell messily onto her face and back. Gabby messed it up and parted it a bit. Abigail’s hair had natural waves with no frizz, Gabby didn’t need to do much. Gabby threw some lip gloss at Abigail and they were out the door. They walked down to the inner city and entered an amazing place. Everyone seemed happy and like they were having fun. There was what seemed to be millions of people of all ages walking around, but from a far distance Abigail recognized a familiar face. She instantly blushed and wanted to turn around. I can’t believe this, she thought. She didn’t want him to see her all dressed up like this. She felt funny and embarrassed because it was not her.

“What’s the matter with you?” Gabby asked.

“Nothing,” Abigail replied anxiously.

“Maybe we should go the other way,” she turned as Logan moved even closer to her.

“OH MY GOSH IS THAT LOGAN?” Gabby asked excitedly.

“Uh, yeah…” Abigail replied.

“You totally have a crush on him. Look at your face, you’re turning redder than my shirt,” Gabby smirked.

Her shirt was pretty red and if she was becoming that red, Abigail knew she should definitely turn around before he saw her. But, Gabby was already shouting,

“Hey, Logan!”

“I don’t think he heard you Gabby, we should just turn around now” Abigail pleaded.

“HA! Nope!” Gabby said as she ran up to him.

Logan looked was confused until he noticed Abigail.

“Oh, my gosh! No way! Am I really in the same place as the Abigail right now?” he said sarcastically.

“Ha, what a coincidence,” Abigail smirked not amused.

Logan was looking at Abigail in a way he never did before. He couldn’t take his eyes off of her and she was enjoying it.

“What are you staring at?!” Logan’s older brother remarked.

“Uhm, if you couldn’t tell Abigail is probably the prettiest girl here right now, who wouldn’t be staring?” Logan whispered out loud.

Abigail’s cheeks turned bright red. Gabby gave her a certain look that she didn’t understand and then, they suddenly changed the subject. They were talking about how weird it is that they were in the same place right now, but all Abigail could think about was how Logan had just called her pretty. Did he always think I was pretty? Or is it just because my shirt is too short and my a** is hanging out of my shorts, she thought. But still, he called her pretty and it made her feel amazing. But then again, what about Jess? How would she feel knowing he just called me pretty? Abigail thought, well, whatever. I don’t really care. They walked down the crowded road all at the same pace and were all playing around. As they continued on, they stopped at three different ice cream shops before Gabby could find the ice cream she wanted. However, it was getting pretty late and their aunt had called.

“Well, it has been fun. We better start heading home,” Abigail suggested.

“Oh I was just going to see if you guys wanted to come back to my grandmother’s house to watch a movie for a while, but that’s okay,” Logan said with disappointment.

Gabby was obviously interested in the other boy whose name was either Jake or Jack. Abigail couldn’t figure it out because all she kept thinking about was Logan and the word boyfriend. This was all pretty new to her. She didn’t know exactly how to react but she felt butterflies every time he looked at her. Gabby smirked,

“I got this.”

She sent their aunt a text saying that they were going to go over a friend’s house that they coincidentally met here. Their aunt replied with a smiley face,

Ok. Be safe. Call me if you need me.

The four teenagers walked into the small home. It was nice and cozy, but not nearly as beautiful as Abigail’s aunt’s house. Logan introduced them to his grandma and she laughed out of disbelief, but she didn’t seem to mind much that they were in her home. She was an older lady, must have been in her early 70’s, but she seemed to be in great shape. The first thing Abigail noticed was that his grandmother had passed down her thick blonde hair to him. That’s cute, she thought. Logan led them to his room. It was small and blue. The blue was much darker than his eyes, but still reminded Abigail of them.

“Uh, this room is a mess, but you guys can either sit on my bed or I’ll bring in a few chairs from the living room,” Logan said with slight embarrassment.

Both girls sat down on his bed. Gabby made herself comfy next to Jack or Jake. He was into her too. Of course, he would be, she was “hot”. He immdeditally put his arm around her and he chuckled

“Your turn, bro,” he said, referring to Logan.

“Shut up, she’s too good for me,” Logan replied jokingly.

Logan had the weirdest vibe to him. He was very cocky and usually that would be a turn off for Abigail, but he did it in such an adorable way that it attracted her.

“What movie guys, ‘She’s the man’?” he once again directed that at Abigail, making fun of her in a friendly manner. It’s cute, she thought, I like it.

“Ha, ha you are quite the comedian, aren’t you?” Abigail asked sarcastically, “I’d actually prefer to watch something that didn’t involve soccer. Summer is the only time I get to escape from it.”

“Escape? Yeah, me too,” Logan said, “so ‘Lovely Bones’ it is.”

Everyone agreed. However, the other two were so interested in each other that they weren’t even paying attention to anything coming out of Logan’s or Abigail’s mouth. It felt as if it were Logan and Abigail in the room. He sat on the bed beside her and just smiled. He didn’t say anything or do anything, he just stared and smiled.

“Uhm, what?” Abigail asked confused, “is there something on my face?”

“Yeah there is, it’s a whole lot of beautiful,” he said.

“Oh,” Abigail said shyly.

Her cheeks were red once again and she didn’t know how to reply to that. Logan wasn’t the kind of guy she would ever see herself flirting with. She didn’t even know how to tell him she liked his eyes. But, anyways the awkwardness got even worse when Jake, yes, his name was Jake, said that him and Gabby were going to go into the guest room. After they left, Logan laughed. She didn’t know why he laughed, but she thought his laugh was funny, so she laughed too. He then laid down on his bed and suggested she lay next to him. He placed his arm gently over her and she flinched. He could feel she was nervous, so he immediately removed it and they just laid there talking about everything. Everything. They talked about soccer, school, and even how Logan didn’t even like Jess that much due to her being too much of a drama queen. He came off more much more similar to Abigail than expected. He was actually just like her. He also didn’t like playing soccer as much anymore now that it’s about competition, but he didn’t mind bragging about how good he was. He even challenged her to a one-on-one, the day before their vacations were over. She found out some of his biggest secrets that night, but she didn’t reveal any of hers. He was making it clear that he was very interested in her. He called her beautiful multiple times and even referred to her as mysterious, which may have seemed rude, but she liked the way it sounded. After the movie was over, they waited for a couple of minutes until Gabby returned to the room.

“Well, it’s passed midnight. Maybe we should walk home now.”

“Uh, no my grandma will drive you. It’s so late and any guy who sees two gorgeous girls like you two wouldn’t hesitate to snatch you up”

“Weirdo,” Abigail replied.

They all got in the very small car that only fit four people, so they were squished in the back with no space. That didn’t even bother Abigail, though. She couldn’t believe that night had just happened. Before pulling into the girl’s beautiful home, Logan snatched Abigail’s phone and put his number in.

Logan can beat me in soccer, he typed as his name.

“What a cute name, nice try,” Abigail laughed and got out of the car. The two girls ran in the house and immediately went to their rooms.

No, you can’t, Abigail texted Logan after putting her pajamas on.

Lol, I can. Goodnight, Abby, Logan texted back.

Abigail grabbed her laptop and checked her Facebook. Logan’s relationship status no longer said “in a relationship” with Jess. Wow was this a sign? she thought, No, no they probably just got into a fight; don’t start thinking anything stupid. Seconds later, she received a message from Jess,

You b**ch! Logan doesn’t like you; he just wants to hook up. Don’t think you’re special, you’re a part of his game, too.

Abigail didn’t know how to react. She now knew that she was the reason they broke up. Logan was even talking about her to Jess. That must have pissed her off so much, she thought That left Abigail feeling good. But were her words true?, she thought. Abigail knew that Logan was seen as a player, and she was overthinking this remark much more than she should have. He had her lying next to him the first time they hung out. She could feel her stomach sink. She was so disappointed that she started really believing this. She couldn’t fall asleep that night. so she just replayed everything that had just happened through her mind. It made her noxious. The word boyfriend that kept flowing through her thoughts changed to the phrase being used. She didn’t want it to happen. She had thought that for once someone had noticed her for her.

The next morning she mentioned to Gabby what Jess had said.

“Uhm, I don’t know Abbs, he does have a name for himself and for some reason I don’t see him actually liking you. Don’t take that to heart; I just don’t want you to be hurt.”

But, she was hurt. This statement made her hurt even more. Her own cousin couldn’t believe someone as great as him would like someone like her. She tried to forget about it by going out with her aunt. Gabby went her own way as always, while they went shopping. Abigail bought some new clothes, clothes that she would have never worn if it wasn’t for the way Logan looked at her. She bought a few cropped tops and shorts that were shorter than usual. She knew her parents would never let her go out with them on, but she figured it was her escape time and her aunt didn’t care; she loved spending money. They went to lunch at some fancy restaurant where Abigail ordered chicken tenders; she was not fancy. While waiting for her food she noticed the time, it was already 4 in the afternoon and she had three texts from Logan.

Good morning Abigail!

You gonna come over to play soccer today?

I’m going to win.

I think you’re scared.

She didn’t want to reply and seem desperate, but she did.

A loser, like me, part of your game? Wow who knew the Logan has low standards.

He replied instantly with multiple messages

What game? I don’t play anything but soccer ;)

She thought this one was sarcasm until she received the next

I’m serious, Abigail. Don’t believe what that stuck up brat is telling you; she is just jealous.

I’m sorry about Jess, Abigail, but do not take this out on me, I WANT to get to know you not get with you…. yet, ha-ha. Don’t worry, I’m joking.

Abigail giggled and replied,


Ok, I’m coming over for that game in an hour. Better prepare yourself.

She felt better about the situation as she knew something was right between them. She rushed to eat her food, so that she could go put on a pair of her new shorts and go to go to Logan’s. When she got home, Gabby was back from wherever she had gone.

“Where you goin, Abbs?” Gabby questioned

“Logan was asking about you,” she followed up before Abigail could even reply. “I think I was wrong about him. He might be your boyfriend.”

There was the word again. It made Abigail cringe and feel butterflies all at the same time. She laughed and nudged Gabby on the arm. Then, she ran out the door with a cute outfit on to meet up with Logan. He surprised her half way there.

“Good thing you’re wearing nice clothes, I thought we’d do something else rather than play soccer,” Logan said, “beach?”

“But uhm I don’t have my bat…” Abigail started before Logan cut her off.

“That’s good. Didn’t want you thinking I just wanted to see you in a bikini.”

They both laughed and walked over to the beach. It was really hot out and Abigail could feel the sun burning her pale skin. She didn’t mind getting burned though because it turned into a tan. She put her hair into a ponytail to remove some of the heat.

“That’s the Abigail I fell for the moment you talked to me. Not the one wearing skimpy clothes and doing nice things with her hair, although that is pretty nice to look at. It’s just you,” Logan said fondly.

The two teens spent the rest of the vacation together. They didn’t bother with anything else just each other and Abigail had never felt so complete. They didn’t talk much when they returned to their boring old town, but two days before school started Logan sent her a text,

I am your boyfriend…Right?