I was at a beach and the waves were slowly rolling up the shore. I was laughing and talking to a girl with long brownish black hair. Her figure looked a bit blurry but I felt like I've known her since forever. As I walked along the shore I heard someone yelling in the background and I woke up from my dream with a start.
“Hello? Anyone there?” cried a voice. I groaned and rolled out of the bed. I dragged myself to the door to see who was disturbing my sleep.

“Who is it?” I asked tiredly. I opened the door and blinked, I saw a boy around my age staring. He looked pretty cute with brownish black hair and warm brown eyes.

“Good morning Kara, did you guys get here really late last night?” the boy asked.

“Uh, yeah we arrived at 1 am. Wait why am I even talking to you? Who are you and how do you know my name?” I said.

“Don’t you remember me?” he asked.

“No, are you pulling a prank on me? ‘Cause if you are it’s not funny.” I snapped.
“Oh. Umm, sorry. Well my name’s Nick and I live in this town, my father works in the hospital that your grandmother is staying at. He wants me to tell your mom that her condition is stable so far.” said Nick. Was it just me or did he look a bit sad? His puppy dog eyes stared right into mine for a second. They looked so warm and familiar. He cleared his throat and I broke out of my trance.
“Oh yeah, I’ll go call my mom. Just wait a couple seconds can you?” I turned around and yelled as loudly as I could, “MOM, THERE’S SOMEONE HERE FOR YOU!”
“There she should be here soon; you can come in if you want.” I turned back to say as I walked back to my room to change.
“Kara you didn't have to yell that loudly, you could wake up the whole town with that voice of yours.” my mother teased as I walked past her. I closed the door to change, it was warmer here than Ohio so I wore a pair of capris and a tanktop. I quickly changed and went to the kitchen to get breakfast. I walked past the living room and heard my mom talking with Nick. What was with that guy anyway, playing a prank so early in the morning? I opened the fridge and the cabinets, there was no food here!
“Mom! There’s no food in this house.” I complained. I walked into the living room and stood next to my mom.
“What a coincidence! I was just telling Nick to show you around town, you guys can go get breakfast on the way. Go have fun you two; I’m going to visit your grandmother.” My mother said as she sat up from a chair.
“Wai-” I cried as my mother walked away. I sighed and turned around; I guess I was going to be stuck with this guy for a while.
“Well you must be starving, so what do you want to eat?” Nick asked awkwardly.
“Since you know the town better than I do why don’t you show me what’s good?” I said. Well if I had to be stuck with this guy at least I could enjoy my summer vacation.
“Why don’t we go to Whinny’s? It serves the best pancakes in town. After that you want to walk around the town?” Nick asked.
“Sure! Pancakes are my favorite!” I replied.
After two orders of pancakes and a quick stop at the flower shop we decided to check up on my mom. We walked into the hospital and a nurse guided us to my grandmother’s room.
“Hi mom, how’s gran doing? I haven’t seen her for a while; usually she the one who comes to visit us. Oh and I almost forgot, we brought some flowers.” I said, trying to cheer my mom up.
“Thanks honey, the doctor says she should wake up soon. Kara, why don’t you call your father and tell him to go grocery shopping with you so we have some food tomorrow? Oh and another thing I almost forgot to mention, Nick your father was looking for you so you should probably go find him.” My mom said as she put the flowers into a vase.
“Thanks I should go now; I hope you enjoy staying here. If you want to go anywhere you can ask me since I’m your tour guide.” Nick joked with a smile on his face.
“Thanks, it was really fun. I’ll be sure to ask you if I want to go anywhere.” I replied as he walked away.
I turned to my mother and asked, “Mom, remember you said something about a kid I used to play with when I was little, I really want to meet her.”
“Oh honey, that’s for you to find out. You’re going to have to figure this one out by yourself.” my mother teased.
“Aww... please mom, just give me a clue.” I pleaded.
“Sorry, but you’re on your own.” My mom laughed. I sighed and decided to call my dad to buy groceries. After buying a car full of food, I was putting everything away. I was wondering if I could go to the beach tomorrow, maybe I could call Nick and see if he was busy. I went to get the phone book and then the phone started ringing. I walked over and picked it up.
“Hello?” I asked.
“Hey is this Kara?” someone asked.
“Yes this is she.” I replied.
“It’s me Nick; some of my friends from school want to go to the beach tomorrow. I was wondering if you would like to come with us,” Nick asked as I started to laugh, “What’s so funny?”
“It’s just that I was wondering the same thing. I’ll be happy to go to the beach tomorrow with your friends. Where should we meet up?” I asked.
“Since you don’t know your way around the town well yet, why don’t we go pick you up? Be ready by 10 am.” Nick replied.
“Great then it’s settled. See you tomorrow, bye.” I replied happily and hung up the phone. I quickly rushed to my room and started sorting out what to wear from my suitcase. I’m glad that I remembered to bring my swimsuit. In the end I decided to wear a cute yellow dress that I bought with Michelle before summer break. I heard the door slam shut right after I set out my clothes for tomorrow.
“Hey mom.” I said as I poked my head out my door.
“Hey Kara, sorry I’m really tired so do you want to go out for sushi tonight?” My mom said wearily.
“Okay, I’ll go get dad,” I said as I went to the master bedroom, “Hey dad, mom said we’re going out for sushi tonight.”
“Okay Kara I’m coming just let me grab the keys to the car we rented.” My dad said.
After a delicious dinner we went home and crashed.

My alarm beeped and I looked to see what time it was. 9:00!! I jumped out of bed and rushed to the bathroom. I was going to be late. I quickly got dressed and fixed my hair. I rushed into the kitchen to make something to eat.
“Good morning sunshine! You sure looked dressed up this morning. Are you going somewhere this afternoon?” My dad said cheerfully.
“Yeah I’m going to go to the beach with Nick and some of his friends.” I said while I was making a quick bowl of cereal.
“Well just be careful out there.” My dad said.
“Yeah I will, don’t worry.” I assured him as I heard a knock on the door. I rushed to open it and saw Nick and his friends.
“Greetings your highness we’re here to escort you to the beach.” Nick said as he bowed.
I giggled and said, “Thank you kind sir. Would you like to introduce your fellow companions?”

Nick smiled and said, “These are my friends from school. On the right are Katie and Cassie. Next to them are my best buds, Sam and Ky.”

“Nice to meet you guys.” I said as I walked outside.

“Yeah, nice to meet you too.” Katie and Sam said at the same time. They looked at each other and started laughing. Soon everyone was laughing. As we walked to the beach everyone introduced themselves. I learned that Katie and Sam were twins, and they often finished each other’s sentences. Ky was Nick’s neighbor and they had been friends since 3rd grade. Cassie was really good at sports and was on the school’s basketball team. We turned the corner and I saw the beach.

“Wow! It’s so pretty!” I gasped. I was quite surprised how beautiful and clean the beach was.

“What are you guys waiting for? Let’s get in the water!” cried Sam. He took off his shirt and ran into the sea.

“Hey at least keep track of your own stuff Sam!” Katie yelled as she picked up Sam’s shirt. We set up an umbrella and some chairs, and then we all joined Sam in the water. I screamed as we splashed water at each other.

“Why don’t we play some volleyball?” Cassie suggested as she got out of the water.

“That’s a good idea but we don’t have a ball.” I said.

“It’s okay I brought one.” Cassie said as she took a volleyball out of her knapsack.

“Let’s play teams. Girls vs. boys, loser treats the other team to ice-cream.” Katie said.

“Hey! That’s no fair you have Cassie on your team.” Ky cried,

“It’s fair since guys are stronger and taller, so it balances out.” Cassie said. We walked to the court on the beach and set up the game. After a long fun game, the girls finally won. We collapsed on the sand all tired.

“That was really fun!” Katie said.

“Yeah, and remember guys you have to treat us since you lost.” I said.

“I see an ice-cream stall over there right now, why don’t we go there.” Nick said.

“Strawberry for me.” Katie said.

“I want chocolate!” Cassie cried.

“Vanilla please.” I said.

“Okay we’ll be right back.” Ky said as the boys started walking over to the stand.

After the boys came back with ice cream Sam started saying that the game wasn’t fair because Cassie was good at sports. We got interrupted when Nick’s phone started ringing.

“Hello? Yes, yeah, ok I’ll tell her right away." Nick closed his phone and looked at me seriously. “Your grandmother’s condition suddenly worsened. Your mom wants you to go there right away.” He said seriously.

“I’ll go right away. Thanks you guys it was really fun today. Maybe we can hang out tomorrow.” I cried as I started to run towards the street.

“Wait let me go with you.” Nick said as her ran up beside me. We waved good-bye to our friends and rushed to the hospital.

“Is grandmother okay?!” I cried as I rushed into the room.

“I’m fine you guys, you worry too much.” My grandmother nagged.

I stared and said, “Grandmother your conscious now? Thank god you’re okay!”

My mother said, “Sorry to worry you all of a sudden, Kara. It’s just that her blood sugar level suddenly dropped.” I sighed and fell on my knees with relief.

“I’m glad your grandmother is safe.” Nick said as we were standing outside the room.

“Yeah I’m glad.” I said quietly.

“Hey you kids come in here!” My grandmother shouted. We turned around and went over to my grandmother’s bed.

“Did you finally remember who Nick was?” Gran said.

“Huh? What are you talking about? I knew Nick before?” I asked.

“You and Nick used to be so close before in the hospital. Don’t you remember?” Gran said.

“I can’t remember. Nick, were you lying to me this whole time?” I cried.

Nick gulped and quietly said, “Sorry, but when you said you couldn’t remember me that day I wanted to tease you a bit so I pretended that I didn’t know you.” I stared at him quite shocked and ran out of the room.

“Wait Kara! I’m really sorry I was going to tell you.” Nick yelled. I can’t believe he lied to me this whole time. So the person my mother was talking about was Nick, she probably planned this with him. I felt so embarrassed.

“Kara, watch out!” Nick cried as I looked forward. I slammed right into a cart and everything turned black.

I was walking along the same beach I dreamt of before. The girl from before was waving to me from a distance and I squinted to see her clearly. As I walked closer I saw that the girl was actually Nick.

“Kara…Kara…” I heard a voice in the background as I slowly blinked my eyes open. I was in a room on a bed. My head hurt a lot and I reached to touch it. I felt bandages wrapped around my head.

“Kara, you’re alright!” Nick cried as he hugged me. I stared blankly as he hugged me. Suddenly all the memories flooded in. I remembered the day when I met Nick, my father had broken his leg and I was there to visit him. Nick was there and we became friends. I remembered hitting my head when I fell off my bike after the trip and forgetting everything.

“I’m so sorry Nick, I remember everything now. I’m sorry for forgetting you.” I said as tears rolled down my face.

“It’s okay it’s not your fault for forgetting your memories. I’m just glad you’re okay now.” Nick said and let go. There was a knock on the door and my mom came in.

“Hey honey, how are you feeling? The doctor said it was nothing too serious. You don’t have to stay in the hospital, just need to be careful with the bandages. They can come off in about a week. So you ready to go home?” My mom said softly as she came over.

“Yeah thanks mom, I feel great and I’m more than ready to go home.” I replied. I slowly got out of bed and saw that I was wearing hospital clothes, “How long was I out?”

“A day, we were really worried. We didn’t know if you were going to wake up anytime soon.” said Nick. I looked at him and saw the same sad puppy dog eyes from the first time we met.

“I’m sorry Nick, I never meant to make you or my parents worried. How about I see you tomorrow?” I said feeling guilty.

“Sure, see you tomorrow then. I never did give you a tour of the town yet, be prepared tomorrow!” Nick said as his face lit up, I was glad he was feeling better. We went home and I took it easy for the rest of the day.

The next morning I woke up to someone knocking on my door. I sighed and went to open it. Right in the doorway was Nick. “You have got to stop waking me up so early in the morning.” I said a bit frustrated.

“Hey sleepy head it already nine in the morning. Stop wasting the sunlight and get dressed. I’ll meet you by Whinny’s after you grab some breakfast okay? Oh and by the way, nice PJ’s.” Nick said and I looked down at my clothes.

“There’s nothing wrong with my Hello Kitty shirt! You can never be too old for it.” I said as I closed the door. I quickly changed and went to the kitchen.
“Hey mom, good morning!” I said as I quickly made some toast. “I’m going to hang out with Nick today ok? So I might be back a bit late, just call me on my cell if you need anything.”
“Sure honey, have fun and be careful with your injury, remember to take it easy.” my mom said.
I quickly walked over to Whinny’s and saw Nick with Sam. Nick was sitting there sipping some orange juice. I looked at him a bit more closely, his hair perfectly flopped over head and his chocolate eyes just melted you right on the spot.

“Hey if you stare at him any longer you’re going to make a hole in his head.” I jumped and saw Katie behind me. Nick saw me and smiled. Holy guacamole, his smile just makes you want to smile along with him, how could I forget such a great guy? I smiled back and turned back to Katie.

“Don’t just pop out of nowhere, you could give someone a heart attack!” I cried with my hand over my heart.

Katie just smirked and said, “And why would you be so surprised? You’re just staring at Nick. I bet you like him. A lot of girls at school stare at him in the hallways. You better be quick or he’ll get taken.”

I blushed and lightly pushed Katie. We saw Nick and Sam walking over and walked towards them.

“So I’m going to show Kara around town you two, so get lost.” Nick joked.

“Oh, and why would you need us to leave Nick?” Sam said and Katie punched Sam in the shoulder. “Oh yeah, I remember now, I have a summer extra credit project to do with Katie today. Uh, sorry need to go now.” Sam said as he rubbed his shoulder and whispered to Katie, “Ow! You don’t need to punch me that hard!”

“Sure, hope to see you guys around.” I said.

“So let’s start our tour.” Nick said as he held out his hand. I placed my hand in his and we started walking toward our first destination.
We started with a bookstore that opened up right after I left when we were small. We were laughing and talking so much that the storekeeper eventually kicked us out. We then went to the new aquarium that opened a couple weeks ago. The fish were beautiful and there was a tunnel that you could walk into and be surrounded by fish. There was a water show and I was called up to feed the dolphins. After that we went to the movie theater where the new Johnny Depp movie came out. Nick bought us some popcorn and drinks and we laughed until our stomachs hurt. The ending was great and I shed a few tears. We came out of the theater and the sun started to set. Nick decided to take a walk through the park. We passed a small stall and I saw a really cute necklace. It was shaped like a star and the metal wires surrounded a beautiful gem. It sparked in the few rays of sunlight left in the day.
I suddenly heard music and saw that the park seemed to have a small performance that night. A musician was playing a guitar with some other people and I became absorbed in the music. Soon a crowd started forming and there was cheering and clapping. After the last song was played I realized that I had lost Nick. I waited for the crowd to disperse and looked around; I started to worry because I couldn’t find him. I heard heavy breathing and turned around. I saw Nick running up towards me.
“I was looking for you everywhere! Where were you?” he cried.
“I’m sorry I got a bit absorbed in the music and then I lost you.” I said. We looked at each other and laughed. Nick walked me home and we were at my doorsteps.
“Well we here.” Nick said a bit awkwardly.
“Umm. Thanks, it’s been a great night. It was so much fun.” I said. I suddenly felt so self-conscious around Nick.

“Hey the summer festival is tomorrow night, want to go together?” Nick said really quietly. I looked and saw that his face was slowly turning pink.

“Sure, okay.” I replied awkwardly.

“Okay, so see you tomorrow night. I’ll pick you up at 6.” Nick said as he scratched his neck.

“Yeah, see you tomorrow night.” I said as I saw him leave. I walked into the house and into my room. I closed the door and screamed internally. He asked me to the festival, I was so nervous. A thousand thoughts were going through my head. Does he like me, well he asked me to the festival right and today too. But we were best friends back then and I’m a visitor, I’m just getting ahead of myself. Argh!! Does he like me or not! Wait why am I even thinking about this? Wait why was I so nervous? Katie’s words popped into my head, “You like him.” Joy, is this what it feels like to be in love?! I took a shower and went to sleep with my nerves in a wreck.

It was 4pm and I needed to get ready. I had set out pink blouse and baby blue shorts in the morning and I had a cute pair of flip-flops I had brought. I tied my hair to the side and clipped up my bangs to the side with a sparkly star barrette. A quick swipe of lip gloss and I was done. Perfect! I walked into the living room to where my parents were.

“So, how do I look?” I asked a bit nervously and I spun in a circle to show them.

“Wow honey, you look like you’re about to go into a club.” my dad said. I stared at him, shocked and he laughed, “Just kidding, you look wonderful.”

My mom smiled and said, “You look like a princess ready for the ball.” Yeah, my parents were cheesy but that’s what makes then the best parents in the world! There was a knock on the door and I ran to the door, but my dad beat me to it.

With my mom alongside with him he opened the door, “Good evening Nick. Didn’t know you were coming. What do you need?”

“Oh uh hi Mr. and Mrs. Benson. I’m here to pick Kara up.” Nick said a bit nervously.

“Really I didn’t hear about this?” my dad said wondrously.

“Oh um I’m just bringing her to the festival tonight.” Nick said.

“Oh, sorry I don’t think she’s here though.” my dad said and Nick’s eyes grew wide.

“Oh uh wait umm what?!” Nick stammered. I laughed and my parents moved aside. Nick looked relieved for a second but then his eyes grew even wider.

“Well I guess we’ll let you have the princess tonight, but nothing inappropriate.” my dad joked as he laughed with my mom.

“Well bye mom and dad.” I said as I walked out the door.

After the door was closed Nick said, “You look really beautiful tonight, princess. May I have the honor of entertaining her highness this evening?”

“Oh come on, stop joking and let’s go already.” I said.

At the festival we saw Sam, Katie, Cassie and Ky. We walked around together playing games and eating food. We chattered happily like we’ve been friends forever. We approached a big group of high school students and Nick, Sam, Katie, Ky, and Cassie seemed to recognize them. They all shook hands and hugged.

“Hey who’s this?” a tall muscular guy said. “Is this who you’ve been hanging out with these couple days?”

“Oh this is Kara, she’s from Ohio and she’s the same grade as us.” Nick said.

“Cool another to- be senior. Nice to meet you, I’m Roy.” Roy said. The other people introduced themselves and I noticed that a lot of girls started to crowd around Nick.

“Hey so you have a boyfriend back in Ohio? Cause if you don’t I’m totally free.” Roy said. I blushed and shook my head.

“Why doesn’t a cute girl like you have a boyfriend?” Roy laughed as he slapped me on the back. The force made me suddenly tip over and I was going to fall. Roy caught me by the hands and the girls turned around and giggled.

“Wow, Roy. Way to make a move.” A tall blonde girl said. I blushed and scooted away from Roy.

“No need to act shy and deny it.” Roy said as he pulled me closer.

“Why don’t you two go hang out together and we’ll get out of your way.” said another girl.
I looked toward Nick for help but saw that he looked a bit angry.
“Yeah you two should hang out and get to know each other better.” Nick said a bit bitterly. Wait what did I do wrong?
“Sure if you say so.” Roy said bluntly.
“But, I-” I stammered but was led away by Roy. As I was pulled away I looked back and saw Nick getting surrounded by more girls. He was laughing with them, seems like I was wrong about him liking me.

After walking around together for awhile Roy said, “You don’t really like me do you.”
“No, you seem like a really nice person of course I like you.” I said, trying not to offend him.
“I mean the like like way.” Roy said.
“Yeah sorry but...” I started to say.
“It’s okay, I know you like Nick.” Roy said quietly and my head snapped up. Was it that obvious that I liked him? If it was, why hasn’t Nick noticed yet? My heart really hurt, because I knew the answer to my question. He didn’t like me; he probably thought it was a pain to be my tour guide. It was obvious from the way he acted before also, why else would he let me go with Roy? Suddenly I just felt like crying, the tears started to well up in the eyes.
“You feeling okay Kara?” Roy said softly.
“Yeah I’m fine.” I said as I wiped my eyes.
“Well from what I see you’re crying.” Roy said. No duh! That’s why there are tears coming out of my eyes. I laughed, feeling a bit better.
“Well now I’m fine.” I said. Suddenly I heard running footsteps behind me and turned around.
“Kara! There you are I was looking for you!” shouted Nick.
“Well that’s my cue to leave.” Roy said.
“Thank you Roy, you’ll definitely find someone who loves you. Sorry that it can’t be me.” I said as he left.
“Kara, I’m sorry I kinda was a jerk for leaving you like that. Katie saw me with the other girls from my school and gave me a major tongue lashing. She said that you had something important to tell me tonight. Wait, are you crying?” Nick said as he looked at me more clearly.
“No I’m fine.” I said as I tried to hide my tears.
“Did Roy make you cry?” Nick said as he started to look a bit angry.
“No, it’s not like that.” I said as I tried to explain.
“Then what is it?” Nick said as he stared at me. We looked into each other’s eyes for a moment. The other noises started to drown away and it felt like it was only me and him standing here. I knew I had to tell him now, I needed to know and I needed to let him know.
“I-I love you.” I whispered. The words hung in the air in silence. It was awkward, he probably didn’t like me but I wanted to know how he felt too.

“Kara...I-I love you too.” Nick replied, clearly shocked. The noises came back and it felt like the world came back to life. Did I hear correctly? Did he just say he liked me too?!

“Wait what did you just say, cause I swear I’m just hearing things.” I said. Nick replied by gently kissing me on my lips. I stood there shocked for a minute. The kiss right now on my lips was so soft and gentle you could’ve almost missed it. Suddenly, I realized the situation, he liked me too!! I looked at him and he smiled back, the lips that just connected with mine were curling up. Those warm chocolate eyes stared straight into mine, I blushed and looked away but he placed his hands on my face.

“I’m sorry, Kara. If I had known I wouldn’t have left you, I wouldn’t have made you cry.” Nick said as he wiped my tears away. His hands trailed to my hair and he kissed the end. I felt like a princess in a fairytale.

“Aww, wasn’t that the cutest thing you’ve ever seen!” we turned around and saw the large group of students from before.

“Sam, you idiot! How could you just ruin the moment like that! Don’t worry Kara and Nick you can continue, just pretend we were never here.” Katie said and she smacked Sam in the head. Nick and I laughed and looked at each other. We grabbed a water gun that was on a nearby stand and started to spray the group with water.

“Hey! We were only peeking! Peeking isn’t a crime you know.” Roy cried with his arms in the air with defeat.

“Folks it’s time for the annual summer dance.” said an announcer somewhere at the festival.

“Well, let’s go you guys!” said Ky and the whole group followed. As I started to go with them Nick pulled me back into a quick kiss. He put his hands over his lips and we snuck off. No one saw but Katie. She laughed quietly and gave us a hand motion to go off.

“I wanted to give you something before we go off with everyone.” said Nick. He told me to close my eyes and then placed something around my neck. I opened them and saw the star gem necklace from the stall.

“It’s beautiful Nick! When did you buy this?” I asked as I hugged him.

“I bought it when you were listening to the music, that’s why I lost you that night.” Nick said as he broke away from my hug. We stared at each other in silence. Finally we understood each other’s feelings. We headed for the dance floor and as we arrived a slow song started to play. Nick placed his hands on my waist and I wrapped my arms around his neck. We danced in silence, listening to the music and the sound of each other’s hearts. As the song ended and another fast song started playing, Katie, Ky, Sam, and Cassie rushed up to us. We all danced together happy and connected. My heart couldn’t be more content.

The days soon passed by quickly for me and Nick. We spent every hour together, knowing the summer days would end soon and I would have to go back to Ohio. When the day arrived we didn’t want to separate. My bags were in the car and we would be leaving in 5 minutes.

“You know, don’t forget about me again.” Nick joked trying to make this parting a bit easier.

“Don’t worry I won’t.” I said softly. We stared at each other, sadness showing clearly in each of our eyes. I buried my face in his chest and listened to his heart beat. I was scared that he would forget me too. Everyone says that a long distance relationship is hard to maintain. Sensing my uneasiness he kissed my forehead and told me that he would email and call me every day. We heard my mom call me, telling me it was time to go. Nick kissed me and wiped away my tears that were starting to fall.

“Don’t you worry, don’t you worry child. See heaven’s got a plan for us. Don’t you worry, don’t you worry now.” sang Nick as I started to leave. I laughed and climbed into the car. As we were driving to the airport I thought, a long distance relationship huh. Sound fun!