Daylight

Part 1

The sun had just started rising when Camila entered the small town, but when she left the only grocery store she found open this early in the morning, the sky was already a bright shade of blue. She places the groceries in her car with no rush, still kind of regretting her decision to go there, but she had promised her father she would spend summer with him and her sister this year. As she drives closer to the beach, she can smell the salt in the air, a scent she had grown used to as a kid but hadn’t felt in years. It’s the first sign that she’s close, but when her eyes finally spot the house she’s left out of breath.

 It looks similar to the other ones in that street, all of them with access to the beach, but this one, in particular, makes her heart ache. She can picture her mother sitting on the balcony with a book in her hands, listening to the waves before everyone else in the house would wake up and disturb her peace. As Camila parks her car, she reaches for her camera on the passenger seat, wanting to take a picture of the house while it is still empty, just the sun shining through the windows and doors.

 She just sits there for a few minutes, observing the house and remembering so many summers she spent there. She almost has the urge to start the car again and drive back to the city. Her father would never know she had been there, she could just say she changed her mind, after all, he and Sofia would only arrive the next day because of her sister’s school. Almost as if he could guess what she’s thinking at that moment, her phone starts ringing.

 “ Hey, dad.” Camila picks it up, holding the phone against her ear while trying not to let it show what she almost did.

 “ Hello, honey. You’re at the house already?” His voice is not the only one though, she can hear Sofia in the background, probably getting ready for her last day of school before summer break.

 “ Yeah, I just got here.” Camila says, opening the door and getting out of the car to stretch her legs.

 “ You’re not thinking of backing out on us, are you?” He sounds concerned and Camila feels guilty for taking so long to come back.

 “ No, of course not.” Camila lies. “ I promised you guys I would spend summer with you this year and I’m keeping that promise.”

 “ Good.” She can hear the smile in his voice. “ Did you go to the grocery store? I don’t think there’s anything in the house, but even if you find something you should just throw it away.”

 “ I know.” Camila laughs. “ I picked up some stuff just now, but we can go again tomorrow when you guys are here. I know Sofia is not a fan of my ‘vegetarian shit’.”

 Her father laughs, agreeing with her. Camila had become a vegetarian a few years back and somehow her sister always made a big deal out of it. Sofia was not a fan of fruits or vegetables, which seemed to be Camila’s go-to in most of her meals, so she knew her sister would want to go to the grocery store again to buy other stuff.

 After ending the call, Camila finds the key to the house that her father had given her and walks up the stairs of the front porch, unlocking the door and taking a deep breath before walking in. The first thing she did was open the curtains and every single window on the first floor, wanting the air to fill in the house. She could see her father had changed the curtains and the carpet, maybe a few decorations over the years, but the house still looked pretty much the same to her.

 Not wanting to let herself just stand there staring at every inch of space in the house, Camila went back to the car and started carrying the groceries inside, followed by her suitcase. She struggled a little to get it up the stairs, feeling out of breath when she finally reached her old room. The walls had a pale blue paint that she could tell had been redone recently and all her old teddy bears were still there over the bed. She just opened the door to the balcony and found one of her bathing suits before going back downstairs to put out the groceries, preparing something for her to eat as breakfast.