as it was ~ conrad fisher

one.

𖡼𖤣𖥧𖡼𓋼𖤣𖥧𓋼𓍊

my family's been going to susannah's beach house in cousins every summer since i was a baby. since before i was even born. all year long, i count the days until i'm in that house.

the dads come to visit, but it's not their place. they don't belong to it. not the way we do. the mothers and us kids.

the summer house is made up of lots of things. the beach. the swimming pool late at night. movie nights with the moms. but the boys. the boys most of all.

it's the same every summer. i've always loved that about it. for me, everything good, everything magical happens between the months of june and august.

𓆉

todays the day we leave for cousins. i've been counting down the days all year, hell i've been counting down since the end of summer last year. belly and i have always been procrastinators when it comes to packing (maybe it's a twin thing) so we're currently in our shared room finishing up.

"drew's bummed you're missing the beach matchup with the boys' team next weekend." taylor, belly's best friend tells her. don't get me wrong, i'm close friends with her too but i only have one best friend. besides, she's always trying to hook me up with the 'nerdy boys', as she calls them.

"um, make sure you tell sophie to square up for the block." belly's always been into volleyball. she was even captain of our schools varsity team last year! me on the other hand, im not really into sports. as cliche as it sounds, im more of the rory gilmore (only in her chilton era) of our family. last year i was part of the schools newspaper, eco-club, womens empowerment club, and honor society. don't tell my mom i know, but our family doesn't necessarily thrive above the rest financially. moneys been really tight recently and i know it can be spent on more important things rather than my college tuition. so ever since i started school, i've been as involved as possible and working hard on my grades cause i know that a good academic scholarship is the only way i'm going to college.

"drew martinez is texting me about you, and you're talking about volleyball? like are you serious right now?" if you couldn't tell, taylor is boy crazy.

"drew doesn't care if i'm there or not. he just wants an excuse to text you. and you better take this game against the guys seriously. i mean, team pride is on the line, taylor." oh yeah, there's this really big volleyball charity event in cousins that taylor always visits for. this summer, i'm holding a fundraiser for the world resources institute. i've always been really into the earth and sustainability for as long as i can remember so i'm doing a nature trail like i did last year.

"please. you know me better than that. i would never let a boy beat me at anything." she says.

"feminist taylor?" i say earning a laugh from her.

"i thought you came here to help us pack." belly says.

"yeah taylor, i thought you did." i add, laughing.

"fine. i'll help." she begins as belly and i both begin folding up our one piece bathing suits. "here's a tip. don't bring those speedos. they don't do a thing for y'all's new boobs." she finishes, plopping back down on the bed.

"it's not a speedo." belly and i say at the same time.

"i'm just saying, babes. like, you need to pack cute things." taylor tells us. honestly, taylor has pretty good style. my favorite thing is when she picks out my outfits and always says, 'for your first date with conrad.'

"well, we always buy a new suit when we get there." i tell her.

"ok. so, buy one that doesn't look like you're trying out for the swim team."