Mixtape - Side A || Shawmila [Completed]

track 3

I Know Places - Taylor Swift

«Is there anything better than a secret love? I think we both know the answer to that question. Next track by miss Swift! Enjoy babe!»

Olivia had never been so focused in her entire life. She didn't miss a single word that came out of her mother's mouth and yearned to hear the rest of the story. Moreover, she couldn't deny that the comments from the boy on the recording were both entertaining and incredibly sweet. She could understand why her mother had fallen in love with him...

...Camila had been on pins and needles for a full twelve hours before receiving the long-awaited message. She hadn't promised Shawn that they would go out together, but she didn't see anything wrong with exchanging a few messages with him. So, the two began to get to know each other slowly.

At school, Camila maintained her impassive demeanor, trying to grasp the details of the boy who had invaded her thoughts with stolen glances. She enjoyed watching how the light seeped through his brown curls, illuminating them with a hundred shades ranging from dark chocolate to the bright glow of amber. She could spend hours gazing at his rosy lips, or the tiny scar on his cheek, not to mention his eyes that were as deep as a well.

At home, however, she lived with the phone glued to her hand. Throughout the day, her display lit up with incessant notifications from Shawn. It mostly consisted of exchanges of questions and answers, details that might have seemed trivial to many, but meant a lot to Camila. Like knowing his favorite color - green - or which of his favorite foods he would be willing to give up forever - sushi. In just a few weeks, Camila had managed to gather such a wealth of information about him that she could write a book.

She knew that Shawn would wake up every morning at dawn to go for a run. He liked the sound of rain, but sometimes thunder scared him. He knew how to play the guitar and never sang when someone else was around. He was a terrible dancer, but had a weakness for girls who knew how to move on the dance floor. His father was a university professor, and his mother was a desperate housewife who followed her husband everywhere because she hated being alone in a big house.

Shawn was an excellent student, but he was terrible at group work, perhaps that was why he wasn't part of any school teams. As a child, he was a troublemaker, as evidenced by the various scars etched on his skin, although the largest one was from his appendix surgery. He had always wanted a dog to keep him company, but his mother wasn't fond of animals, so all he managed to have was a tank with two goldfish. He surrounded himself with friends, but he had a feeling that only a few would have been there for him if he had needed them (not that he had had the chance to find out until now).

He loved love stories, both tragic and those with a happy ending. He enjoyed looking people in the eyes, claiming they were the mirror of the soul - although he wasn't sure if those were his own words. He knew he could talk endlessly, the kind of person who could talk about nothing for hours on end, but he was also a good listener, or at least he believed so. Jokes amused him, although it was rare for them to make him laugh. His biggest flaw was indifference, not the type that leads you to ignore people's opinions, but rather the kind where you're so afraid to voice your own opinion that you end up keeping everything inside. And then there was the fear of failure: he wouldn't start anything unless he was certain he would be able to complete the task.

Camila would have never expected to find a whole universe behind those honey-colored eyes, but she was thrilled to be a part of it. She felt the desire to continue exploring that fantastic place that was his mind, so when Shawn finally asked her out, she instantly accepted. She couldn't deny that the usual fear of being seen by one of her friends continued to torment her, so she suggested a place far from prying eyes.

At the diner just outside of town, between one fry and another, Camila was completely captivated by the boy in front of her. She listened to him speak and answered his questions without hesitation, until with a sincere and perhaps somewhat regretful voice, Shawn asked her who she was hiding from. He had understood he was a secret ever since their return to school when Camila had turned pale at his entrance to the classroom, and now he was curious to know the reason for such secrecy.

Camila felt foolish admitting why she wanted to keep a low profile, but after everything they had said to each other, she felt she owed him the truth. "Is it true that you cheated on your girlfriend?"

A veil of sadness covered the young man's eyes. "No, it's not true, but people like to think that's what happened."

Camila averted her gaze. "My friends don't have a high opinion of you, and I don't want to know what they would think if they saw me here with you now."

"And what do you think?"

"That you're the best person I've ever met."

"Shouldn't that matter more than what your friends think?"

Camila sighed. "I'm aware, but I think I need some time to show them that they're wrong about you."

"In the meantime, what happens?"

"I know places where we can hide."