The Unforgettable Summer

C - Go Get Your Girl

"So, what do you want?" Sam asked as we approached the mcdonald's counter. She leaned on the wall in a way that seemed effortlessly cool. I was a little jealous. How did she seem to do everything perfectly?

"I don't know, i feel kinda sick" I answered. There was a distinct uncomfortable feeling in my stomach like something was about to go horribly wrong. My legs felt like jelly, and holding Sam's hand was the only thing keeping me vaguely content.

"Me too" She said, awkwardly staring down at her feet, then looking up at me like she remembered something.

"how far are we from mine?" She asked.

"not too far, walking distance" I answered

"If you show me how to get to mine, can i take you somewhere? it's better than mcdonald's, trust me" She suggested, excitement in her eyes. I sensed vulnerability in her voice but chose to ignore it.

"Sure" I smiled and we left mcdonald's.

She led me to a small row of shops, and into a little bakery with a scratched sign outside that read "The Cake Shop".

We walked in and a friendly looking older man greeted us. "Hello Sam! I saw your sisters this morning, Sophie has learned a very colourful new word, i wonder where she got that from?" he joked.

"You know what she's like, if she knows she can't do something, she'll do it" Sam replied, smiling at him.

"And who's this pretty lady?" He asked, gesturing to me.

"This is my, my.. friend, Cara" Sam struggled to get her words out, pausing on the word 'friend' and looking at me for a moment.

"Ooh, that doesn't sound certain, are you more than friends?" He teased.

"No!" she brushed the suggestion off with a laugh. It stung a little. I wasn't sure why, or rather I didn't want to allow myself to figure out the obvious.

"okay then, nice to meet you Cara, what can i get you girls?" The man said with a warm smile.

Sam ordered us two brownie milkshakes and we sat on a little white table outside as the sun shone on the street. It was a quiet little street, every now and again a someone with a dog or their kids would go past, other than that it was quiet. It was nice.

Sam idly sat stirring her shake and staring off into the distance, avoiding eye contact.

"He seemed nice" I tried to start a conversation.

"Oh, he's lovely. his name's Mr O'Connor, he's known me and the girls since we were little but he never gets Sophia's name right and calls her Sophie. We used to come here for milkshakes when i was little every friday, now mum comes to buy bread and i come for milkshakes." She rambled, her voice distracted and slightly slow, still avoiding my eyes.

"Sam, what's wrong?" I asked.

"Nothing, I'm just, thinking about a lot" She hesitated. she looked at me, a hint of desperation in her eyes, and then looked away quickly.

"What are you thinking about?" I asked. A tiny part of me wished she was thinking of me, but I suppressed it.

"Tyler, that dick, Mum and how mad she'll be if she finds out, Nova, Georgie- no- George, and how you seem different and i'm different and i don't get it and i don't get anything and i can't be- ugh!" She practically word-vomited after a moment of hesitation, sudden frustration breaking out. In her agitated rant, she knocked her milkshake over her.

"Fuck!" she hissed under her breath, standing up and attempting to pat dry her jeans with the tablecloth.

"so that's where Sophie learned her new word from! what happened?" Mr O'Connor appeared in the doorway, obviously called over by Sam's cussing.