Always Summer (32 page)

I never had
any doubt that this would happen one day... but this early on?
 
Not on your life!
 
I was totally taken by surprise.

He asked me
to marry him... no, he asked me to be his wife!
 
Before showing me his chosen ring... a solitaire white gold, amazing
diamond ring!

I was
shocked... the tears were there, but the sobs stilled so I could talk...
barely!

“The
clothes... they’re what we were wearing four years ago.” I said.

“Yes.” He
answered; his eyes frightened... his tone of voice scared.

“The
cafe... everything... it’s the same!” I said, quietly.

“Yes
summer.” He said again... his voice cracking.

“Your hair
though, it’s not pink!” I pointed out.

“Summer,
please... I would’ve done it, but then you would’ve been suspicious.” He
explained.

I nodded.

“Blake?” I
asked.

“Yes?” he
was beginning to shake.

“You really
love me this much?” I asked.

“Absolutely!”
he answered... his eyes were moistening... he was going to cry.

I went to
say something but my mouth wouldn’t formulate any words... I was stalling.

“
Summer
... please... your killing me!” he pleaded.

I knew my
answer already... I had no doubt from the moment he knelt down what my answer
would be.
 
I wasn’t trying to hurt him
right now; I was just making certain he was certain.

Of course
he was!

“Yes
Blake... I’ll be your wife.” I answered huskily, before a fresh bout of tears
fell from my eyes.

“Oh!” Blake
sighed dramatically.
 
His shoulders
collapsed a little, but he managed to get a shaking hand up, to pull the ring
from its display and place it on my left ring finger.

He reached
up with his left hand, as his body stretched up, and then he pulled my face to
his, so he could kiss me.

The place
erupted in applause.

Blake.

I felt as
though I’d run the New York marathon.
 
I
felt so weak... I was terrified for a moment... and then she’d said yes.
 
She wanted to be mine, and wanted me in return.

After
kissing her, I remained a short while on my knees, hugging her around her
waist, with my head in her lap, as she rubbed my back and kissed the back of my
head.

As we left
the joint, I had handshakes, pats on my back and congratulations galore thrust
upon me... but the people that really mattered awaited us at
Summer’s
place.

*

“Your
parents are here?” Summer asked, noticing my Dad’s car out the front of her
place, as I pulled up to the curb.

“Yep.”
I
replied... the smile now on my face was immense.
 
I had gotten some form of energizing second
wind.
 
I felt incredible.
 
Summer wasn’t my girlfriend anymore... she
was my fiancée, and one day ‘soonish’, she’d be my wife.

We stepped
out of the car, and the moment I grabbed
Summer’s
hand
(the signal that she said yes) both Debbie and my Mom raced out doing the
screaming woman thing.

Max and my
Dad stood at the front door as I retreated from the three of them and made my
way over to them.

“Congratulations
son.”
 
Dad said, coming up and giving me
a big hug.

“Thanks
Dad.” I beamed.

“You know I
was 18 when I proposed to your Mom. True, a week later I turned 19, but still,
we were young too.” He said, pulling back away from me and clapping me on the
back.

Max put his
hand forward to shake, and I grabbed it enthusiastically.

“I have two
biological daughters who seem to be determined to remain single forever, and
two daughters by good chance that are engaged to a couple of decent young
men.
 
I think I got it right with the two
younger girls.” He explained.

“Yes sir!”
I agreed.

*

We had a
light early dinner... the parents’ and Summer all sharing a toast with
Champaign, while I stuck to a low alcohol ‘
Bud
’;
just the one since I was driving later.

“It’s such
a gorgeous ring Blake... you have incredible taste.” Debbie said.

“Um... how
did you afford it?” Summer asked.
 
Then
she tried to reel it in... “I don’t want to know what it cost... I was just
concerned how you... could... afford... it.” She had slowed, looking at the two
sets of parents who obviously disapproved of the question.

I laughed.
“Let’s just say my college fund isn’t as large as it once was.” I said,
grabbing her hand and kissing it.

“Oh.”
Summer said, blushing.

“You’re
worth it!” I said, winking at her.

She knew
this would mean me working while attending college.

The meal
was over too soon, and I was beginning to feel lonely at the thought that
Summer
would soon be heading off for two nights in the
coming hours.

I felt some
comfort though that she’d now promised to be mine.

Summer.

Blake
stayed with me for as long as he was able at the airport, until the flight was
called, and I went through the gates.

The whole
time we sat waiting, we’d behaved like a couple of disgusting
fourteen-year-olds.
 

The flight
was uneventful, and my lift at the other end was prompt.

I was
sharing a room at our hotel with one other girl... who was a bit of a bitch, so
when I said hello and put my hand out to shake hers and she looked at my hand
like it was diseased, I didn’t feel too bad about ditching and going straight
to bed.

Me:

Here... now
I’m off to bed, have a bitch for a roomie... yay!
 
I love you!

Today,
11:43PM

Blake:

Fuck the
roomie off! Please tell me it’s a girl, boys can be bitches too!
 
I really, really love you xox

Today,
11:44PM

Me:

Yes a
girl!
 
I don’t care about the roomie...
I’ll be gone Sunday at lunchtime!
x

Today,
11:44PM

Blake:

And back in
my arms
xox

Today,
11:45PM

Me:

You’re so
corny!
x

Today,
11:46PM

Blake:

And yet
you’re keen to marry me
xox

Today,
11:47PM

Me:

Yes, what
does that make me?
xxx

Today,
11:47PM

Blake:

Mine... it
makes you mine.
 
I love you!
xox

Today,
11:48PM

Me:

I’ll call
you in the morning? I’ve gotta get some sleep.
 
It’s been an emotional day! I love you heaps and heaps!
xxx

Today,
11:49PM

Blake:

I’ll wait
till you do, that way I won’t interrupt anything!
 
I miss you
xox

Today,
11:50PM

Me:

Miss you
too!
 
Goodnight xxx

Today,
11:50PM

Blake:

Goodnight
xox

Today,
11:51PM

*

The roomies
name was Bianca... and she was a Class A bitch.
 
We were sharing the male model Sean throughout the shoot.
 
He was pretty okay, and I thought his opinion
of her was the same as mine by the end of the day.

We were
wearing some pretty amazing clothes, with the beautiful Cozumel backdrop of
azure water and virgin white sands, with pebbles and shells spotted across it.

During a
break I phoned Blake and talked mushy with him, before returning to the shoot.

Bitchy
Bianca didn’t like the fact that the photographer liked the chemistry between
Sean and
I
on camera.
 
I was pretty certain Blake wouldn’t like it either when I returned home
and told him... but since he would end up seeing some of these photo’s it was
gonna have to happen that I tell him.

We had had
a conversation after another shoot, during which he had had to watch me get in
close and heavy with another male model... he had promised then to understand
the nature of my job.
 
Well, we’d
see.
 
Perhaps I’d get the conversation
over and done with tonight over the phone, so that it would be sorted before I
returned home.

At any
rate, I was coming back from another break, when Bianca shoulder barged me, and
I stumbled onto a rough patch of sand and shells.

“Shit!” I
screamed, lifting my foot.
 
A small piece
of glass was protruding from the arch of my foot.

John, the
photographer came and had a look. “Damn... can you walk on it if I pull it
out?” he asked.

“Sure,” I
winced, as he pulled out a long sliver.
 
He grabbed his water bottle and poured water over it.
 
The cut went in deep, but the actual entrance
wound was very little.

“I
skateboard, so I’m used to a few cuts and bruises.” I announced.

Sean came
up and patted me on the bum, “You’ll be fine sexy!” he said winking. (I
wouldn’t be telling Blake about that).

Bianca
scoffed, “Skateboarding?”

“So cool!”
Sean said again, putting his arm around me to assist me in walking a few
steps.
 
I moved away from Sean after it
was established I would be able to walk fine.

That night,
I told Bianca she was a bitch, and to fuck off... I also told Sean I was
engaged and couldn’t ‘get cozy’ with him; and I telephoned Blake and told him
about the photo’s.
 
I also told him that
Sean had hit on me but that I had told him to fuck off... which wasn’t true,
since it was Bianca I had told to fuck off... but it meant he was happier,
despite behaving a little possessive over the phone.

The
following morning, John came up to get us to complete a couple more shots at
the break of dawn, since he was after the change in light.

By the time
we were finishing up, it was obvious that my cut was a little infected.
 
John took me up to a local medical centre to
get it checked, since we were in a tropical climate, and he was responsible for
us - and the wardrobe guys were a bit scatter brained.
 
We waited to see a doctor, who had my foot
properly cleaned and wrapped, in addition to starting me on a course of
antibiotics.

The doctor
had a limited and basic skill with English, but John explained to me on his
behalf that I would have to take the full course of antibiotics even after the
infection stopped, in order to prevent any resistant bacteria from occurring.

I was just
relieved that it was just a simple infection, and not some tropical infectious
disease.

I was in
Blake’s arms by 4:25pm on the Sunday.

Blake.

Summer was
decorating the apartment for Halloween with some of the props she’d conned out
of the art department of a recent modeling job.
 

Her
modeling money was building up, but she kept managing to win over the crews
with whom she worked with into give her freebies… I could understand, she had
me wrapped around her finger much of the time too.
 
Her most recent check from the agency was
quite generous, since it included a bonus of some sort, since her image had
been getting picked up by some of the better known magazines and companies; she
was generating quite a bit of demand.
 

After her
trip to Mexico, she had had another weekend trip to LA and two more catwalk
gigs in New York, all crowded around photo shoots.
 
Our weekends were always busy.
 
They often asked her for more, giving her the
option… but she was pushing for a college degree.

I’d been
busy painting.
 
One of my teachers was
displaying interest in me getting an exhibit together.
 
It felt pretty amazing, since I was a
Freshman… yet she assured me of my skill, and wanted to see what I could pull
together to show a friend of hers who owned a boutique gallery in Tribeca, New
York… it was just talk at the moment, but I was keen to impress.