Chapter 1: Summer Promises

It was a gorgeous and sunny day at the beach with our friends. Everyone was having a great time; Rosalaya and I were splashing around in the water, hopping over the swells of waves. The boys, Castiel, Leigh, and Lysander, were playing beach volleyball on the sand. We had all been at it for hours, we even had lunch at a nearby shack and sunbathed earlier. I had never had such a blissfully wonderful summer day with friends like this one… but in the back of my mind, I was worrying.

You see, I had recently been faced with the reality that there were some big life decisions I'd have to make very soon. I had applied to local universities for the most part, but I also applied to this one school far away that I'd always dreamt of attending, The University of Notre Dame (UND) in Paris. I never thought I would actually get in, the art teacher at Sweet Amoris, Professor Patrick, had even helped me pull together my art portfolio at last minute. I wanted to apply just to try… now that I had a real chance, I really wanted to go! I had decided to study art and what better place to do it than in Paris?!

But my heart was conflicted. Sure, I had expected many of my friends would go their own separate ways after high school, but my relationship with Lysander was special. We were closer and happier than ever, especially after everything we'd been though! We loved each other so much… and although I was not ready to be thinking about marriage whatsoever, I couldn't imagine a future without him in my life. We were so attached to each other, never discussing or expecting how going to college could be an obstacle for us. If I am honest, I think part of the reason we never discussed the future was that I did not want to sour our bliss. But now that UND had accepted me, how could I keep it from him?

"Candace, What's wrong girl? We are hopping waves, this is supposed to be fun, remember?!" Rosa scolded me jokingly, but she seemed a little concerned.

"Haha sorry, I am having fun! Don't worry about me!" I said, splashing her playfully.

"Then why is it that you have a deep wrinkle between your eyebrows?" She pried with a pout. I reflexively covered my forehead with my hand to hide the mark I knew she was talking about.

"Ok, so maybe I have something on my mind…"

"I knew it! Give me some juicy info!" she said cheerfully as she hopped a wave.

"I got into my dream school," I started.

"Oh my gosh! Congratulations, Candy! That's amazing! I'm so excited and happy for you-" she beamed.

"But it's in Paris!" I finished, cringing, awaiting her reaction.

"…What?!" she said shocked.

"I know… It's really far away, at least 5 hours by train."

"Oh… Yes, it is…" she seemed a little down, but then she smiled at me, understanding. "But if it's your dream, you have to go for it."

"But what about Lysander? How can I tell him? What if he breaks up with me?" I said, my eyes starting to tear up at the thought.

"No! He wouldn't break up with you over this, have a little faith! You guys love each other, I'm sure you have what it takes to make a long-distance relationship work!" Rosalaya tried to reassure me, her hands gripping my shoulders.

"…Do you really think so? I've just heard so much about how people break up after high school because of going far away for college…I feel so torn up about it! I want to go to my dream school, but I also want to stay with him… Maybe I'll ask him what he thinks I should do?" I said, wiping the tears from my eyes, making sure to face away from shore so as not to be seen by the others, especially not by Lysander.

"Yeah, why don't you talk to him about it? It could help you make your decision more peacefully… but you have to tell me all about it after, ok?! Or else I will get very offended!" Rosa said this last part with an encouraging smile.

"Heh heh, of course, you are my bestie! I wouldn't decide to leave town without telling you first!" I said with a light laugh.

"Well then, enough sad faces! We have a giant wave coming our way-" Rosa began to say as a large swell rolled towards us, but we did not act fast enough, rather we were knocked over and under the water! We emerged laughing at each other's soggy mops of hair all over our faces. We talked of other things like fashion and Rosa's plans for college and other summer activities before heading out to shore when the boys called us to start a bonfire. Lysander greeted me with a sweet embrace and kiss, placing my beach towel around my shoulders. As the sun set over the sea, Castiel played his guitar and everyone chatted while eating s'mores and roasted wienies. I was sitting in the sand, wearing a hoodless gray sweatshirt, my back against Lysander's side. When Castiel went off to use the outhouse, Rosa and Leigh seemed to want some alone time.

"Candace, would you like to go for a walk on the shore?" Lysander asked with a murmur in my ear that made me shiver.

"Sure!" I said, grabbing his hand and giving him a kiss on the cheek. We got up and trotted calmly on the edges of the water, our footprints visible on the moonlit sand. He pulled me close to his side as we walked, his muscular arm around my waist.

"Isn't it a beautiful night? It's just perfect…" Lysander mused.

"Yeah, it's very romantic…" I agreed. I looked out at the white caps of the waves, the wind gently tousling my long, brown hair. He stopped walking and looked at me lovingly.

"What is it?" I asked shyly.

"I want to remember this moment well… and how amazing you look tonight." He said, his hand caressing my face. I placed my hand over his, savoring his warm touch, my eyes closing. I had to tell him the news…

"Lysander, there's something I have been meaning to tell you… rather, I wanted to ask you something important," I began. He looked at me more seriously, sensing my apprehension.

"Is everything alright?"

"Yes, it's nothing terrible! But… maybe we should sit down." We sat in the dry sand together.

"What's on your mind?" he asked.

"Well, I wanted to tell you that… I got into a school, the school of my dreams, actually." I began.

"That's wonderful news! Congratulations, Candy." Lysander said smiling, leaning in to give me a kiss on the forehead.

"Yes, but there's a catch…"

"Oh?"

"It's the University of Notre Dame… in Paris."

"Oh!" he said surprised. Then he grew quiet and pensive.

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't tell you because I didn't even imagine I would make it in! But anyway, I can turn it down-"

"Why would you turn it down? It's your dream, you should go." He said seriously. I was a little surprised at his answer. A small part of me had kind of hoped he would ask me to stay.

"But what about us? Are you really OK with a long-distance relationship?" I asked, trying to mask my idiotic hurt ego. He looked at me, smiling reassuringly.

"I think we can handle it." He said with confidence.

"Won't you… miss me?" I said bashfully.

"Of course I will miss you! It's going to be very hard!" he pulled me into a tight hug, seemingly trying to comfort me and himself. "But it's not like we will never see each other again, right? We can visit each other regularly… besides, it will be a good opportunity to write letters."

"Yes, but what if you fall out of love with me and find someone else?" I said worried.

"That will never happen. Would you let it happen to you?" He said.

"No, you're right… I love you too much… but what if we don't see each other for too long and you get tired of me? What if-"

"It sounds like you are just coming up with ridiculous excuses." He sighed, now he looked out at the sea. "Is going to UND not so important to you?"

"It is important to me, I have thought about going there since I was little!" I explained.

"Then if this is so important to you, please, don't let me be the one to stand in your way of accomplishing your dreams." he looked a bit sad as he said this. I could feel that he was valuing my happiness over his'. He was so amazing, my Lysander. I leaned towards him and pulled his face towards mine, giving him a long and passionate kiss on the lips.

"You are too wonderful to me." I said, looking into his eyes lovingly. He kissed me back, slow and intense. The next thing we knew, we were making out on the sand, his body on top of mine. His mouth travelled to my neck, my shoulders... He was making my heart race!

"I love you, Lysander." I breathed.

"I love you, too, Candace." He said with a final, tender kiss on my lips. After some time, we headed back towards our group, holding hands.

"Lysander, can I ask you to promise me something?" I asked, not looking at him but blushing lightly.

"Hm? What is it?" he asked gently.

"When my time in Paris begins, promise that you will be honest with me always? I just want to make sure we understand each other so we can make this work." I explained.

"I promise. We will make this work." He said with a reassuring and soft smile. He kissed my cheek. Once we were back with our friends, it was time to go home.