That Summertime Feeling

“What? Mom, why?” I couldn’t believe it, my plans were ruined. All summer, my mom was going to be away on a business trip in Ireland, and I was supposed to be here, with the whole house to myself. I was looking forward to kicking back, relaxing with my friends, and not having to worry about my mom nagging me the whole time. Why did she have to turn around and ruin my summer?

“Because, Erin,” she argued, the stress from the preparations of her trip and sending me off, quite evident in her voice. “I’m not going to leave a teenage girl home alone for the whole summer by herself. You’re staying with your aunt Terry, now I don’t want to hear another word about it.” It was the summer before my senior year of high school, my last real summer of freedom and now I had to spend it far away from all my friends in Wisconsin with my great-aunt Theresa and uncle Vincent all the way in New Jersey.

My mother walked off to finish packing her bags, leaving me in my bedroom to do the same. She’d told me to pack my suitcase with anything I’d need over the summer and to be ready to leave first thing in the morning. Too bad I couldn’t fit my social life in a carry on.

I sulked for a while longer until I reluctantly accepted the fact that no amount of arguing, pouting, or fussing would change my mother’s mind. I’d have to suck it up and deal with it. My summer had ended before it even began and there was no way I’d get out of staying with my aunt and uncle.

I hadn’t seen them in years, not since I was in elementary school. I barely even remembered them, and they probably didn’t even know what I looked like anymore. She was my dad’s aunt and after he died when I was eleven, I didn’t see much of anyone from his side of the family. He was from Jersey and my mom had been living there when they first met. When they got married, she moved with him to Jersey to start a family, but after he passed, she took comfort in moving us back to her hometown to be with her parents. After that, I didn’t see anyone from my dad’s side, except maybe on Christmas or Thanksgiving, but even that was rare.

My bags weren’t going to pack themselves, so I forced myself up and started filling them with clothes. I didn’t know what the weather would be like in Jersey, so I packed a little of everything. I threw in some shorts along with a few pairs of jeans. I made sure to include both short sleeved tee shirts and a couple of sweaters just in case. If I remembered correctly, Jersey had beaches, not very close to where my aunt lived in Belleville, but I brought my swimsuit just in case.

I didn’t know if I’d need them, but I couldn’t bear to leave the house without my ballet shoes. I wasn’t sure if I’d even have the chance to use them in Jersey, but if I got the opportunity for a little practice, I wanted to have my shoes with me. I’d been dancing ballet since I was a little kid and after my dad died, it was my way to escape my thoughts. I much rather enjoyed getting lost in the music than lost in a world where nothing made sense.

Maybe Jersey wouldn’t be so bad. The sun was meant for the summertime and we didn’t get that much of it in Wisconsin, but Jersey would not be short on the sunshine. I hadn’t had a summer of warm, sunny weather since I was a kid, and the more I thought of it, the more I had to look forward to. It wasn’t much, and I would still miss my friends like crazy, but at least there was some light to shine on the situation. Sunshine.

I’d filled up a small suitcase along with a backpack to take onto the plane with me, which I would be flying on alone. Sure, my mom trusted me alone on an airplane with total strangers but, for some reason, had a problem with me staying home by myself in the safe town that I’d grown up in and knew like the back of my hand.

It was too late now; I was going to Jersey whether I liked it or not, and at this point I only had a few more hours in Wisconsin before I’d be on an airplane, heading hours away from home. It wasn’t what I originally planned but it is what it is, and I had to at least try to make the best of it.

My last day in Wisconsin was spent packing my suitcases, listening to music, and calling my friends to say goodbye, at least until the end of the summer. All of the few friends that I did have told me that they’d miss me, but I knew that they’d forget about little old me after a week or so, and carry on, enjoying their summers.

After dinner that night, I tried to get some sleep with no luck, so by the next morning I was already beyond exhausted. My mom dropped me off at the airport with a rushed goodbye and she herself went off to catch her flight to Ireland. I checked my bags, got some crappy air-port coffee, boarded the plane, and settled in for a long flight across the states.

***

I’d fallen asleep on the plane and went I woke up I definitely wasn’t in Wisconsin anymore. The sun was shining brightly and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. I stepped off the plane with my backpack straps resting on my shoulders as I took in the sights of the East Coast around me. It was a lot different from Wisconsin, everyone was busy moving about around me; it was much livelier that home ever was.

I somehow managed to make my way to the front entrance of the airport where my mom told me I’d meet my aunt to take me to her house. I waited outside after picking up my suitcase and a few minutes later, a woman with white hair came up to me. “Are you Erin?” she asked me with a glint of hope in her eyes. I recognized her immediately; she was a little older and her hair had more gray than I remembered, but she was definitely my aunt Theresa. Despite not having seen her in a few years, I still knew it was her. “Hi, Aunt Terry.”

She smiled and wrapped me in a big hug, squeezing me tight, but I didn’t blame her, it had been nearly seven years since she’d last seen me. “Oh, Erin, look at you!” she exclaimed, loosening the hug enough to hold me out at arm’s length and take a look at what the past few years had done to me. “Your hair got so long. You must have gotten seven inches taller; you look so grown up!”

“Thanks, Aunt Terry. It’s great to see you,” I said to her, being sincere. Just because I hadn’t gotten the chance to see her in a few years, didn’t mean I didn’t miss my aunt. I was sentimental for the days I’d spent at her house as a kid, playing with the other children on her street. If I was going to be spending the summer anywhere besides home, I was glad it was with my aunt Terry.

“Well come along now, I’ll get you home and something to eat, you must be starving,” she said as she ushered me along to follow her to her car. “Yeah, I am pretty hungry.”

We got into the car and headed down the road, away from the airport. It only took a few minutes to get to my aunt and uncle's house, and once we were there, she went into the kitchen to make dinner. “You go on ahead upstairs and unpack your things while I get supper ready. Your room is the second one on the right, across from the bathroom.”

I thanked my aunt and went up to find my room. It wasn’t big, but it was roomy enough for me. The walls were white with a blue strip of paint going across the room halfway up. There was a bed pushed up against the wall, opposite a large window dressed with blue curtains. The dresser was short and wide with a mirror sitting atop it. It was a nice room and I didn’t have anything to complain about, maybe except for the fact that it wasn’t in Wisconsin.

I unpacked my clothes and folded them neatly before placing each piece in the dresser. I hung my ballet slippers on the mirror, the only thing even remotely decorative in the room. When I was finished putting away my things, I went downstairs. My uncle had come home, so I greeted him and received the same, 'look at you!' that my aunt had given me. They asked me about school and how my mom was and I told them everything they wanted to know. It was nice to sit and talk with them after all this time.

Aunt Terry wasn’t like my mom. My mom was distant and only talked to me when she needed to. We didn’t really speak to each other more than we had to which resulted in us not having the best relationship. Aunt Terry was different though; I’d only been with her for one day and I already felt like I had a better relationship with her than I did with my mother. It felt more comfortable talking to her and it gave me hope that the summer in Jersey could be better than I anticipated.

Uncle Vin was quiet. He was content with his simple life, living with the woman he'd loved since high school. He wasn’t too big on talking, but he wasn’t a hermit either. He was the kind of guy that, even in his sixties, still worked on cars and played tennis with the 'lads.'

After dinner I helped my aunt clean up then retired to my room for the night. I’d had a long day and I was tired so I just wanted to go upstairs, relax, and recover from my trip. It was the first night of many in my new room and I knew that this would be where I’d spend a nice chunk of my summer; I mean, what else was I to do? Aside from my aunt and my uncle, I’d be all alone.

Notes

NEW STORY!!! Dedicated to the sweet, sweet summertime!! Let me know what you think!! Leave a comment, send me a message, and enjoy the story!!!!