A whole year had gone by. Walker and I had just finished our junior year of high school, and we were still going strong. We had a few small fights, as every couple does, but they never ended up so dramatic as our first one. Our families stayed close, and Leena was practically my older sister at this point.
Eva and Adam had a huge fight around Thanksgiving last year. That had resulted in a nasty breakup. However, they had found their way back to each other on Christmas Day. By the end of our junior year, they were also in a very happy, healthy relationship.
Teagan and Dean started long-distance dating in the summer after our sophomore year. Out of the three couples, I would say they fought the least. Seeing Teagan with someone was strange, as she never liked anyone until Dean came along. Triple dates had occurred whenever Dean came back from Illinois and would definitely keep happening in the future.
As for my two other friends, they were both single since Eloise had broken up with her Alabama boyfriend. They were single and thriving, though.
I had auditioned for an acting job for the next season of Percy Jackson and had yet to hear back. Walker had other ways to set me up with an acting job if I didn't get the role since he had connections, so I wasn't too worried. I did wish I could be able to act with Walker, though.
Even though Walker and I had been together for over a year now, there still hadn't been a first kiss.
One day in early June, not too long after school had let out, Walker and I planned another triple date with Eva, Adam, Teagan, and Dean. This was a lot more than just a simple triple date, however. We were spending a couple of nights at a cabin by a lake in the mountains. I honestly couldn't believe that our parents let us, but they trusted all six of us not to be too reckless.
Adam picked me up in his car at eight in the morning. I piled into the backseat next to Walker. Eva was in the passenger seat, and Adam was driving. Taylor Swift was playing, so I guessed Eva was in charge of the music.
"We still have to grab Dean and Teagan," Walker informed me as we pulled away from my driveway. As Dean was visiting from Illinois, he was staying at Teagan's.
"Okay," I replied and yawned. "I'm exhausted. Can we grab some Starbucks on the way?"
"I already guaranteed a Starbucks stop," Eva told me. She also looked tired.
"Why are you guys so tired?" Adam asked. "We woke up two hours earlier for school."
"I had to wake up at 5:30 because I forgot to pack last night," Eva explained.
"I'm just tired," I said.
We picked up Teagan and Dean, and they sat in the third back row. I eventually fell asleep, my legs stretched out across the seats and my head on Walker's lap. Walker was leaning against the window, also asleep, one of his hands left to rest in my hair.
Two hours later, we arrived at the mountain cabin. It was right next to a lake, and we would be spending most of our time there.
"Look at this place!" Eva marveled, gazing up at the high ceiling.
"Come on, let's go claim a bedroom," Teagan said. The girls were going to share one room, and the boys were going to share the other.
"Wait for me!" Eva said, bounding up the stairs after us.
The first one I saw, with a large bay window with a view of the lake, was the one I knew I wanted. "I want this one," I said, plopping onto one of the beds.
"Good choice," Eva said, jumping onto another bed.
We unpacked and went back downstairs to decide the game plan for the next three days that we were there.
"I obviously want to go to that lake," Teagan said.
"Yeah, and maybe we can check out the mountain town," Dean suggested.
"Okay, let's go get changed into bathing suits then," said Eva.
I went up to the girls' room, and we all got changed. I changed into my two-piece swimsuit with a red top and black bottoms. Eva wore a baby blue bikini set, and Teagan wore a bright pink top with black bottoms.
We met downstairs again. The boys were wearing similarly colored swim trunks.
"Race you!" Dean shouted and sped out the door toward the lake. The five of us rushed after him.
When we reached the dock, Dean and Teagan jumped in first, hand in hand. Adam pushed Eva in and jumped behind her. Walker grabbed my waist and pulled me into the water with him.
"What was that for?" I asked after I came up from under the water. It was shallow enough that I could touch the bottom, but only with the tips of my toes.
"Fun," was all he said. I splashed him, he splashed me back, and it turned into a splash fight.
"Aaliyah! Walker! You're getting the rest of us wet, too!" Teagan complained, holding her hands up to shield her face.
"You're literally in the water. You're supposed to get wet," Dean teased and dunked her head under the water quickly.
We played a couple of water games, such as who could make the biggest splash or who could do the biggest cannon ball. We were in the lake for a couple of hours until we decided to go in for lunch.
"That was fun," Walker observed, wrapping a towel around my shoulders as I climbed out of the lake.
"Yeah, it was," I agreed, getting butterflies from his touch on my shoulders.
"So, what's for lunch?" Teagan asked once we got inside and gathered around the table, propping her head on her fists eagerly.
"We boyfriends decided to grab some food today..." Adam began.
"We may have ordered some food that should be getting here soon," Dean said.
"What?" Eva asked excitedly.
"You'll see," Adam replied.
Suddenly, the cabin doorbell rang. "Speak of the devil," Walker said and went over to the door. He picked up a bag of food and brought it to the table.
"Chick-fil-A!" I exclaimed happily.
"This is for Eva," Adam said as he rooted through the paper bag, handing his girlfriend her food. "This is for Teagan, and this is for Aaliyah. And you all got a lemonade and fries."
"Oh my gosh, you remembered!" Teagan said happily as she opened the box of grilled nuggets.
"Of course I did." Dean picked her up and spun her around.
Eva was looking at Adam with her mouth wide in excitement. Adam leaned over and kissed her quickly. "I know what you like," he murmured.
"Yes, you do," Eva agreed, taking a bite of her spicy chicken sandwich.
As for me, Walker had gifted me a deluxe chicken sandwich, which was my favorite. He held my hand over my head and spun me around. "Do you like it?" He whispered in my ear.
"Of course I do," I whispered back.
"Did you guys get something?" Teagan asked.
"Obviously. It's Chick-fil-A," Dean said. "We can't pass that up."
We all sat down around the table, eating Chick-fil-A and sipping our lemonades. I honestly couldn't remember the last time I had so much fun.
That evening, we drove to get some sushi from a cute little spot in the small mountain town nearby. When we got back to the cabin, we sat on the couch and watched
10 Things I Hate About You. Dean and Teagan were cuddled up on a cushion made of pillows on the floor. Eva and Adam were on one end of the couch, and Walker and I were on the other end. His arm was around me, and my head was on his shoulder.
"What would you say if I said I've never seen this movie before?" He asked me quietly.
"I wouldn't say anything. I haven't seen it before either," I admitted. "Eva and Teagan love it, though."
"I won't tell them that then," he said. His hand found its way to my hair and played with my curls. "You're gorgeous."
I looked up at him admiringly. "I know."
Walker shoved me playfully but then kissed my forehead. My head remained on his shoulder, and my arms had snaked their way around his waist. We fell asleep in that position before the movie ended.
I woke up in the morning in our room, not knowing how I had ended up there. I guessed Walker had carried me up.
Eva was awake, but Teagan was dead asleep, sprawled across the covers.
"Morning," I said.
"Morning," Eva replied.
"Did Walker carry me up last night?" I asked.
"Yeah. I got mad at you two for falling asleep during the movie, but you weren't awake."
"Of course you did."
The conversation caused Teagan to stir, and she woke up too. I heard something happening downstairs that sounded like someone was making breakfast.
"We should head downstairs," I said, climbing up from the bed.
After we got ready, we headed downstairs. We saw Adam, Dean, and Walker preparing pancakes.
"Oh my gosh!" I exclaimed.
"You guys are the best," Eva said, going up to Adam and greeting him with a peck on his lips.
"Teagan, I made you a gluten-free batch," Dean informed her. Teagan didn't eat gluten.
"Thanks, Dean," she said, giving him a hug. He kissed the top of her head.
"Good morning, beautiful," Walker said, giving me a hug. His raspy morning voice was my favorite.
"Morning," I replied happily. "How long have you guys been up?"
"Only for an hour or so," he responded. "The pancakes are almost done. Do you want regular or chocolate chip?"
"Chocolate chip, please," I requested.
Adam, Dean, and Walker prepared an elaborate pancake setup with whipped cream, berries, and syrup.
"When did you guys get all this?" Teagan asked, taking a bite of her pancake.
"Walker drove to get the stuff last night," Adam said.
"You did?" I asked him. Walker nodded. "Best boyfriend ever."
"Well, he used my car," Adam retorted.
"And he used my money," Dean added.
"You guys are also the best boyfriends ever," Teagan and Eva said.
Just when I thought the surprises couldn't get any better, Walker had saved the best surprise for last.
After another long day of swimming in the lake, we were all exhausted. There wasn't any movie that night, and everyone went to bed. However, once everyone else was asleep, Walker came into the girls' room and woke me up.
"Hmm?" I mumbled tiredly.
"Wake up. I have something to show you," he whispered. I groaned but got up out of bed.
He took me to the shore of the lake, and we sat on the edge of the dock with our feet hanging over. It was night and sort of cold, so I shivered. Without any hesitation, Walker took his sweatshirt off and gave it to me.
"Thanks," I said, slipping it over my head. "What did you want to show me?"
"So..." Walker began. He seemed nervous. "I'm not totally sure if I believe in love at first sight, but when I first saw you, what I felt came close to it. I've had little crushes in the past, but when I met you, I knew it was going to be more than that. I knew I wanted to be with you forever." He paused to reach into his pocket and pulled out a small, velvet box. He opened it and revealed a silver band ring.
"Walker," was all I managed to say. I was speechless.
"This ring is a promise. A promise to you that I will always be there for you. A promise that someday, I'll marry you and we'll move to a big house by the beach and have as many kids as you want. We'll have a dog and a cat too. We'll star in movies together and go to premieres together and people will look at us and we'll be the reason they believe in love. Because Aaliyah, I never have and never will love anyone as much as I love you. You're my whole world. I will never let you go."
I was still speechless. I gazed at the ring and then back at him. Once he leaned over and kissed me on the forehead, I found the words.
"You missed."
Before I could think, I realized that I had leaned over and pressed my lips to his. He seemed surprised at first but eventually smiled into the kiss. My hands were buried in his curly hair, and his were on my waist. This felt right. This felt like home.
When the kiss ended, our lips stayed mere inches apart.
"You have no idea how hard it was not to kiss you every single day," Walker said, chuckling to himself. "And now I can."
"It's ridiculous how much I love you, Walker," I laughed.
"It's ridiculous how much I love you, Aaliyah," Walker said. He took the ring out of the box, grabbed my hand, and slipped it onto the ring finger of my right hand.
With the promise secured, I grasped the sides of his face and kissed him again. I had waited so long, and now it would be hard to ever stop.
We heard cheers coming from the cabin and broke apart to see who was cheering. On the balcony from the boys' room, the four others were standing and cheering. Eva was filming because of course she was.
"Finally!" Dean shouted, pulling Teagan into his side and kissing her as well.
"Took you long enough!" Eva yelled, putting her phone down.
"Okay, okay," Walker sighed. "Go back to bed. We'll be right back in."
Once we were alone once more, Walker stood up, holding out his hand to help me up. Once we were back on the deck of the cabin, Walker spun me around, dipped me, and kissed me for the third time. When I came back up, I grinned and giggled.
"Holy shit!" Eva screamed, holding her phone up again.
Walker side eyed her. "Again Eva?" He groaned.
"No, actually, look at this picture I got!" She exclaimed, holding out her phone for us to see.
"Are you kidding me?!" I exclaimed. "That's perfect!"
"I know, right! I should be a photographer!"
"Send that to me, Eva," Walker said, chuckling.
As it was late at night, we went back up to bed. It was hard to sleep since my stomach was full of butterflies. This cabin trip was the best one I'd ever been on.
The next morning, we headed back to our houses. Adam dropped me off, and as I was getting out, Walker kissed me goodbye.
I was living my dream. This was perfect. We were perfect.