Once upon a time…
So many children’s stories start that way, and so many end with the prince sweeping his princess off her feet, in which they gallop away to live out the rest of their days in harmony. Even though my story begins with ‘once upon a time,’ it certainly doesn’t end with ‘happily ever after.’ Only fairy-tales end that way, and my story is no fairy-tale.
It had started innocently enough. I had met him on the beach, during one of my long walks. He was seventeen, I was sixteen. Near-perfect for our ages, since our birthdays were only six months apart. He’d been cute, too. Dark hair and dark eyes with the perfect smile—my dream guy. When he’d told me his name, Carl, my heart had almost skipped a beat. It just suited him so well.
He said he was just visiting. That he normally lived in the city with his parents and right now he was just visiting his grandma. I told him I lived here; my family was keeper of the lighthouse. He’d joked about princesses locked in dark towers, and if I’d ever felt like jumping off the bluff because I was so isolated. I hadn’t even tried to defend myself. I had just nodded and laughed along with him.
I could remember adding in my own jokes, too. Like having ten invisible friends to keep myself company. He had been easy to get along with early that summer. We’d talked about American Idol and who we thought would win, and I told him about some episodes of Mythbusters that had made me fall off my chair laughing. He’d shared friend troubles, I’d told him about what it was like being homeschooled. All the conversation blended together in my mind. What they say about time flying is true, and that summer, I’d been having more fun than ever before.
But it was in late-summer, when thoughts that Carl would leave began to enter my mind, that I remember the most.
~
“Carl!” I looked around the rocky outcrops, calling his name. He’d taken to hiding when we were about to meet. He knew exactly how long it took for me to get from the lighthouse to the beach. He also knew that was the only time I couldn’t see him coming. The path I had to take led away from the sand, which made it a perfect time for him to hide.
“Carl?” In the five times he’d hidden, he’d never averted me this long. It made me think he wasn’t coming. Or that he had something planned.
“Boo!”
I yelped and spun to face Carl, part of my turn being in mid-air, and saw he’d been hiding behind a rather large rock. In a few moments I had turned to face him and was in his arms. We’d been friends for almost six weeks now. I figured hugging was alright.
I pulled away, still laughing at the joke he’d just pulled. “I thought I’d looked around there!”
He ruffled my bangs. “You did. And I stayed one step ahead of you.”
I wanted to punch him, but his smiling face was enough to send me into a giggle fit. I’d been giggling a lot lately, and smiling, to the point my parents had noticed. They hadn’t been upset about Carl—I’d told them about him the day we’d met—but my mom kept insisting I had a crush on him. And I did. I just wasn’t going to admit it to them.
Carl slung an arm around my shoulders and we began walking down the beach. My steps were almost in a straight line he was holding me so tight. I didn’t want to tell him to loosen his grip—I liked the touch.
“When—” I cleared my throat and started again. A lump had suddenly formed. “When do you leave?”
When he just looked at me, almost in disbelief, I quickly added, “I remember you telling me… I just don’t remember the date.”
He chuckled and squeezed my shoulders. Any worry that he thought I was stupid for forgetting vanished with his action.
Carl’s chuckle died off with a sigh. “Next week! I’m going to miss hanging out with you every evening.” He loosened his grip to stroke my hair. “Nobody else is as… open, as you are.”
I shrugged. “I kinda have to be. There’s nobody else around for an hour. I can’t really afford to be picky.”
He laughed and gripped my waist, lifting me out of the air and spinning me around. I laughed too; I trusted that Carl wouldn’t let me fall.
When he’d finally put me down, he still kept his grip on my arms. I could see him thinking about something, and I found myself tilting my head up for a kiss.
“Yoo-hoo!” my mother called from down the beach. I jumped out of Carl’s arms.
She came running up to us, one of my sweaters draped over her arm. As soon as she reached us, she handed it to me. “The nights are getting colder, and I don’t want you catching a chill.”
I took the sweater grudgingly. I knew the only reason my mother had come was to meet the guy I’d been smiling about the past six weeks. I highly doubted I’d need to have a sweater when she was wearing shorts and a t-shirt herself.
Just as I thought, she turned to face Carl and began speaking. Why she wanted him to answer kindergarten-level questions was beyond me. I didn’t stop her, though. Now that she began asking what his favourites were, I wanted to know the answers myself.
After what seemed like hours, my mother moved on to slightly more grown-up conversation. “Where do you live in the city?”
Carl seemed taken aback by this question. He recovered quickly, though. “I live by the lake. Really beautiful. You can see the sunset reflected in the water.”
“Oh!” she said somewhat too enthusiastically. “You live farther than I thought. The city closest doesn’t have a lake.”
“Yeah, right,” he said with a slight nod. “It’s a little ways off. But my grandma really wanted her to visit, so the trip’s worth it.”
I chuckled dryly. I knew the closest city with a lake was a three hour drive away. And with no airport near by, he would have driven. “You must really love the ocean to make a trip that long.”
As soon as I mentioned the ocean, Carl’s face lit up. “It’s great. I love looking at all the sea-life, and nothing beats going swimming in the ocean. I wish I could live here more often.”
I paused. “I thought you said you lived in the city.”
“I—I do,” he said a little too quickly. “But every chance I get I come down here. The lake is nice, but nothing beats the ocean.”
We continued talking, he, my mom, and I, but his slip-up wouldn’t leave my mind. It was really the first time I’d noticed anything odd about him. No matter what we had done, we were always near the water. Neither of us had suggested anything different; the beach was where we were most comfortable. And Carl had been so good at hiding it, I’d never seen what was waiting on the horizon.
*
A/N- Any comments on style much appreciated. Deadline is the August 28th
(and tell me when you do...) HOOKED. 
Charicters: you described them good enough, I would have liked to know what her mom and herself looked like though. 
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