I hear the sound of a camera shutter, "Delete it" I murmur

"Not a chance"

I open my eyes, "Well at least take another one"

He holds his phone up high and I put my middle finger up before sticking out my tongue, Carter takes a few before putting his phone down. "Send them to me" I get up before walking into his bathroom

One way to describe Carter..... he's an absolute animal. I widen my eyes as I stare at myself in the mirror, my neck isn't even my neck anymore. It's like.... Carters mouth featuring my body, "Damn, I'm good" He says impressed as he appears behind me

"I look like I've been attacked by a mosquito!"

"A sexy mosquito-

"It's not funny" I scoff

"Your one to talk"

I frown, "You gave me three and I've got back scratches" He turns around

"I was showing my appreciation" I defend

"Your a different breed" He says amused

After I showered and coated my neck in foundation Carter and I headed downstairs. I hear Grace's voice as we walk towards the kitchen, "You two took your time" Melissa says amused

Carter opens the fridge, "Carmens a bit of a freak"

I scoff as his mother assesses his neck and his back, "I noticed"

Since Carter wants to play it that way, I decide to show Melissa a photo of what my neck actually looks like underneath all this makeup, she widens her eyes. "It looks like you've been attacked by a mosquito"

"That's exactly what I said"

"You teenagers" She mutters

I then turn my attention to Grace, "Do we still hate Carmen?" I ask

She shakes her head and I reach my arms out, she hugs me and I lift her up. "Why were we ever hating Carmen?" Melissa frowns

"She's leaving" Grace says sadly

Her mother's face softens, "Not forever" I assure her

"Will you look after me again when you come back?"

I look at Melissa before looking back at her, "Of course" I say softly

I hope

"What time are you leaving?"

"Five"

"Six" Carter says

"Five thirty"

"Five forty five-

"Fine"

"Can you do my hair now?" Grace pleads

"Of course I can"

"Nope" Her mother stops us before pointing at the table

"Breakfast first"

Great

I sigh as she heads back into her office, "Yay" I say sarcastically

I'm not even hungry

Grace runs to the table first since food always excites her, Carter and I sit opposite each other. Melissa made pancakes with eggs, cheese and bacon, plus syrup.... There's nothing healthy on this plate

"Don't think, just do" He says knowingly

I pick up my knife and fork before cutting through my food, it's funny because my brain automatically turns into a calculator even when I don't try. "Just curious, how far away will you be?" He then asks me

I take a bite, "Like an hour and a half away"

"How far is that" Grace frowns

"A really long car drive" I say amused

"Can you come back and visit?"

I shrug one shoulder, "I guess I'll have to ask"

"Who's gonna watch princess movies with me when your gone"

Carter scoffs with offence, "The same person who's been doing it with you for six years"

"Your a boy" She says blankly

"What's wrong with me being a boy?"

"Carmen says that princesses don't need boys in their life"

He looks back at me and I shrug innocently, "They don't"

He rolls his eyes

-

I did Grace's hair later on and she loved it, then we played a few games and watched another movie one last time. Before I knew it, 5:45 came about and it was time for me to leave the Miller household, "I am so glad you ran onto the road that day" I say as I crouch down in front of Grace, she smiles before wrapping her arms around my neck, I return the hug

Melissa watches softly, "Be good while I'm gone ok?" I murmur, she nods as I pull away

Afterwards I stand up before hugging her mother/my boss, "Your always welcome here Carmen" She says softly

I smile with my eyes closed, "Thank you" I say quietly

She fans her eyes as we pull away, "You should go before the tears come out" She jokes, I laugh a little

My phone buzzes

"I-

"I know how impatient Carter is, go on" Melissa says softly

I smile before waving at Grace, she waves back sadly as she stands besides her mother and I pick up my bag before heading for the door, I never knew that it was so easy to care for people that you've known for such a short amount of time.

"Ready?" Carter asks as I get into the car

I sigh, "Not really"

He starts the engine, "Remember that this is for your health"

I lay back against the headrest, "Yeah" I say quietly

We conversed with one another as he drove me back to my house, I was happy.... For once I was really happy. I don't know if this time apart is going to be good for us, Carter says everything is gonna be fine but I just have a feeling that it won't.

I was getting ready to take off my seatbelt and say goodbye but then he didn't stop.... He drove right past my house which confused the hell out of me. "What are you doing?" I say amused

"We have one more stop"

"We do?"

"Yup"

-

"You tired yet?"

He shakes his head as he grips onto my thighs, "Nope"

"How far away do you think we are from the car"

"Not that far"

We're going for a walk near the city, it's so calming and I'm glad that Carter thought of it. First he took me to a hidden lake, the view was amazing and you could see the busy streets from there.... As much as Carter doesn't like being called this, he's cute and there's no denying it. "Well I think you should let me down so that I can kiss you" I say amused

He puts me down before lifting me up once more, on his front this time, I scoff with surprise before wrapping my arms around him and bringing our lips together. And trust me when I say that this kiss was more passionate than our previous ones, "I really don't want to do this" I murmur

"I'll be texting you everyday and night" Carter promises

I stare up at him, "Fine then we won't do goodbyes"

"No?"

I shake my head, "When you drop me off at my front door I'll say see you later"

He half smiles, "Fine by me"

So that's exactly what I did, it saddened me to have to watch Carter go but I know it's not forever.

I think we'll be ok....

My sadness was short lived though because excitement took over as I entered the house, I scoff with surprise. "Aunt Camila?"

She turns around and I rush over to her right away, she laughs before hugging me back. "Hey"

Aunt Camila is dads younger sister and is also the greatest aunt on earth. She's not like one of those older aunts who sit around and judge you

as if they've got nothing better to do, she's young and cool. "What are you doing here?"

"Didn't your father tell you?" She says amused

I shake my head as I look back at him, "The place you'll be staying at for your recovery programme is nearby her house" He says

"Really?" I say surprised, she pours herself a glass of wine

"Si, I'll be with you for all your doctor visits"

Awesome

"Perfect"

She pours another glass of wine before sliding it towards me. "Camila" My dad warns, she waves him off

"It's her last night Roberto"

"One glass" He warns before walking away

"Yeah yeah" I take a sip

"So tell me about this boy.... Carter is it?"

"Who told?"

"Lorenzo"

Of course

"But I hear that things are quite serious between you too" She then says curiously

I smile a little, "Well yeah.... But I'm gonna have to resume things with him after recovery"

Camila pinches my cheek, "Aww he's got you smiling and shit"

"Your literally so embarrassing"

She waves me off, "It's my job"

"How are things with Christopher?" I ask

"Who?"

I frown, "Christo-.... Your boyfriend?"

Aunt Camila snorts as she gets up, "Trust me honey, he was nothing but a fuck buddy"

I down the rest of my wine, "Noted"

I think we were up until about eleven talking about the most random things, we probably would've been down there longer if it wasn't for dad saying that I needed sleep.

Buzzkill

My door opens and Santi walks in with an eye mask on his head, "Make space for the king" He collapses back onto my bed and I scoff

"Aren't you a little old for sleepovers?"

My brother does a double take,"What the fuck is up with your neck?" He scoffs

I lie closer to him, "Carter was all over me, like literally he was sucking on my neck and then I started moaning-

"Ok enough-

"And I could feel his erection-

"Ew!" Santiago complains, I laugh

"You wanted to know"

"Not that much" He mumbles

The rest of our siblings walk in -minus Enzo and Daniel- followed by aunt Camila, "What is this?" I say amused

"What do you say guys? Let's annoy her one last time before her six week break" Camila grins

I widen my eyes, "Hell no-

Lola squeezes her way into the middle of me and Santiago whilst Adri, Matteo and Camila lay a few comforters down onto the floor. "You guys are so annoying"

"But you love us" Lola replies

"Unfortunately so"

"So what do they actually do at recovery programmes?" Adri asks as she sits up

"Your asking the wrong person" I reply

"Oh it's not that bad, you have these group therapy sessions and you all eat meals together, your also not allowed to go to the bathroom after eating-

"Why?" Santi snorts

"Some kids like to force their food back up"

"Ew" Matty frowns

"You also can't exercise so don't even try it pequeño" She then says to me

What the fuck

Don't they at least have like a gym?

"I literally might just die"

"If you do that, I will kill your myself" Santi replies, I frown

"How do you even know this stuff?" Adriana says confused

Aunt Camila shrugs, "I had a friend back in high school who got sent to a programme, she had bulimia"

"Bu what?" Matteo frowns

"Never mind, why are we even talking about this" She snorts before turning off the light

"What do you guys think you'll do without me" I ask as the room turns dark

"Take your room" Adriana answers

"Nice try but I'm locking it"

"You've got an early day tomorrow so get some sleep" Camila says

I sigh before lying down, "Night" Matty says

"Night" Santiago replies before turning on his phone

"Do you think you'll recover?" Lola whispers to me as we face each other

"Honestly?.... I have no clue"

She shuffles closer as I close my eyes, "Just make sure you try C...."

"I will"

-

The morning came, I woke up quite early then had a shower and got dressed.... Before I knew it, it was time for me to go.

I kiss my little brother on the head, "See you soon" I say softly

Matteo waves as I hug the twins, "I'll make you the best cake in the world when you get back" Adri mumbles into my shoulder

"Red velvet?"

She nods with amusement, "Love you guys" I say softly

Enzo salutes me from the kitchen and I snort as I high five Lola. Things are still rocky with my mom and I so I just wave at her as she stands by the stairs, she waves back with a soft smile and I pick up my suitcase before heading outside. "I'm so glad your doing this" Sienna says before bringing me in for a hug

"Me too, I hope" I reply before hugging Zoe

"Six weeks will go by fast, you'll see" My favourite redhead says

"I guess we will see" I reply before shielding my eyes from the sun

June hands me a book and I narrow my eyes at the title, "She walks in beauty" I read

She smiles, "We were reading it in English lit, it reminded me of you"

I look at her softly before pulling her in for a hug, "Thank you" I whisper

"I believe that when you come back, you'll be different"

I frown

"You'll be a much more confident girl and finally see yourself as we all do"

I smile and she kisses me on the cheek, "Nos vemos pronto"

"See you soon" I repeat back to her before lifting up my suitcase and making my way to dads car

He opens the trunk before putting it away and aunt Camila opens my door, "You ready?"

I wipe my eyes quickly, "I think so"

She smiles, "Good"

I get into the back and she gets into the passenger side of the car, my dad gets into the drivers seat before looking back at me. "I'm proud of you mi hija"

"Thanks dad"

He pulls out of the driveway and I look back at everyone standing outside the house, June, Matteo and Zoe wave at me, I half smile before waving back and then turning to face the front once more

I take a quiet breath before lying against the window

Here we go

🥳