“Cheese!!” the group shouted.
The employee took a few pictures. “There you guys go. Such a good looking family.”
Laura smiled. “Thanks for taking those.”
“Not a problem,” he said.
Ethan walked up to him a moment later. “Hey, do you think we can get some ice cream?”
“Of course,” the lifeguard replied. “I'll be back in a few minutes. I'll just bring all of the flavors, and you guys can choose.”
“Perfect,” Ethan said.
The rest of the day was spent eating ice cream, going down water slides and playing in the waves. At one point, the kids even decided to dig a giant hole in the sand. They somehow convinced Ethan to get into the hole feet first and then they buried him up to his neck. After that, Laura and the kids turned Ethan into a giant beach mermaid, by creating a fish-like outline in the sand below his protruding head. He was a good sport about it, though, and even smiled for the dozens of pictures that Laura took with her phone.
For lunch, they ate pizza and funnel cakes. The kids smiled the entire day and Laura did, too. So much so that by the time the afternoon came around, her cheeks were sore from it.
Ethan had gone out of his way to make the best day for her and her siblings. He had spoiled her non-stop for the past twenty-four hours and made her feel like she was a princess. For once, her heart didn't hurt, and she wasn't sad. Everything finally just felt right. Needless to say, she had a whole lot to smile about. It was, in every sense of the word, a perfect day.
Chapter 27
Laura
Everyone was quiet for the ride back home from Water World. Laura and Ethan relaxed in the third-row seats, while Dallas and Ivy slept soundly in the middle row. Laura hadn't seen the kids this tired in years. A day of fun in the sun, going on rides and building sandcastles had taken it out of them. They weren't the only ones who were feeling it, though.
Laura was beat. She could feel a sunburn on her nose and couldn't seem to stop yawning. She was just glad it wasn't her that was driving because she wasn't sure she was going to make it home awake. It was the good kind of tired, though. The kind of tired that meant you'd spent the day the right way and squeezed every drop of life out of it that you possibly could.
“Pass the bucket...” Dallas mumbled in his sleep. “I need to make the castle bigger.”
Ethan nudged Laura and pointed toward Dallas. They both listened in, watching as he stirred.
“It's my turn to go on the water slide,” he whispered, then smiled right before falling back asleep.
“That's the cutest thing I've ever seen,” Ethan whispered.
“You really made them happy today,” Laura said, turning to face him. “I know for sure that they're going to remember this 'beach' day for the rest of their lives. I will, too. It was so much fun, Ethan.”
She leaned her head against his shoulder and let out a relaxed breath. This was what love felt like. He tipped his head and kissed the top of her hair. The gentle gesture made her smile.
“It means the world to me that you spent the time, effort and money to make this happen,” she said, softly so she wouldn't wake the kids. “I want you to know that, Ethan. I can't even begin...” She stopped short of finishing her sentence as a wave of emotion filled her. She couldn't remember ever feeling this loved. “Just, thank you a million times over.”
Ethan stroked her cheek and gazed into her eyes. “For you. Always for you.”
Her heart melted at the sound of his words. She realized right then, that for the very first time since her parents' deaths, that she was deeply happy. Her mind, body, and soul felt like they were in perfect harmony and her heart was at ease. It was like nothing in the world could harm her or her siblings as long as she was with Ethan.
More than that, though, for the first time she wasn't worried about what her parents thought. She wasn't thinking that they were looking down on her from above and seeing that she was failing Dallas and Ivy.
This is what they would want, she thought. They would be so happy to see Dallas and Ivy having such a good time with Ethan and me.
Laura closed her eyes and nestled her head into Ethan's shoulder. She thought about her parents. She imagined her mother's warm embrace and the way she used to laugh at all of her own jokes. She remembered her father's face, and the way the corners of his eyes wrinkled when he smiled. Every Christmas morning she had ever spent with them flashed through her mind.
For once, Laura didn't think about the plane crash as she remembered her parents. It was like her mind had healed, and the only images that flashed in her mind were good ones. There was no fire, or death, or carnage. There was only love and peace, hugs and kisses, smiles and 'I love yous.'
She hadn't realized that part of her mind still existed until that very moment. For the past few months, she was confident that the warm fuzzy feeling she used to get from being excited about life was gone. But it wasn't gone. It had just taken a little break and thanks to Ethan, it was back.
“Oh boy,” he said, causing Laura to open her eyes. He was holding up his phone to what looked like a news story.
“What is it?” she asked sleepily.