It felt like we'd been driving for 5 years, my sister Vanessa, drove slower than our Grandmother. I sat next to him in the passenger seat, my feet up on the dashboard and ear buds in. Meanwhile, my mother was passed out in the back. I took my earbuds out.

"Go faster," I urged Vanessa. "Let's pass that kid on the bike." Vanessa ignored my plead. "Get your dirty feet off my dashboard."

I wiggled my toes back and forth to annoy her; they looked pretty clean to me. "It's not your dashboard. It's gonna be my car when you leave for college, you know."

She rolled her eyes.

"Hey, look!" I said pointing out the window. "That granny with a walker just lapped us!"

Vanessa ignored me again, so I began to play with the radio. One of my many favorite things about going to the beach was the radio stations. I was as familiar was them as the ones back home and listening to them just meant that we were really there, at the beach.

I found my favorite station, the one that played every genre you could imagine. My mother woke up and we both started singing, our voices harmonizing. I wasn't ever really one to sing in front of people, true I loved to sing but I had a terrible case of stage fright, but something about being so close to the beach made today different.

We drove through the town slowly, and even though I'd just teased Vanessa about it, I didn't really mind. I loved this drive, this part of the trip. Seeing the town all over again, the crab shack, the mini-golf course, and all of the surf shops, felt like coming home after you'd been gone for a long time. It held a million promises of summer and of what just might be. As we got closer and closer to the house, I could almost feel my heart pumping out of my chest. We were almost there.

I rolled down my window and breathed in the salty air, the wind making my hair fly all over the place, all of it felt perfect. Like this is what my life's purpose was.

Vanessa elbowed me. "Are you thinking about James?" she asked mockingly.

For once the answer was no. "No." I snapped.

My mother stuck her head in between our seats.

"Laura, do you still like James? From the looks of things last summer, I thought there might be something going on between you and Joey."

"Mom, just because two people are good friends doesn't mean there's anything going on. Don't ever bring that up again."

"Done." She said and leaned back in her seat, she sounded serious unlike Vanessa.

"What happened with you and Joey? You can't say something like that and not explain."

"Get over it," I told her. Telling Vanessa anything would only give her a motive to make fun of me. And anyways, there was nothing to say.

James and Joey were Alyssa's boys. Alyssa McVey is my mom's closest friend; they'd known each other since they were 9.

Alyssa told me that when I was born she knew that I was destined for one of her boys, She called it fate, giving me her "blessing". We've been coming to Alyssa's beach house in Miami since I was a baby, before I was born actually. Miami was like a second home to me, the beach house was my world. We had our own stretch of beach to ourselves. I always wondered what the boys would look like, counting down the days till summer in class. For me winter didn't count, my entire life was counted by summers. It felt like I didn't start truly living until I'm at the beach in June.

James was the oldest, by a year and a half. He had a perfect kind of mouth that I always found myself staring at. He had blonde hair that flipped just the right way, and he always smelled like ocean air. Guys like that make you want to kiss them, and that was exactly what I wanted to do with James.

Joey though-was my friend. He was nice to me. He was the guy who still hugged his mother, wanted to hold her hand, even if he was way too old for it. He wasn't embarrassed either. Joey McVey was too busy having fun to be embarrassed.

I bet James was more popular than Joey at their school. I bet girls liked him better. Even though he preferred to play his guitar and sing more than party and drink.

When we finally pulled up at the house, Joey and James were sitting on the porch. I leaned over Vanessa and honked the horn, telling them to come help with the bags.

Ryland who was 16 now, was taller than last summer and his hair was cut short above his ears, he'd used to have long hair, he hated his shaggy hair, for a while James convinced him when we were younger that sandwich crusts make your hair grow so Joey stopped eating sandwich crusts and James would eat them. As Joey got older he started to keep his hair shorter, while James liked his long and in his eyes.

I sat in the car and watched Vanessa walk up to the two of them and hug them the ways guys do. The air smelled even more salty closer to the beach, I pretended to be tying my shoes but really I just wanted to look for a second. At the house, look at the boys, look at the sea. The house was large, grey and white, and it looked like every other beach house looked. But it looked like home.

My mother got out of the car too. "Hey boys, where's your mother?" She called out.

"Hey Ellen, she's taking a nap," Joey told her. Usually Alyssa came flying out the door the second our tires hit the driveway.

My mother walked over to them and pulled them both into a tight hug. Then she disappeared into the house, pushing her sunglasses onto the top of her head.

I got out of the car and slung my bag over my shoulder. They didn't even notice me at first. But then they did. they really did. James gave me a quick glance over like guys at the mall do. James' never looked at me like that before. I felt my face flush. James looked like he didn't even recognize me. All of this happened in the span of three seconds, but it felt like an hour.

James hugged me first, but a faraway kind of hug, careful not to get too close. He smelled like the ocean. He smelled like James. ' I liked you better with glasses." He said, his lips close to my ear.

That stung. I shoved him away from me and said, "Well, too bad. My contacts are here to stay."

He smiled at me, and that smile- he is just forgiven. His smile did that every time. "I think you got some new ones." He said tapping me on my nose. He knew how self-conscious I was about my freckles and he still teased me every time.

Joey grabbed me next, and he almost lifted me into the air. "Our Laura's all grown up," he said.

I laughed. 'Put me down," I teased. "You smell like BO."

Joey laughed loudly. "Same old Laura," he said, but he was staring at me like wasn't quite sure who I was. He cocked his head and said, "Something looks different about you, Laura."

"What? I got contacts." I wasn't completely used to myself without my glasses either. My best friend Raini had been trying to convince me to get contacts since 6th grade, and I'd finally listened.

He smiled. "It's not that. You just look different."

I went back to the car then and the boys followed me. We unloaded the van quickly, and as soon as we were done I picked up my suitcase and my book bag and headed straight for my old bedroom. My room was Alyssa's when she was younger. It had faded music notes painted all over the walls and a white bedroom set. A music box that I loved, when you opened it there was a twirling ballerina that danced to the theme song to Romeo and Juliet. I kept my jewelry in it. Everything in my room was old and faded but I liked it like that. There could be hidden secrets in these walls, the bed, and in that music box.

Seeing James again, and having him look at me that way made me need to take a second to breathe. My heart was beating so loud I could hear it. Everything was the same but not. They had looked at me like I was a real girl, not somebody's little sister.

okay, so before you comment anything, allow me to explain what this is. this fanfic is based off of the book "the summer i turned pretty". it's about laura and it's a jaura (james + laura) fanfiction. not hate against anyone implied and please don't hate on my idea. this isn't serious, its just a sort of alternate universe. for those of you twitter users who have noticed the not so subtle flirting between laur and james you get it. :) thank you!

-abby:)