Summary: Gabriela had her heartbroken once and it changed her view on life. The once innocent girl became head strong and built a way around herself. After years of her brother desperately trying to fix his baby sisters spirit, Mathew Casey came along and changed everything.
The first time Gabriela Dawson fell in love was when she was 14. She had gone to a party with one of her friends from school and met Drake, a senior and first string linebacker on their schools football team. Immediately drawn to him, she put aside the fact that he was 3 years older and known as a player, she liked him and he seemed interested in her. They had been dating for 5 months before she even told her older brother, Antonio, about him or the fact that she had started dating. Antonio was 10 years older than her and a police detective for the city of Chicago. Gabby had dreaded the impending interrogation she would have with her brother, but her mother insisted that he should at least know. During one of the evenings that Antonio had set aside to spend with Gabby they were watching Law and Order: SVU when her phone started to vibrate, letting her know that she had a text message.
Hey, wanna go to a party with me tonight? ~ Drake
She smiled in glee because he wanted to actually take her to a party. Since Gabby didn't have any dating experience she thought this was all normal and looked forward to when Drake would actually acknowledge the fact that they were dating.
"What are you smiling at squirt?" Antonio joked as he tried to grab the phone out of her hands.
"Nothing!" she laughed as he started tickling her and snatched the phone away. Suddenly, Antonio's smile was wiped off his face.
"Who's Drake?" He asked with his eyebrows raised. Gabby's stomach dropped at the thought of telling him. Slowly she reached for her phone and closed it. Sensing a serious conversation, Antonio turned the TV off and turned to face his younger sister.
"Umm… Drake is my… boyfriend…." She shyly said as she looked down and tucked a piece of hair, which had fallen in her face, behind her ear. She didn't look up at Antonio to see his reaction, but judging by the way he hadn't said a word, she knew he wasn't happy about the revelation.
"I didn't even know you liked boys yet… I mean I knew you were growing up, but I didn't expect this for at least another year…" He sounded like he was mostly talking to himself, but when she looked up she saw him staring at her differently.
"I'm not a little girl anymore." She said quietly. He bit his lip. This hadn't been something they were used to talking about with each other. When she was younger they would talk about anything and everything, but now this was a whole new playing field.
"I know that Gabby, trust me, I know… You're growing up, I just wasn't prepared for this tonight." When he saw her face slowly fall he placed his hand under her chin and forced her to look at him.
"Tell me about him." He said with a subtle smile on his face. He was trying to pretend to be happy for her, but the truth was that he wasn't all that thrilled with the idea of her dating. He had to admit though, the smile on her face when he said that was enough to brighten his mood.
"Well his name is Drake Parkinson, He's a senior and on the varsity football team." Antonio's had warning bells going off in his head. First of all, he was too old for her, and second of all, he was a football player, which don't exactly have the best reputations. He tried to give her a convincing smile and even if it wasn't she didn't notice. She went on and on about him until he finally asked her,
"How long have you been dating this guy?" Gabby stopped mid-sentence and again her face fell and she looked down.
"5 months…" His eyebrows shot up.
"5 months?! And I'm only hearing about this now? Gabby I thought you told me everything?" His heart was breaking more and more as this conversation continued. Her head snapped up and she reached out for his hands.
"It's not that I didn't want to tell you, Antonio! I promise! It's just that… I was scared that you would be mad at me." She let go of his hands and faced away from him. Gabby was always desperate for Antonio's approval. Ever since their father was killed 10 years ago, he has become the father figure in her life. That's part of the reason why they're so close, he's the only father-figure she remembers and he helped raise her. Approval was just something Gabby had always needed from him.
"Gabby, I could never be mad at you. You having a boyfriend is just proof to me that you're growing up and the little girl I remember before I got married and moved out. I'm just going to need some time to adjust to the fact that you aren't my little squirt anymore." She put her head on his shoulder and he wrapped his arms around her. She snuggled into his side and said,
"I'll always be your little squirt, even when I'm you're age" He smiled to himself and placed a lingering kiss on her head.
"I'm holding you to that, squirt."
