Being Julia (A Forever Novella) by Sandi Lynn

it’s hard for you without her being here. But, today’s your graduation party and there’s going to be about 300 people here, so you need to try and at least act happy. I know you’ve been doing that a lot lately, but once today is over with, you’ll have the whole summer to relax.”
    Suddenly, the door opened and my mom stood in the doorway, staring at us. “Good morning, sweetheart. Connor, why are you sitting up here?”
    “I’m comforting our daughter, Ellery.”
    She glared at him with knitted eyebrows as she walked over to the bed. “Are you okay, sweetheart?”
    “I’m fine, Mom.”
     
    “Connor, downstairs! Julia, why don’t you go take a shower and get ready for your party?” She smiled.
    I sat up and looked at my dad as he winked at me. As soon as I walked out of the room and shut the door, I heard giggling. I rolled my eyes because I knew what that meant.
    ****
    The party was a success, and I could tell how happy my mom was. People were everywhere. Tables filled the patio and backyard under the beautiful white canopy tents. The spread of food was amazing and could probably feed a small country. The DJ was awesome and played everything my friends requested. My mom had a play area set up for the smaller children and then games were set up down on the beach for the older kids and adults. I made my rounds and tried to talk to as many people as I could. It was nearing dusk and I needed to step away from the party for a while to gather my thoughts. With as many people that were here to celebrate my graduation, it still felt lonely without London. I didn’t want my parents to worry if they couldn’t find me, and I didn’t see my mom, so I told my dad I was going for a walk.
    “Dad,” I said as I pulled him aside. “I’m going to go for a walk down the beach in case you’re looking for me.”
    “All right, sweetheart, just be careful,” he said as he kissed my head.
    I took off my shoes and headed down the beach. Once I made my way down, far enough away from the house, I sat down in the warm, soft sand. As I was thinking about my life and college, a dog came up and sat down next to me with a stick in its mouth.
    “Hi there.” I smiled as I reached my hand over to pet the dog. “You’re so cute. Look at that face. Where did you come from?”
    Suddenly, I heard a voice from a few feet away. “Mozart, there you are. What are you doing, boy?”
    I gulped as I looked at the fine male that was standing in front of me, in just a pair of cargo shorts and no shirt. I couldn’t help but stare at his ripped abs and muscular arms. It felt like I couldn’t get enough air as I looked at him. My eyes finally traveled up to his face and, once again, my airway felt constricted. He was the hottest guy I’d ever seen in my life.
    “Sorry about that. Mozart loves girls and, when he sees one, he wants to be friends.” He smiled.
    That smile. I felt something when he smiled. It was the kind of smile that no matter how bad your day was, it made you feel better. It was the kind of smile that fixed you. I needed to speak, but the words weren’t coming out. I was stunned by this boy, this guy, this man. He had me speechless and that was not easy to do.
    “That’s okay. I love dogs.” I managed to spit out.
    He looked at me and cocked his head. “I know this is your typical crappy line, but I’m serious. I feel like we’ve met before.”
    I laughed because at least he was being honest about it being a typical crappy line. “I don’t think so.”
    “Come on, Mozart, let’s go,” he said.
    Mozart looked at me, laid down, and put his head on my lap.
    “Mozart, what are you doing? Come on. Come, boy.”
    “He obviously doesn’t want to go,” I said.
    “He never acts like this. He always listens when I tell him we have to go.”
    I felt my heart beating rapidly as the nervousness in my stomach began. “You could always stay for a while until he’s ready to go.”
    He looked at me with a smile. “You