The Summer Of My Life

Airport

Without adding any words or modifying any punctuation, here's the English translation:

I agree with the flight attendant's announcement that we were about to land, fastened my seatbelt, and leaned my head against the seat. It was a long and tiring journey, but I was dying to see my family, my homeland, the ranch where I grew up.

As we landed, it was easy to find my bags. I think, for the first time on a trip, destiny was on my side.

I look around and see a familiar face, my dear cousin Ross.

I hug him tightly and hear his deep voice complain. I laugh and give him a kiss on his freckled cheek. His blue eyes shone with excitement at our reunion after five long years. His blond military-style hair reminds me of when he enlisted, and the news nearly killed Uncle Daniel, who feared his little boy would get hurt. Ross used to be a skinny kid who avoided fights at all costs, but this tall, strong man in front of me was completely different from my fragile cousin. I smile as I run my hand over his face.

"I see my favorite soldier has been working out a lot!"

His cute laugh makes me want to hug him, but I refrain because I know Ross hates hugs.

"It's First Sergeant to you, miss!"

I salute Ross, who rolls his eyes. He hated being the center of attention in public, and my behavior was attracting the attention of several people.

"Let's go before you embarrass me to death!"

Ross turns instantly as red as a tomato. He grabs my bags and walks quickly, a considerable distance from me. His embarrassed attitude makes me laugh. I run to catch up with him; his strides are long due to his towering height. Something my dear cousin loved was seeing me try to catch up with him when he walked fast.

"Hey, wait! Your legs are enormous!"

I see his shoulders shake with laughter. This makes me roll my eyes and sigh in annoyance. A lousy day to wear high heels!

I hasten my pace when I see him stop in front of his red pickup truck.

"Nobody told the princess to wear heels. Do you think we're going to a fashion show or to a ranch?"

I roll my eyes and ignore him, getting into the truck. Ross throws my bags into the back of the truck with unnecessary force. I scold him when he sits next to me, and he just shrugs.

"Rose will be so happy to see you. I told her you'd be spending the summer with us."

Thinking of Rose, I smile. Rose was my childhood friend, and she and Ross had been dating since she was twelve and he was thirteen. I had never seen them have a fight. It was cute, like a movie couple.

Rose completed Ross. While he was shy, didn't like physical contact, and could be grumpy and a little rude, Rose was the opposite: an extroverted woman who was as sweet as honey, loved hugging people, kissing their cheeks, always had a smile on her face, and cared about people. She loved helping anyone, even if she didn't know them. Every year, she organized a charity ball with Ross's help. Rose was one of the few people who cared about humanity, her light shone, it was undeniable.

"And how are you two doing? I find it so beautiful that you've been together for fifteen years. Although it's strange that you've never considered getting married, especially since she's so eager to have kids."

Ross's cheeks turn red, and he starts tapping the steering wheel. Wait, is that the look he gives when he's hiding something from me? No, it can't be!

"Oh my God! You're going to get married!"

Ross jerks the car due to the shock of my shrill scream. I raise my hands in surrender as his clear eyes glare at me angrily.

"Not exactly... But I was thinking of a way to propose. Hey, don't look at me like that! You have to promise to keep it a secret, or I'll kill you while you sleep. Don't forget, your room is at the end of the same hallway as mine!"

Even with his threat, I let out a scream of excitement, and his hand covers my mouth. I bite his fingers, and he swears.

"I want to be the maid of honor! Remember that without me, you two would have never met!"

I clap with excitement, and his blue eyes look disappointed. I bet he bitterly regretted telling me this important information, but I didn't care because I was going to see one of my favorite couples get married! Thousands of images raced through my mind, thinking of Rose choosing her dress with her friends, Grandma crying at the wedding, Ross getting annoyed as we tease him about his suit.

"You have to promise me that you won't ruin this. You're terrible at keeping my secrets. Seriously, cousin, if you spill the beans, I swear I'll make your stay here a real hell."

I swallow and feel the tension in the car. I really had a terrible ability to keep my cousin's secrets. Usually, when it came to Ross, people could easily extract information from me.

I cross my little fingers in an "X" and kiss them.

I turn on the car radio, and one of our favorite bands, Fall Out Boy, starts playing.

"Dance, dance. We're falling apart to half time."

Ross sings in tune as he taps the steering wheel. His closed hand serves as a makeshift microphone, which he places near my lips.

"Dance, dance. And these are the lives you love to lead."

I sing along, moving my head to the beat of the music, and he smiles as we sing together:

"Dance, this is the way they'd love If they knew how misery loved me."

I sway my head to the rhythm of the music, messing up my hair to the sound of Ross's melodious voice. Moments like these reminded me of when we were younger and used to sneak out to go to random parties.

We entered the town, and nostalgia washed over me as I observed that the stores were the same as they were five years ago. Some kids played on the street, people strolled by, pet owners walked their animals. We moved away from the center of the small town, and now, instead of shops and houses, we had trees from the forest lining the roadside.