Note: Howdy everybody. I began writing this when I was 13 (over two years ago) and since then it's safe to say that my writing style has changed (and hopefully improved) a lot, so I've re-written it and posted it on Wattpad. Click here to check it out. Thank-you!

So the other day I was flicking through my diary I kept during the summer of 2011. That was year I had my first kiss and a lot of other exciting things happened. I thought it was really sweet, so I decided to type it up like a story and post it on here for y'all. Hope you enjoy hahaha :)
And remember, it's all true.

The sun spread a peachy glow across the sky that July evening as we pulled up my drive, made up of crazy paving. I liked crazy paving, it was pretty. I opened my gate and made sure to shut it, to make sure my dog wouldn�t escape.
I held my finger to my lips and looked at my granddad; we didn�t want to attract the attention of my crazy neighbor who was obsessed with my dog. Granddad grinned and we tiptoed into the house through my back door.

There was some Pimms & lemonade on the breakfast bar as we entered the kitchen; Glen was sat on one of the stools eating some crisps.
�Howdy cousin,� I said to him and grabbed some crisps, �When are the others arriving?� I asked him, our granddad went to find the rest of the family in the living room.
�Twenty minutes,� Glen sprayed my face with crisps as he spoke.
�Ew that is so gross!� I told him and jumped upstairs to my bedroom.

It had been a cool day and was starting to get muggy; I slipped on a pair of stonewash denim shorts and my favorite plaid shirt before debating what to do with my hair. It was all pinned up from the night before when I�d curled it, so the curls should still be in. And they were, thankfully. I dragged my fingers through them to separate them, and then touched up on my make-up.
�Seriously, what the heck are you putting on your face!� Glen exclaimed as he opened my door. I sighed as he strolled, uninvited, into my room.

Glen and I, we�re cousins, and my other two were downstairs with my younger brother. I�m close to Glen; we were born just four months apart.

Talk of the devils and the devils shall appear. Matt, my brother, and Ewan, my cousin charged up the stairs and into his room.

�Ew what are you putting on your face? Is that make-up?� Ewan said disgustedly. Eleven year olds, eh.
Glen yelled at his brother, and then marveled at the tidiness of my room.
�It�s not normally like this.� I laughed.
�Nice guitar,� Glen said, commenting on the Cort that was leaning against my chest of drawers.
�Thanks, want to hear me play?� I asked him.
�Like I haven�t already.� He laughed, �Go on.�
I sat down and played �I�m Yours� for him by Jason Mraz. He gets annoyed if I talk about Taylor Swift too much.

There was a knock at the door and my dad answered it. I heard talking and deep voices. I stayed upstairs playing my guitar with Glen, I didn�t know anyone downstairs.

Dad�s best friend that moved to Australia was coming over to England this year with his family, so Dad decided to have a barbeque at our house, inviting lots of people that I didn�t know.

�What�s this?� Glen asked, reading a song I�d composed. �Did you write this?� he asked, his voice breaking slightly.
�No,� I said quickly and snatched it off him, looking away. It was about his mum, she�d passed away last December, things back then were just horrible, horrible, horrible.
�I�m not an idiot, the crotchets and quavers don�t mean anything to me but I can read.� He said.
�Sorry,� I said.
�It�s not your fault.� He replied.
�I�m sorry.�
�Right, I�m going to go and get some food.�
�Wait,� I said as he stood up, I walked over and hugged him. I hadn�t done that in a while, and I think we both needed it. He smiled.
�Better go meet the Aussies. See you later.�
I�d almost messed things up completely there.

My dad appeared in my doorway then.
�Oh, hi.� I said.
�So you going to come down and meet the Aussies?� he said.
�Yeah I guess�� I mumbled.
�Oh come on, there�s a lad your age, you and Glen will get on with him, right? And there�s one about Matt and Ewan�s age too.�
�Cool,� I told him, �Be right down.� Yeah, right.

I was waiting for my friend, Alison, only then would I maybe venture downstairs into the now, unknown territory.

I heard my mom directing someone to the toilet downstairs.
�Up the stairs, first door on the right.� My bedroom door is up the stairs, first on the left.
Sure enough, a little nine year old kid opened my door and quickly shut it. I couldn�t help laughing. I mean seriously? My door says �Fearless� on the outside, who the heck puts �Fearless� on their bathroom door!

Ten minutes later the same thing happened.
�Oh, sorry,� said a guy with an adorably cute Australian accent.
�Oh hey,� I said.
�Nice guitar,� he said,
�Thanks, you play?� I asked, he looked about the same age as me.
�You have a guitar? Oh my God don�t let Simon see it or he won�t put it down all night!� some little kid with an Australian accent yapped. I guessed he was the brother of this �Simon�.
�Shut up Ryan!� he said in that dreamy accent. I laughed. Simon looked back up to me.
�The toilet is the other door, Jeeze you Australians really should learn your left from right.� I told him jokily. He laughed and thanked me before shutting the door, it quickly opened again.
�What did you say your name was?� he asked. I smiled.
�I didn�t.�
�Well okay,� Simon laughed, �What is it?�
�Rachel,�
�Thank-you, I will be going now.� he told me and left.
I laughed. What a queer.

I heard somebody using the bathroom taps. Although Simon was cute and had an awesome accent, I was hungry. I slipped downstairs to find Fin, my youngest cousin.
Surprise surprise, he was harassing my dog.

�Alright Fin?� I asked him, he jumped with surprise.
�Yeah, you Rach?� he asked me. I nodded and he beamed.
�Have you met Ryan yet?� I asked him. Fin shook his head, and told me Ryan was with Matt and Ewan.
I went to find Glen in the kitchen.
�Ew Pringles,� I said.
�How can you hate Pringles? They�re amazing!� Glen told me through a mouthful of them. I settled for a sausage roll and jumped up onto the work surfaces, watching the men set up the barbeque in my garden.
�That�s Adam, Steve�s eldest son.� Glen said.
�I don�t have an older brother.� I told him, my dad�s name was Steve.
�No, Australian Steve!� he snapped. Wow, this was going to get confusing.
�How old is he?� I asked innocently.
�Seventeen I think.�

The kitchen door burst open and I heard my ring tone.
�Rachel, your phone is ringing!� I stood back in slight shock.
�Simon? Thanks.� I took my mobile phone but it had stopped ringing, it had been from Alison.
�Nice song, what was it?� Simon asked.
�Should�ve Said No, by Taylor Swift.� I told him. Dang he was so handsome. He had floppy blonde hair at the top and pretty blue eyes.
�Was that call from your fit friend?� Glen asked.
�It was from Al,� I told him.
�Was that the fit one?�
�I don�t know,� I laughed.
�Well, surely you know if your friends are fit, right?�
Shake. My. Head.

I was about to walk out the kitchen when Simon started talking to me again.
�You were playing Jason Mraz when I walked in, right?�
�Yeah, that�s right.� I nodded.
�You know it sounds so much better if you use bar chords.� He told me.
�I can�t bar.� I admitted.
�Oh don�t worry, I�ll show you.�
�Okay then.�

We reached the bottom of my stairs.
�Should I direct you to the toilet or my bedroom?� I asked him,
�Shut up,� he laughed.
�You know I think you came into my room on purpose.� I told Simon as we walked up the stairs, �You were so desperate to meet the famous daughter of Stephen Potter, the man your father has always talked about.�
�Yeah, about their drunken nights out on the Isle after racing.� Simon replied. I had to laugh at that.

Steve Pricer and Steve Gillies. They became best friends during the 80s about their passion for motorbikes and the Isle of Mann. That�s where Steve Gilles got his nickname �Flash� from, they said when came round the corner on his bike he was just like flash. During the 90s they both got married and started families. The only difference was Flash and his wife decided to move to Australia, leaving his best friend Steve in the UK. They used to come over every year, but I hadn�t seen them since I was eight at the very most and to be perfectly honest, puberty had worked wonders on Simon�

�So you put the flat of your forefinger straight across the fret� yeah just like that.� Simon explained, moving my fingers about on the fret board of my guitar. I was barely concentrating on a thing he was saying, he was just so hot. He moved around so he was stood behind me and had his arms along the length of mine; he was a four or five inches taller than me. He smelled like burning grass, but sweet. I wondered if it was cologne or just his natural smell. I strummed a few chords with the bar.
�You did it, great job!� He congratulated me. I put my guitar down and allowed a hug off him. Well, a hug was what I originally thought it was.
You know that awkward pause before two people kiss for the first time? Imagine that, but with a guitar in the middle � thank goodness it didn�t fall.
And that was my first kiss. With an Australian boy called Simon who I barely knew at the time, in my room with my guitar, and it was perfect.



�Well...� Simon half laughed as we broke apart. I looked around awkwardly for a few seconds before joining in with his mild laughter. After all, what an odd situation we�d found ourselves in.
�You�re really pretty.� He said in that heart melting accent. I opened my mouth but then realised I had nothing to say. So I thought for a few seconds.
�You�re so nice.� I told him. He grinned.
�Thanks Rachel.�
�Anytime, Aussie.� I said cheekily. He laughed a little again, and then we fell backwards to sit down on my bed. He draped his arm around me.
�My friend will be here soon.� I sighed.
�How soon is soon?� Simon questioned.
�I don�t know... she was meant to be here twenty minutes ago.� I admitted. We were quiet for a few seconds.
�Well, we could see how many times we could make out before she arrives, then tell her off for being late..?� Simon suggested, before hastily adding
�If you�re cool with that, of course.�
I laughed. Hell yes, I was cool with that.
�Wait, you don�t have a boyfriend, right?� He said just as I closed my eyes.
�Oh Simon, Simon, Simon.� I sighed and pressed my lips to his.
If my phone hadn�t beeped a few minutes later I doubt we�d have ever unstuck ourselves.

�Alison can�t come.� I tried to sound sad as I said it, but honestly, I really wasn�t. In just a single hour I had become completely infatuated with this strange boy from far away, and I wanted to spend as much time with him as I could.
He ran his hand across my thigh.
�How come?� he asked me gently.
�Her mum�s making a roast dinner.� I grinned as I told him.
�Talking of food, I�m starving.� He announced and sat back a little, running one of his hands through his messy blonde hair. The other was still on my leg.
�I don�t think the food is properly set up yet.� I apologized.
For the first time, Simon took a proper look at my bedroom.
�Oh dear God, that isn�t Taylor Swift all over the wall is it?� he mock groaned. I had to laugh at that.
�What type of music do you like then, eh fussy?� I asked.
�You must have some Def Leppard or ACDC?� He asked me. I opened up my iPod for him to have a look.
�Well thank God there isn�t any One Direction... that�s all I�ll say for now.� He said shaking his head. I could�ve pushed him off the bed.

A bump from next door made us both look up, amid our play fight.
�Is that your brother next door?� he questioned, sounding way too innocent.
�Yes.�
�Let�s go see him!�
�Oh Simon, no!� I pleaded. But no excuse would excuse me of this trip. He took my hand and dragged me round the landing to my brother�s room.

My brother�s room is medium sized box room with a desk, swivel chair, a single bunk bed and a fish tank. You�d imagine quite a bit of room? Wrong.
I could barely make out his carpet for the amount of people in there.
�Hey, isn�t that your brother?� I asked Simon, pointing at the kid I thought was Ryan. He was sat on the bunk bed playing on my brother�s Nintendo DS.
�Oh wow � you�ve caught loads of Pokémon!� he exclaimed wildly to no-one in particular.
�Crazy fool,� Simon casually remarked.

I went to sit on the swivel chair, Simon to check my brother�s iPod.
�Um who are you?� my brother rudely asked him. That�s ten year olds for you.
�Matt!� I hissed at him. He gave me the evils.

�We have some Busted! Hallelujah!� Simon cried out in joy from Matt�s iPod.
�Hey, I had Busted too!� I snapped, just as the speakers began to play one of the bands most famous songs, �Air Hostess�. He went to play darts parallel to where I was sitting. We kept up some casual conversation.
�So when was the last time you visited England?� I asked.
�I wasn�t even born!!� Ryan exclaimed loudly to me.
�Shut up Ryan, you were!� Simon retorted: Classic sibling behaviour.
�Uh... 2005 I think. I was eight years old, anyway.�
�I must�ve been seven. I remember you, Ryan.� I told him. He looked at me like he�d seen a ghost.
�I�ve never met you in my life!� the young boy cried at me. I just nodded and laughed.
�Yeah, you guys came to our old house and we played on the big climbing frame I had outside.� I informed him from my blurry memories.
�Oh yeah and then Rachel pushed you down the slide Ryan, and you started crying.� Simon sniggered. Even I sniggered at that though.

Glen stumbled into the room singing the hook of the song.
�Missed it by about five seconds... but don�t worry, it�s coming up again in a sec.� I told him. He nodded.
�Glen?� Simon asked, unsure of who he was.
�Hey buddy... I don�t know your name.� He admitted. I laughed.
�This is Simon � Flash Gillie�s kid.� I told him. He nodded again.
�Nice seeing you Simon... I haven�t seen you since I was like a foetus but oh well.�
�Glen, you were six.� I interjected. We all laughed.
�Anyway, just came up to say that the food is ready.� Glen said.
�Man I am starving.� Simon grinned at me.
�Sorry, we don�t have any shark steaks or kangaroo shanks here.� I mock grimaced at him.
�Are you serious? What do you Brits have then?� Simon replied in mock horror.
I drew the word out, making it tense.
�Chicken.�
Simon grabbed his brother and screamed the dreadful word. The funniest part was that Ryan forgot they had chicken in Australia too and began crying.

�Wow why are your cans in ice buckets. It�s cold enough as it is.� Simon remarked as we passed the beer buckets, floating in ice.
�Wait are you kidding or?� I asked him, unsure.
�Nope. I can barely feel my nipples.� He told me. I softly punched his chest. He pulled his woolly jumper tighter.
�This is one of the warmest evenings we�ve had all year.� I told him. He looked like he was about to faint.
�How on earth do you not have pneumonia? I think I�m sick already!� He exclaimed.
�Oh shut up and eat your chicken.� I laughed.
�Rachel?� he began to whinge.
�Yes?�
�Can we eat inside please?�
�Is little Simon a little chilly?� I taunted him. I was perfectly fine in my shorts and shirt. He nodded. I sighed, and led the way into the living room.
�I am going to whoop your ass on Mario Kart.� He declared.
�Not if I get Bowser first!� I yelled and ran into the living room, shutting the door behind me. He came in and crashed down on the sofa next to me. I could smell the sweet burning scent that omitted off him again. His dry beachy hair tickled my face.
�I am so happy.� I accidently said out loud.
�What was that?� he asked.
�Nothing.� I laughed, and kissed the tip of his nose. That started the next make out session.

Have you ever heard of a photography effect called �bokeh�? Well, I have. My friend Josh likes to take pictures, and he mentioned it to me once. It�s where everything blurs. In any case, it�s very pretty.
That�s what the stars looked like to me and my myopia.
We were lying on our backs in my garden and it was two in the morning. All the remaining guests were inside, most of them asleep.
�When do you leave England, Simon?� I asked him quietly. It had been the question I�d been putting off all night. Do you know the feeling when you�d rather not know and enjoy yourself until the last second, than know and have a sinking feeling inside you, eating away at your heart like maggots the entire time? That�s how I felt about asking that question.
Simon sighed uneasily.
�I don�t know.�
�I want to see you again, before you go.� I told him.
�I don�t want to go.� He confessed. I could feel him stroking my hair again. He�d been doing it all night.
�I could fall asleep like this.�
�Why do all girls say they love it when people play with their hair?� he asked, laughing.
�Well because,� I started, then stopped. �I don�t know. It just feels nice.� He looked at me, bewildered.
�Come here.� I told him.
I started stroking his hair softly and singing the words to Def Leppard �Pour Some Sugar On Me�. A song we both knew a loved. He joined in.
After a few minutes he said �I see what you mean about the hair stroking thing now. It is nice. Please can I fall asleep?�
�I�d like to. I�m so tired.� I replied. �Not out here though, we�d freeze by morning.�
My friends and I often slept out in my garden in my wigwam. By night it was always way too hot, but by morning we could�ve died of exposure. The British climate is a funny thing.

�I�m shattered.� He said again. So was I. I�d been up since seven the previous day, and had had one rollercoaster day.
�I�ll see if my room is free.�

So we slept in my room, in the most innocent sense of the word. Just a girl and a boy from different sides of the planet, brought together even though it seemed so unlikely, and fell completely for each other. Everything was perfect. Then I woke up.
And he was gone.

No note. No rose. Not like the movies.
Just an indent in the pillow and a ruffle of the duvet on his side of my bed, and the smell of sweet burning lingered.
I reached out to cling to the bitter emptiness.
His side of the bed wasn�t even warm.