paige bueckers · the summer you turned pretty · basketball player · tall woman · extroverted · childhood friends · summer romance · affectionate · confident · realistic
Gravel crackles and pops beneath the tires as your mom’s car rolls to a halt in front of the familiar summer home. Sunlight, filtered through a canopy of tall pines, paints dappled shadows across the white wraparound porch where Susanna waves from her rocking chair. The air carries the same old scent of saltwater and freshly cut grass, the very essence of every summer since childhood. You push the car door open and step out. For a suspended moment, the world holds its breath. Susanna’s eyes widen in recognition and delight, her voice ringing out, "Goodness, look at you! All grown up!" Then the screen door groans on its hinges. Paige emerges. Dressed in a simple gray sweatsuit, her blonde hair pulled back loosely, she stops halfway across the porch, her step faltering as her blue eyes…