182 - Graduation
*Camille, my girl, I want you to go down there to Louisiana, get away from all these Saints, go find you a good man and go be a bit of a Devil yourself. – Brute*
Graduation for LSU took place on a Friday evening in mid-May. The weather was warm and the air muggy, but Camille had grown used to this over the last several years. The rest of her family and the other Saints that came down were not so lucky.
Dutch had warned his kids that it would be hot and muggy. Like typical teenagers, they did not listen. Earlier that morning, he had taken them to the store for shorts and light weight T-shirts. Camille laughed when he told her about this. He said payback was coming when her kids had their first winter up north.
Vin chuckled but kept his comments to himself. At the first snowfall in mid-October, he had called Camille and asked when he would thaw out again. After she quit laughing, she told him just in time to freeze again. He was not amused.
Darkness, Vin, Nicki and Mitch sat with Sid and Trigg in the stands. Somewhere among the press along the sides of the ceremony, Priscilla was positioned with her camera and phone. The phone sat on a tripod and streamed the ceremony for the crowds gathered at clubhouses both there and in Massachusetts.
Sid and Trigg slipped out a little early with Priscilla and headed back to the Cajuns clubhouse. They knew that Camille would not want to stick around in the crowds for long. When she graduated high school, she had slipped out towards the end of the fireworks display in an attempt to avoid the crowds then.
They expected no less from her now.
It was no surprise to anyone when she texted Darkness telling him to have the getaway car ready. She was one of the first graduates out of the field and into the parking lot. Sliding into the front passenger seat, Camille looked at her husband with what was later described as her ‘Get me out of here if you want to live’ look.
“What the hell are you waiting for?” Camille demanded. “Drive it like you stole it.”
Chuckling, he put the jeep in gear and pulled out of the parking lot. With the rest of traffic, it took them several minutes before they even saw the edge of the parking lot. And even longer before they could put the campus in the rearview mirror and head towards the other side of town.
The clubhouse was packed with Cajuns, Renegades and Saints when Camille and her little family arrived Friday night after her graduation. Her mom met her on the porch with a hug. Trigg hugged his wife and their youngest daughter as he tried to hide the tears that were threatening.
Her brothers and sisters were next, and Priscilla was there with her camera getting pictures of it all. When she had finally gotten congratulations and pictures with all her family, she and her oldest friend held each other and ignored the clicks from Charlotte’s camera. Charlotte made them pause in the BFF reunion to get pictures of them. After pictures of the two friends, she had their husbands join them and then their kids.
The musketeers and insisted on pictures and then came the moment that Camille had been dreading. Knuckles hugged her tight before passing her over to his younger brother. The young president of the mother house stepped back and swiped at his eyes.
“Dad was a planner,” Scrapper said as he accepted a gift bag from Zee. “We found this in his room when we were cleaning it out after…” he cleared his throat. “Sorry, Nessie and her damned onions.”
Swiping at her eyes, Camille nodded in understanding. “Yeah, those onions of hers can really get you.”
He handed her the bag and pulled her into a tight hug. “Dad loved you just like you were his. He would be so proud of you.”
Sniffling, Camille nodded her head against his chest.
“Not just for graduating,” he continued. “He wanted you to find your happiness and it sure as hell looks like you did.”
“I have,” she admitted. “I’m sorry that I’ve avoided you.”
He hugged her tight and pressed a kiss to her dirty blonde hair. “You know what I have learned over the last few years? You have to take care of you first before you can take care of anyone else. Don’t forget that. Ever.” She turned her head to look in the direction that he was looking and saw Zee kneeling in front of her middle son.
“You found your happiness too.”
Nodding, he agreed, “I did. Dad claimed them as his grandbabies before I even realized that we were getting serious.”
“He had a way of doing things and you just found yourself going along with it.”
“Good description,” he chuckled as he let her go. Reaching down, he picked up Zee’s youngest who was giving him the uppy hand motions. “Come on, little bit, you know that your aunt has cake.”
Camille laughed as he carried the little boy towards the kitchen. Looking around, she found her husband talking to her dad. Knowing the two of them, she mused, they were probably discussing Nessie and her infamous cakes. Darkness gave a subtle head motion towards the back porch and she nodded.
On the back porch, she settled on the bed swing that Darkness had made for her. Rosie had told her that they had changed the pillows and bedding for her graduation weekend. Surrounded by the purple and gold pillows and giant stuffed tiger, she pulled out the small, wrapped box and cards from the inside of the bag.
The light blue envelope had her name in Brute’s block handwriting. She considered putting that one as the last one to open but decided against it. Carefully, she opened the envelope and pulled out the card with flowers and a graduation cap on the front declaring YOU DID IT! She opened the card and ran her finger over the handwriting inside the card.
*My little Camille,*
*Nessie told me to make plans for your graduation. I don’t like the implications that come with that. She’s rarely wrong.*
*I’m hoping that I get to see you walk across the stage. If I’m not there, just know that I’m looking up at you from hell. And I’m probably looking up a few skirts while I’m at it.*
She laughed at his sense of humor. As Darkness sat down with her, she leaned into him for physical and emotional support.
*You better have found yourself a good man. I like that one that came up with you for Christmas. Tie that one down or get tied down. Whichever way you prefer.*
*Either way, start yourself a family. God knows your mother needs more grandkids.*
*I’m proud of you. For everything that you do.*
*Love you, Brute*
Ignoring her tears, she grabbed the box and tore off the paper. Inside the box was a rose gold necklace with a diamond encrusted heart surrounding a long stem rose.
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