SANTA BARBARA, 1995

The sun was still high on the sky when two teenagers left the path to take a walk along the promenade. They weren't alone, no, but it still felt like they had their own little bubble keeping them away from others.

The boy wore jeans, a plain white shirt and a brown leather jacket and was busy keeping up eating with his melting ice cream. The girl next to him had long, slightly curled, dark blonde hair. She wore a skirt and an old jeans jacket and was laughing at her companion's failed attempts at catching drops of ice cream with his mouth by holding the cone above his head.

"Don't laugh at me, Abbs," the boy said and pulled his eyebrows together in a fake disappointed frown. "They should make this a science. Imagine that: never melting ice cream. Pure bliss. Would save the world loads of trouble."

The girl grinned, amused. "I'm pretty sure that's against the laws of physics."

"Don't be Gus trying to set up a romantic date," the boy just dismissed and took a quick lick along the side of the cone.

The girl frowned in confusion. "You know how Gus tries to set up romantic dates?"

The boy nodded at her seriously. "Unfortunately, yes, I do. Usually it starts with a picnic at the beach and ends with salty, wet cheese and sausage stuck in my neighbour's dog's teeth." The corners of her mouth lifted up and she tried to suppress a giggle. "It had to be done," the boy continued and completely missed another drop of ice cream hitting the ground. "That Clara girl just wasn't right for him. We can't set him up with a tidiness freak. We'd never get along."

The girl raised her eyebrows in mock thinking. "I don't think it's the point in dating that you get along with your best friend's date."

"You're right," the boy nodded. "The point is, Abigail, I'm inexplicably drawn to the idea that humans can accomplish anything they set their minds up to." He paused, thinking over what he said for a moment. "You know, as long as it doesn't involve Jimmy Nickels running for president, 'cause that's just plain wrong." Abigail hummed in agreement, content with listening to his stupid rambling. "I mean, just look at the history. The Grimm brothers wanted to fly so they built a flying machine. Why shouldn't unmelting ice cream be possible?"

"Wasn't that the Wright brothers?" Abigail asked, mocking him.

He looked insulted. "You're missing the point!"

She laughed, shaking her head at his beat up puppy look. "I get it, Shawn. Ice cream is the best thing that happened to earth." He opened his mouth to add something, but Abigail beat him to it. "Right after pineapple."

Shawn grinned. "I was going to say 'you', but I guess that fits too."

"Liar," Abigail accused him, laughing.

Shawn shrugged. "Doesn't mean it's untrue." Abigail just rolled her eyes. "So, what do you want to do in the future? I mean, graduation is right around the corner."

She thought about his question for a moment, curious why she was hesitating. "You know, I've always wanted to become a teacher," she admitted.

Shawn raised his eyebrows in surprise. "You want to put up with more of my kind? That's cute. I must be irresistible."

Abigail laughed. "I'm talking about kindergarten teacher, stupid. No one can put up with you and want to continue doing it."

"That hurts, you know," he said and put a hand to his chest. "Right here. Have you ever considered that putting up with me as a teacher might not be as hard as you think? I'm actually really smart, you know. I know, for example, that ten times ten equals one hundred."

Abigail started to giggle uncontrollably at his serious face. "Shawn, that's elementary school knowledge."

"Exactly," he pointed at her and took another lick of his ice cream. "That's the kind of stuff you're going to have to put up with when working with kids. Is that what you want?"

"Oh, shut up," Abigail boxed his arm, rolling her eyes. "Can't you be serious for once?"

Shawn stopped walking and looked at her, grin gone from his face. Abigail stared back, confused. "I am serious," he told her sincerely. "I am so serious that you're not going to be able to make me laugh about clowns tumbling into a pool full of balloons because the matter is so serious."

Abigail bit her lip to keep from laughing and nodded along with his words. "Right."

"Shh," he put a finger to her lips, shushing her. Abigail looked down, hesitantly, before watching Shawn again. He smelled fresh, but in a nature way. It was nice. "Look, I can accept that. Being a teacher is awesome and so you that it couldn't be cuter. You're teaching the next generation to become like us. Don't use me as a role model, by the way."

"I can't see why not," she answered, playing along. "You're very charming."

"I see," Shawn said and dropped the act. "Does that mean, I can get you to say yes to a date on Stearn's Wharf? You've got to see the carnival."

"Mmh," Abigail pursed her lips under his fingers and he smiled, taking it away. "I'll think about it. I always wanted to win a stuffed dolphin there, so I might just say yes."

"I'll win you a dolphin," he grinned and Abigail shook her head, turning to walk further along the beach.

"What about you?" She asked. "What do you want to be?"

Shawn stayed silent for more than ten seconds, making Abigail turn her head to watch him. He was lost in thought, hands stuffed in his jacket pockets and his lower lip stuck out cutely. "I dunno," he said finally and shrugged carelessly.

"You don't know?" Abigail raised her eyebrows, disbelieving.

"It's not like I've ever had a choice, you know." Abigail watched him, unsure what he meant. "My dad always wanted me to become a cop," he explained. "The follow-up-in-his-footsteps kind of thing. I never questioned it. I'm good at it."

Abigail felt the unspoken 'but' hanging in the air. She was surprised by the seriousness with which he thought about the question. It seemed to really put him off. "Why do you question it now?" She asked quietly.

Shawn kicked a stone along the pavement, trying hard not to look at her. "His job destroyed our family," he said simply. "I don't want that."

Abigail was speechless. It wasn't often that she saw Shawn Spencer genuinely vulnerable like he was now, but he seemed comfortable talking to her. It made her feel warm and fuzzy inside.

"I'm sure it won't," she told him and put a hand to his arm. He looked at her, curiously. "You wouldn't let it happen. You're different."

Shawn cocked his head and smiled after a long moment. "You are, too."