Chapter 15
15
MAX
When I got off the coach, I looked behind and saw Stella walking towards me in a trance.
That was when I remembered. She was terrified of heights.
‘Listen,’ I said softly as I saw the fear in her eyes, ‘I know what that guy said sounded terrifying, but…’
‘What’s wrong?’ Jasmine joined me, concern written all over her face.
‘I’m not really a fan of heights,’ Stella said, her voice shaky.
‘Really?’ Jasmine pulled out her phone and tapped the screen. ‘That’s strange. I’ve got details of your preferences taken from your application form and it says that you love adventures and hiking…’
‘I’m going to kill my mum!’ Stella groaned.
‘It’s not as scary as it seems.’ Jasmine rested her hand on Stella’s shoulder. That was exactly what I was trying to explain before she came over. ‘I’m not a fan of heights either, but I’ve done it a few times and it’s been great. It’s a really easy walk. I hate to rush you, but we need to get to the entrance or we’ll miss our slot. Why don’t you have a think and if you really don’t feel like you can do it, we’ll see what our options are, okay?’
Stella nodded. Yep. She was definitely shitting herself.
‘Don’t worry,’ I said. ‘I know that guy made it sound like a death trap but it’s not like that any more. It used to have a reputation for being dangerous, but they’ve fixed all the paths since then and it’s a really beautiful walk. It’s been on my bucket list for years.’
‘How did you hear about it?’
‘It’s known as one of the top things to do in Andalucía – maybe even in Spain. Millions of people have done it now. They wouldn’t bring us here if it wasn’t safe. If you want, I can walk on the outside so you won’t be close to the edge. I’ll make sure you’re okay. Promise.’
Stella looked up and her eyes met mine. A jolt of electricity shot through my chest, just like it did when our arms had touched on the coach.
It was interesting that she thought I was a personal trainer. And I wasn’t gonna lie. Knowing that she’d been looking at my arms made me feel good.
‘Okay,’ she said softly, still looking at me. I was glad I’d reassured her. Stella acted tough on the outside, but I knew that she was soft and vulnerable on the inside. That was why I felt so bad about hurting her before.
I reminded myself for the millionth time that I couldn’t do anything about the past, but whilst I was on the trip I’d try my best to show her I’d become a better man.
Once we’d arrived at the main entrance and gone to the toilet, we had a safety briefing. When the guide started handing out safety helmets, Stella’s eyes bulged.
‘It’s just a precaution,’ I whispered.
Once we’d put the radio we’d been given on a lanyard around our necks and taken the earphones we’d use to listen to the tour guide, we set off.
As we stepped onto the first of the wooden slats, I positioned myself on the outside like I’d promised and held the handrail.
The wooden path had steel rods, which were pinned to the cliff. I wasn’t bothered about heights, but even I had to admit that the drop below was pretty steep.
Beneath us was the narrow original pathway. I could see why it used to be dangerous. For starters there weren’t any barriers. Thankfully the current walkway looked much more secure and had an iron mesh fence at the edge to stop us from falling.
I caught Stella glancing down and could tell she was freaking out, so I tried to distract her.
‘It’s beautiful, isn’t it?’ I pointed to the scenery and blue skies.
‘Yeah… although it’s difficult not to notice how steep that drop is.’
‘Just keep your eyes straight ahead and you’ll be good.’
‘I’m trying.’
The tour guide talked us through some of the key sections of the walk and I kept an eye on Stella to check how she was coping. She wasn’t.
A woman in front of us reached into her backpack and pulled out a bottle of water. As she guzzled it down, I noticed it’d trickled down onto the slats. But Stella had her gaze firmly fixed on the vultures that were flying overhead so she stepped right into a wet patch and slipped.
She shrieked and after quickly grabbing her arm, I helped her back upright.
‘Shit!’ she gasped, panic in her eyes. ‘I-I…’
‘Don’t worry. It was just a bit of water. Nothing would’ve happened to you.’
‘You don’t know that,’ she said. ‘I’m trying to stay calm, but… ’
‘I know. It’s okay. But like I said, I won’t let anything happen to you. Maybe you could…’
‘What?’ She frowned.
‘Forget it. I was just going to suggest something that might help, but I don’t think you’ll like it.’
‘Tell me!’
‘Well,’ I exhaled, plucking up the courage to make a suggestion that could quite easily result in Stella throwing me over the edge of this pathway. ‘I was gonna say you could… hold my hand. Just to make you feel better. Actually, better isn’t the right word, because obviously you hate me. But more secure? Safer? So you know that if you slip again, which I’m sure you won’t, you’ll know you won’t fall.’
Stella looked at me like she was weighing up my suggestion. Although I couldn’t read her expression, the fact that she was taking a few seconds to consider it was more than I’d expected.
‘But what if I fall and drag you down with me?’
‘I’ll take my chances. And anyway, I owe you, right?’
‘True.’
‘It’s just until you feel comfortable. I promise I won’t use superglue, so you’ll be free to remove your hand whenever you want to. Okay?’
‘Okay.’
My eyebrows hit the sky.
Stella had agreed to hold my hand. Shit.
To anyone else, it wouldn’t seem like a big deal. It wasn’t like we were kids in the playground about to hold hands with our crush for the first time. We were adults.
But I knew this was big for her. She must be really scared to agree.
I held out my palm and Stella wrapped her small hand in mine .
And as our skin connected and that same shot of electricity lit up inside of me I realised that I liked the feeling.
Which wasn’t good.
At all…