Chapter 1 #2
She stayed. Relief washed over me as I descended the small hill. The hump kept her hidden while my heart raced, wondering if she’d run off the second I disappeared behind it. Thankfully, she hadn’t. She was still in the same place I’d left her.
With her face buried inside her book, she was oblivious to my return. I squatted in front of her, completely taken by her appearance. The fact that she wasn’t in a rush to dismiss me only made her prettier.
Once she realized she wasn’t alone, she pressed the pages of her current read together and lowered it slightly. A tilt of her head revealed dark pink gums and gorgeous white teeth. The very tiny imperfection at the bottom of the two biggest ones revealed pieces of her past that she hadn’t yet.
It meant one of a few things. She wouldn’t give up her pacifier, clung to her bottle after the suggested age, sucked her thumb, sucked her tongue, or was simply blessed with the cutest set of teeth naturally. Either way, I adored the tiny detail.
“Hi,” she spoke, cheeks sharpening at the peaks as she smiled.
“You stayed,” I responded with a shake of my head, still struggling to wrap my head around the fact that she had. It wasn’t unfathomable, but it was a bit difficult to believe.
I am a stranger. I reasoned.
“I stayed,” she confessed with a nod, “I’m not sure if it’s out of curiosity or my tendency to get lost in the words on the pages of my books.”
“Whichever it is, admittedly, I’m grateful.”
These fucking lips.
So large, they covered a quarter of her face. With their boldness front and center, it was hard to focus on much else. I wanted them to stain mine red as I nibbled on her tongue and explored parts of her mouth that only food had visited. Shortly after, I wanted them wrapped around the skin of my…
Chill, I warned, redirecting my thoughts.
Wordlessly, we remained as our orbs aligned, determined to discover parts of one another that weren’t visible to the naked, untrained eye. Her humbleness was my first find. Secondly, there was her pain. And, then, there was her loneliness.
Knowing that it was an issue of hers that I could easily and quickly solve, I stood to my feet.
Her head lifted as her eyes followed me.
Right beside her blanket, I laid mine. It was twice the size of hers, allowing space for the food that I removed from the bag and sat as neatly as possible in the center.
She watched, finding humor in my effort.
“What?” I asked, her infectious smile making me a victim.
“Did you really just–”
“Yes. Hoping this whole little setup would convince you to stay a little longer and shit.”
“Oh,” she chuckled, nodding.
God, heaven’s gates were wide open. She’d fallen right from the sky and into the grass–book in-hand.
“Did it work?” I wondered out loud, folding my arms at my chest.
“Hmmm. Maybe so. However, I’m afraid I don’t have too much time to spare this afternoon.”
“I’m not asking for too much of your time. I’m just not ready to see you go, yet.”
Already, she had the power to dictate my mornings. Whatever she wanted, whatever she desired, I wanted to provide in the short time we had.
“Saul, right?”
“Yeah.” I nodded.
“Are you always this spontaneous? Somehow, I believe otherwise.”
“You have every right to, because I’m not. Not even in the slightest, but when I’m led, I have no choice –and no control.”
“Led? By what?” She leaned forward, resting her right palm on her knee as she stared up at me.
A fucking dream. She was stunning.
“This,” I responded, pointing at my head.
“This.” I pointed at my chest.
“And that.” I tipped my head toward her.
“That?” Her features scrunched in confusion.
“Beautiful face. One doesn't run across this level of intrigue or sophistication often. When you do, you tap in.”
“Tap in?” Summer’s laugh was striking, leaving welts from the whooping she was putting on my heart.
“Come over here. The food is plentiful and the blanket is enormous,” I stated, waving her over.
You feel too far away. Though the words weren’t spoken, somehow, I felt as if she knew they were at the pit of my throat.
Without hesitation, she abandoned her blanket to join me on mine. At her best, she was at least five-seven. As I’d imagined, she was slim from head to toe.
Her perfectly manicured toes remained free and without shoes as she tiptoed over.
The plush blue blanket sank under the pressure of her body.
I observed her timidness on the way over.
But when she finally reached me, she centered and settled.
A gush of air left her mouth, deflating her chest and prompting another darling smile.
“I have a place to be in an hour,” regrettably, she informed me.
“Do you go around just breaking hearts, Summer?”
Rubbing the hair of my beard, I waited for an answer. Taking a step backward, she sighed. Magnetically charged, she pulled me a step forward.
“My father– he has– we,” she stammered over her words.
“Shhh,” I suggested, placing a finger to my lips, “There’s no need to explain, love. You have shit to do. Just give me the next thirty minutes of the sixty that you have. I promise I won’t complain.”
“I have thirty-five to spare.”
“I’ll take every one of those,” I spat, lowering my body onto the blanket.
Our space was instantly serenaded with silence, random smiles, head shaking, the gnawing of lips, lingering gazes, flared nostrils, peaked cheeks, tingling jaws, unexplainable giggles, and a thudding heart. Still, I was filled to capacity.
Silence comforted Summer. The pleasure on her face evaporated when words were exchanged.
They required thought, and for now, she wasn’t fond of the idea of thinking.
Refusing to require anything of her that disrupted her peace, I rocked my stretched legs from side to side, resting on my elbows as we both stared into the park that was brimming with life.
“I’m probably the most boring person you’ll ever encounter, Saul. I’m no fun. Sorry to spoil your spontaneity,” she expressed, breaking the silence. “My world is full of books, art shows, songs, and stillness. They all have a special place in my heart.”
Pulling my eyes from the greenery to meet the brown skin she possessed, I waited for her to continue. Once I realized it was all she had to say, I cleared my throat.
“You speak as if that’s a burden. With boredom, I find the most peace. Stillness… It’s an art in itself. Not everyone can stand to be alone with themselves, their thoughts, or their voices. The ability to do so is a blessing, or at least I feel as though it is.”
Nodding, she reclined until her hair was against the blanket and her hands were at her side. She stared up at the sky, sighing deeply. It was apparent that something was on her mind. Instead of prying, I allowed us both to remain in the moment, reverting back to the silence that she preferred.
“It’s five o’clock somewhere, right?” She asked after a minute.
“Yes. Yes, it is.”
“Which means opening the wine wouldn’t make us–”
“I’ll open the wine.” I laughed, sitting up and grabbing the glasses that were waiting for us.
The cork escaped the bottle with ease. The red wine sizzled and expanded beyond its prior restrictions. I filled one glass at a time. When finished, I handed Summer a glass and set the wine upright beside the blanket. She pulled her body up and folded her legs.
Seconds later, the round, open-end bulbs were tipped in the same direction.
Clink. Our glasses met.
“To Summer–”
“To Summer,” she repeated with a doting smile.
Red wine swirled continuously before touching our lips. I savored the bitterness and focused on the pockets of sweetness. They reminded me of the woman sitting in front of me.
Interesting.
I wanted to know all there was to know about her in one sitting.
The good.
The bad.
The ugly.
The beautiful.
However, that would take the lifetime I was willing to wait. For now, we didn’t have that type of time. I was up against a strict clock and boundaries that I respected.
I lowered my glass. Summer did the same. She nodded with approval. I marked a point in my book, hoping I had enough for her to consider a date with me by the time the clock ran out.
“Summer– was it your mother’s favorite season?”
Her eyebrows grew closer. Her shoulders caved, and for a brief second, there was a sadness in her eyes that put a dent in my heart.
“My father’s favorite season,” she breathed out.
Slowly, her smile returned, and her spine straightened.
“But, I was born at the end of summer. September twenty-first. The day summer and autumn meet… at midnight.”
“Like today?”
She nodded.
“Like today.”
It dawned on me instantly.
“Today felt different, admittedly. From the second I opened my eyes, I knew something was different. Was it the universe telling me that it was the birthday of someone incredibly valuable to my future?”
“Was it?”
“Dinner, Summer? Eight. Solo ArtHouse. There’s silence and art and books and wine and food and all the things I imagine you’d love.”
She pulled her bottom lip into her mouth. The gloss sparkled under the sun’s light. She was contemplating. Weighing her options. Considering a yes. Banking on a no.
“Don’t think about it. Just meet me there if you’re most comfortable… but, I’d much rather show up to your door. Take the stress of driving or parking or thinking off your plate.”
“Saul–”
“I won’t inconvenience you– or waste even a second of your time. Let me wish you a happy birthday. Prepared, of course. Because, frankly, I’m caught off guard but I still feel like I should’ve been more prepared.”
“This–” she paused, waving her hand over the setup, “This is more than enough.”
“But, you deserve better.”
I wasn’t above pleading with a woman of Summer’s caliber. The moment I noticed her I knew I needed her. So, it wasn’t a matter of if for me. It was a matter of when, and there was no need to waste time. Time waited for no one and nothing. Not even love.