The Flip of a Switch

Chapter 16: Mini Date

Juliet's point of view:

I never thought in a million years something like this would actually happen to me. Paige and I had just left the cabin, and we're taking the short drive to the hiking trail. She held my hand that was on my thigh, and due to lack of service, the forced silence was comforting.
Never in my years of marriage with Ryan would he do something spontaneous like this. If he did something wrong he's just beg me to forgive him and then claim to give me "the best sex of my life". It wasn't the best, and his tiny who ha certainly didn't do much.

I must've been caught in my thoughts since I isn't realize Paige had stopped the car and kissed the back of my hand.
"You ready Juliet. It's like a 30 minute easy walk now". I smiled and got out of the jeep, sticks cracking as I stepped on them. The forest had a certain fresh and unique smell, much different than living in the suburbs. It was wonderful.
Paige grabbed the larger of the two backpacks,  as well as a small cooler. Once I had gotten on my smaller backpack, our hands linked perfectly together and we started walking.

Paige had just announced that there was another 10 or so minutes left. We had been silent the whole walk, just holding hands and enjoying the silence. There didn't seem like a need to talk, since we were so comfortable with one another, but Paige didn't seem to be on the same page.
" Can I ask you something serious Juliet"?
"Yes" it must be serious if she used my full name.
"Would you, I mean, well, I guess what i'm trying to ask is if you ever want more children in the future. You know, since you and Ryan divorced." She was looking down and biting her lip, looking adorable yet vulnerable.
"Hey, hey, stop walking Paige". She stopped and we made eye contact.
"I think, if I found the right person, then I would be interested in having more children. I've always wanted a big family, with somewhere between 4-5 kids. It all depends on the right person that I'd be sharing my life with".
She smiled and leaned in to hug me. It was a sweet, tender moment that I never wanted to end. We fit perfectly together and it was bliss.

"That's the best possible answer I could've asked for. Thank you". Her voice slightly broke at the end, and we hugged again, this time for longer.

Sniffling, Paige loosened her grip and telesales the hug, grabbing my hand once more.
"It's only a little bit longer to the destination, and I have a picnic set up".
I smiled and we started walking again, hand in hand.

For the next 30 minutes Paige and I wandered off trail and into thick forest. I completely trusted Paige but we were in the middle of nowhere and there was no sign of any civilization. Paige walked ahead of me, our hands still linked while she moved branches and twigs out of the way. A little while later I heard the sound of water falling, hopefully a good sign. I was getting really hungry, and tired.

"We're here" Paige said softly. I was looking down in order to not step on anything suspicious or get hurt. When I looked up, I gasped. It was the most beautiful sight. Dark blue water cascaded from a pile of flat and round rocks of a 20 foot waterfall, surrounded by an abandoned rope swing and vines. You could tell that very few people had ever come here.
There was a flat space in the grass a hundred feet from where the water was, flowers and overgrown grass flooded the ground. To the left, there was a worn out wood building, abut the size of a singular bathroom, with moss growing on it and it looked like it could collapse at any time.
Paige squeezed my hand to bring my attention back.
"Wonderful isn't it. I found it about a year ago when I was feeling sad and went for a walk. It any safe haven". She itches the back of her neck with her other hand, looking at the ground.
"It's truly amazing Paige, thank you for bringing me here. It's so beautiful and private".
I got a genuine smile in response and then she jerked her head to the right to signal moving on.
We walked over hand in hand to the cleared grassy spot. Paige dropped her backpack and took out a flannel blanket, spreading it onto the grass to sit on. She motioned for me to sit, while she dug around in the backpack some more. The blanket was both soft and ventilating, since it was a hot and sunny day.
When I looked back at Paige, she had three large leftover containers and two large water bottles, filled with what looked like bubbly.
"Let's celebrate, the end of Ryan, and hopefully a new beginning to us". She poured out the bubbly into two plastic wine glasses and we cheered. Taking a sip, it was indeed bubbly.
After cheering, Paige went back to the backpack and got out more food containers. Once she set everything up, we had leftover tacos from the night before, chocolate covered strawberries, cheese and crackers, and a small assortment of vegetables.

The two of us ended up eating almost all of the food, and all of the bubbly. It was a wonderful picnic, and we had talked briefly about our lives and getting to know each other better. Paige had suggested going swimming, so we packed up the remaining food and stripped. I had worn my light blue bikini with red stripes under my clothes, and packed flip flops and an extra change of clothes in the back pack.
I decided to tease Paige lightly while stripping, taking an extra long time to remove my v-neck shirt and short shorts. I could feel her eyes on me from behind, boring into the back of the head. I didn't try to be private about it, just turning around.
I heard shuffling and assumed that Paige was getting tumor her suit. I subtly turned around and saw that she was turned around and was wearing navy blue swim trunks with a matching blue top with little boats on them. It was adorable. I wondered though, why she wore swim trunks instead of bikini bottoms. Maybe it was more comfortable...

When we had both finished changing, we grabbed hands and jumped together into the water. It was the perfect temperature, refreshingly cold and fresh. She immediately splashed me, and we continued to play with each other in the water, occasionally jumping together off of the waterfall. It was scary but with Paige next to me, I felt like I could do anything.
We were currently sitting on a rock in the shallow water, holding hands and enjoying the silence. It was a hot day, and the sun leaked through the trees, trying to burn us. The water falling in the background made it so it wasn't completely silent.
A clearing of her throat brought my attention to the beautiful girl next to me. "So, Juliet, I brought you out here today for two reasons. 1. For some official alone time together, and 2. To ask you this.". She turned sroumd so she was facing me, making eye contact with her beautiful blue eyes that matched the water color. "You make me so damn happy Juliet, whenever I'm around you I'm the happiest I've ever been, and you make me a better person. I'm so crazy about you, and everything that comes along I'm your life, including Matthew. I love that little guy, he's the cutest and has the chubbiest cheeks I've ever seen. Now, this isn't a marriage proposal, but maybe someday we'll find ourselves getting married, but for now, Juliet, would you be my girlfriend? Officially".
I blinked, tears forming in my eyes. It was such a sweet gesture, and all of my fears and thoughts evaporated.
"Yes, yes, of course baby" I smiled and leaped to her, hugging my girlfriend for the first time and showering her neck with light kisses.
We stayed hugging for a while, enjoying the skin to skin contact. Eventually, Paige was the one who broke it, and cupped my face with her hands.
"I am so crazy about you Juliet, so, so, crazy" we looked into each other's eyes, foreheads touching. I wanted nothing more than to kiss her delicious lips, and she seemed to get the message when she lightly brushed her lips against mine, locking them together in a sweet and tender kiss. It was slow, and held so many emotions of love, care, trust, and hope. It was perfect.
We stayed kissing until sir became a problem, and separated unwillingly. I could kiss her forever.
"I'm so happy, thank you for making me do happy Jules" she laughed, still holding my face with her smooth hands.
"Me too baby, me too" I replied, kissing her lightly again.

The rest of the afternoon was spent playing in the water, making out, nothing too heated, and enjoying each others company. It was getting around dinner dinner time when we packed up and walked back, hand in hand. Occasionally Paige stopped and kissed me, just for the sake of it.
When we reached the jeep she packed everything away and even opened the door for me. A true gentlewoman. We held hands while driving back, but the excitement of the day caught up to me, my eyes eventually drifting shut.

Thanks for reading everyone, please leave comments and/or questions about the book, I'd love to hear your opinions. See you next time!

- Jane