George Nicholson had, always, been a guy with a plan. Nothing was meant to happen on a whim in his life.
As his last year of university loomed in the distance, George put together a plan to spend summer at his home town of Lakebay with his two best...
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Soundtrack of the chapter: Forever Young by Alphaville
The sun had already disappeared behind the ocean. The sky was the clearest tonight. The stars had never been so close, they were shining the brightest. Leah and I had already set up the tent. We were successful in starting a fire. We sat around the small bonfire, drinking beers and eating campfire hot dogs. Music from my cassette player was playing in the background. Leah was sitting next to me watching the fire intently.
"Truth." I said
Leah looked up at me, her eyes looked as if they were on fire. She didn't talk for a moment.
"I am happy to be here at Megapetra cliff. I am happy that I am here with you. I am happy that we experienced this together. I am happy that I met you on the beach that day and that I went to that party with you." Leah said.
I could see the genuine look in her eyes. The warmth in her voice embraced me and I could feel my heart skipping a beat. All the words that I wanted to say had escaped me and all I had left was silence. However, our silence was alive and loud. My eyes said all the things I wanted to say and conveyed all the emotions I had grown inside me since the moment my eyes met hers.
"Why this cliff and why whales?" I asked her after we stayed silent for another while listening to the waves.
"It's called Megapetra Cliff for a reason," Leah said "Megapetra is the Latin name of the humpback whales which means "big wing", so the cliff was named after the whales as they used to frequent this place back in the days. Humpback whales are known for not visiting the same place twice, but they used to stop here every few decades in the past. However, they haven't come back for many decades now. So, George The Third, this is an experience of a lifetime." She gave me a huge grin and winked.
"And, I couldn't be more grateful that you brought me with you here. I got the chance to document that. Thanks." I said as I leaned down to plant a small kiss on her lips.
Leah kissed me back, her lips teasing mine, then she leaned back from the kiss and looked me in the eyes.
"As for your second question. Four years ago, I went with Bobby in one of his research expeditions up into the north to follow some humpback whales. I was writing a piece as an intern for our local newspaper. That morning was my first time seeing a humpback whale up in their element. It was something that I would never be able to properly explain. I dived in with Bobby. We were swimming with two huge whales. My heart was beating so fast, I thought it would come out of my chest. As I was trying to touch one of them, our eyes met." Leah stopped talking. Her eyes were on the fire, as the wind played with her hair. I placed my hand on her head, caressing her hair and she closed her eyes.
"I had this feeling that the whale saw through me. As if they were able to see deep inside my soul. I reached my hand and I touched their head, all the while we were still looking into each other's eyes. Then suddenly ..."
