Meadow Valley book series- Everything's changed

Chapter 42: Zach's favorite place

     Ana ran into the house to grab her bag then walked over to Zach's car. Zach had a mustang convertible. Ana had never driven in a mustang convertible before and she thought that it was really cool. Zach opened up her car door to let her in and then went over to put the top down.

"Do you have time for me to show you around town a little while?"

"I guess. But I have to call and ask my mom first."

     Ana called her mom to let her know what she was doing and informed her that she would call again when she was on her way home. Zach drove through a place that looked a little bit like a small mountain. There was a narrow winding road that led up the side of a wooded cliff area, almost like the place where she went that one night with her brother and Adam.

"Is this where you take all the girls," Ana nervously joked?

"No. I'm going to show you my favorite place to go think. I've never showed anyone this place before," Zach replied in a serious tone.

Ana chuckled as she said, "oh yeah right, I'm sure that's what you say to all the girls," then she lightly slapped his arm.

     Zach just remained quiet and Ana felt a little awkward not knowing if she pushed it too far with him. Ana thought to herself how stupid she was for saying that and begun to bite her bottom lip nervously. When they reached the top of the mountain, Zach had pulled over to the side of the road in between some trees where there was a small clearing. Then he hopped out of the car and opened up the trunk to get something out of it. Ana was still feeling a bit stupid by her earlier comment so she remained in the car until Zach came over and opened up her door and escorted her out. He had a flashlight in his other hand and a blanket draped over his arm.

"Why do we need that," Ana looked puzzled and cautious?

"The blanket is for us to sit on once we get to the spot and the flashlight is just in case it gets too dark in the woods on our way back to the car."

"I'm not so sure about this."

     Ana had never really been alone with a boy before. Especially in the woods. Zach was not a stranger but she did not know him well enough to completely trust him.

"I promise it will be worth it."

     Then he waved for her to follow after him. Ana was still uncertain of Zach's plan to take her into some secluded wooded area but she reluctantly followed after him. They hiked through the woods for a few minutes until they come to an opening where there was a large cliff. Zach had spread out the blanket on some rocks near the edge of the cliff but far enough away to be safe. Then he sat down and waved for Ana to come over and join him on the blanket.

     As Ana walked over slowly to the blanket and sat down she noticed the view from that spot. It was absolutely breathtaking, she could see the entire town below from a distance. It was so peaceful and quiet up there. Ana had never seen a more beautiful place before in her entire life. The perspective from that height brought new insight to her. She was at a loss for words and just stared and marveled over God's beautiful creation. Zach watched Ana's face glow as she scanned the landscape below and grinned with pleasure from taking her there.

"This is the best place to watch the sunset over town."

     Ana had no idea that Zach was such a deep kind of guy, she was beginning to see a new side of him and she liked it. She was feeling kind of shy and didn't know what to say to him so she kept quiet.

     Zach started to explain to Ana why this place was so special to him. He told her that when his mother first got sick with cancer she tried to spend as much time with each one of boys before she was too sick to do anything at all. This was one of the special places that she would take Zach and they would come up here with just a blanket and flashlight and watch the sunset go down over the town.

     Ana just gazed at Zach as he spoke about his mother. She looked upon him with a deep compassion and understanding of the way that he felt because it reminded her of the way her and her father were. Zach explained to Ana that coming to this place was one of his favorite memories with his mother before she passed away.

     Ana felt a sadness wash over her and the grief of losing her father was starting to hit her hard. She began to cry softly as she listened to Zach talk about his mother. She tried to look out over the town to keep Zach from noticing her tears.

     Zach had looked over and noticed that Ana was crying so he scooted closer towards her and tried to offer comfort by putting his arm around her. Zach didn't say anything, he just gently held her as she cried. Ana leaned her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes as she looked downward. She couldn't stop herself from crying so she tried to hide her face by placing her hands over it. Zach had wrapped his other arm around her and pulled her closer towards his chest. They both sat there quietly as Ana just cried'

"I promise everything is going to be okay."

     Then Ana looked up at Zach, her eyes were puffy and red from crying. He sweetly wiped away some of the tears from her cheeks. Then Ana moved slightly away from Zach but still sat close enough that the sides of their legs were slightly touching. After a few minutes of silence she laid her head back on his shoulder as he wrapped his arm around her again. They both quietly gazed out over the cliff and sat there without talking until the sun had went down.

     Even in their silence they had a mutual understanding of what the other person was thinking and feeling. Ana was grateful for Zach's friendship and was really impressed by his sense of compassion and respect for her.