The Elite

The Lake

Willow held tightly to the steering wheel. I sat beside her, rubbing my chin.

"Willow," I said, "we've been sitting her for over an hour."

"Maybe I shouldn't," she whispered, staring at the news station down the road. "We'll be stooping to their level."

I looked at her in shock. "I-I hadn't thought of it that way, honestly." I sat back and sighed. "Wait, didn't your dad say you have a good lawyer?" She nodded. "We should consult with him before we do anything... rash."

She sighed and put her head on the steering wheel. Hesitantly, I put my hand on her back.

It was a week after the attack on the house and barn. The investigation had brought up a few results. All were teenage girls and their boyfriends. They were currently under close supervision and brought in for questioning. We suspected they had been at the bake sale.

"I need to get out of here," Willow said suddenly and started up the truck.

"To where?" I asked.

"I don't know," she said and started driving. "Somewhere they can't fucking follow us."

I frowned out the window in thought. I didn't know many places. I had enjoyed being in the spotlight so every place I had been to was within public view. She drove for maybe ten minutes before making a sudden right turn. I gripped the handle above the door. She made another sharp turn.

"What are you doing?" I asked, looking out the window. "Are we being followed?"

"Damn news crew," she answered. "I should've parked somewhere else.

Her eyes were looking everywhere until she nodded and pulled an illegal U-turn. A black van went speeding by us, unable to take the sudden turn. She stopped beside a bank.

"Come on," she said, taking her flip flops off so she could run easier. "There's a lake nearby. It's not too well known so we'll have some privacy."

"Okay," I said and jogged after her.

We ran for about five minutes until we got to a dirt road. I was certain she would hurt her feet but she seemed to used to rough terrain, even after burning the bottoms of her feet. We were starting to run out of breath when I heard happy children's voices and she slowed to a walk.

"What's the name of the lake?" I panted.

She put her flip flops on. "I don't know, to be honest. I'm not sure it has one. It's just a little lake. At first I thought it was someone's property so I asked the places around. Just a random place," she shrugged.

She put her thumbs in the pockets of her shorts while we walked. I really liked it when she wore shorts....

The closer we got to the lake, passing by cars and picnic tables, I realized we were truly alone for the first time. I stepped over some roots and thought back to when we were baking pies. I still wanted to kiss her but, after everything that happened with the barn, I was sure she didn't have the pull anymore.

The lake was a medium sized one. A small family was by the dock and hadn't noticed us. They were the only other people and we sat down near the bank. Willow stretched her legs out then lay back on her back. She inhaled deeply, her eyes closed, and I watched her.

Even though she had been thin before, she had lost more weight. I knew she wasn't eating even though she claimed she was. It worried me. Was it from the stress of everything? It was possible....

I looked down at my own body. My muscles had increased so much since I had been cut off. I knew it was from all the work I did at the ranch. My skin had reached the same tan as hers and Aaron's. Normally, I would be ready to show my body off but that desire was gone.

I was reminded of one of the conversations I had with Aaron.

"This is a good learning opportunity for you, Nathan," he said as we fed the horses. "You can learn a lot from this."

I scoffed. "What could I possibly learn from scooping shit and dealing with someone like Willow?"

"Humility," he answered simply. "And Willow's not so bad. She'll come around."

Humility. Had this been what Aaron meant?

"This is what it will be like until you get back on your feet and contribute to society for once!"

Willow's words had deeply impacted me then and they still do. Was I contributing? Had I done enough to atone for all I did in the past?

"Hey, Willow?" I muttered, looking at her. She grunted, showing she was listening. "Do you think... have I changed?"

Her eyes opened. They were serious. "Yeah, Nathan, yeah I do."

I bit my lower lip. "Is it a good thing?"

She sat up with me. "It's a very good thing," she answered.

"I keep thinking about what you and your father said," I muttered. "Then I think back to what I was like before and I cringe."

"Why?"

"I was a jackass, Willow," I groaned, closing my eyes painfully. "God, I was a bastard."

"True," she said slowly, "but there comes a time when you grow up. You've grown up, Nathan."

I opened my eyes again. "You really think so?"

She smiled and nodded. I smiled back and looked at her. Her hand was resting on the grass and I took it gently. She blushed a little and I stared at her full, red lips. God I wanted to kiss her so badly. Slowly, as if she wasn't sure if she should, she held my hand back. My eyes flicked back to hers. They were confused and slightly afraid. I reached out with my free hand and held her chin gently.

"I'm confused," she breathed.

"Me, too," I whispered.

Our eyes locked and I leaned closer. Her hold on my hand tightened and I saw her gulp. She blinked a few times then her eyes closed completely. I was shaking as my face got closer. I closed my eyes, too, as soon as our lips touched.

I had kissed many girls since my first kiss when I was 13. This kiss, though, blew them out of the water. After a second, she began to kiss me back, leaning into me. She put her hand on my chest and sighed gently. I ran my hand into her warm hair, desperately wanting to deepen the kiss but not push her too far.

She pulled back, breathing deeply, and looked into my eyes again. As if we read each other's minds, we met for a kiss again, this one more intense. She pressed her chest to mine and I let go of her hand to wrap my arm around her back, my other hand still in her hair. I parted her lips and she accepted my request. I groaned in longing and held her as tight as I possibly could.

As our tongues moved in sync, I realized what I was feeling.

For the first time in my life, I was feeling passion.

Passion and love.