Summer's Loss

Chapter 12

Brice

Brice watched, infatuated, as Abigail let her hair fall out of its band. She leaned her head back in the water and leaned forwards again so her hair wouldn't lay over her face.

"That was a cheap move." He jokingly told her.

"So was pushing me in!" She splashed at him.

"You wanna start that? Really?" Brice lunged at her and she dodged out of the way, barely missing a dunk under water. She squealed with laughter and Brice jumped at her again, this time he got close enough to splash her straight in the face. She gasped and wiped the water from her eyes.

"Hey! That's enough!" She laughed and then screamed when he splashed her again, "I said enough!" She said through giggles.

Brice held his hands up in defeat, then leaned back to float on his back. Having soaking wet shoes made it hard, but not impossible.  For a moment everything was silent and he felt at peace. They had come here to work, but lately he felt as if that was all he did. Work. Having fun every once in a great while wasn't so bad was it? 

From much closer than he had thought she was he heard Abigail say to him, "you haven't answered my question."  Her words brought him back to reality and he let his feet sink to the creek bed, meeting her eyes as he did so.  Something about her was so electric. The energy she gave off was infectious. He'd only known her for so long and already he was in awe of her personality. She was strong enough to be confrontational but thoughtful enough to pick her battles. The fact that she even cared about what he thought of her was somehow flattering.

"What question?" He asked. All he could think about was the moment he was in now. The two of them shoulder deep in a creek, fully clothed and soaking wet. The sun shining down on his face was like a warm kiss upon his face.

"Do you have some sort of problem with me?" Her eyes were filled with an emotion he couldn't quite place. "It's like, there's times like this when it's like we're almost friends and then suddenly it's like you don't want to be around me, as if I'm a burden to you." She looked concerned, almost anxious. He supposed his attitude towards her had been somewhat confusing. But he was confused himself. What was he feeling?  The day he'd first seen Abigail, there had been that feeling he couldn't quite place.  Something that drew him to her, made him want to take her all in with his eyes.

"It's not you," he lied.  "I've just had a lot on my plate with work and stuff."  He knew it wasn't a good answer but it was enough to satisfy her. She didn't want it to be about her, he realized.  She didn't want to be the source of his angst.

She nodded then looked away from him at the shore.

"We should get out and try to dry off." She said. "There's a patch of dry grass in the sun just over there."  She pointed towards a small meadow on the edge of the creek a few yards away.

"Good plan."  Brice climbed out first then helped Abigail out after.  Her wet hair swept over her back, sweeping heavily as she walked. He couldn't help but notice the way her shirt clung to her body, revealing a slim, curved form underneath. He made himself keep his focus on the meadow ahead after that.

They sat for a time just watching the water go by.  There was only a slight breeze but between that and the sun he could feel his clothes drying slowly. 

"How's your leg healing?" He asked her, genuinely concerned.

"Better than I thought it would."  She places a hand on her leg over the place it had been cut.  "It still hurts a little but it's whatever, I'll live."

"Well, just to be safe, no more fencing for you, ma'am."  He smiled at his own jest at her.  She shook her head and returned the smile, flashing a brilliant white grin at him that made his heart skip.  She was sitting only a foot away from him, closer than he usually go to see her.  Her wet hair was brushed back over her shoulders revealing her tanned neck and jaw.  The sun was reflecting off her eyes illuminating tiny gold flecks, like sunlight breaking through a dense green canopy top.

"What," Abigail quickly looked down at her lap, "is there something in my teeth?"  She wiped a finger across her teeth.  She was blushing, he noticed.

"Sorry, I was just zoning out." He averted his gaze back to the creek before him.  He rubbed a hand across the back of his neck, "I was thinking about what we still have to do today." He lied.

"It looks like it's already mid day, let's eat lunch here and get back to it?" Abigail suggested.

"Good idea, I'll get our boxes from the truck." Brice stood at that and headed towards the dirt road they were parked along.  It wasn't far but it was far enough out of view that he could stop.  He leaned his forehead against a pine tree before him and rested his hands against it.  He shut his eyes and forced himself to breath, to slow down his heart beat.  He was losing it, he knew it.  He was losing this battle with himself.  He was slipping slowly into her smile, her smell, her eyes, her. The very thought terrified him. But deep down, somewhere only he knew and only he could feel, he knew there was apart of him that was exhilarated.