Begin Again

Chapter 10

(RYAH)

I reached down to put my hand in the water and gasped at how cold it was. Considering the temperature it was outside I had thought the water would have been warmer. I hoped that the water would heat up later in the day. 

I set the buckets down and started sorting though the rocks at the edge of the water. I wanted to delay getting in the stream for as long as possible. I picked up the large flat stones and tossed them into the bucket. Once one was full I worked on filling the other one. I placed the yoke over my shoulders and bent down to loop the bucket handles over the edge of the beam. Once they were securely hooked I stood up. 

Or at least I attempted to stand. 

I couldn't get the buckets to budge. They were too heavy. I grit my teeth and glared at the buckets then I pulled my legs up underneath me and tried to used my legs to lift. The buckets still refused to budge. I sighed in defeat and started taking stones out of both of the buckets. Once I had a few out I gave it another try. My legs shook as I finally made it to a standing position. The buckets were heavy across my shoulders and I held onto them to try to keep them steady as I started off towards where the house would be built. 

I finally made it across the meadow and crouched down to empty the buckets. They fell into a small depressing pile. When I pictured the height that the chimney would be I wanted to cry. Instead I picked up my empty buckets and made my way back to the stream. I bent down to pick up the stones that I had removed a few minutes ago and tossed them into the bottom of my bucket. I made my way closer to the water and loaded more stones in. This time I stopped before the buckets were full. I threaded the handles through the yoke and attempted to stand with it across my shoulders. Then I made my way across the meadow again. The buckets were dumped into the slowly growing pile and I went back to the stream. 

The freezing water didn't seem so bad now. I was already sweaty and decided to get some of the rocks that were in the stream instead of just going for the rocks that were at the edge. I removed my shoes and gasped at the first icy dip in the frigid water. I took another step and I was in up to my knees. I bent down and picked up rocks that were on the sandy bottom of the stream. I loaded one bucket at a time and set them on the edge of the stream. Once they were full I got the yoke and went across the meadow. When I returned to the stream I reached for the buttons of my dress. There was no point in getting it filthy with mud. I slipped out of it and stood in my underthings. I cautiously looked around and scanned the trees. 

I made several trips across the meadow to put the rocks in a neat pile. Slowly it grew I walked back to the stream and dropped my buckets on the sandy beach. I set the yoke down and tried to catch my breath. The freezing water was tempting now. As I waded in it didn't seem nearly as freezing as it had in the beginning. I inched out to the deepest part of the stream and dropped. 

I came out of the water shaking my head and wiping my eyes to clear them. I could feel goosebumps rise up on my skin but I felt so much better. I reached back to wring out my hair and took a step towards the edge of the stream when I noticed boots at the edge. 

"What are you doing?" Torin asked. He stood there at the edge of the stream with his arms folded over his chest as he looked at me. I looked down at my underclothes which were soaked and clinging to my skin. I folded my arms in an attempt to cover myself from his view. 

"If you were a gentleman you would turn around," I said glaring at him. 

"I thought we had already established that I wasn't a gentleman?" He said as he looked me in the eye. I was grateful that his eyes didn't stray.  

"What are you doing here? I told you not to come."

"I saw you go down and I thought you fell, you could have been hurt so I came to see if you needed help. I didn't know that you were just going for a swim."