The Best Of Me

Chapter 13

        Brantley

      I sat in a meeting. Thirty days was an accomplishment. One I'd made a few times. I just hoped it would be the last time. I had hurt Harmony I could hear it in her voice when I called her after my brother called me. I was ashamed of how I acted. I was afraid to face her but there wasn't anything I wanted more than that either. It was complicated. Nothing was going to stop me from seeing her tonight. It would be like a first date again. Because of my drinking I'd lost a good girl once. She had been my world and then my world had ended. That is until I met Harmony. I really liked her a lot and I wasn't going to lose her.

I was a complete nervous wreck. I couldn't decide what to wear, where to take her, what vehicle to drive, anything. Nothing sounded good enough. Not for Harmony. I thought about our first date and how scared she had been to get on my bike. She tried to play it off like she wasn't really that scared but I could see it in her eyes. She had been terrified yet she had trusted me. Would she ever trust me again? Something Harmony had told me stuck out in my mind. Something she had told me she enjoyed as a child. I made a few phone calls and I had it all planned out. I finished getting dressed and put my guitar and a few blankets and pillows in the back of my truck. I stopped at the store to get some snacks and sodas and then I was on my way to pick her up.

I stood at the door of her apartment. I'd never been here before but I felt like I'd been here many times. I lifted my hand to knock and noticed it shaking. I'm not sure if the shaking was because I was sober or because I was nervous. For what seemed like forever I just stood there with my knuckles an inch away from the door, I closed my eyes and said a quick prayer "Lord please let her forgive me" and I knocked. At first I wasn't sure if she heard me. Maybe she wasn't even home. I'd deserve it if she bailed on me tonight. Fear froze me in my spot and stopped me from knocking again. In such a short amount of time and without ever even touching Harmony had come to mean so much to me that the scariest thing to me at the moment was the thought of losing her. I knocked again.

Harmony

I was in the bathroom when I heard the first knock. It was a little early and kind of quiet so I thought maybe it was just a neighbor. I listened for another knock just to be sure but I didn't hear anything so I finished putting my makeup on. Just as I was walking into the living room I heard another knock. This one was closer and louder and definitely at my door. I looked at my clock and saw it was 20 minutes early for Brantley to be here but that was okay. I yelled out that I'd be there in a minute and I ran around like crazy trying to finish getting ready. Finally I was fully dressed and I stood at my door and opened it.

The sight of Brantley standing on my doorstep was one I'd been dreaming about for months. Now here he was right in front of me. I turned off all the lights and locked my door. I was glad to see that he was driving his truck tonight. I wasn't really dressed to ride on a motorcycle. Brantley walked around and opened my door for me and helped me up into his truck. I grew up around trucks and didn't really need his help but he knew that so I didn't say anything just let him help me. The feel of his hand on my back felt nice anyway. He closed my door and walked around to get in the driver side. Not a word had been spoken by either of us. I think we were both afraid of what we would say. Brantley finally broke the silence. "You look good tonight." "Thanks." He turned the radio on but it was on low and for the next 45 minutes he drove and we talked. We talked about anything but what had happened. We both knew eventually the time would come that we'd have to talk about it but that time wasn't right now. I never asked where he was taking me and he never offered to tell me. Even after everything I trusted this man with my life. Maybe I was dumb but I just felt so completely safe with him.

It was an absolutely beautiful night in May. It was about 70 degrees with a slight breeze that kept you from getting too warm. The stars were shining bright, not a cloud in the sky. We had the windows down as we drove. I really hoped wherever we were going it would be outside because it was a perfect night. Finally we pulled off an exit and it didn't take me long to see where we were going. In front of us was a huge projection screen. I was so excited I hadn't been to a drive in in years. I didn't even know any still existed. My parents had taken me to drive ins all the time as a kid and I had loved it. I had mentioned it once to Brantley, almost in passing. Had he remembered me telling him about it or was it by chance that he chose this place?

"I got some snacks and a cooler full of drinks in the back and if you want we can get something from the concession stand." "Whatever you got will be great Brantley. This is so great. It's such a nice night to sit outside and watch a movie." "I thought you might feel that way Harmony." Brantley payed and we drove in and backed into a spot. There weren't a whole lot of people here and I was glad. I didn't want some annoying teenagers being loud and ruining the movie. I didn't even ask what movies were playing. I didn't even care. We got out of the truck and Brantley put down a blanket and some pillows in the back and we climbed up and sat down. He put his arm around me and I leaned in to him. This felt so right being in his arms like this. Halfway through the second movie I must have fallen asleep because the next thing I remember was Brantley telling me the movie was over and it was time to go. I could never make it through both movies as a kid either. I got in the truck while he folded the blankets and put them up. Then we were on our way back home. I just wasn't ready for this night to end yet.

"Are you really tired or do you mind if we stop somewhere real quick." "That's fine with me. I'm not ready to go back home yet. I'm not even tired I just fall asleep during movies. They don't even have to be boring I've always done that." Brantley kind of chuckled a bit and that's when I realized I was rambling. Oh well. "Do you trust me, Harmony?" "I do." "Are you sure?" "Completely." "Good. Just let me know if you get tired or cold or just wanna go home, alright? " "I will." If Brantley was a crazed serial killer this was the perfect spot to kill me and dump my body. Lucky for me he wasn't. We turned down one pitch black dirt road after another. It was a wonder we didn't get lost but then again we could be lost I had no idea. Just when I was about to ask Brantley if he knew where he was going he turned one last time and what I saw in front of me took my breath away. We were at watershed and the moon and stars reflected off the water making it look much brighter out than it actually was. When Brantley turned the truck off the only sound was that of crickets and frogs. It was so beautiful and so peaceful here.

Brantley helped me out of the truck and into the back again before climbing up himself. He situated the pillows and blankets so we were sitting across from each other. I could see him perfectly from the light reflecting off the water. Brantley pulled his guitar out and played one of the most beautiful songs I'd ever heard. When he was finished I layed my head down in his lap and we just talked. For hours we talked about everything. Our likes, dislikes, our childhood, exes, friends, if you can think of it we talked about it. We just enjoyed the night and getting to know each other. I was enjoying it so much I didn't realize how much time had passed until the sun started to come up. We watched the sunrise and then we got up and folded the blankets and made sure it was all tied down so it wouldn't fly out and we got back into the truck to go home.

The whole drive we just continued to talk. We had so much in common and we even knew a lot of the same people but that was to be expected since we grew up one county over from each other and he was only a couple years older than me. It was crazy to think how closely our lives had been intertwined yet never crossed until recently. We pulled up in front of my apartments but neither of us got out. We just kept talking. After what seemed like just a few minutes but was probably an hour or more Brantley got out to walk me to my door. I was starting to get tired and I had to work tonight. When we got to the door I told Brantley what a great time I'd had and how I couldn't wait to see him again. We made plans to see each other again later in the week. I expected him to say goodnight and leave just like he always had before but when I unlocked my door and turned toward him to say bye I found myself looking into the amazing green eyes. I don't know if he meant to do it but our lips were literally and inch away. I couldn't move, I couldn't breathe. For a second I was frozen. I was waiting for him to move. And then he did.

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