In Her Forest Eyes

Just another Saturday

I tap my foot impatiently as I stand in line, waiting to purchase a cup of coffee as Crystal waits outside  in the passenger's seat of my car.  I somehow managed to survive the dreadful week following the discovery of my cheating boyfriend, with the help of my new friend of course.  I peer at her through the window as I smile at the clerk as he hands me back my change, and hold open the door for a couple hand in hand, as I involuntarily roll my eyes at them.  Needless to say, I have not yet gotten over the fact that I caught the previous love of my life swapping spit with a bleach blond, floozy, easy make, piece of tail. 

Crystal laughs as I hand her my coffee and take my position in the driver's seat. 

"What, do you just kind of hate the entire population of happy couples now?" She asks inquisitively as I start up the car and she puts the cup into the holder between us. I shake my head and smile as I put it in gear and back out of the crowded Saturday morning parking lot and pull my sunglasses down over my eyes.

"Only when they don't say thanks for holding the door open." We both laugh as I turn a corner.

"Alright smart ass, turn right at Chestnut."  She picks up my coffee and takes a drink.

Everyday after work the previous week Crystal has come over to my house, or we've gone somewhere.  She has been really helpful with distracting me from everything. My grandparents always think it's fantastic when I bring somebody new over, and bombard us with snack trays and movie rentals, which would be fantastic if every movie she gave me wasn't a romantic comedy, and I didn't see Dylan's face in every potato chip I ate.  Despite my grandparents now being gone on their cruise, we made plans to go to her house today.  I have so many ideas in my head of what Crystal's parents are like.  She described her mom as being a typical housewife and her dad having a strong taste for wine.  With only that to work with, I am left with only ideas of an alcoholic father and a wife who takes care of his every need.

I shake the images from my mind as we turn onto a street sandwiched between two vast, boundless crop fields.  As the road runs out of pavement and transforms into dirt, the houses of the main town disappear behind us in clouds of dust.  To the right the flat fields turn into rolling hills of grass, and to my left I am eyed by grazing cows.  I am suddenly bombarded with the smell of the country and fresh maneur.  This would be unpleasant if the scenery around me wasn't so beautiful.

I wince as I think about my dust covered leather seats, but I resist the urge to put up the convertible roof as I take in the sun's heat and feel the fresh country air run through my hair.  Crystal points to the left and I turn down a street where the flat ground bursts up with vine type bushes bearing little purple and green fruits. 

"Are those grapes?"  I look at the strange plants as I slow down and reach my hand out to feel one of the leaves.

"Well yeah, grapes tend to grow in a vineyard."  Crystal looks at me questioningly and laughs.

I blush at my embarrassment as we pass a sign that reads "Lombard Vineyard."

The vagueness of Crystal's statement about her father having a fascination of wine hits me as we go down a hill and what appears to be miles of grape vines are sprawled out in every direction. 

"Your family owns a vineyard?  I mean you'd think that'd be something you'd bring up."  I look at her almost angrily.

"It doesn't interest me any, and this is sort of new, we just moved here last year."  She looks annoyed as she speaks, so I decide to drop it.  I make a mental reminder to ask Natalie about it later.

After driving for what seemed to be an hour, I finally see a house in the distance.  I make it out to be a large 4 pillar, white house, surrounded by a beautiful lay out of flowers and shrubs of various well gardened shapes.  We come to a gate, and Crystal tells me the code to punch in, swinging the gates open and allowing me to drive up the now paved driveway.  To the right there is a fenced in area with three beautiful horses grazing.  A man waves to us from atop of one of them, and crystal lifts her hand half heartedly.