Delphic Song

Chapter Three

Chapter Three

The afternoon passed by in a blur. Nate hadn’t been lying when he had admitted to not knowing anything about apple picking; the first thing he tried to do was climb the tree. That was a big no-no in the apple world, along with yanking apples off trees instead of twisting them. I had to reprimand him for that, too. Not that I minded in the least. I was having so much fun; I wouldn’t have cared if I had had to give him lessons on what an apple was!

We talked the hours away. It was like the conversation topics never ended; one subject switched to a new one without a break or pause in the flow. Once, while Nate was under a tree attempting to reach a particularly large apple, he accidently knocked the branches and the whole tree shook, sending round, red Macintosh cannonballs dropping to the ground. When one hit him square on the head, I laughed so hard that I had to fall on my knees in order to catch my breath.

“Omigod,” I said, gasping for air. My stomach muscles ached from laughing so hard, and my eyes were tearing up.

Nate rubbed the top of his skull and glared at me good-naturedly. “It’s not funny,” he muttered.

I pictured it once more, and fell backwards laughing all over again. “I beg to differ,” I wheezed out.

Nate sat down next to me in the grass. I boosted myself up and hugged my knees, still giggling quietly to myself. “So, are you from the city? You obviously don’t get out in the country side much,” I said, teasing. I glanced over at him, waiting for his answer.

“Yeah, I grew up in the big city,” Nate said. “I was born and raised in Chicago.” He pasted a big grin on his face and pumped his fist in the air. “Go, White Sox!”

I smiled. “Is it a lot different from here?” I asked, resting my chin on my knees. I was curious; I had never been to a city any bigger than Portland, Maine, which Payton referred to as the “Wanna Be City” – so I was assuming it wasn’t really the whole ‘city’ experience.

 There was a big disagreement in our family about our nonexistent traveling plans. Alyssa and I pestered Dad and Liz incessantly, but they claimed that Joshua was too young to enjoy any vacation and we would have to wait until he was old enough to remember and appreciate it the trip. Of course, Alyssa and I countered that by then, we would probably both be in college and the last thing we would want to do is go traveling with our parents, but it didn’t seem to even put a dent in their decision. Not that it stopped us from trying.

I had always wanted to see the world and travel. I remember being five years old, sitting in the office at home on my Dad’s old PC, searching for images of Europe or the Amazon rainforest. I had notebooks full of travel plans and stories about all the animals I’d see. Now, so close to graduating, I knew that the experience in other cultures and environments would have been good in my college application, and the new wonders might inspire some fresh writing ideas. Not that it a vacation would be happening this year. And even if it did, it would be too hectic – what with SATs, applications, preparing for college… Oh, my God. I needed to get myself a daily planner. 

“It’s so much louder in the city,” Nate said, breaking into my thoughts. “Also, it freakin’ stinks. And it’s way more dangerous. You always have to watch your back in case someone decides to rob you, or murder you, or something crazy like that.”

“That sounds… unsafe?”

Nate nodded. “You have no idea.” He paused, closing his eyes and lifting his face into the breeze. I studied his profile while he wasn’t looking.

His face was almost too perfect. Noble, almost princely features – high cheeks, a straight nose, and full mouth. He held his chin high, and his posture suggested that slouching was a foreign thing to him. I wanted to look away, but I couldn’t tear my eyes away.