Sierra Nevada (XXX)

3

Sentinel

I awoke early the next morning to find Avi still asleep on the ground beside the fire. I moved as quietly as I could and gathered more wood to add to it. The morning air was a little nippy, he could use the extra warmth and frankly, I was a little chilled. I sat and watched the sunrise over the eastern horizon. As it rose he started stirring. It didn't take him as long as it was rumored to take to wake up. He sat up stretched, looked at me and then looked at the fire.

"When did you add more wood?"

"While you were sleeping. You sleep like the dead." He blushed hotly, or maybe he was just warm. Either way, there was a pleasant color to his cheeks. I hadn't yet gotten his gear out of my tent yet. I did make a morning tea which I decided I would share with him.

"Tea?" He chuckled when I offered him the cup.

"I need to use the little boy's room. I'll be right back." His feet were bare. He walked carefully but I could see that he didn't wear shoes often. I laughed as I thought of all the photos and videos I had seen of him in the studio, often shoeless. That was one question I'd have to ask.

"Lucky," I said to him when he returned from the top of the slope that sloped away from what had become our campsite. He looked at me quimsically.

"You don't have to drop 'em to go." He laughed heartily washed his hands with hand sanitizer and took my cup gently from my hands. I scooted on my rock so that he could sit where he intended even though the other rock was unoccupied and it would have given us so much more room. We were hip to hip and shoulder to shoulder. I felt nervous and comfortable at the same time.

"It doesn't always work that way."

"Well no I can't imagine that it does. That is the hardest part about being out here. And it's worse for a girl."

"I can imagine. I assume you have food for breakfast?" He asked locking his eyes on me.

"Are you hungry? I don't usually need to eat until closer to noon. Tea and water are more than enough to get me going. I'm not hiking today so I won't need the excess." I met the challenge in his eyes head on. That was a mistake. I felt that little pull down deep inside. I smiled and dismissed it. I adored this adorkable man and had always wanted a chance to get to know the person he was, but it was more than I could take. Maybe if I still had a man to hold my heart, a relationship to maintain I would have been alright, but I no longer did and I wasn't.

"I'll get your things for you so you can eat if you need to." It was the perfect excuse to get out from under those eyes. Finally, I understood what my girlfriends were all talking about. I had grown used to direct eye contact from an intense and beautiful set of eyes so when I met him the first time his eyes didn't phase me. This time though, being alone with him, him sitting so close to me I could feel his warmth and smell him, it didn't help that he smelled like a man should, and then those few stray strands of his hair that were sitting on his shoulder because he hadn't done anything with it yet that morning and him holding my cup, yes, it was a little much. I had been out of the game for a long while. I excused myself to get his pack.

"I don't need anything water and tea will do. Did you say you were staying here today?" I had to stop before I could get off that rock and turn and face those eyes. I wasn't going to survive this as unscathed as I had hoped. I just nodded not trusting my voice to speak to him just yet. That dark brown hair those eyes, more blue than green in the early morning sun, that beard and the tenderness and care in his voice. It was going to undo me right then and there.

"Then which way are you headed?"

"East towards the ridge then south. How about you" I tried to keep it casual. One part of me hoped and prayed he was headed the other way, any other way, but the biggest part of me wanted him to say he was going my way.

"Sounds about right, though the nights will get colder the closer you get to the mountains." He paused and those eyes got impossibly brighter.

"Maybe we should travel together unless you would really rather be lone."

"What about you? Would you rather be alone?" I held his eyes and finally, I saw it. He didn't need to answer me, but I let him.

"Not really. I thought I did when I headed out, but after half a day of walking I discovered that I had already worked through what I needed to before I headed out."

"And when are you expected back? I will need to check in today or my sister will have my head when I get back."

"I don't have any obligations for the rest of the week then I have lots of work in the studio and Aca to prepare for. We started taking auditions. It's exciting but very hard to choose." The work in the studio made me curious. I wondered if the underground rumors and assumptions were true. He'd tell me if he wanted me to know.

"Do you mind if we travel together," he asked. I tried to hide my fear and concern behind a smile and a nod.

"Good." He hopped up off the rock and crawled into my tent.

"Hey! Its nice in here." He said his butt and bare feet sticking out the end of my tent. He crawled out backward dragging his guitar and a bottle of water.

"I want to play. Just do whatever you were gonna do if I wasn't here okay. I need to play."

"Something hit you?"

"Yup." He said as he pulled his guitar out of the soft case and tunned it. He grabbed a small notebook and nub of a pencil as he nodded.

"I'm going for a run. I'll be gone for at least two hours possibly three. If I'm not back in four you can call out the national guard." He chuckled.

"Avriel."

"hmmm?"

"Thank you" I Left my sentinel to his musings and began my day.