Summer

Chapter 05 - Pine Needles

Chapter Five
I stare down at my cereal. The Cheerios looking dishearteningly not so cheery as they get swallowed by the murky depths of my bowl of milk. I hate breakfast. It's boring and I'm never hungry first thing in the morning. I take a sip of Jasmine's homemade mint tea. Across from me Jasmine sits reading a newspaper article about space. She's rather scientific.

When I woke this morning she swept me into the kitchen and handed me a bowl of Cheerios and a warm tea cup full of greenish liquid that smells oddly delicious. Everyone else is asleep. The morning is bright and the wildlife outside is wide awake.

Behind me I hear heavy footsteps. Daniel takes the seat next to me. His eyes are rimmed with dark bags and his hair is mucked up. Jasmine greets him and prepares some toast for him. He groans in response and lays his head on the table. I almost do the same but the bowl of soggy Cheerios make me keep my head up. Damn it Cheerios!

Behind me everyone else enters the kitchen. Hannah sits on my other side and smiles at me I smile back happily. Next to her Spencer sits with his eyes locked on her. Ruth bounds into the kitchen and makes some toast for herself.

"Let's go on a picnic!" Ruth declares through mouthfuls of burnt jam toast and orange juice. We all agree and she smiles proudly.

"That's a great idea" Jasmine exclaims "but that means we need sandwiches and cupcakes for dessert" she explains to Ruth.

"I'll help!" Hannah says excitedly, her passion is cooking besides reading and writing.

"Me too!" Spencer adds in quickly. I think he likes her.

"Of course I will as well" Ruth says finishing her toast and heading towards the kitchen.

"What about us?" Daniel asks with his head still lying on the table. "If you haven't noticed yet that kitchen won't fit all of us" he states tiredly.

"You and Sky are doing something far away from the kitchen!" Ruth exclaims giggling.

"Yeah you guys are dangerous in or near kitchens" Jasmine States through her laughter. Okay, we may have made a few mistakes on past attempts.

"Let's watch a movie" I suggest. Daniel finds a burst of energy and races into the living room.

"Sky what do you want to watch?" He asks. I think for a moment.

"Something awesome. How about The Edge of Tomorrow?" I offer. He smiles and digs through Jasmines stacks of The Walking Dead series and finds it. He places it in the DVD player and jumps on the couch next to me.

We sit and watch. We speak a few times but we both love this movie so we sit transfixed for one-hundred and thirteen minutes. When it ends I turn to Daniel.

"Would it be weird if you were Cage and I was Rita?" I ask casually. Personally I think it would be very weird.

"No. I think we'd be great lovers" he states. I kick him and he laughs.

"But I wouldn't remember you, you would have memories that I wouldn't even know existed" I state seriously.

"Yeah I know, it would suck, you not being able to remember my sexy face" he smirks so I kick him again. He doesn't care he just chuckles.

"Yeah what a loss" I say sarcastically. Ruth enters the room and laughs at our idiocy.

"Come on let's go to a park Jasmine knows" Daniel runs to the door but stops and turns to me. He looks at me expectantly while I stretch my arms above my head. He runs over to where I sit. He grabs my wrist and pulls me up, dragging me out the door with him.

***

Jasmine leads us through a dark part of pine forest. Each step she takes has purpose. Each step I take seems lost. It's just who we are I guess, Jasmine's always doing something with purpose. I just feel lost all the time, like I'm walking backwards in a forward world.

"How much farther? This is heavy!" Ruth complains from behind me. Poor thing, she ended up having to carry the picnic basket.

"Five more minutes" Jasmine yells over her shoulder. We continue hiking down a fading trail between the decaying pine needles.

Suddenly the trail becomes overgrown with black berry bushes. Snagging at our ankles and tearing at our skin with their vicious barbed thorns. I stop for a moment and stare down at my legs, now regretting wearing my short shorts. My legs are covered in red pinpoints.

Ahead of me a scream snaps me into motion. I see Hannah's silhouette falling, her foot caught in the thorny bushes. My beating heart relaxes when I watch spencer dive and catch her. I smile, he's perfect for her.

After Hannah catches her breath, Spencer assists her through the nest of thorns and pulls her up a rocky ledge where Jasmine awaits us. Chris and Chelsea are both scrambling up the ledge as soon as Hannah is out of sight.

I take the basket from Ruth and she carefully climbs. I hand her the basket once she's at the top. She thanks me before being swept away by Chris whose life is run by his stomach.

I turn to Daniel and roll my eyes. The mischievous smirk on his face as he looks the wall up and down says it all. He's going to do something stupid.

"Don't do anything stupid" I state. He looks at me pleadingly but decides he's probably better off not breaking something in the middle of a forest. He pulls himself up the ledge and offers a hand to help me up. I take it and he pulls me up with ease.

My breath is taken away as I gaze at the view from the ledge. It's a large stone platform that watches over the canopy surrounding it. I mentally curse myself for forgetting my camera.

We all sit in a circle around the basket of goods. We feast on chicken sandwiches and iced tea. When the food is gone and our bellies full we split up.

Spencer is quietly reading poetry to Hannah. Their hands entwined and their gazes set upon one another. Lost in the blizzard of young love.

Chelsea, Chris and Jasmine are playing truth or dare and I'm lying in the sun with Daniel next to me. I think he's asleep. I nudge his leg and he turns and looks at me.

"What?" he asks amused.

"Thought you were asleep" I say while stretching my arms above my head. He shrugs his shoulders and yawns. I close my eyes and listen to the world around me. I hear birds singing, water rushing, animals rustling and the shimmering sound of pine needles in the breeze.

"Do you think it'll be like this forever?" he asks suddenly "You know, quiet and wild" I think for a few seconds before answering.

"Yes" I whisper "I believe that it will always be like this, which it always has been. Since the age of the dinosaurs and beyond, it's always been this way. It's how things are, it's like technology. It seems like it's always been there and it is hard to imagine a world without it and as soon as you attempt to imagine it, the thought slips from your grasp like dust" I say quietly. He's silent for a moment.

"You're so good with words" he says after a while.

"I just say what I think" I state. He nods his head slowly.

"I know" he smiles. "What are we doing tomorrow?" he asks.

"Don't know. We haven't got anything planned." He sits in thought for a moment before smiling.

"Will you help me with my holiday homework?" he asks sheepishly.

"Okay, sounds good. Where do you want to study?" I ask while turning on my side to look at him better.

"You know that random apple tree in the middle of town?" I roll my eyes.

"Who hasn't heard of it?" I giggle. "Okay text me when you want to meet there" he nods his head.

"Cool it's a date" he states.

"You wish" I smirk.