Forever & Always?

Chapter Three

       When I got home I went upstairs, throwing my bag on the kitchen floor. I found my bed, falling into it. I was laying in my fuzzy socks, skinny jeans, and my Paris T-shirt. I stared at the wall and took my glasses off so I could french braid my long, red hair. My hair was very smooth and silky which was rare for a red head. I put my glasses on. I walked up to my full body mirror, gazing up and down at my averagely sized legs and scrawny arms. A ring at my door interrupted my self-analysis.

I trotted downstairs, the white carpet beneath my feet feeling softer than my socks. I flung the door open. It was Alex. Alex was a boy I had known since fifth grade. He had curly, light brown hair and bright green eyes. He had the luck of being naturally tan, freckles spread across his nose and inner cheeks. Alex was tall and handsome, causing nearly every girl in school to go wide-eyed whenever he entered the room.

"How you doing?" Alex asked calmly.

"Fine," I laughed. "Why couldn't you just text me that question?"

"Because I have a follow up question." I raised an eyebrow.

"Here, follow me," he said, grabbing my arm and taking me to the side of my house.

"Where are we going?" I screeched. My smile transformed into a genuine expression of surprise when I saw it. On the white picket fence was a long sign that read "Homecoming?" I turned to Alex who had a certain glimmer of hope in his eyes.

"So?" He asked. He tried to keep himself from smiling too widely and I did the same. It did not quite work for either of us as both of our teeth showed completely through our grins.

"Yes! Of course I'll go with you!" I hugged him tight. We reversed expressions. I smiled wide and he gave me a genuine expression of surprise. Alex had liked me since 10th grade. However, he knew the importance of our friendship and had no intention of being anything but friends. I was excited. Shelby had a date and so did everyone else; even Cam. A person could imagine my anxiety when Cam Joseph had a date to homecoming and I was still dateless. But Alex came around. He was always good at that.

***

Alex and I spent the rest of the evening together, which was always a blast. Alex had this longing for adventure. He always had a new place for us to explore, which was honestly a miraculous gift considering the fact we lived in Houghton Michigan; a ridiculously small town in the upper peninsula. That evening, he brought me to a paved road, a walking bridge in front of us. He had ordered me to wear my swimsuit and bring along two towels. I stepped out of the car before him and began walking toward the bridge. I reached the railing and looked down at the huge forest beneath us. The trees were hundreds of feet high, but hundreds of more feet below the bridge we had been standing on. Each tree seemed to blend with the others. tricking my eyes. The sun was lowering behind us, causing the shadows of the trees to enlarge and form into abstract designs of wonder.

"You didn't think there was water here, did you?" I looked over at Alex who had followed me onto the bridge.

"And why would I show you anything that has already been discovered by other people and is now a walking trail for hikers?"

"You wouldn't," I said, smiling at him.

"Exactly. We're off!" He announced loudly, grabbing a towel from my arms and holding it above his head as a cape. He ran to the other side of the bridge and to the side. He ran up a small hill next to the bridge and I followed. To my surprise, the top of the small hill was only the beginning of a mountain. It amused me that what I had thought was the top of something small at first, was merely the lowest part of something bigger. Perspective was everything.

"I still don't understand the point in me wearing my bathing suit under my clothes. This is a mountain not a lake," I said sarcastically after climbing for 15 minutes.

"Just wait," He smiled, turning around slightly. We continued on. We hopped over a small five-foot stream of water and up another small hill. The minuscule stream merged into one landmass once again and we continued our journey upwards.

"Okay, you ready?"

"Ready," I said in a giddy tone. We took a few more steps and then in front of us stood a tall beauty. Water fell forcefully from the giant rock beneath it. Below the pounding waters was a pond of deep water.

"Wow," I whispered, clearly mesmerized by the sight. The water below the fall was clear and still while the water coming down remained powerful and white. The splashing water covered up the peeping of all the birds nearby.

"Yep. I know!" He yelled taking off his shirt and jumping off one of the rocks we were on in order to land in the water below the fall. I saw his figure swim to under the water plummeting down.

"Get in here, Mar!" He yelled above the loud pounds, waving to me. I took off my shorts and shirt and stepped off the rock, walking into the water. I jumped forward and swam to him. We sat under the water for a long while, watching the sky darken above us as the sun dropped beneath the trees.

"Come on!" He yelled over the water. I stared at the scenery for another moment before standing up. We made our way to the side of the fall and began climbing the mountain next to the rock. Once we reached next to the top of the water fall, we stepped on the rock that guided the flowing water, being careful not to get our feet caught in its flow. I stared at the flowing water and moved my eyes forward. The view was even prettier up there, which I found nearly impossible.

"Man, Alex. I;m so jealous of you. You make it seem like you could find the most beautiful thing in history without even trying. It's insane."

"I found you, didn't I?" He smiled at me and then looked forward again.

"Alex, you're pretty great, you know?"

"Marie, I know," He chuckled.

"Come on, let's get out of here." We jumped from rock to rock until we reached the rock with our clothes. We grabbed them, put them on, then continued our way down the mountain. I had to stop at some points because continuing forward when such a beautiful sight was in front of me, was almost a crime. We reached the car about 30 minutes later and drove home.