Say my name

Chapter 7

Next morning woke up sunny and warm. The middle of August brought a little chill to the morning air, but the days still turned out pleasantly comfortable. The rooster called out to the hens. The cows were mooing in the barn. Another day on the farm. Maxim checked for the last time if everything was in order under the hood of the Land Rover; the extra tank of gasoline was already in the trunk. Aleksey came out with a huge basket full of food and drink.

"Wow!" Anabella smiled, "We're only going for a day. I could live on that for weeks."

"It's better to be over prepared than not enough. You guys can always bring back the leftovers," Jessica said, "Aleksey said that you never know going into the forest, what you may encounter. At least you will not die of hunger." After depositing the basket on the back seat, Aleksey and Jessica wished them a safe trip, waved after the departing car and the odd couple was on their way into the wilderness.

"It's a perfect day for taking pictures," Anabella wanted to start a neutral conversation. "The light is very good."

"Uhm," was his only reply.

"How long do you think it will take to get there?" she turned her head away from the window to look at him.

"About two hours," Maxim kept his eyes on the road. He tried hard not to engage. Just being in such close proximity to her, made his whole-body tense and this is the last thing he needed to show her.

Lord have mercy, Anabella groaned inwardly, how long can I talk politely about the weather? She did some calculation in her head. With a good wind they should be back home in the afternoon. Anabella hoped that they would not get a bad wind. She looked at him again before turning back to the window and a quick thought flashed through her mind, he's interesting. I wonder what is he thinking about? Anabella shrugged her shoulders to shake off the unexpected idea. She asked him few more impersonal questions about various topics, and they managed to carry a civilized conversation. The moment they left the main road Anabella doubted they could make it in two hours. It was simply a dirt road in the woods, full of potholes and tree roots. In some places it did not even look like a road. She hoped Maxim knew where he was going. Anabella excused herself from further conversation under the pretext of reading Jessica's notes. The car shook left and right. She saw Maxim focusing on the road ahead and had to admit that he was an exceptionally good driver. After about an hour he finally opened his mouth.

"Does it really take an hour to read one page? Or are you just avoiding talking to me?" he looked at her with a slightest grin.

Anabella forgot the words for a minute. She was caught like thief in the night, "Uhm... well... you didn't look like you wanted to talk so I left you alone."

Without taking his eyes of the road Maxim asked, "You never answered my question."

"Which is?"

"Is anybody waiting for you back home?"

Anabella was speechless again. It was not for a lack of words though. When faced with the honest question suddenly she did not know how to answer it. It bothered her conscious that she would not say David's name right of the bat. Anabella debated how open she should be with him.

"It's ok," Maxim said, uncertain if her silence made him happy or disappointed. "If you don't want to answer I will not pry."

"Uhm... it's not that," Anabella stammered, "I just... don't know how to answer the question."

"I meant it as a yes or no question."

"Life is rarely a yes or no answer."

"So, are you in transition? Like getting over somebody or getting to know somebody?"