Nature's Calling Pt. 03

Callie

After I got ready, I found David by his bike. If he could ever be away from that thing for more than a week, it would be a miracle. He was wiping it down with a moist towelette. Even in the moonlight, I could see the dust reveal its shiny silver outline better.

"Ready! Are you going like that?" I asked, pointing at his naked chest. David had on no shirt, showing off his hairy chest, and a pair of blue swim shorts. I still wore my shorts from earlier that day, but my pastel pink bikini top was adorned with a half-cut strawberry pattern. I was lucky enough to find a bikini set that had only one set of strings around the neck and a tube fit. I figured my straw-covered sandals and a high ponytail were good enough for wherever we were going to go.

"Of course. What's wrong with this?" he asked, turning to look up at me. He looked back at the ground, scratching his head. I was about to ask what he was thinking when he stood up and, with a smile, said, "Alright, strawberry Peach, let's go."

He grabbed my hand and started to practically drag me to where he wanted to go. I had to walk at a brisk pace to keep up with his longer legs. I never had quite realized just how strong he was.

"LET GO OF ME."I was shouting mostly due to surprise and a little fear of his sudden forcefulness.

"Fine, but you better keep up, princess; the night is not getting any younger."

"You're not even going to pretend to care that I'm yelling at you?"

"I know you too well. If you were actually frightened or wanted to leave, you would or at least slap me." He stopped and looked at me. "I am sorry that I scared you and grabbed your hand. Do you believe me?"

"I believe you, David, but why did you think that was a good idea in the first place?"

"Because you walk slowly, and I do not want you to get lost." In a quick mumble, he added, "... or have Liam yell at me for being a coward tomorrow."

We started to walk again on a rocky and sandy path. There were human-made steps in the sand, with a set of branches marking the end of one step and leading to the next. Some of the tree roots were in and along the path, which made the journey a little bit of a hassle. I wanted to at least keep up my normal walking speed, but I had to slow down so that I would not trip and fall.

David quickly noticed my predicament and slowed down for me. He offered his arm, and I gave him a glare with one eyebrow raised. "I'm sorry, princess, would you like help until we reach a little bit more even ground for you to find your footing? I promise I am only offering to help." Since his words made sense and he did appear sincere, I grabbed his arm. He did help me a lot down the stairs until the ground got as flat as nature can.

After what felt like an hour-long hike, I finally saw what had gotten into David a little while ago. The nature in front of us took my breath away. I had to pause for a moment to take in the stunning view before me. The light pollution from other campsites nearby helped us see the waterfall. The blue cascading water over the rocks next to the luscious green mountain and lively skinny trees crafted a beautiful contrast. The crisp air filled my lungs, and I felt at peace.

David

I had not meant to scare her; she was okay, right? I had only wanted to show her the waterfall as soon as possible, and those shoes were not practical, so I had figured I could help her. She did not need to yell at me, right? This was all that I could think about during our 30-minute hike. I tried to keep up the conversation with her, but I was more taken aback by what happened and to make sure she was okay, than to pay attention to it.

Once we reached the waterfall, I walked to the outer side of the smooth rock-edged pond and turned around to look at her. Her arms were fully expanded with her palms facing the sky. Her face was also pointed to the heavens, and I wanted to know what she was thinking. I figured everybody enjoys the outdoors a little bit differently, so I did not disturb her.

Quietly, I found a somewhat easy-to-spot grassy area with enough rubble to put our shoes on without ants getting to them. I sat down and took off my sneakers and socks. I noticed Callie walking over to me.

"Finally decided to join me and enjoy the waterfall like a normal human being?" I joked.

"Do what you want, but I'm going to enjoy this my way," she barked back, while putting her hair into a high ponytail.

I guess she had not completely forgiven me yet, but I hoped the water would help. "Does the princess want me to see if the water is to her liking and that there is no moss for her delicate feet?" Hopefully, that will entice her moodiness to calm down.

"Just because we live in the city doesn't mean that I can not stand a little bit of forest on my own. What are you, some kind of butler, David, looking out for my every need?"

Yes, please, I will gladly be your daddy. I envisioned our happy coupling as she walked past me and dipped her toe into the water. She climbed in and began to swim around. I laid our stuff onto the rocks and then joined her in the water.

I swam on the fringe of the pond. The water felt refreshing against my skin. I noticed that she was really trying to keep her head above the water. I guess her hair was dyed, or she did not want to get her face wet.

"What happened to not being afraid of the water?" she pondered to me aloud.

"Just waiting to show you a new trick I learned."

I climbed out and searched for an area that could work as a diving board. I found a knocked-over tree stump that connected two different sides of the pool. I tested it with my foot to see if it was stable, and it moved a little, but I figured it was good enough. Backing away from the trunk, I readied myself. I ran forward, jumped onto the trunk, and dived into the water with a cannonball. Once I broke the surface, I took in a breath of air. That was fun! Searching around the area, I found Callie and swam up to her.

"How was that, Callie?"

"That looked really good, for all that I could see."

"Are you getting crabby? Is it past someone's bedtime?"

"No, there's just barely any light to see anything."

"Fine, I think I know of something else that we can do." I offered

"Like what?"

"The last one to touch the rocks under the waterfall is the loser." I joked, but did not leave time for her to argue as I swam off. I figured that she would either follow me or throw a loud fit; a Callie fit, as it were. Since I did not hear anything, the race was on, and I was determined to win.

It did not take me long to reach the underbelly of the cascading water. In truth, I had just thought of this to make our date last longer and was figuring it out on the fly. It was nice to be greeted with a moderately sized landing platform. I climbed out and tried to shake off as much of the water as I could as I waited for her to join me.

About a minute later, I saw the outline of her head. Wanting to make sure I was not seeing things, I called out to her, "Callie, is that you?" The outline lifting itself out gave me the answer I needed, but her voice was still pleasing to my ear.

"No, it's the Loch Ness monster, what did you think it was?"

"A siren, come to sing this poor old man back under the water."

"I mean, it is getting late, maybe we should?" She finished climbing out of the water and came to sit right next to me. She pulled on her hair to get as much of the water out as possible. Why did it never seem like a good time to ask her out properly?

"If you're so tired, then how about we rest for a little bit? I'll make sure that nothing happens to us. Plus, we do not have to leave this place until sunrise, which is still a long time away." My voice made it sound like a suggestion, but I think desire slipped in too.

"I'm only agreeing to this because I am tired. You better not fall asleep or else I will have your head for it."

With a quiet laugh, I agree, and she rests her head on my shoulder. Once she is fast asleep, I pet the top of her hair and whisper, "Thank you for all the love you have given me. Sleep well, my alluring princess." With a forehead kiss upon her head, I softly rested my cheek onto her. I heard the smile in her voice as she whispered aloud, "My homebody."