Chapter Eight
Stryder
The road trip turned out to be a lot of fun, especially when Tasha dropped the whole photography thing and just let me be. She seemed to sense, too, that I didn’t want to really open up about my problem with my parents.
We sang along to old radio hits, even though we were out of tune. Laughing together as we munched on chips, I glanced at the woman sitting beside me. With the windows down, her hair was whipping around her face insanely, which made her look even more alluring and sexy.
For some reason, the sound of her laughter seemed to relax me and make me forget all my worries. She kept me entertained, too, with more stories of her stunts, while I chipped in about my most hilarious and most embarrassing moments as a football player.
Finally, the road turned to a wider curve and I saw the signage of Green Meadows in wood-like carving. Around us, there suddenly appeared to be endless meadows of greenery, dotted with tiny white and yellow flowers.
“Now I know why they call it Green Meadows,” I murmured, looking around in admiration as I cruised the car along.
Tasha smiled. “Yeah… Beautiful, isn’t it? God, I’ve missed this place!”
“So you grew up here?” I asked.
She nodded. “Been here since I was adopted…”
“It must have been hard adjusting to a new family and a new place,” I said, seeing her eyes take on a faraway look when I quickly peeked at her face.
“Yes,” she said, suddenly grinning. “I was a difficult child.”
“Hah! I’m not surprised,” I commented, making her give me a friendly slap on the shoulder as we laughed together.
We passed by some woods, which she said she had explored on her own when she was only eleven years old. She’d gotten lost, which had sent her foster parents into great panic and had caused chaos in the neighborhood.
“People here can be so naïve,” she told me. “I guess it was totally different for you.”
I nodded in agreement, recalling my childhood days. I had grown up in the city and had lived in Windfield all my life.
A wistful feeling filled my heart as I remembered that fateful day in the playground when I had broken down and cried. My parents were never really there for me, much more so when they had separated. The pain seemed to slice through my heart sharply as if it had just happened the previous day. Quickly, I forced it to the back of my head and tried to focus on the directions Tasha was pointing out.
When we finally reached their home, which looked more like a mountain cabin by the lake, I couldn’t help but feel a whole lot better. I took in the natural surroundings, with the mountains in the distance and the cool, crisp breeze. It was certainly a lovely place to live in.
“It’s pretty great out here,” I remarked as we went up the front porch. “Why did you leave?”
“I’m not used to being cooped up in one place,” she answered. “Besides, I’ve explored every area of this whole town. I wanted something more dynamic, more exciting! The city was calling out to me!”
“Yeah, makes sense,” I said, nodding as I followed her into the house. The front door was unlocked.
“Hello!” she called out, her voice echoing a bit.
The charming, rustic interiors seemed to be straight out of a countryside home magazine. I immediately felt at home. There was a sense of peace and love in the air that enveloped me and made me feel safe and serene, opposite of how I felt whenever I was in my father’s house.
An old man suddenly appeared, tapping his cane on the floor as he stared at us with a big smile on his dopey face. Beside him was a lovely old woman who must have been gorgeous back in those days. She also had a friendly smile on her face.
“Mom! Pop!” Tasha exclaimed, rushing to give them a hug. They were all obviously happy to see one another. I doubted if my mom would ever react that way.
They launched into quick, semi-told stories as I sort of lingered in the background and watched them in fascination.
Suddenly, the old woman seemed to notice me. “Who’s this young man, Tasha?” she asked kindly.
“Oh, this is my good friend Stryder,” she explained, motioning for me to come closer.
“How do you do, ma’am?” I said politely, extending a hand. The old lady shook it, the smile not leaving her face.
“I’m very good, thank you,” I replied. “You’ve got a lovely home here.”
Mrs. Rodriguez actually blushed. But before she could say anything, Tasha went to introduce Mr. Rodriguez to me. He was just as welcoming.
“Is this the special young man who had swept you off your feet?” the old man asked in a teasing tone.
Tasha and I were both taken aback. She was quick to answer, though. “No, Pop. He’s just…” she paused and glanced at me uneasily, “…a friend.”
“Really?” Mrs. Rodriguez said in disbelief. “But you’ve never ever brought anyone home from the city.”
That comment stuck with me. I looked at Tasha in surprise, but she refused to look back at me or even say anything. Instead, she changed the topic and rambled on about her career as she led us all to the kitchen.
We all enjoyed a cup of coffee and the home-baked cookies that Tasha’s mother had prepared. I couldn’t have enough. They were so damn delicious.
Right after, Tasha excused us as her parents went back to preparing the meal for that evening. She pulled me out to the backyard, but not before taking my camera from my bag. Handing it to me, she pointed out the beautiful lake scenery at the back of their house. The glistening water was greatly tranquil, seemingly fusing with the foot of the mountains in the background.
I looked up at the sky. The sun was beginning to set, splashing gentle hues of orange and pink over the whole panoramic view.
“Start shooting now,” Tasha ordered. “Come on. Show me what you’ve got, Cooper!”
My fingers began to slide across the surface of the camera, just feeling the object and familiarizing myself with it again after a long time that I had not used it. As I gazed at the wonderful miracle of nature happening before my eyes, I instinctively brought the camera up and started clicking away. I adjusted the settings and operated the controls with no second thoughts, everything coming naturally to me as if I had been doing it consistently all these years.
The combination of sheer passion and grit washed over me as I took photos of the breathtaking scenes around me. I felt like I was on cloud nine, doing what I had been born to do. Tasha seemed to fade into the background and she intentionally turned silent, giving me space and freedom to do my thing. I could, however, feel her presence the whole time. It was like she was pushing me to embrace this side of me, even though she was just standing there watching me.
I finally stopped when the sun had gone down completely, leaving us in complete darkness except for the illumination of the moon on the lake.
I put the camera down, my head spinning slightly and my heart beating fast with the thrill and joy. Those few minutes had been awesome! I’d felt so driven and lost in the moment.
“That felt great, didn’t it?” Tasha said softly as she approached me.
I nodded in agreement as I placed an arm around her and kissed the top of her head.
She smiled and took the camera to check out the snapshots. Her eyes widened as she looked at them. “These are so good!” she exclaimed in an excited tone. “You should really pursue this, Stryder.”
I hesitated. She quickly raised a hand to silence me. “No buts,” she said sternly. “I will not let you waste your talent.”
I shook my head, chuckling in disbelief at her utter stubbornness. “You’re impossible,” I said.
She grinned. “I know, right? And that’s why you just can’t resist me!”
I laughed, knowing the joke was half-meant. It made me think about what I was doing there with her.
Just having fun, a little voice whispered in my head. I nodded, trying to convince myself that that was all there was to it.