The Past

Harper’s sneakers tapped softly, light on her feet, as she quickly jogged over the dirt and grass leading up to the Brighams’ barn.  The evening sky darkened and she knew Blue would be out here doing the last round of his chores for the night while Blake, she knew, was inside the house helping their mother get dinner ready.

She slowed as she approached the barn door and slipped inside, quiet and unseen.

It was Spring Break of their final year of college, and it had been a heck of a time talking Blake into spending the week back home, but she’d somehow managed without raising any suspicion.

She caught sight of Blue, headphones in with no shirt on, and she waited for a moment in the shadows, watching him dance around as he straightened up his work area.  It would be a shame to interrupt him now, but instead of hanging back, she chose the opportune moment when his back was turned to move in behind him, joining in with his impromptu performance.

As soon as he realized she was dancing behind him, he startled, but quickly recovered and spun around to take her in his arms, pulling her tight against his bare chest. 

“Hey, Sunshine,” he greeted, smiling down at her.  “I’ve been waiting all day to get a look at this pretty face.”

She sank into him and returned his embrace, wrapping her arms around his waist to bring him into a tight hug.  His arms around her felt so good, finally, after months of being away at school after the Christmas break.

He ducked his head down so that his lips could meet hers in a sweet, welcoming kiss – one that never failed to thrill her to the very core, like every time was the first.  Maybe it was the fact that every kiss was a secret handshake between them, only shared between exclusive members of their own, private, secret society that only the two of them were members of.

Being with Blue, she felt like an undercover spy, and each meeting between them, she deemed a special operative.  No one could ever know of their rendezvous together, this she knew, because no one would ever understand this connection, this feeling.  Not in this little town.  Even though Blue was ‘legal’ now, which was quite funny when she thought about it.

The fact was, she and Blue hadn’t even slept together yet, and he’d been ‘legal’ technically since the first time they’d even kissed that day in the living room in the Brighams’ Farmhouse.  But that wouldn’t stop the nosy people in this town from crying Scandal at even the hint of something going on between them, which of course wouldn’t sit well with her father.  Something about that made it so nerve-wracking, and yet, so satisfying at the same time. 

She melted into his kiss, taking his warmth, his scent, which was surprisingly nice considering he’d just been finishing up his work for the day when she thought about Blake or their mother happening to wander in to tell Blue that dinner was ready.  She pulled hesitantly away from him with a shy smile.

“When did you come in?” he asked, respecting her distance in a gentlemanly fashion as always, though she loved the way he still looked at her like she was the highlight of his day.

She loved seeing herself through his eyes.  Nobody ever looked at her the way Blue did.  When Blue looked at her, she wasn’t a family disappointment or an obligated nuisance.  She didn’t feel weighed down by the pressures of being perfect and doing what was expected at every moment.

She looked down at her sneakers, then back up to meet his eyes.  “This afternoon,” she answered.

He looked past her out the barn door, then back to her.  He reached out, taking her hand in his and led her over to sit on a waist-high stack of baled hay, lifting her up by her waist to hoist her up the small distance.  He lifted himself up to sit next to her, though with his tall height, it didn’t take near the effort it would have taken her.

“Then what took you so long coming to find me?” he asked, his smile mischievous like he already knew the answer.

She swatted playfully at his shoulder and shook her head.  “You know very well why, Blue Brigham.  Don’t make me say it,” she insisted.

He took her by the hand she had just smacked him with and threaded his fingers with hers, bringing it up to his mouth to press against his lips.  “All right, Harper.  I won’t make you say it, but only on one condition.”

She watched his eyes sparkle in the dim light of the barn as their legs dangled side by side from the edge of the hay bales, shoulder to shoulder, still hand in hand.

“You and your conditions,” she teased, bumping her shoulder into his.  “And just what am I getting myself into this time?”  She tried to hold a straight face, but her smile crept through, anyway.

He hopped down and moved in front of her so she could look him straight in the eyes, her legs on either side of him, and now threaded the fingers of the other hand through his, as well.  It was so easy between them like this, she thought.

“Meet me tonight.  After everyone goes to bed,” he proposed.

A spark of excitement spread through her.

Could she?

She wanted to.  Just the thought of it was enough to quicken her already racing pulse.

“Where?” she asked, the words coming out just barely above a whisper.

He thought about it for a moment, tightening his fingers as though he thought she might try to let go.  “How about down by the pond?” he suggested.

She nodded slowly, still considering.  “All right,” she agreed.  “What are we gonna do out there?”

He let her hands go and let his hands drop to her bare legs, running his rough, calloused fingers up the smooth sides of her thighs until they reached the hem of her running shorts.

“I reckon we have a lot of catching up to do,” he said, looking her meaningfully in the eyes.  “I haven’t seen you in months, Sunshine.  I want to hear all about school, and what takes up your time when I can’t be there.”

Her hands moved up to rest on the bare muscles of his chest, and his went to rest on the spot where her hip bones jutted from her lower waist.  She tightened her legs to his sides.

She pursed her lips and squinted her eyes with skepticism.  “If your idea of catching up is telling me all the girls I know probably came calling for you while I’ve been away, you can just forget it.”  Her tone was half-teasing and half-admonishing.

He shook his head with a devilish grin.  “Why, Harper Haley, do I detect a hint of jealousy?”

“No!”  She gave him a playful shove.

They heard the faint sound of the screen door screeching open from the front of the house, followed by Blake’s muted yell carrying down to the barn.  “Blue!  Dinner!”

Blue looked over his shoulder toward his sister’s voice, then back at Harper.  “Come on.  Say you’ll meet me.  I’ve waited this long to see you.  Don’t make me wait any longer.”  His eyes pleaded with her as his hands went back to her waist and slid around her like a man who knew exactly what he was doing.

She had every intention of going, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to make him sweat for a while.

“Blue!” they heard Blake call again, causing Harper’s panicked adrenaline to wash through her for a swift moment.

Blue called over his shoulder, “Coming!” and returned his questioning gaze back to her.

“Oh, all right, all right,” she finally agreed.  “I’ll meet you down by the pond.  I’ll have to sneak past my father for this, you know.”  She gave him a raised eyebrow and checked to see if he really caught the gravity of that, but she pulled him in close with her arms around his neck, his arms now locked tight around her waist.  Sticks of hay poked into the backs of her thighs, but she didn’t care.

Blue smiled and let his mouth crash over hers.  Before he went in, she could feel his gaze on her as she ran back through the field to her parents’ house, until the moment she disappeared into her old home with such longing anticipation for the night to come.