6
Gabriel
After Jake left, I lay awake, watching the pale first rays of sun sneak over the horizon. I knew I should try to get a little more sleep, but I was too excited. Last night had been the best night of my life. I couldn’t just go back to sleep.
So I lay in bed, replaying the night on a loop, treasuring every second of it. For the first time in a long time, I’d felt cherished, cared for, worthwhile. I’d always been desperate to please Saul – which, of course, I’d never been able to do. And it had been incredible to be the one being pleasured instead.
The question is: what happens now?
I didn’t know the answer to that. This was so sudden, so new and unexpected, that I hadn’t even begun to process what I felt or what I wanted. All I knew was that I was happy. And, for now, that was enough.
When my alarm finally rang, I got out of bed exhausted but with a smile on my face.
That day we were staying overnight at the summit of Mount Chapman. It was our only night in the wild and I was a little disappointed because, even if Jake and I wanted to, we could hardly have sex in a tent. Everyone would hear us. On the other hand, Matt said it was going to be a clear night and we’d be able to see incredible stars. I liked the sound of that – you couldn’t see many stars in Chicago. Plus Jake had hinted that maybe he and Icould shift and go for a late night adventure, just the two of us.
“Hey,” Jake said, plopping down next to me when we stopped to eat lunch.
“Hi,” I smiled back. Then I frowned. Was my smile too obvious? Would people guess what had happened? I glanced over at the others but they were all too busy talking to each other to notice anything I was doing.
“So, guess what I noticed today?” he continued, unwrapping his sandwich.
That I have a nice ass? I thought. Instead, I said, “That the sky is blue?”
“Jerk,” he laughed, shaking his head.
I took a deep breath. ‘That I have a nice ass?” I tried again.
He looked up from his sandwich and grinned. “Oh trust me. I’d already noticed that,” he replied.
I blushed and quickly took a bite of my sandwich.
“Nah, you goof. I noticed that you’ve been keeping up with the group all day. I bet you could even overtake Jim if you really wanted to.”
“I have?” I asked. In my excitement, I swallowed my bite too soon and started choking.
Jake laughed and clapped me on the back, dislodging the food. I took a deep breath. “You have,” he assured me.
I looked at him, soaking up his sweet, happy expression. All that happiness just for some tiny success of mine. I felt warmth flood through me. “Thank you,” I said.
Just then, thunder rumbled and Jake sat up ramrod straight. Looking past me, he searched for Matt in the crowd. Turning to follow his gaze, I saw the other guide roll his eyes and shake his head. I glanced back at Jake. He was frowning, lips pursed and unhappy.
“Is it going to rain?” I asked.
His eyes refocused on mine and he smiled, but it wasn’t as big or easy as usual. “I doubt it,” he said. “Or maybe, but probably not right here. We get a lot of summer storms but they’re very local. Often you hear the thunder and see the rain, but you’re still in the sun.”
He spoke lightly, but I could tell he wasn’t convinced.
“It’d be really cool to see a thunderstorm from a distance,” I said.
“Yeah, it’s pretty neat,” he agreed, but his attention was clearly elsewhere.
“Jake, if you need to go talk to Matt, just go. I’m fine on my own.”
Jake gave me a wry smile. “I’ll be right back,” he said and stood up, weaving his way through the group to get to Matt.
I looked out down at the valley –way, way, way—below us, then up at the narrow path that lay ahead of us - a narrow path made of loose rocks that meandered along the lip of the mountain. I shuddered. I really hoped it didn’t rain.
On the other side of the group, Matt and Jake were deep in discussion. From what I could tell, Matt didn’t seem worried. He kept shrugging and rolling his eyes. A few minutes later, Jake came back to me, a frown creasing his normally smooth forehead.
“All sorted out?” I asked.
“Yeah,” Jake said, but he didn’t sound sure.
A moment later, Matt stood up and addressed the group. “I’m sure you all heard that thunder,” he said, grinning at us.
Murmurs of ascent rose from the crowd.
“Summer storms are common in this area but, according to the weather reports, this one is going to pass by us well to the south. I suggest we carry on to our final peak of the day and set up camp. However, if any of your have any doubts, of course feel free to to speak up. This should be a group decision.” His eyes flicked to Jake and back.
The group looked at each other and shook their heads then, in almost comic unison, craned their necks to look back at me. What? Were they expecting me to veto it? Just because I wasn’t a very good hiker? I wanted to point out that, if I hadn’t wanted to hike, I would have quit days ago. But instead I just shook my head like the rest of them. Jake shifted next to me.
“Great, then that’s settled,” Matt grinned. “Let’s get this show on the road!”
Heaving ourselves to our feet, we packed up our lunches and slung our backpacks back on. I took a deep breath. The air smelled crisp and clean. Matt was right: it didn’t smell like rain.
As we walked, we heard thunder rumble in the distance but it just added to our excitement as we rose higher and higher into the sky. Exhilarated by the weather, we made better time than usual and soon we were in the home stretch.
“Two more bends and we’re there!” Matt called to us.
Thunder broke directly above us, drowning out his final words. Somebody screamed in shock.
Then the rain came.
It fell in sheets, as if each drop had joined with its neighbor to form a wall of water. It beat down on us and we cowered, flinging ourselves against the side of the mountain, desperate for what little cover we could get. Something heavy pressed against my back and I felt rather than saw Jake behind me, protecting me with his own body. The rock scraped my cheek and the rushing howl of the water filled my ears, but I smiled.
And then, as suddenly as it had come, the rain disappeared, almost as if it had been sucked back up into the sky. Thunder rolled above us, but already it was farther away, its noise fading as it traveled across an otherwise clear sky.
Jake stepped away, releasing me from the wall. I looked at him. His usually buoyant hair was dark and flattened as water ran through it in rivulets before making its way down his cheeks and under his collar.
“Thank you,” I said.
“You okay?” he asked, his gold-flecked eyes crinkled with worry.
I nodded. “Are you?”
“Yeah, of course,” he replied, scoffing as if the very question was ridiculous. And, for the first time since we’d heard thunder, he gave me a real, cheeky smile.
I laughed. “Of course,” I agreed.
“Everyone all right?” Matt hollered at us. “Roll call! Fiona?”
“Here!”
“Juan?”
“Here!”
Matt went through all our names before he let us move again.
“But move carefully,” he told us. “The rain may have dislodged debris on the path.”
We murmured our agreement and, slowly, we began to inch forward.
..
Keeping my eyes glued to the ground, I took a few steps. I heard a crack, then a low rumble. “Gabe!” As if from a great