One Touch

21: Moonlight Silhouettes

Our showers took place at the waterfall, which wasn’t what I had in mind when I wanted to see it. I didn’t bring a bathing suit, since I didn’t have one anyway, but I assumed we’d be in a cabin with attached bathrooms. This must be my first, actual camping experience.

Atlanta shrieked in glee when I gave her the lilies Caspian and I got last night. I was happy for her, but underneath my smile lurked the opposite of it. I decided to keep what happened last a night a secret from her.

As we took the trail to the waterfall, I stole a few glances at Caspian. He wasn’t as grumpy as yesterday, but didn’t show signs of exhilaration either. Perhaps he’d always been like that, but…I needed to stop thinking about him. It was a done episode, and it meant nothing. I wanted it to mean nothing.

My mind went blank when we entered the waterfall. The gush of water ran down the rocks and flowed down a shallow creek between large, granite boulders. The sun cast rainbows across the stream, and wet flowers were strung all around falls. There was a cavern behind the curtain of water, but it wasn’t too deep.

Everyone began to strip off their clothes, revealing the bathing suits they had underneath. Atlanta dived into the pool of water, shivering when she came out. Amber complained on how cold the water was, but no one seemed to mind.

“Come in, Eve,” Atlanta said, and I glanced down at my outfit. “It’s okay, you can change in the tent.” I didn’t mind changing in the tent. I didn’t like the idea of jumping into water with thin, white clothing on.

“Someone just push her in,” Emerald said, rolling her eyes. I was against the idea, and dipped a foot into the water. Damn, it was freezing. “You need some help, hon?” Huh?

Emerald grabbed my ankle and yanked me. I plunged into the water, my head sinking below the surface as bubbles escaped my lips. Terror filled my body as my arms flailed wildly. I resurfaced with my teeth chattering.

“Good one.” Atlanta giggled, shoving water into my face. It gurgled in my mouth as I shot her a glare. As they began playing in the water with each other, I floated away to the other side of the pool. They were having fun, but I was fine here.

I lifted myself to the edge of the pool, my clothes and hair drenched as I hugged myself. My teeth continued to chatter as the cool breeze prickled my skin. Atlanta called me, but I told her I was good. She left me be. Caspian, however, didn’t turn away like her. He was hesitant before he swimming over to my side. Locks of his hair stuck to the sides of his neck and ears, the gold colour turned to a dark brown, an olive green even.

“What?” I said, a bare whisper. Every time I saw him, all it reminded me of was that stupid kiss. Kisses. Urgh. Caspian’s gaze dropped, slowly moving down my body. I knew I wasn’t all that attractive, but I put my knees up, buckling my arms around them. “What’re you doing?” I said.

“Are you wearing nothing underneath your shirt?” he asked. It was blunt and so straightforward, I didn’t know what to say. “Have you never gone swimming before?”

“Five years ago,” I said with embarrassment. “What’s your problem anyway?” His eyebrows puckered to a frown before he took my wrists and hauled me into the water. I yelped in surprise. “What the hell are you doing?” I growled at him.

Caspian swam towards the falls, taking me with him. His friends were at the far end, oblivious to what was happening. I wanted to get away from this creep.

“You’re going to let everyone see you that way?” he asked, brow raised. I covered myself with my arms, staring at the curtain of water splashing into the pool. “Is something bothering you?”

My head snapped up. How dare he ask me that? It was so nonchalant, it made me want to kick him between the legs. I was stressing and trying to forget about what had happened, and he brought it up so normally it angered me. Did he feel nothing at all? Didn’t he think about it? Did he not care about it?

“No, absolutely nothing,” I snarled. He didn't move, nor did he speak. It was worse watching him act all normal. But it was my fault to some degree for starting it.

“Tell me,” Caspian said, and I looked anywhere but him. He took my arm and we moved through the curtain of water. We hid behind it from everyone else, but it annoyed me. “Tell me. Anything. I won’t be a jerk.”

“You are a jerk,” I hissed. I took deep breaths to get rid of the tingling feeling in my nose, as if I might cry. “And even when I apologize, you don’t acknowledge it. I said sorry, didn’t I? I’m sorry for kissing you when you have a girlfriend already, and touching you and making you mad. Everything, I’m sorry.”

I couldn’t stop them, the tears swarming in my eyes as emotion consumed my stomach like a pit of lava. I lowered my head to hide my tears, but Caspian put a finger under my chin, lifting it back up.

“Is that all?” he said.

I punched his shoulder, and it was a hard blow. Without flinching, he took my face in his hands. “Stop. Don’t try to make me feel better,” I said, taking his hands off. “Just accept my apology for thinking it might be okay to kiss someone who is obviously too good for me.”

“And someone who wanted you to stay away?” he added, and my tears couldn’t hold on anymore. He was such a pathetic imbecile.

I turned the other way around, pinching my lips. “It’s my mistake anyway. Just forget about it. I’m that annoying girl and you’re that jerk. Let’s leave it at that.” Somewhere deep inside, I knew it wasn't my mistake. It wasn't my fault, not entirely. I wasn't the one playing around. He was. He was the douche king from planet douche land.

“Guys! Come on, we’re going!” Zavian called from the other side. They couldn’t see us, and hopefully they thought nothing was going on between us. There really wasn't anything, was there?

“That’s our cue,” I mumbled, brushing past him. Caspian tugged me back, and the solicitude in his face confused me. His thumb smoothed over my cheekbone, and I couldn’t move from his touch.

I broke from him, getting out of the pool and meeting Atlanta at the front. I wrapped a towel around myself, covering my chest and stomach to the fullest. Amber was on the other side of Atlanta, and she was shooting bullets at me. Could I blame her? Jealousy was a powerful thing. She had the right to be suspicious.

I tried to enjoy the rest of the day, keeping Atlanta with me because it made me feel better. She didn’t know a thing about Caspian and me, and I didn’t bother telling her. They played cards, the girls sunbathed, and some of us climbed the large tree near the cliff. Soon it was night and we sat around the campfire after eating. It was another silent night, but we weren’t making s’mores this time. We basked in the heat from the fire, watching it lick up into the air and die down.

“It’s time, guys,” Ryu said, studying the sky. Was something magnificent happening?

The moon was high amidst indigo clouds, dissolving over a placid body of water. The view was breathtaking, as the vanilla twilight stretched over the mountains with bursting, sunset colours and dreamy lights. I couldn’t help but smile as the night light danced on my skin. I was never shown such a beautiful thing.

“Time for bed,” Caspian broke into my mesmerized trance. “Atlanta, take Eve inside with you.” Atlanta nodded and we tucked into our sleeping beds. The kingdom stayed outside, neither talking nor moving.

“Why are they still outside?” I asked her.

Her eyes didn’t meet mine as she fiddled with her sleeping bag. “Um, they’re just talking. They probably like the view,” she said. I got the vibe she was lying, but Atlanta never lied.

“Why do we have to go sleep?” I pouted. “I want to look at the view, too.”

“Let’s just go to sleep,” Atlanta said, shutting her eyes. What the hell? Wasn’t this the day she had waited for? Didn’t she come here to look at the super moon and starry sky? It was peculiar of her to stay in bed through it.

When I thought she fell asleep, I zipped our tent open a tiny bit, enough for me to peek through. To the side, under the shadow of the tree, I saw the kingdom near the edge of the cliff and facing the shore. What are they doing?

I poked my head out further, but I could only see the backs of their heads. They were side by side, staring at the sky as moonlight engulfed them. Their bodies were silhouetted under the tree, and I couldn’t distinguish who was who. Curious, I went back in and shook Atlanta.

“What…?” she said with a gruff voice. I asked what they were doing and she sat up. “Who?” I said her brother and his friends, and she peeked out the tent. She zipped up the tent and snuggled back into her bed. “Don’t worry about. They like the view.” She yawned. “Just go to sleep. Please.”

The curiosity didn’t leave me as my lids lowered over my eyes. They could enjoy the view while lying down. They were standing perfectly still, in stance, and in silence. It freaked me out, but I decided not to worry about it. They could do whatever they wanted, and I didn’t want to trouble myself by interfering.

* * *

It was Sunday, the day we agreed to go back home. We prepared to leave the first thing this morning and folded our tents and sleeping bags. I was still tired and drowsy as we began to hike down the same path we took to get here.

“Wake up, Evans,” Zavian said from the front. “You don’t want to walk off a cliff by accident.” Ha, very funny. “Amber, be careful.” He took her hand and she stared at it for a few seconds. “What?” he said to her. She shook her head and continued walking. Good job, Zavian.

I fought my sleep as I trudged across the dirt and bumpy path. Caspian, who was following behind us as usual, scowled at my slow pace. “Did you stay up the whole night?” he said, prodding me to go faster.

“Not really,” I said, yawning. I couldn’t fall asleep, looking outside my tent once in a while. “What about you? You and your friends were awake the whole night. Aren’t you sleepy?” He stopped in his tracks. “Hm?”

“What makes you say that?” he said, a sharp edge in his voice.

“I saw you guys,” I said. For the first time, I saw a shadow of worry and fear flit across his face. He didn’t move, staring at me like I told him an earthshattering secret. “You were watching the view, right? Atlanta told me it comes once in two years.”

“Oh.” He sighed, relaxing. “Yeah. She didn’t tell you anything else, did she?” I shook my head. “Good. We have to get going.” He held my hand and jogged to catch up with the group.

I stared at our hands. He let go once I met up with Atlanta, and maintained two feet of distance between us. She asked me where I went and I told her I tripped. In the car, Atlanta wanted the window seat so I sat between her and Caspian. I rubbed my eyes, trying to get rid of the sleep. Eventually, I dozed off in the middle of the car ride.

My body couldn’t move, but I heard voices. I heard Ryu chatting with Emerald, and Zavian and Amber speaking to each other about the camping trip. My head was on a soft, mushy shoulder I believed was Atlanta’s.

“Is she sleeping?” I heard her say.

“Yeah.” This voice was Caspian’s. “Atlanta, do you feel it?” Atlanta said ‘a little’, and I felt a hand on my shoulder. Atlanta griped in her seat as I was moved to the other direction, to another shoulder. “We can’t take the risk,” Caspian told her.

“I know,” she mumbled, and it was the last thing I heard.

I wasn’t woken up until we reached our houses, and I came to conscious after a while. It was quiet, and the car wasn’t moving, yet my head was still against a body. Someone came inside the car, but their words didn’t make sense to me. It was quiet again, and I was still not woken up.

Fingers brushed the hair out of my face and the tips skimmed my cheek. They moved down the length of my face, and I flinched with the tingle of warmth it sent down my skin. The fingers sprung off my face, and my eyes flitted open. I blinked, finding the SUV empty and Caspian beside me. I jolted to a straighter position, and stood up.

My head banged to the roof. “Ouch!” I exclaimed. I rubbed the top of my head, hoping it didn’t leave a bruise. Caspian grinned, but hid it as I sat back down. “Why didn’t you wake me up?” I said.

“You were sleeping,” he said. I rolled my eyes. “You’re cute when you sleep.”

Scarlet seeped into my face and I cupped my cheeks to hide the blossoming flush. “That means I’m not cute if I’m not sleeping, right?” I said. I expected him to get annoyed, but he didn’t.

“You’re cute when you blush, too,” he said, and it made my stomach soar.

“I’m going home,” I declared, shifting past him and sliding the car door open. I paused and looked back at him. Our eyes met but I peeled mine away before we did that whole ‘our-eyes-are-magnets-to-each-other’ thing.

I thanked Atlanta for the trip and told her I had a wonderful time. I wouldn’t call it wonderful, but it wasn’t all that I expected. That sky was interesting, though. I’d have to wait two more years to see it again. What a shame.

Dad and Rick didn’t even know I was gone for two days, and I didn’t want to tell them. If I did and they didn’t care, it would hurt me. Mom, on the other hand, gave me a warm hug when she saw me. She wanted to know all about my trip, but it was like any normal trip.

One thing was off, and I didn’t tell her about it. The kingdom standing in a line at the edge of the cliff definitely spoke unusual to me. Atlanta didn’t do what they did, and it made me wonder. They stood there for the whole night. Caspian tensed when I talked about it, which weirder. He was never unsure or afraid of something. It didn’t feel right when he was.

I needed to stop thinking about it too much. Like I had told myself earlier, I didn't want to trouble myself with it anymore.