She needed a minute or two to regain some composure. Her throat was so tight it was hard to swallow and she wanted to get rid of that ugly feeling. She wouldn’t cry. She refused to cry.
She turned around and slammed straight into Kevin’s chest.
He grabbed her elbow to steady her. “You okay?” he asked.
“Yeah…it was…” She forced a smile. “It was just my dad checking in.”
She didn’t know how he managed to see her hurt beneath the smile, but he reached out and gently stroked his thumb over her cheek. He didn’t say one word, just left her with that small gesture to let her know he acknowledged her pain and carried on walking to the bus.
The eight-mile hike wasn’t easy and her focus on every step managed to clear her head a bit. Unfortunately with her dad’s words playing on her mind, somehow that feeling of loneliness turned into a mood. She wanted to write their relationship off as unsalvageable, but when he said things likeI love you, it sucked her right back in. It made her miss him, miss what they used tobe. It was obvious that he didn’t care anymore, and she wanted to not care too. Damn him!
She took in a deep breath as they reached Lipan Point. Stones crunched beneath her hiking boots and the smell of wet earth filled her nostrils. A cool breeze flitted through her hair and she took a minute to just appreciate everything around her. Sheryl and Barry were wrapped in each other’s arms, looking more like two teenagers in love rather than an old married couple. Lance was spewing out information about the history of the canyon and the wildlife in this region. She wasn’t interested in any of that. Instead, she walked towards the railing overlooking the most captivating view she had ever seen in her young life.
Her breath actually caught as she took it all in. Redwall limestone on either side of her. In the distance she could see the Colorado River weaving its way through the rocks. Every deep crevice and fractured line was a reminder that something unbelievably profound had happened many years ago, so majestic in its greatness it made all her problems seem microscopic.
On the far right side, she saw Kevin standing all alone, leaning with his elbows against the railing as he stared out at the expanse in front of them. His body language told her that his lighthearted mood from this morning had also disappeared. The somber look on his face made her wonder what had happened from then to now to make him so sad.
She slowly walked across the damp sand towards him, but she loitered behind him, not really sure what to say.
“That’s a whole lot of stupid, Perry,” he whispered, completely lost in his own thoughts.
That name was familiar. She remembered him telling his brother, Max, that he was going to Florida because there was something he needed to do for Perry. She waited a few moreseconds before she closed the gap and went to stand beside him. He didn’t even turn to look at her and continued to stare out at the open earth in front of them.
His sleeves were rolled up and there was a long scar down his forearm, one she hadn’t noticed before. She reached out to slowly trace her fingers over it. Either he didn’t mind, or he was too trapped in his sullen mood to care, because he didn’t react at all.
It took another minute before she mustered up the courage to ask the question. “Who’s Perry?”
His jaw clenched and he was quiet for so long, she thought he might actually consider opening up to her. He didn’t. “Off limits, Jasmin.”
His voice cracked, sounding raw and unsteady, like he was on the verge of tears. He was grinding his teeth so hard she could hear it. She didn’t know who Perry was, but she could conclude that there was a painful past between him and Kevin. Maybe they’d had a fallout and that’s why Kevin said that he didn’t have any friends. She hoped that they could somehow find a way to resolve their differences, because this friendship obviously meant a lot to him. It had to if he was willing to trek all the way across the States just to do something for Perry.
“Are you okay?” she asked softly, still stroking the scar on his forearm.
“No.”
He placed his hand over hers and she fully expected him to push it off like he usually did, but he surprised her by pulling it up to his other hand. Interlinking his fingers with hers, he sandwiched her hand between both his palms.
She looked over at him, but he still stared blankly at the canyon. “Do you wanna talk?”
“No.”
He still wasn’t ready to open up, but she was glad he wasn’t pushing her away. Selfish though it was, she didn’t think she could handle rejection today. She didn’t want to be alone, she didn’t want tofeelalone.
“Do you want me to talk?” she asked.
Sad blue eyes focused on her then, and she didn’t know if he wanted her to talk, or if he knew she needed to, but he nodded. “Yeah. I’d like that.”
There was nothing in particular that she wanted to say; she just preferred to talk when she was hurt. Somehow rambling on the outside always stopped the ramblings on the inside. When she was younger, her dad always used to read her bedtime stories and once she got bored of the traditional fairy tales, he started making up his own. At that moment, those memories were swirling around in her mind, and she decided to do the same thing just to hold onto them.
“Once upon a time,” she began with a shaky voice, “in a faraway land, there lived a princess, Princess Jazzabel. The king was away at war, fighting a great battle, and the Princess missed him terribly. One day she decided to have a party to lift her spirits, the biggest party to ever grace the land, and she invited all her friends from all the other kingdoms. She hadlotsof friends.”
Kevin kept facing forward, but his thumb gently caressed hers, another little acknowledgement of her pain.
“Unfortunately, there was a dreadful storm. Rain flooded the kingdom and the party had to be postponed. She rescheduled it for the next weekend, but the storm continued and no one was prepared to travel in that weather. After weeks of incessant rain, Princess Jazzabel gave up. The party was never going to happen. She closed all the curtains in the palace, so she wouldn’t have to constantly be reminded of the great party she was never going to experience. The king was still away and there was no one thereto reassure her that it would all be okay. The downpour was ceaseless and she became more and more depressed as the days went on. One day a lonely boy came to the castle. His name was…Kanye. He was lost and looking for shelter. Princess Jazzabel wanted to turn him away, because even though he wassuper-hot, he was a fucking grouch.”
The dimple she could see curved in on his cheek, but he still said nothing and she continued with her story.
“But she couldn’t turn him away. Their circumstances were different, but they both had a storm to face. She let him in and, as the days went on, both of them became so depressed by the weather. They were so caught up in their own gloomy worlds that they didn’t notice when the rain actually stopped. Many months later, they decided to finally open the curtains and the sun shone bright and the rolling green hills were proof that the storm hadn’t been all bad. She finally got her wish and had her great party. Everyone, including Kanye, thought it was the best party ever. P.S. Kanye still isn’t a real rapper. Disclaimer: All characters in this story are fictional. Any resemblance to real life is purely coincidental.”
