Back in his safe space.
What is he doing here?
Without pausing, I lean down and remove my heeled booties, then my socks, and walk across the manmade beach, the sand cold against my toes. I’m closer to the water than I ever wouldhave been before. Where the water laps against the shoreline, and the sun slowly inches down toward the horizon.
I haven’t been here in years, since the day Nate and I said our goodbyes, when I thought my life was over.
Silly teenager.
As I inch close to the dock, one foot in front of the other, a warmth in my chest and visions of the happy memories begin to flood my mind.
One in particular is in the forefront. Nate had just given me my first ever nickname,Mads. I was beside myself, but I played it cool.
“Are you okay with sitting down there? Sunset is soon, and we won’t want to miss it.”
“Sure. Hopefully, I don’t fall off the dock.”
Nate’s face fell to the ground when I mentioned how I couldn’t swim, he turned white as a ghost. Looking back, it was that very moment that spoke volumes. I wouldn’t have to rely on my big brother any longer.
Nate would always be my protector, even when I didn’t know it.
“Forget it. We’ll sit on the sand far away from the water.”
“Oh my goodness! I was kidding.”
“One sway of the dock, and I’d lose my mind. There’s no bad view here. This is fine.”
He ushered me to the sand, and our bodies touched for the first time, innocently enough, but I lit up like fireworks on the Fourth of July.
I was in heaven.
It was a feeling I quickly became addicted to. One my body yearns for, still, after all these years. Even now, as I make it to the end of the dock, his body calls to me.
There’s always been a magnetic force between us, one that most people would never understand.
“Come sit.” Of course, he knew I was here; he always knows.
Nate pats the spot next to him, without turning to look at me, and I lower myself as close as possible. Arm to arm, leg to leg, just like we did more than fifteen years ago. This time he’s confident enough to put his arm around me without hesitation, exactly how it should be.
For a while, we sit quietly, watching the most spectacular sunset. Even after all these years, another has never come close to the beauty that radiates from Lake Horizon.
The hues of pink and purple marble through the sky, and, like magic, they shift to deep oranges as the sun begins to disappear and the moon takes its place, lighting the sky and casting a rippling light across the lake.
“Tell me something new,” he whispers, pulling me deeper into his side.
There are still so many things we need to learn about the adult versions of ourselves, but there’s something I can’t wait to tell him.
“I know how to swim now.” I smile proudly.
He chuckles. “Doesn’t count. Mason already told me. But I’m proud of you, and jealous.”
“Oh.” My shoulders drop. I was sure he was going to be surprised. “Wait, what is there to be jealous about?”
He shrugs. “It was always my job to teach you.”
“Oh, come on. You can’t be serious.”
He shrugs again. “So, tell me something I don’t know.”
