Aiden's Quest

by Dane Bagley

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  A quarter of an hour late wasn’t really too bad considering that they had to bring four horses with only three riders. The real problem was that Naomi wasn’t the type of girl to be ready at the appointed hour. Sarah was just beside herself when she finally saw the ensemble approaching.

  Mrs. Peningham had made an especially nice breakfast because it was Sarah’s birthday and more especially because she wanted her well-fed for this day’s adventure. As she watched Sarah’s nervous excitement, and then thought about her bumping up and down on the horse, she began to worry that Sarah had eaten too much and would upset her stomach. Oh, dear, she fretted. Fretting can be a rather enjoyable pass-time for mothers. Especially fretting over things that nothing can be done about. Mr. Peningham was done fretting by the time he had shaken John’s hand the night before. He was reading a book and ignoring everything else.

  “Do you see that beautiful horse, mother.” It was dark brown with white socks and a white star on its nose.

  Mrs. Peningham peaked through the window. “That horse is so big. How will you ever mount it?”

  “I’m sure John will help me; he is ever so strong.”

  Mr. Peningham was no longer ignoring everything else. He got up thinking he may want a look at what was coming.

  Sarah was ready, so it should have only taken a few moments and they could have been on their way. Mr. and Mrs. Peningham both needed to fret and fuss a bit. So they both fretted and fussed until they had had their fill. John was extraordinarily patient with them. He answered any question, allayed all concerns, made any and every necessary adjustment, and re-answered every question. Kevin had had enough. He caught Naomi’s eyes and rolled his own. Naomi gave an awkward partial smile in reply.

  Naomi was pretty enough. She had long brown hair flowing down in large ringlet curls. She had on an olive-green top with brown pants. She had a freckly face, particularly on her nose. It worked with her light complexion and baby blue eyes. Her lips were thin and very pale; so pale that the color hardly changed from her skin tone to her lips. She had on some blush, eyeliner, and mascara, bringing out many of her nicer facial features. But she wore no lipstick giving her an unfinished appearance. Kevin was confused and a little irritated by that omission. He was even more irritated because he considered it, at least partially, his own fault. She was running late and he acted just anxious enough to rush her. Maybe she forgot, or didn’t think she had time, so she left without it. The few extra moments it would have taken to put it on would have been moments well spent, he thought.

  Naomi had been very quiet thus far on the ride from her home to Sarah’s. Kevin had met her in a group of her friends. She hadn’t said much at the time either, but he figured that it was because it was a large group and she just wasn’t the biggest talker. But she was pretty and seemed interested in him. He’d just broken up with a girl the night before and needed a date for John’s ‘big’ first date with Sarah—he’d promised. He wasn’t feeling that things were off to a good start.

  After re-looking over Naomi, Kevin took a good look at Sarah. Unlike Naomi, Sarah was very nicely made up. Still, there was only so much to work with. Hey, at least she tried. Looking back at Naomi, he thought, we’ve sure done better before. Kevin remembered fondly his first date with Amanda joined by John with Janice. We were on to something there. He looked over at John. John was as pleasant as could be. Ordinarily the scene going on at the Peningham’s would have driven John nuts. But he was patient and seemed happy. He looked back over at Sarah. What on earth does he see in her? Sarah looked up at Kevin and smiled pleasantly. Kevin nodded politely.

  It was time for Sarah to mount. John stood beside her, giving her token assistance. Mrs. Peningham looked on with delight while Mr. Peningham looked on suspiciously. Sarah was no weakling and really had no trouble mounting at all. John took his mount and they were off.

  The destination was a good three-hour ride from Sarah’s home across a long prairie to a different portion of the encircling mountain range. There were some good horse-riding trails along with a gorgeous view. Kevin hoped to arrive by noon. Leaving by nine from Sarah’s house would have given them a chance, if the girls were willing to go at a decent pace. Leaving nearly forty minutes late meant that Kevin was going to have a late lunch and this just added to his irritation.

  Kevin was not irritable by nature. He was not destined to stay in a foul mood that day either. The girls were decent riders and the day and the ride were pleasant. An hour into the ride and Kevin had sorted himself out. What he was really frustrated about was John and Sarah. He genuinely wondered if his friend had suffered brain damage. Maybe something was wrong with his eyes. Sarah made no sense. John was not desperate, not by a long shot. He couldn’t have lost his confidence—he’d just broken everything off with Janice to pursue, whatever this was with Sarah. Kevin had been irritated at the dance, frustrated the next day, and was getting this irritation and frustration out of his system.

  He tried some casual conversation multiple times with Naomi. Each time resulted in her awkward half smile. She was capable of answering close ended questions, however, which he began to resort to. Most of the time she answered by nodding or shaking her head. Kevin looked back and saw John and Sarah chattering away pleasantly with each other. Look who’s talking. At least they’re having a good time. So, talking isn’t Naomi’s thing. We’ll just ride then. A good long, looking straight ahead, silent ride and Kevin was back to himself. Naomi, who appreciated the long break from the inquisition, was in better spirits as they stopped for a break near a cool stream.

  John and Kevin took care of the horses and the girls walked along the stream together. Sarah and Naomi had never met before. Sarah had picked up that Naomi was the silent type. Sarah muttered a few pleasantries without adding any questions to force Naomi to talk. This increased Naomi’s comfort and soon the girls were talking. Naomi was impressed with Sarah. Not for anything in particular about Sarah, just that she was clearly the desired date of John Bennett. Whether John knew them or not, every girl knew about him. Naomi felt completely out of the league of John Bennett, but felt honored to be in the pleasant company of his date. Sarah enjoyed the way it felt to be looked up to by Naomi.

  “I hear it’s your sixteenth birthday today. Happy birthday!”

  “Thank you.”

  “Have you known John for long? That’s pretty great to go out on your actual sixteenth birthday.”

  “We met at the end of summer dance.”

  “Oh…was that you dancing with John that night?”

  “Yes.”

  “I guess everyone notices who John is dancing with,” said Naomi giggling softly. “I just didn’t know you.”

  “When did you and Kevin meet?”

  “Um…just a day ago. He came up to me when I was with my friends. He talked to me for a little and asked if he could come by. I said sure. Then he actually came and asked me out. I don’t…get asked out a lot. I have a hard time talking with guys.” Naomi shrugged.

  Sarah didn’t know what to say. She brought her hand up and gently rubbed Naomi on the outside of her arm. “Kevin seems nice.”

  “Yes. Have you never met him before?”

  “Oh, we’ve met—when we were younger. But, I don’t think I’ve ever really talked with him before.”

  “You two ready?” asked Kevin from the distance.

  “Let’s go,” said Sarah.

  After mounting, Kevin nudged his horse up to Sarah’s. John, taking the cue, road up to Naomi. Naomi looked over expecting to see Kevin but rather saw John next to her. She blushed deeply. John didn’t have much better luck talking to Naomi than Kevin did. John’s mood, however, was not to be broken. He figured really quick that the girl riding next to him wasn’t going to have much to say, but her blush told him that she didn’t mind him being next to her. He began telling her stories of some of his adventures out in the mountainous areas. Naomi listened, and laughed, and gasped when appropriate. Without mu
ch effort John had this girl completely charmed.

  Kevin had given in and figuring that he might be spending some time with Sarah—she being John’s likely companion for some time; he decided to get to know her. Kevin was neither impressed nor disappointed. Sarah was smart. She laughed at his jokes. She kept the conversation going but didn’t talk his ear off. He certainly couldn’t find anything wrong with her. Sarah would be alright. She certainly seemed up for adventure.

  “Are you a good diver?” Kevin asked.

  “I’m okay, I guess,” said Sarah.

  “Have you ever been out to the farthest side falls.”

  “Yes. We went once when I was a child. We don’t usually travel too much. How long does it take to get there on horseback?”

  “You could probably get there in two days if you pushed it. We usually plan for three days each way. Summer time is the best time to go. The ride can be hot but it’s the best time to be there. The lake at the base of the falls is deep. I’ve dived in from thirty-five or forty feet. There is a way to climb up to sixty feet. I hear that it’s deep enough to make the dive from sixty feet. John’s done it. He’s not afraid of anything.”

  Sarah smiled.

  Like I’ve got to help him out. Kevin smiled to himself.

  “There’s plenty of smaller dives. You can work yourself all the way up.”

  “It sounds nice.”

  “You’ve got to pack quite a bit. Not too many people live out that way. I guess the ground is rockier and food doesn’t grow so well. But, the falls and the diving can’t be beat. I like a good adventure. It’s as good as it gets here in the promise land,” he said putting up finger quotations around, ‘the promise land.’ Sarah didn’t get the gesture.

  Kevin felt his stomach growl. Food was important to Kevin. He’d reached the age of the endless metabolism. They were still some ways off, and he’d be less comfortable than desired.

  Kevin looked back. John and Naomi were way behind them.

  “Let’s get this show on the road. Race you.” With that Kevin started a gallop.

  Sarah was game and off she went, already a few horse lengths behind Kevin. John looked over at Naomi. Whether she’d noticed Sarah and Kevin galloping off or not, she showed no sign of hurrying up. John was a gentleman. For at least the moment, he was escorting Naomi and would do so at her pace.

  They arrived to the picnic lunch fully spread out, minus the portion that John was carrying. Sarah had obviously helped Kevin with the preparations. In fact, she may have done most of it. Kevin seemed to be more occupied with the horses. John felt some irritation. It was her birthday, and his special date. He wanted to take care of her. Kevin should have been more considerate. Still, Sarah beamed at him sweetly as she smoothed out a few ruffles on the blanket and watch him dismount.

  “You two were in a hurry.”

  Sarah smiled. “Kevin wanted to race.”

  “Who won?”

  Sarah looked over towards Kevin. “He did, but not by much. Plus, he had a head start.” Sarah was obviously having the time of her life.

  Naomi hadn’t made a move towards dismounting. John considered helping her down. But Kevin, who was holding the rains of his horse and staring off towards the nearby mountains, hadn’t even acknowledged his date upon arrival. John decided to walk both horses over to Kevin, with one carrying Kevin’s date. John wanted there to be no confusion as to who was with whom from this point on.

  As they got close to Kevin he looked over at John. “Not a bad rider at all,” he said indicating Sarah.

  John could tell that Kevin’s mood had been sorted and his compliment genuine. Kevin looked up at Naomi. He smiled pleasantly.

  “Here, let’s get you down.” His manners were back and he was very pleasant with Naomi.

  Naomi was in seventh heaven herself. Kevin had long since been an afterthought. John left the horses with Kevin and Naomi, and returned to Sarah.

  “Do you mind helping me, here,” said Kevin. Kevin and Naomi got the horses watered and secured.

  The psychology between them was different then. Naomi was no longer nervous in Kevin’s presence. She was twitter pated inside and Kevin wasn’t the culprit. She began to talk to Kevin about some of the adventures that John had told her about. Pretty soon, Kevin was joining in with his renditions, and modifications. Once he got Naomi to giggle, he knew the rest of the date would go much better.

  “Here, I’ll help you,” said Sarah, getting up.

  “You’ve done far too much already. This is your birthday lunch. Let me finish up.”

  “Okay,” she said sweetly.

  She sat close by him as he made the final preparations.

  “I like how it feels having you near me,” said John.

  Sarah nodded. She knew exactly what he was talking about.

  Lunch was nice. All four were talking. These girls aren’t so bad, thought Kevin. After lunch Naomi borrowed some of Sarah’s lipstick and Kevin thought she looked great. He remembered why he had asked her out to begin with. He still considered Sarah rather plain to look at, but her spunk and personality made up for that to some degree. After letting their lunch settle for a while John suggested that they take the mountainous hike.

  Kevin and Naomi set off in front with John and Sarah behind. John reached his hand for Sarah’s. She grasped it and interlocked the fingers. Their hands were made for each other’s. Sarah’s hand felt warm and so smooth to John. For all the feelings that they felt, they hardly knew each other.

  John wanted to know all about Sarah’s family and friends. Sarah was genuine. She saw no need to put on airs. She spoke lovingly about her family. She explained that she had not ever had close friends until recently. She talked about Maryanne and how much she enjoyed her friendship.

  “When did you and Maryanne become friends?”

  “Well, we’ve known each other since we were kids; I guess we were friends. But we weren’t really friends until after the end of Summer of dance…when we met.”

  “But you were with me. I don’t remember you hanging out with any of the girls.”

  “A lot has changed for me since that night. Please don’t misunderstand me…but, when you’re the girl that, ‘John Bennett,’ is interested in…people don’t see you the same anymore.”

  John had a confused and disturbed look on his face.

  “I’m not interested in you…because…you’re John Bennett. I like you. I didn’t really realize what would happen when you showed an interest in me. But, it has been nice…you know. It’s nice having people pay attention to you…to me. I like having people care about what I think and what I feel. Still, if none of that had ever happened, I’d be just as interested in being with you. If you went away and all of that went away too, I’d miss those things…but I’d miss you more—much more.

  “I can’t figure out how you were ever not the most popular girl.”

  “I’m glad.” Sarah squeezed his hand tightly momentarily. His strong hand felt invincible in hers. “I’m glad that you see me differently than anyone ever had before. It means the world to me. I doubt that there is any girl who isn’t interested in you. But you are the first guy to ever be interested in me. I’m not the same girl that you first asked to dance—the girl who wanted to wither and die in your presence. I’m better because of you—because you saw something that neither I, nor anyone else had ever seen in me before. What I love most about you is how I feel when I’m in your presence. Second, I love what your attention has done for me. And third, and this is the icing on the cake, is that you are so incredibly handsome and the John Bennett.” Sarah smiled pleasantly.

  John looked at her face—not a hint of a blush. John was pleasantly stunned at her boldness. Sarah had no reason to conceal her feelings for John. She had never flirted with and ensnared him. She was entirely comfortable and relaxed in his presence. There was no doubt about his affection for her and hers for him. This could only be one thing—true love. Between a Sarah Peningham and a John Bennett o
nly one type of relationship could exist, it would have to be genuine.

  As they ascended the mountains in the early afternoon the air cooled significantly. After the long ride the crisp breeze was a breath of fresh air. A breeze blew through Sarah’s short blond hair, exposing the back of her neck briefly, and the perfumed scent wafted to John. It was light and sweet and endearing to him. John could not be happier than he was at that moment.

  Kevin and Naomi, having moved at a quicker pace, were at the apex of the trail. The trail itself was not very green, nor scenic. No streams nor rivers were visible. It was a hard and packed turf that was rocky with a tannish brown color. Above them stood rocky cliffs that seemed impenetrable.

  “Here it is, as far as it goes,” said Kevin towards John and Sarah.

  Naomi had seated herself on a rock and was turned towards the mountain peaks. She had a light perspiration on her forehead and was breathing a little deeper. Kevin hadn’t broken a sweat and seemed ready to attack the cliffs above.

  “Do you know what this place is? It’s the closest anyone can get to the top of the mountain peaks anywhere in the promise land. Nowhere else does a trail go up so high. Imagine, we’re this close to freedom, yet we can’t make it over the top.”

  “Freedom?” asked Sarah.

  “…I mean, er… this close to utter and cataclysmic disaster, yet we can’t get over to it,” said Kevin.

  Sarah could take a joke. That just didn’t seem funny.

  “Lots of people try to climb as high as they can from this spot. Kevin and I made it up about thirty feet last year. Still, that’s a far cry from the top.”

  “Were you trying to get over the top?” Sarah was concerned

  John looked at her reassuringly. Not even John Bennett could climb over the top of that towering cliff. It was mildly amusing to him when any girl, even Sarah, seemed to expect super powers out of him. Somehow, he discerned that it wasn’t really about that. It wasn’t whether he could climb over, it was that he would even try.

  “What’s the matter, Sarah? Haven’t you ever wondered what was on the other side? I mean, there’s got to be more on the other side than there is here. It’s nice here, and all, but really this isn’t the whole world,” said Kevin.

  “Yes, I’m sure there is a lot on the other side that we don’t have here. Horrible things…”

  “Maybe so, Sarah,” said Naomi. “But look,” and she indicated the circumference of the mountain range. “We are kind of trapped, you know.”

  “We’re caged birds, Sarah Peningham,” said Kevin. “The cage might be nice—plenty of food and water, lots of great perches, and toys to play with, even some great birds to hang out with—but it’s still a cage.”

  “You don’t think there’s any danger on the other side?” asked Sarah.

  “Oh, sure, I expect there is. It can’t be as safe as it is here. But, I mean, fire breathing dragons, let’s get real. Whenever someone doesn’t want you to go somewhere they come up with some awfully scary things to keep you away.”

  Naomi smiled. John could tell that Sarah was feeling frustrated by the conversation, not to mention being ganged up on. This was her birthday, first date with him, and he loved her. It was time to give her support.

  “As far as I’m concerned, I’m happy to stay in the cage as long as I’m here with you,” said John to Sarah.

  “You know, some birds prefer to stay in their cage,” said Kevin. “I’ve seen birds that had their cage door open and it agitated them. They seemed scared because it was open and they wouldn’t leave. I suppose the cage is a protection to the bird not just a prison. Whatever is lurking outside of the cage can’t get in so the bird is safe. In that sense, I suppose, the cage could be appealing. And a free bird could be injured or killed at any time. There are plenty of predators out there to get them. I suppose birds die every day from these things. Still, there are a lot of birds out there free and flying each day. Most of them are fine. And they are free. They go where they want, do what they want, and aren’t trapped. Even if you like your cage, Sarah, you’re still caged in, pleasant though it may be.”

  Sarah had never heard such talk before. It didn’t so much confuse her as frustrate her. She didn’t agree, and she felt sorry for those who saw things that way. Her world was no cage, no trap, no prison. No, it was a paradise; a lovely and remarkable existence. What was wrong with the freedom that safety and protection provide? She was free. She felt free and those lovely endearing mountains provided her with that freedom. But, she couldn’t put it into words, and she didn’t feel that even if she did, that Kevin would listen anyway. Sarah was not argumentative. She remained silent and John indicated that they walk away from the other two. Pleasant conversations were had by both couples and after a time they all returned to their horses.

  The ride back was uneventful and everyone was tired and mostly quiet. Kevin had decided that things with Naomi were at least somewhat promising. She didn’t give the impression that she was going to be easily wooed into affection. Still, the idea of the chase intrigued him. He’d ask her out again.

  It was dark and cold as they arrived at Sarah’s home. Her parents were anxiously awaiting her arrival. They still had some birthday surprises in store for her. Sarah was physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausted. Still, the lingering embrace that she received from John was heavenly. It gave her an extra bounce in her step. This night, the night of her sixteenth birthday, she slept soundly and peacefully.