Reader in the Park

by Rachel Maldonado

  When the alarm clock sounded at seven in the morning, she jumped out of bed, showered, and made her way down the freeway toward the hill country to pick up Nikki. She was glad she had prepared for their date in the days prior.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  When Anna pulled up in her shiny, canary yellow Jeep with the hard top off, she was surprised to see that Nikki wasn't outside ready to jump into the vehicle. The house appeared dark as if no one was home, but Nikki's car was parked out front and the porch light was on.

  “Hmmm,” thought Anna. “Perhaps she just forgot to turn it off this morning.” She shut off the ignition and jumped out of the Jeep Dukes of Hazard style, not even bothering to open the door. “I always wanted to do that,” she thought to herself as she landed on the pavement. Watching Dukes of Hazard reruns and other old TV shows was often what she did at night when she couldn't sleep when she was younger.

  Anna walked over to the front door and rang the bell. She was looking down at her brand new black mesh Nike's, when she thought she heard someone stirring on the other side of the door.

  “Hello?” she asked aloud. She rang the bell once more, but heard nothing.

  Having noticed that her shoelace was coming undone, Anna crouched down to tie her left shoe when Nikki opened the front door. She was still in her nightgown, and her hair was tousled.

  Anna glanced down at her watch as she stood up. “Am I early?” she asked, knowing full well that she was right on time.

  “Early? For what?” asked Nikki. Her eyes were half closed, and she scratched her head with her left hand as she held the door open with her right.

  “We had a date this morning. I called you last night, remember?”

  “You did?” she asked yawning. She suddenly remembered the phone call and exclaimed. “Oh, right! You did. I'm sorry. I must've been asleep when you called. Come on in. Give me a moment to shower and dress.”

  Anna stepped inside her home. It had somewhat expensive matching furniture pieces and lots of plush pillows on the sofa and love seats, but the home appeared more lived in than her own. The couch cushions were out of place and some of them were out of shape as if she'd recently been laying on them, and they had taken on the shape of her body as she rested against them. She also noticed a glass of water on a coaster on top of an end table, and from where she stood, she could see into the kitchen. Upon the counter top were a few dishes that hadn't been put into the dishwasher yet. Anna smiled. She admired that Nikki was the opposite of the way she was. Anna's house was immaculate, however, Nikki wasn't the type of person where everything had to be perfect. It was lived in and Anna loved that about her. They were a perfect ying and yang.

  Not wanting to feel as if she was pressuring Nikki to go out, Anna took a few steps in while Nikki closed the front door. “If you want, I can come back another time.”

  Anna had just begun to speak when Nikki bolted from the front door to the bedroom. “Maybe later on today or tomorrow?”

  She had been midway through her sentence when Nikki was already in the other room getting her clothes ready. Her last few words fell in silence as there was no one in the room to hear them. “I'll just wait here then!” she said in a raised voice. She chuckled to herself knowing that Nikki probably didn't hear her, then made herself comfortable on the sofa as she waited.

  After twenty minutes, Nikki emerged from the bedroom wearing a pair of black jogging pants with a white stripe down the side and a matching white tank top. Anna stood immediately upon seeing her and smiled.

  “I'm ready. Where are we going?” inquired Nikki as she brushed her hair. She walked toward the front door while Anna walked toward her. They exited together, then Anna held open the Jeep door for Nikki to enter.

  “Thank you,” she said politely. “It's so nice that you have the top down today. I love the sunshine.”

  Anna hurried to her door and opened it before sitting rather than trying to hop in over the door like Dukes of Hazard again. She thought she'd save herself the embarrassment in case she were to try to jump in the seat and fail miserably by falling down.

  Within moments, they were on their way.

  “I didn't even ask if you thought I was under dressed.” Nikki glanced down at her attire.

  Anna shook her head. “No, you're not underdressed. You look great.”

  Nikki laughed. “I thought you'd be planning something sneaky, so I dressed a bit more comfortable today.” She grabbed a hold of her seat belt and pulled it across her body to fasten it.

  Anna chuckled. “Smart thinking--dressing comfortable. I don't know if I'd say it was something sneaky though. Maybe adventurous is a better word than sneaky.”

  “Well, I see you look comfy in your work out pants and sneakers. It worries me a bit.”

  “Why's that?” asked Anna with a devilish smirk.

  “Because it means I hit the nail on the head. We're about to do something with an adrenaline rush or something crazy, aren't we?”

  Anna laughed. “It's a surprise.”

  “Ah, hell.” Nikki crossed her arms in front of her. Her mind was racing, wondering where they could be going. She imagined herself trying to run a marathon while gasping for air trying to catch her breath or going through a paintball maze full of zombies trying to survive without being shot by opponents or captured by a flesh eater. She glanced over at Anna grinning.

  Anna laughed. “I can feel your eyes watching me. I'm still not going to tell you what we're doing. You'll know when we get there.”

  Nikki sat quietly the rest of the way. She often got anxiety wondering what new and exciting adventure she was going to be a part of, but also, she was starting to love the fact that Anna had such a thirst for life. It was as if she wanted to see everything in the world and do every fun thing there was to do. Nikki felt herself falling in love with Anna probably just as quickly as Anna was falling in love with Nikki. The universe had brought them together and so far it was as if it was their destiny to be united. Nikki felt they were destined to have their souls unite as one. She glanced over at Anna while she was driving and wondered what Anna thought about their blossoming romance.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  When they pulled up to Colson State Park, Nikki was relieved. Taking in the gorgeous scenery of trees, shrubs, birds, and wildlife, she immediately began to think that they were about to read in the park, have a picnic, or possibly go on a nature hike.

  Nikki let out a sigh. “Whew!” she exclaimed. “Did I dodge a bullet?”

  Anna laughed. “What do you mean?”

  “I don't know. I was envisioning myself having to run through hordes of zombies while wearing flags like flag football.”

  Anna busted out laughing. “Now you're giving me ideas. That's the spirit.”

  Nikki shook her head. “No, no. It wasn't meant to give you ideas. Darn it. Stuck my foot in my mouth again, didn't I?”

  Anna chuckled. “Never know. There really is a zombie race, you know.”

  “That's not why we're here, is it?” asked Nikki before she unbuckled her seat belt.

  Anna smirked. “Why? Would you not do it?”

  “Really, Anna? Is that what we're doing here?” Nikki began looking around to see if there were any zombies lurking around.

  Anna laughed. “No, it isn't. Come on.” She hopped out of the Jeep like she did when she had driven up to Nikki's. She jumped clear over the door without opening it, and landed with a loud thud upon the parking lot pavement.

  “Show off,” stated Nikki.

  Anna laughed once more. “It's not as easy as it looks.”

  “Uh huh,” said Nikki. She took it upon herself to jump out in the same fashion landing firmly on the parking lot pavement just as Anna had.

  “Wow. I'm impressed.” Anna walked over to the back of the Jeep and pulled out two backpacks. She slung one over her shoulder, then carried the other.

  Nikki grinned. She was glad that Anna was impressed. “I hit the gym once in a while when I can.”
Nikki followed Anna closely. She wondered where they were going.

  “Yeah?” The fact that Nikki went to a gym piqued her interest. “Which one?”

  “Why? Are you going to stalk me?” asked Nikki laughing.

  Anna shook her head. “No, I don't find time for the gym. I prefer to do outdoor activities like jogging, hiking, speed walking, to name a few.”

  “Uh huh. You won't tell me your other activities because you intend on 'surprising' me with those, right?”

  Anna grinned. “I don't know what you're talking about.”

  “Let me ask you something,” asked Nikki as they walked toward a small hill composed of many boulders and small rocks.

  “Hmm?” asked Anna.

  “Why haven't you kissed me yet?”

  “My...aren't we forward.” She grinned, then shrugged her shoulders. She wasn't quite sure how to answer. She paused for a moment as her mind searched for something to say, then responded matter of factly, “I guess I didn't think the time was right.”

  Anna dropped one of her bags on the ground and began to pull out a rope and some equipment from the other.

  Nikki's eyes opened wide and she gulped down hard. She recognized the same type of ropes from the wall climbing place the week prior. “What are you doing?”

  Anna grinned. “Ready for some adventure?”

  “After one day at a wall climbing place, you think I'm ready to climb a mountain?”

  Anna chuckled. “It's not a mountain. It's a small hill. And it was Trampoline World.”

  “I know what it was,” said Nikki feeling the anxiety begin to grow. Her palms became sweaty. She wanted to back out. She wanted to go back to the Jeep and sit down while Anna climbed all the rocks and hills she wanted. She could remain safely on the ground while Anna risked her life.

  Anna brushed it off as if nothing. “It's just as easy as climbing the wall.”

  Nikki spoke in a slightly escalated tone. “Easy? You thought that was easy for me? Need I remind you that a six-year-old climbed that thing twice before I even made it up there once?”

  Anna laughed. “But the point is that you made it to the top. You didn't panic. You didn't fall. You did it all on your own. It's quite an achievement.”

  “Okay, but I don't know if I'm ready for this, Anna.”

  Anna walked over to Nikki to reassure her. She stood in front of her, held both of her hands and whispered, “Look at me. I promise I won't let anything happen to you. Do you believe me?”

  Nikki didn't know why exactly, but she knew she felt safe with Anna. She somehow trusted in her. “You swear you won't let me fall?”

  “I swear. I won't let you fall.”

  “You'll be my bedazzler the whole time?”

  Anna grinned. “Yes, I will.” She knew Nikki had said the word incorrectly and had meant to say belayer, but she knew that Nikki was so frightened at the moment. All she needed was some reassurance that she was going to be okay. If Anna laughed now or attempted to correct her, it might only further deter Nikki from going through with the climb.

  With a straight face, Anna managed to say, “I will gladly bedazzle you on every climb from this day forward.” In Anna's mind, she pictured Nikki wearing all kinds of shiny sparkly jewels attached to her clothing, shoes, and ball caps. She'd owned a Bedazzler in her youth and knew it was a gadget meant for crafting jewels onto clothes, purses, shoes, and caps among other things.

  Anna chalked up her hands, handed Nikki her harness, then put her own on, then checked the locking carabiner to make sure it was secured.

  Nikki looked up at the giant hill towering over her. She began to quietly try to psyche herself into the climb. She whispered softly to herself. “I can do this. Sure, I can do this. I put myself through medical school. I studied long hours and passed a million exams. I worked on a cadaver for Christ's sake.”

  “What was that?” asked Anna. “Did you mumble something about a cadaver?”

  “Huh?” asked Nikki. “Oh, it was nothing. I'm just trying to mentally prepare myself for this.”

  “I'm going to climb up first and place some quickdraws and clips in place. It will be just like the indoor wall, I promise. Once I make it to the top, I'm going to come back down to hold your rope so you can safely climb to the top. If there's any problem whatsoever, I will bring you down slowly and carefully.”

  Nikki sighed. “Right. I know. I trust you.”

  Anna did just as she said she would. She climbed to the top as Nikki stood at the bottom watching. Then she propelled herself downward with her harness and rope. She allowed Nikki to climb. “You're doing great, Nikki,” she called out from the ground. “Use the strength in your legs! Push up!”

  Nikki did exceptionally well. Anna couldn't be more proud of a first time climber. She was glad that Nikki had had her first climb with her. It would be a moment she would treasure and remember forever. She hoped it meant something special to Nikki as well.

  Anna climbed up right after Nikki did and found Anna sitting at the top of the hill looking out at the horizon. “It's beautiful, isn't it?” inquired Anna. “I love it up here.”

  “It is. Even though I'm terrified of climbing and have no clue how I'm going to get down from here without breaking my neck or at the very least an arm or a leg, I'm glad I got to see the world from up here.”

  Anna smiled. “Really?

  Nikki nodded. “Yes, really.”

  “I'm so glad you said that. I brought something I want to read to you and I wanted to make sure to read it from this spot. It's one of my favorite spots in the whole world.”

  Nikki was beaming. “You're going to read to me without me having to ask you to read to me?”

  Anna smirked. “Yes, but it's not a book. It's something I wrote.”

  Anna pulled out a folded piece of paper from the zippered pocket in her jogging pants, then cleared her throat.

  Nikki was all smiles. “Oh. A poem? Go ahead. I'm ready.”

  Anna felt her face flush a bright red. “Okay, here it goes:

  If life were a song, you'd be the melody that played repeatedly in my mind. The one that made me smile and dance and want to sing along.

  You'd be the soft, gentle staccato that is the sweetness of your voice, and I'd fall in love all over again at the crescendo of your thunderous laughter.

  Maybe someday we will find the musical beats in our hearts that like a joyous fanfare--

  celebrate and demonstrate our love to the rest of the world.”

  Anna folded the paper back up and placed it back in her pocket. When she glanced up again at Nikki to ask her what she thought of it, Nikki had tears in her eyes.

  “Was it that bad?” asked Anna.

  “Bad? You think that was bad? That was beautiful.” Nikki wiped the tears falling from her eyes with her hands. “You have the heart of a poet, Anna Kincade.” She leaned towards Anna slowly as she gazed into her eyes, then kissed her tenderly and passionately on the lips. The moment couldn't be more perfect. It was Anna's favorite place on a beautiful sun shiny day with the most amazing woman she had ever met in her life. Anna reciprocated the kiss with the same passion and fervor.

  Nikki pulled away for a brief moment, only to smile.

  “Why are you grinning?” asked Anna.

  “Because I was wondering when you were going to kiss me.”

  “I didn't. You kissed me.”

  Nikki laughed. “Yes, but you kissed me back.” She kissed Anna once more feeling as though she had completely lost herself in Anna's world when she closed her eyes.

  Anna stood up. “Come on.”

  “Where are we going?” inquired Nikki still sitting firmly planted in the rocks.

  Anna grinned. “We have to climb back down.”

  “What do you mean? There's no elevator?”

  Anna laughed.

  “I was joking,” stated Nikki. “I'm trying to procrastinate. I'm afraid of falling. I'm not so much afraid of climbing, but falling and climbing back down. Beca
use of, you know, well, falling down and plummeting to the ground and splattering everywhere. Yeah, there's that.”

  Anna laughed. “I promise there will be no falling down. I will climb to the bottom and help you down.”

  Right before Anna propelled herself back down, Nikki stopped her.

  “Anna?”

  “Yes?”

  “Can I have that poem?”

  Anna grinned. “I'll give it to you when you get to the bottom.”

  With that, Anna was gone. She was pushing her way down with the strength in her legs while propelling herself down with the rope. Nikki watched her from the top. In part, she felt queasy from the height, but then, watching Anna working her way down the hill, she found herself oddly aroused. She loved strong, independent, dominant women. Anna was both strong physically and mentally. She didn't have to go on a quest to find a lesbian doctor like her mother had always wanted her to find. She had found herself a marketing genius instead, and Anna was everything she had always wanted in a woman.

  “Okay, attach the rope to your harness!” shouted Anna from the ground. Anna's voice broke Nikki's thoughts and snapped her back into reality. She didn't want to rush things. She wasn't even sure she could ever commit to anyone with her busy schedule and always being on call.

  Nikki grabbed the rope, attached it just like Anna had showed her, then gently lowered herself over the side of the hill.

  “Push yourself down! Jump slowly pushing yourself little by little on the rocks! You can do it! Use your leg muscles!” shouted Anna from below.