Henley

Background color
Font
Font size
Line height

Five Years Ago - Music Festival

"This is the best damn day I've had in a long time," he says.

His voice is smooth and soft, and I shiver when he whispers in my ear. It's not just his warm breath against my skin; it's what he's saying and the way it makes me feel. I can't explain it, can't begin to wrap my head around it, because it doesn't make sense.

And though I don't say it back, it's the best damn day I've ever had.

The sun is setting and I'm filled with an incredible sadness that I never expected. I've known him for less than a day, and in another few hours, we'll go back to being strangers. We've no reason not to. We live thousands of miles apart, and it'd be foolish to think we might stay in touch. But as I feel his warm chin rest softly on my right shoulder, I realize it won't be easy to say goodbye.

I'm quiet as he holds me - so quiet I know we can both hear every breath I take. My stomach swirls with emotions I don't yet understand, but I've got an idea of what it could be. I bite my lower lip and turn in his arms so I'm facing him. I know what will happen when I look up; I'll feel it again. I'm not sure I want to feel it again, because I'm the type who doesn't get attached.

But his hands are on my waist and his thumbs work small circles on the bare skin just above my hipbones until I do look up. And just like I figured, his eyes kill me. They're big and gentle and I see something in them I've never seen in anyone else. It's not lust or challenge or pity; it's a million things rolled into a single look that can't be defined by any one word other than Ryan.

My fingers find his cheeks and run across the light stubble there. I want to memorize him, and this moment, because everything about it is amazing. In the background, I hear Saint Forever, a song I've probably heard a thousand times. Now I'll never be able to listen to it again without thinking of his eyes on mine.

This is the sweet misery I've heard of but never believed or understood. It's hard to kick back and enjoy the rest of the night when I already feel this enormous loss. For once, I care.

I open my mouth to speak before I realize I have nothing to say. I'm afraid of spouting something off like an idiot, or that these crazy emotions I'm experience are exclusive to me and he feels nothing. But I can't believe that, not with the lopsided smirk on his face. Not with the way he's holding onto me like I'm his life support.

Our short story began in the wee hours of the morning, as I tried to retrace my steps through this muddy field to find my phone. I was lucky enough to smack right into him, and from the first moment I looked into his eyes, I knew he was trouble. Not the bad kind, but the heartbreaking kind.

Not only is he the most gorgeous man I've ever seen, he's kind and fun, and it didn't take much for me to place a little bit of trust in him, which is more than I've done for anyone in the last 13 years.

Our day might seem ordinary for anyone else, but as we walked and talked and listened to music, I felt free. For a little while, I wasn't worried about my parents. I laughed so hard that my face hurts. I had fun. So much fun.

It's not over.

"You look tired. You wanna head back?" he says, and I shake my head and smile. His forehead presses into mine and I soak in the feeling of closeness, the scent of mud and cigarettes and some sort of light soap.

My arms slip down from around his neck until my hands fall flat against his chest, but I'm not pushing him away. Beneath my shaky hand, I feel his quick heartbeat. Music is now blaring from the stage a few hundred feet in front of us, but somehow I can still hear my heartbeat in my ears.

I can feel everything. It's a thousand times better than anything has ever been, and if I could bottle this feeling, I would. I would use it when I needed it most. Drink it, inject it, anything to get it into my system, because this is better than any buzz or any high I've ever known.

This is Ryan, and if he stuck around, there's no doubt I'd become addicted.

We've got this connection, and it's undeniable. Anyone who knows me will tell you this is not typical for me. I'm not the type to get swept off my feet in 12 hours by a guy I've never met. I'm not the type to let myself care, or feel, for anything more than a little temporary attention.

But this man...he makes me feel like a woman. I'm not that broken little 18-year-old girl...not with him. I'm something else, and I like it too much to lose it so soon.

"Say something," he smiles and I feel his warm hands on my cheeks. His eyes fall to my lips, and I know "Anything. You're driving my crazy." He laughs, and I get the vibe he's as wrapped up in this as I am. "Please?"

I shake my head again and grab onto both of his hands before I reach up on my tiptoes and press my lips to his for the very first time. It's sweet, for about five seconds.

I hear his breath hitch against my lips, and feel an insurmountable power rush through us. It only takes a second for him to take control, and as his tongue pushes into my mouth, I'm hit with a wave of insatiability; I'll never get enough of this man.

I can't say goodnight. I can't say goodbye. What am I going to do?

He kisses me deeply, softly at first, with building passion. My fingers twist in his hair and I pull him as close to me as I can, certain he's breathing new life into me. I'm not sure how long we're there, or how much time passes, but my lips are wonderfully sore and swollen and the sun is long gone when we walk hand-in-hand toward his tent.

"Are you leaving in the morning?" I ask, unsure of where the rest of our night is headed. Something about this feels like goodbye, and I'll do anything to change the subject so it doesn't go that way. "You've got a long drive home."

He shrugs, as if he hasn't really thought about it, and it makes it that much easier to pretend we have all the time in the world. That our little thing here, whatever it is, isn't about to end.

"Probably. Should get back to school, the real world. But I love California," he kisses my lips once, then leaves me hanging with parted lips, hungry for more. "So beautiful."

My eyes sting, and I know it's not from the wind. My throat is hot and I stare down at the boots Ryan let me borrow just 17 hours ago. My braid started to let loose long ago, and he tucks a thick section of hair behind my ear before drawing my chin up so I can meet his gaze.

"And you? What will you do?"

"I don't know," I smile, but it hurts. "Go back to school, try to figure some stuff out, I guess."

"Stuff, huh? What kind of stuff?"

"The kind of stuff I don't want to think about tonight," I tell him, and I see the light in his eyes change. We barely know each other, but in a different circumstance, I think he might be the type of guy I would share things with. The kind of man I would let in. In time.

"Yeah, I've got some of that going on, too," he admits. "This trip was kind of a to-hell-with-it-I-need-a-break type of thing. To be honest, I'm not ready to go back."

"Me either," I whisper, and he smiles as he grabs a few bottles of beer out of the cooler inside of his tent. He offers me one, and I take it and plop down cross-legged beside him in front of the small fire he created in the nearby pit.

I don't want to be tired, but I guess I am, because I can't stop yawning. His hands find my shoulders and he pulls me back into his chest. When I tip my head back to look at him, he leans around to kiss my cheek.

And that's when I know I'll miss him.

I must've nodded off against him, because my face is warm and I'm filled with a daze not linked to alcohol. I rub the sleepiness out of my eyes and stifle another yawn. He was just so warm, I long to curl back up against him and go back to sleep.

"I don't want to say goodbye to you," he traces his fingertips in a pattern on my knee as I lie back against him. I'm not used to this – feeling calmed by someone's touch. "But I know you're tired. I can walk you back to your tent, if you remember how to get there. I'm sure your friends are back there by now...and I've got your number, you know, in case I'm ever in town and you find your phone..."

It's the first mention he's made of possibly seeing each other again, and it sparks a bit of hope in me that I'm not sure I should hold onto. I'm not ready to comment, so I instead touch on a different part of the question.

"Too sleepy to walk. Would it be okay if I just crashed here tonight? I'm sure I can find them in the morning."

I barely have the words out when he scoops me up in his arms and carries me into his tent. The air is just a little chilly, so I pull my knees up to my chin and hug myself tightly as he sets me down.

"Wait here," he says before heading out to put out the fire. "Adam won't be back tonight. He ran into some girl he knows from back home and he's staying with her. You can have my pillows and this blanket and I'll sleep on his stuff."

"Thank you, Ryan," I smile as I tug the fuzzy blanket over my shoulders and turn to face him. I watch as he peels off his shirt and pushes his hands through his hair before hitting the pillow. He's beautiful, and I'm not embarrassed to be attracted to such a gorgeous man. My mouth is practically watering when his eyes find mine. And then we stare, for a long time. I'm not sure how much time passes, but I wonder if he's using it to memorize me in this moment, too.

"I'm glad I met you," I tell him finally. "I had fun today. I won't forget it, this little break."

"I meant what I said, Henley. If I'm ever in town again, for any reason at all..." his words cut off and I wonder if he's as tormented by this as I am. "We'll see each other again."

"Maybe," I say, though I'm not sure I believe it. Part of me wonders if there's just magic in the air today, and if we saw each other again another time, if it would be the same.

"Maybe," he repeats, and it's the last thing I remember before I fall asleep.

You are reading the story above: TeenFic.Net