“Are you sure this is enough wood ya dickhead?!” I look in the rearview mirror and see the mountain of chopped firewood from the local mill. ‘This truck is too old to be used like this anymore. I'm nearly dragging my bumper on the ground! I can't afford to repair this old thing.’
Derek turns to me, dramatically rolling his eyes. “Alex, this is the end man! And we gotta go out with a BANG. The only reason we didn’t get more is that I didn't realize how old this hunk of junk is.”
“Fuck off Derek. I like this truck. Just hope it doesn't break before we get there. I'm worried about the bumpy dirt road going into the fields, I don't have four-wheel drive.”
“It should be fine if you go slow”, he replied. “We are still on time to get things set up. Some of the guys are gonna meet us there to help stack all this wood.”
“Good cause I'm not helping. I supplied the truck and my gas. I don't want to get all sweaty before I try to talk to Clare tonight.”
‘I really hope I'm not dressed badly. I got my nice standing pants on with a decent belt buckle, but all I could find for a shirt was an old, dark plaid button-up in the back of my dad’s closet. I also stole some of his cologne. It’s a bit on the strong side, so hopefully, it’s not too much.’ I thought.
“Why do you smell like that though? It's legit burning my nose.”
My eyes widen, and my face turns red from embarrassment. ‘FUCK!!!! Maybe I’ll air out a bit since the party’s outside.’
We pull up to the site of the party. I look out the window and see a small clearing between the windbreaks amongst the green unharvested cornrows.
‘I'm a bit worried about a fire spreading, but I see some fire extinguishers over there. It's been pretty dry lately, but we just had a light rain a few days ago… should be fine.’ I think to myself as I squint my eyes a bit at the small red canisters next to the pit the boys have dug out.
“HEY COME ON Y'ALL, STACK THIS WOOD UP- LET’S GO!” Derek yells from the truck window as we pull around.
I park the truck and get out, then walk over to a large tree and sit down on the cool grass while Derek barks orders at some guys I don’t know very well. It's still a bit hot out and a few hours before sundown now that we’re coming into summer.
‘I'm just gonna sit here for an hour or so and take a nap before things start. I ain’t used to waking up this early on a Saturday.’
Under the shade tree, I can finally feel a gentle breeze. Hopefully, that’ll air me out enough so this cologne doesn’t slap Clare in the face tonight. Clare…I start to think about what she might wear tonight, and how best to start the conversation when I see her. I always loved how that one piece of her hair frames her smooth cheek…
“AHHH!! FUCK!!!” I groggily looked up at Derek, laughing his ass off with an ice-cold beer in his hand, which I assumed he used to so nicely wake me up with.
“HAHAHA! Wake the fuck up dude. Follow me, everybody is starting to show up, and we are about to light the fire.”
“Fine fine fine, let’s go” Grabbing the beer he holds out to me, I get up and walk over. As soon as I shake off the sleep and crack the cold one in my hand, I look up and freeze… ’ Shit...She's here!’
Clare is wearing a sexy yellow summer dress with a slit, exposing a bit of her thigh. She is surrounded by her friends, guys and girls alike. If words could describe her, she is an exotic southern bombshell of a woman and wealthy to boot, with perfectly tanned skin, long silver hair, dark eyes, and a curvy body.
“I’m going to talk to her,” I say.
“Haha was wondering when you were going to see her. She showed up about thirty minutes ago. I don't think she’s seen you sleeping over there by the tree though, so no drooly first impressions yet.”
“I’ll wait til it’s a bit darker out,” ‘And after I get some liquid courage in me’.
“Whatever, man. Just don't wait too long, though, We only got this one night, since come mornin’, she’ll be on a flight to Europe.
‘Yeah, don't I know it.’’
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An hour or so later, the bonfire is roaring, music is blasting, and people are beginning to loosen up and dance thanks to the seemingly endless amount of drinks. I chug one more beer to ensure I have enough courage in me for my “big move”, hoping to at least confess my feelings for her once again and my hopes to spend the night with her before she leaves.
I have tried dating other people before, but it would never work out. As soon as I would try and get close to other women, they would suddenly stop talking to me altogether or make up some excuse, then suddenly Clare would call me up and ask for a date which I guess would make me feel better and I would soon forget.
‘I hope she is down to chill with me tonight after the party.’
“Haaa” I sigh ‘I got this.’
Clare is a little less crowded around. Some of the many friends she has disappeared somewhere. ‘No doubt doing that prank or whatever it is.’
I start walking over to her while figuring out what to say. The usual thoughts run through my mind like: Is she going to reject me? Am I dressed ok? Did this cologne die down a bit?
“Hey Clare, what’s up?” ‘Ok, not so bad I have definitely used worse openers.’
“I saw you over there and wondered when you would come over and say hello.” She says, with a little smile and slight tilt of the head. ‘So Cute!’
Internally sweating, I talk to her for a few minutes about some bullshit, like the weather or school, just trying to warm up the nerve to ask what I really want to say. I suspect she already knows that I want to talk to her alone, but I’ll go ahead and ask.
“So hey um…can we talk in private for a little bit?” I ask nervously.
“Sure!.. Hey y’all, I'll be right back!” She turns around and waves to her group of friends.
We walk over to my truck, which is in the back near the exit of the field. I parked here specifically for this talk, we are about to have. We hop into the truck, and she starts to stare around at the dashboard and the floor. It reminds me of all the times we’ve been in this truck before, but tonight will hopefully be for a different reason.
We stare quietly at each other until I start speaking, “So like hey…you know I really like you right?” Her face brightens up, and she smiles but tenses a bit, followed by a downcast look on her face.
“I know that Alex, but you know how my parents are. You know I can't do anything more than casual dating. My father forbids anything serious with you.” She says with her forlorn eyes.
Clare's family is very rich, well not billionaires or anything…I don't think, but regardless, still unusually wealthy, influential, and well-connected for the area. They moved here originally because her mom’s family was getting older, so she wanted to take care of them alongside her husband.
“The only reason I can even associate with you is from that accidental meeting between you and my family all those years ago.”
Our connection with each other happened sometime in the summer after 7th grade. My father was called by a family friend of ours about some goats that had gotten loose, so naturally, I was roped in to help round them up.
While riding my ATV on the dirt trails in the back of their property, I stumbled upon a limo high-centered and stuck in a rut on one of the passing gravel roads. Bewildered by the sight of a limo out here, I got off my ATV and approached the vehicle, not knowing that Clare's family was inside.
Her whole family stepped out, and I was stunned by their beauty. It was like watching one of those tv award shows of the actors stepping out onto the red carpet…in the middle of a farm easement, it was truly a bizarre experience. Seeing Clare step out I was instantly captivated by her.
In the end, I pulled them out, using a folding shovel that was stored in the ATVs toolbox, some tree branches, and a small chain I had with me. I gave them directions and sent them on their way back to town.
I assumed they must've been completely lost, but I never did figure out how they even ended up there in the first place. I'm sure their GPS didn’t recognize the roads out there, though.
“That was the first time I’d ever seen a limo before,” I say with a chuckle, back in the truck. I continue, “ I’m painfully aware of your parent’s expectations, but I'll just ask you straight up. I know you're leaving soon, but do you…….?”
Wait.
’What is that?’ Something small, bright, and wispy floats by the passenger window next to Clare as I look at her catching my eye. I would have ignored it, but more and more were showing up by the second.
“Hey, what are those?” I point outside the window.
She turns around, and we see more of these small bright, floating whisps. Before we know it, the truck is surrounded by them.
“I think those are embers…but we only brought well-seasoned wood here. Why would there be embers like that?” While magical at first, I thought, ‘This is not a good sign. Even though it rained a few days ago, it's still dry enough to catch something on fire if there’s this much floating around.’
We both look at each other and then turn to look a way’s back, where the bonfire is at the party.
“Oh My God” We say in unison. We both stare at the blazing inferno, which reflects in our eyes, as it has grown taller than the trees around us.