stevie hopkins
- march 24, 2018 -

TREES LINED EITHER SIDE OF the road at this point. We'd missed the best time to go to the cliff which was just before dawn. When the sun rose, the light danced across the top of the water. I'd taken Joel out there multiple times so he could paint the scene. He had people offer to buy the picture from him, but he always said no.

            "Just turn at the next right." I readjusted my boot for the millionth time since we left the house. I never could get quite comfortable in cars anymore. Even though it was just a hop and a skip to the other side of town, it was still too far.

            The nerves spun in my stomach the further we went up the road. Kids yelled from every inch of the car. We were packed tighter than we should have been. More people were in the car than was possibly safe, but I kept my mouth shut.

            My family was used to it, but I could see the nervous twitch in Chelsea's brow every time she took a corner. I think she was used to being the stuffed passenger over the actual driver of the vehicle.

            "Stop!" Monica yelled from the back and Chelsea slammed on the brakes, sending everyone flying forward; me personally into the jockey box. She looked around frantically as if she was trying to spot something.

            Xavier laughed from his seat. His laugh was warm, kind of like the tea he drank.

            "I'm sorry," she whispered, slipping further down in her seat.

            I glared at Monica through the rearview mirror, "Don't be, it wasn't your fault, but we do have to pull over here and walk, but it's not far."

            Chelsea pulled the car off the side of the road. We all basically spilled out of the car in order to stay out of each other's way.

            Monica dropped to the ground, dramatically grabbing fistfuls of dirt, "Who knew solid ground could look so damn good."

            "Shut up, Mon. You shouldn't have yelled like that. Chelsea doesn't know these roads like we do. There could have been an accident, you idiot." Joel rolled his eyes and pushed Monica over with his leg as he passed.

            She scrambled to her feet, getting in his space, "Careful there, painter boy. With where we're going there still might be one."

            "Hey," Xavier's jaw clenched, "That's not funny. It's not even close to funny. I'll take you both home if you can't get along."

            The two quieted instantly and Xavier nodded with satisfaction. When he turned his back Monica stuck out her tongue and Joel flipped her off. What were you going to do? Siblings. They'd never got along, even when they were little. Always fighting and bickering every chance they got.

            Chelsea caught up to me and poke my shoulder, "What's that all about? Where are we going?"

            I shrugged as if it was nothing, "The cliffs."

            She blinked a couple of times. When she just stared at me, the thought hit me like a train. She wasn't from here. She didn't know the story. I slowed my pace and let everyone get a good head start compared to us.

            "Years ago, these kids drove their car off the cliff. That's why you can't drive up to it anymore. It used to be one of those popular make-out spots like you see in old movies, but after that the town shut it down."

            "But it was so long ago that most of us weren't even born yet. Apparently, it was a frequent spot for my parents to meet up which I try not to think about."

            She laughed, but then it was like she remembered what we were discussing and quieted herself, "That's honestly really sad."

            I looked at her and then looked around us before taking her hand in mine. Smiling, she swung her arm while we went to catch up with the other. We made it to the edge of the cliff where a metal railing kept you from falling.

            "Is there a trail to the water?" She asked, looking around.

            I busted up laughing, "What? No. There's only one way down." I pointed to a large dark circle in the water below us, "Now when you jump, you've got to aim for right there. You got some leeway on either side, but best to try for the center if you can."

            Oliver stood on the other side of the railing, "You're not scared, are you?"

            "It's really easy, Chels. I'll show you," I pushed him as hard as I could from the cliff and he went flying through the air. I laughed and waved as he went into the water. I knew I'd win. He just had to let his guard down first. When you think you win, that's the moment you're weakened to lose.

            Chelsea shook her head, "I've sone a lot of stupid things, but this is crazy."

            I started to unstrap my boot, "Don't worry. I believe you can do this."

            "You're not serious?"

            "Incredibly serious, my friend." I smiled up at her. There was that nervous twitch again. Once I'd stripped off my pants to reveal my black underwear, she blushed and looked away. I laughed and grabbed her hand.

            "Fully clothed is an option too." She glanced around for only a second before letting my hand go and pulling her shirt over her head. It was my turn to look away. Her bra was light pink with black lace and cute little roses. She slipped out of her pants to reveal a matching set.

            I struggled with my shirt, but then grabbed her hand and climbed over the metal railing. I bit my lip and looked down at the water. Nervous laughter came from Chelsea, "Are we really doing this?"

            "You trust me?" I asked, turning to her.

            "Always," she spoke without a second thought. I gripped her hand tight and on the count of three, we jumped. We screamed and laughed on the way down.

            There was something about falling that made you feel as if you were actually flying instead. Perhaps that's why they say you fall in love because it's nothing like falling at all. It's like flying. You are weightless and can do the impossible.

            It felt like seconds and yet, hours before we hit the water. It came rushing in around us. It would have been terrifying under different circumstances.

            I broke the surface and coughed, gasping for air. Seconds later, Chelsea emerged from the water with a smile wide on her face. She tipped her head back towards the sun and started laughing hysterically.

            "That was incredible! I've never felt so alive in my entire life!" She spun around, laughing, "I could kiss you right now!"

            I shrugged, trying to sound as casual as possible, but my voice still cracked, "You can."

            She moved so quickly, I almost missed it entirely. She grabbed both my cheeks and pulled me into a deep kiss.

            It was far from cold outside, but goosebumps covered my entire body. She pulled back, but she didn't even have the chance to catch her breath or stop moving before I grabbed her forearm and pulled her right back in. My fingers tangled up in her hair.

            Funny, how she'd never felt more alive than when she jumped from that cliff, but I've never felt so alive than when her lips crashed into mine. I'd never once done drugs, but I imagine they'd consume my mind exactly like this.

            I don't know what that kiss did to the two of us, but it's like we couldn't keep our hands to ourselves anymore. We held hands and rubbed arms. We whispered to each other more and got a couple of glances from my siblings, but they didn't say anything if they wanted to. I even got her to jump from the cliff a couple more times.

            Chelsea got us home easy enough with her hand planted on my leg the entire way. We walked behind the group to the front door, but I pulled her back at the last second. We'd been on the cliffs the entire day, but there was one last thing I wanted to show her before it was over.

            "Follow me."

            She laughed, "You're so full of surprises today."

            We moved around the house and out to the hay barn. It took longer than normal with me dragging this boot with me, but she talked the entire time. About her family and how quiet her house was with just the three of them.

            She followed me through the large double doors and up a ladder to the hay loft. Looking around, she raised a brow at me. I thought I might know what she was thinking, but it wasn't that. I gestured with my head. In the middle of the roof was a double pane window. With her following me, I pushed the glass open and crawled through.

            Turning around, I offered her my hand. She smiled, took my hand and let me pull her through. There was a large platform on the roof. You could only get to it from that window. I sat down on the edge and she took a seat next to me, our legs dangling over the edge.

            I pointed into the distance, "Now look at that."

            We both stopped talking and stared off into the distance. Over the pasture of cows and the tree line, the sun was slowly setting. The sky was filly with so many colors, I don't think I could possibly name all of them. A small rainbow winked through the water from the sprinkler system.

            I sighed, "That's not something you can find in a city."

            Resting her head on my shoulder, Chelsea curled into my side, "No, you don't. It's so beautiful."

            I bet you could write a poem about a view like that."

            "Writing poetry about beauty is easy. It's the real and rare that's hard. It's the broken and difficult that makes poetry beautiful. Finding pretty words to describe something most people find ugly. That's the power of words."