CHAPTER SIX

Thursdays were flower pressing days. That was the activity she has designated for Thursdays on her agenda, following the Wednesday schedule for drawing in her sketchbook. She reserved days for drawing on the cliffside by the highway and for flower picking she reserved, well, her favorite spot in world.

Beyond the town of Redwood, a short hike into a forest, was Ritter Falls.

She didn't discover the falls, of course, it already had its name and its fair share of tourists before she was born, but she could count the number of people who have visited the falls since she's discovered it for herself. It was Reagan and her brother, James, who found it when she was barely twelve and since a place like that was the nearest thing to sacred they've seen all their young lives, they vowed that the falls was their secret and they were never going to bring anyone there.

That was until James turned fifteen and became a little more rebellious, a little more self-centered, and a little more detached from his younger sister who used to be his best friend. He brought his girlfriend to the waterfalls he promised Reagan was their spot.

It ruined the value and sanctity Reagan once connected to the place but she visited it often, nonetheless, not because it was a sentimental reminder of the many days the siblings spent telling stories and complaining about their parents, but because the flowers were pretty and the place was beyond beautiful.

Most of all, it was because no one ever went there.

Ritter Falls was only forty feet tall, hidden by a short but somewhat difficult hike, and overshadowed by its neighboring falls, Dipper, that was nearing 200 feet in height, making it a more known destination for (very few) tourists.

She liked to think it was her spot. James ended up breaking up with his then girlfriend and said girlfriend thankfully didn't introduce anyone to that place, and no one else has been there to call it their own but Reagan. It lost the association it once had with her brother and now she comes there peacefully knowing that it was hers and that she wasn't obligated to share it with anyone.

Until for some reason, Reagan brought Jack Avery—a guy she's known for less than 24 hours—to her favorite place in her hometown, and she was yet to have any second thoughts or the slight trace of regret.

"Reagan Wallace," Jack said, panting, when they were on their hike to the falls, "I know I've been an absolute dick to you without you deserving any of it but if you're going to kill me please tell me now."

Reagan rolled her eyes.

"You're an idiot, Jack. If wanted to kill you I could've done it in the highway. Would've saved me loads of trouble," She mumbled as she narrowly missed a branch in front of her.

"No, I know how this works," He defended, "I've seen this in The Ruins and Truth or Die and basically a million other horror movies. You're gonna bring me to a secluded part of the forest for some weird, sacred offering ritual to to one of your gods, and leave me there for dead with a bloody star engraved onto my naked body."

Reagan paused for a second and turned around to look at Jack and he looked back at her with narrowed, accusing eyes.

She only blinked at him and turned around, "You're an idiot."

She tried not to look endeared when she saw a slight trace of dirt above his right eyebrow and she guessed he didn't see the branch she dodged seconds before it hit him.

"I am too young to die, Wallace, there are so many things I still need to do."

"Like what?" She snorted, continuing her hike up the mossy rocks, "Try out Justin Bieber's new hairstyle? Try every single one of Starbuck's frappuccinos? Become the next One Direction with your boyband?"

"Ha, funny. See, I know you're talkin' shit but I happen to have a world-tour coming up later this year with said boyband, thank you very much," Jack said, focused on keeping up with her and trying not to slip, "And I don't even like Starbucks. Also, I'm happy with my hairstyle, actually. Even Justin Bieber couldn't pull this off."

Reagan abruptly stopped in her tracks when what he said registered in her brain, making Jack almost bump into her.

"Wait, seriously?"

"Yeah," He replied, eyebrow raised, "Can you imagine Justin Bieber with an undercut and curls?"

"No, what the—I meant about the world-tour thing, Jack, what?"

"Oh, yeah," He said as a proud, boyish grin he seemingly couldn't help showed up on his lips, "Ain't kidding you with that one. Our album's gonna come out in a couple of months then tour and stuff. The whole shebang."

Reagan fully stopped her tracks by then, staring at Jack for any sign of humor, but when she has realized that he was serious, she paused.

"Shit."

"Shit?" He stared back at her questioningly.

"Yeah, shit," She confirmed, fully facing him with her arms crossed, "I didn't— I didn't think you were an actual band!"

"What'd you think we were?" He laughed, climbing over a rock to stand next to her.

"I-I dunno. Aspiring artists. Budding singers. Potential performers, I don't know, but I didn't think you were actual famous celebrities already."

"To be fair," He justified, "We aren't famous celebrities."

"Which is why I haven't heard of you?"

"Exactly," He nods resolutely then instantly backtracks, "Wait, hey—"

Reagan laughed as he mumbled about how he couldn't believe how good she was at insulting him, she even got him to insult himself, and she turned around to continue leading him to the waterfalls.

"It's not every day I get to have touring artists under my roof," She snickered, still unable to wrap her mind around the fact that she was with a touring artist then she realized, "And here I am just bossing you around!"

"Hey," He stopped her, tugging at her wrist, "Don't you start treating me differently, Wallace. At the end of the day you're still the one who saved my ass."

"From what?" She inquired.

"From being stuck in the highway, of course! If it weren't for you, we'd probably be starving by now. And homeless. And honestly one of us would probably be dead by now. I mean, I love my best friends but I am positive that one of us would've snapped."

Reagan snorted at that, continuing her climb uphill, "My money's on Jonah."

"Jonah?" He laughed, "Why him? He's like the calmest and most fatherly out of all of us."

"Exactly," She laughed along with him, "I dunno, it just gives me the impression that he's bottling up a whole lotta anger and being stuck with you lot would trigger that."

"Please, you'd enjoy being stuck with our company," He rolled his eyes with a grin.

"Can't argue with that," She shrugged, seeing the stick and flag she's stuck onto a pile of rocks a few years ago and knew that they were close.

"I can tell. Pretty surprised at how easy you are to get along with."

"Am I supposed to be offended?" It was her turn to narrow her eyes at him, hearing the subtext you don't look like you're easy to get along with based on first impressions.

"'Course not," He gave her a toothy grin, "Mean it in the best way possible."

"Honestly, Jack," She said, "Half the time I don't know if you're serious or not."

Jack sends her an inquisitive glance, "Am I supposed to be offended?"

She laughed and shrugged, echoing, "Mean it in the best way possible."

+++

Most of the hike to the waterfalls, categorized under 'medium difficulty', consisted of climbing over slippery rocks and trying not to slip. Jack lost his footing quite a few times but Reagan never went too far ahead, she always had the chance to grab onto his arm to hold him steady, but after the sixth time Jack supposedly saw his life flash before his eyes (his words, not hers), he was growing aggravated.

Reagan couldn't blame him. The same way he couldn't blame her for looking at him fondly whenever he slipped.

"M'pretty athletic actually," He tried to defend as he groveled over a larger and more slippery rock as Reagan skillfully jumped to the top of it, "Stop making me look bad."

"Don't beat yourself up over it," She laughed, holding her hand out for him to take and hauling him up, "I've been climbin' this same path since I was eleven."

"No," He rolled his eyes, "It's because I'm carrying a big ass guitar on my back and it's dwindling my aforementioned athleticism."

She paused and rolled her eyes back, "Yeah, sure, buddy."

Only a few minutes after, he slipped again.

She did offer to carry the guitar for him about five times throughout the duration of the hike but he continuously declined. She argued that if it was because it'd damage his fragile masculinity then he's just being stupid and she should carry it. He argued that it was because he didn't trust her with the guitar and he jokingly added, "Besides, it gives you a reason to hold my hand when we go over rocky paths."

She only rolled her eyes at that comment but by the eighth time he's slipped, Jack looked ready to hand it over.

"Gonna let me carry it, Jack?" She asked, waiting for him to regain his breathing within one of the clearings.

"How," He panted, "How are you even breathing right now?" She rolled her eyes and went to grab the guitar, but he stopped her before she got the chance, "The next time I slip, I promise."

They continued the hike after that, Jack stubborn and determined to complete the hike without any help, until they've reached the near end and, well.

"You're kidding me right?"

Reagan shrugged, "Wish I was."

"We're gonna have to climb that?" Jack asked, wildly gesturing towards the gigantic, flat-sided rock about thirteen feet in height and very little cracks to climb steadily. The top of it led to an entirely different clearing, the soil noticeably different and the plants disconnected from the level they were stood.

Reagan sent him a wide grin, "It's gonna be worth it I swear."

Jack threw his head back, eyes closed, seeming to fully regret offering to come with her this morning.

"If you're gonna kill me, do it now. I don't care that it's gonna be unceremonious and in the middle of a forest with terrible lighting. I'd rather die now."

Reagan ignored his melodramatic speech because she could hear the rushing water. She could hear the sound of the water falling onto the stream and she swore could almost see it. There was a reason she loved this place even after her brother has ruined it for her. She's been here plenty of times, weekly actually, but it never failed to move her and take her breath away every single time she has visited.

She realized that if that was her reaction, someone who could already anticipate the beauty she was about to see, what would be Jack's? She glanced at him, only to him already staring back at her, and she sends him a contemplative smile, "You're gonna love it, I promise."

Jack smiles back understandingly before he looks back at the rock and sighs, "I got this."

He adjusts the straps of his guitar's case and rushed to the rock's wall, holding onto an indented crack and staring to pull himself up.

Reagan only laughed as she went around the rock, seeing the clear path of saturated soil, and started climbing up. It was difficult to maintain balance, even for Reagan, but it was definitely easier than the route Jack decided to take.

When he saw her, already halfway up the rock, he glared at her, yelling, "Oh, fuck me."

Reagan laughed, watching him struggle to get down from the small height he's already climbed, and started grumbling his way to where she stood a top the rock.

"The things I do for you, I swear to God," He mumbled, disgruntled, frowning at Reagan's amusement while he struggled, "I climb up a stupid mountain you said was 'just a short hike, Jack, promise!' and nearly died a handful of times and now you point me to a rock, telling me I should climb it? Jesus, Reagan Wallace, I swear to god you will be my undoing—"

He was stopped short when he reached the top of the step, Reagan's hand on his arm to steady him, and Ritter Falls greeting him from his right in all it's glory.

"You good, Jack?" Reagan grinned but he seemingly couldn't find it in himself to tease her back.

"Holy shit."

Reagan watched as Jack nearly stumbled back, almost falling off the thirteen feet drop from the rock they've just climbed, and she yells at him to be careful but he couldn't even seem to register that.

"Holy shit," He repeated, "I'm. I don't know what to say. Reagan, holy shit."

"I've heard you the first time, bud," She laughed and stared back as well.

Ritter Falls wasn't a tall waterfall. But whatever it lacked in height, it made up for in width. The water, coming from Dipper Falls, fell from a wide, concave landing that engulfed nearly half of the circular water reserve below it. Reagan didn't understand how the water in that stream, surrounded by a rock formation that created beautiful, uneven curtains of water, could be so clear.

Reagan never found a way to describe Ritter Falls in a way that could do its beauty justice until Jack spoke up from beside her.

"I think this is the closest thing I've seen to paradise."

Reagan looked at him and grinned. He was sweaty and haggard and obviously exhausted but she was sure she's never seen him smile that brightly. She thought, distantly, that it was a sight she'd like to see more often.

She turned back to admire Ritter Falls.

"Reagan," He said after a few moments, snapping her out of her daze.

"Hm?" She turned to look at him questioningly.

"If you're gonna kill me, that'd be fine. I think I'll be alright with dying now."

Reagan snorted at him and shook her head, "You're an idiot."

hellooooooo i was supposed to update this two days ago but we went to a place called el nido for two days and had nO WIFI AND FML IM SORRY I'M GONNA UPDATE AGAIN TOMORROW thank you for all the kind comments and votes you guys left it was such a heartwarming thing to come home to <3