Dreamlike State (The Magic of Black Forest Book 1)

by Macy Farmer

  Chapter 5

  I got back to the cabin a little late last night. Jesse and Colleen insisted on driving me home because Bradley had to stay behind and help the band pack up.

  The evening turned out far better than I had hoped. Colleen and I danced to a few songs. Although I didn’t get to spend much time with Bradley, I did like that every time I looked at him he was gazing, no singing to me.

  His new song was beautiful. It was hard to believe that he wrote the lyrics and music in one day. He titled it, ‘Natalia.’ It was a nice melody… love song. Afterwards, he came over to see what I thought. When he saw the tears in my eyes, he smiled, “So you liked it? I wrote it for you.” Moved by my tears, he gently wiped them from my cheeks. The tender touch of his fingers left a trail of warmth, making me tremble.

  “Thank you, it’s beautiful. No one has ever written a song for me before. Can I get a copy of it?” Staring at his smile I’m thinking I just want to hear it over and over again. I was hopeful that tomorrow I’d have better luck with my cell. I couldn’t wait to tell Melissa about the song, about everything.

  When we said our goodbyes, Bradley mentioned he would stop by soon. I hoped it was later tonight. Soon… means in a short time… could be anywhere from a few hours to a few days. It depended on what the time period was… so when he didn’t show I went to bed. The last thing I remembered before falling asleep was fantasizing about Bradley, about how it would feel to have his lips pressed tenderly against mine. Just that thought alone had me feeling warm all over, longing for him.

  I finally woke up mid-morning. It was pouring outside. The angry grey clouds roared making the day dark and gloomy. “Well, Seager, it looks like we’re staying in today. I guess we can take a look at all the maps to see which trail we want to ride.” I couldn’t wait to go riding and get dirty.

  After we watched the Weather Channel, I decided tomorrow would be a good day to go for an ATV ride. “Let’s go riding tomorrow. The trails should still be a little wet so there won’t be too much dust. Hopefully, there’ll still be a little mud. There’s really no sense in riding if you can’t get a little muddy.”

  Too excited about going riding tomorrow, I went out in the rain to load the ATV into my truck. As I removed the chain from the tree, Jesse and Colleen arrived. Smiling, I went to greet them.

  “Nice quad, Nat. It looks brand new. Did you just get it?” Jesse got on it and made himself comfortable. Pretending to ride it, he made guy noises, “whant whaant.” Colleen and I laughed at him.

  “Yes I did. Right before I left for my vacation.” This thought brought back the sadness. My dad and I had such a good time that day. He haggled with the salesperson until he knocked a thousand dollars off the original price. When we got it home, he tore up the back yard doing donuts. If my mom hadn’t yelled at him there’d be no grass left at all. After she scolded him she climbed on, held tight as they rode around in a big circle reminiscing about old times. We laughed a lot that day.

  “Hellllooooo, Natalia…” Colleen waved her hands right in front of my face. I blinked and returned to reality. “Where were you?”

  “My apologies, I was just remembering something.” I fought back the tears. My father wanted to buy the ATV for me but I refused and insisted that I would pay him back. I never got the chance. My new quad was his last gift to me. Feeling Colleen staring and waiting for me to finish I turned to her and asked, “Do you guys have quads? Tomorrow Seager and I are going for a ride over in Haneyville.” The decision to ride there was simple. It was the closest trail, just ten minutes away.

  “Yes, but we’re not on vacation, Nat.” Jesse teased, rocking his noggin back and forth. It annoyed me to no end how much he enjoyed teasing me. I scowled, threatening him. He chuckled, “But I get home around three. I’ll go for a ride. We can meet up in the parking lot. What about you Colleen?”

  “I have to work late.” Colleen’s frown told me she was just as disappointed as I was. “Oh before we leave, I want to give you my number and get yours.” I couldn’t help but smile at her. She had a knack for changing subjects. We immediately exchanged numbers.

  They watched me cautiously load the ATV. Jesse was amazed that I didn’t spin the ramps right out from under my tires especially with everything being so wet from the rain. I showed him the ramps my father made. On the ends were metal brackets with two oversized bolts screwed to them. The bolts were long in length and hung out the bottom of the brackets a few inches. Next, my father drilled holes in the tailgate. Placing the bolts into the holes in the tailgate secured the ramps in place, to prevent them from flying out from under my tires. My father’s famous words came to mind, “Safety first.”

  “Well isn’t that the cat's bottom?” I wasn’t quite sure what he meant by that but the expression on his face said he thought it was cool. “We can’t stay. We were just stopping by. Colleen insisted that we check on you. She was worried,” he laughed. She punched him in the shoulder. “Ouch. You don’t have to hit me so hard,” he whined as he rubbed the pain away.

  With a satisfying grin, Colleen turned towards me, nodded her head victoriously, and said, “I was hoping we could go to dinner later this week. Do you get reception here?” She looked at my cell, which was still in my hand.

  Wow! “Yes I do. I couldn’t get it across the street at the gas station. Now I can call and see how everything is going back home.” I couldn't wait to tell Melissa about Bradley.

  “Okay good. I’ll call you tomorrow night to make plans. Say about seven, after dinner?”

  “That would be perfect. I’ll definitely be back by then and will have finished my dinner. But if I don’t answer don’t be upset. I haven’t gone riding in a long time. I may be sleeping.” I chuckled because I knew I was going to be sore and exhausted after a day of riding.

  After they left, Seager and I watched a movie and ate popcorn. We turned in early to get plenty of rest for tomorrow. I didn’t hear from Bradley.

  We woke up early and watched the sunrise again. I’ll never get used to this. Without hesitation right after breakfast, we got moving. It was nice to relax and lay around yesterday but not today… today, we ride. Once I had replenished my backpack with water, grabbed the camera and some hand towels, we left.

  When we arrived, there were no other vehicles in the parking lot. I unloaded my ATV and waited an hour, but no one else showed up. “Well you want to go? We’ll just take it easy. Listen Seager, you need to stay with me. I don’t know if dogs are allowed. And don’t go after my tires or run in front of me. Oh yeah, one more thing -- don’t go near other ATV’s. It’s not safe.”

  When I’m done being a worrywart he looked me straight in the eye and said, “Can we get on with this already? The suspense is killing me.”

  I jumped towards him pointing my finger directly at him -- “HAH… I knew it. I knew it.” It was obvious he didn't like my reaction. I took a quick look around and didn’t see anyone. I’ll need to be careful with my reactions or he won’t talk to me again. “Okay this is good. Now I have someone to have a conversation with.” I started putting on my helmet and gloves. Glaring at him, “It’s about time. Are you ready?” He just rolled his eyes with disgust. I giggled. He looked funny when he rolled his eyes. I’ve never seen a dog do that.

  “Oops, one more thing, for real this time.” Almost forgot. “Here put this on.” I leaned over him and tied a bright orange doggy vest around his neck and torso.

  “Ugh. I’m not going to get lost, Natalia. You maybe, but not me.”

  “I know you won’t…” I hid my face and held back my laughter. He was utterly appalled. “It’s for your protection. I would never recover if I lost you too.” He attempted to persuade me one last time by lifting his lips up over his white shiny sharp fangs – snarling and glaring at me. “You’re funny. That may work on other people but not here buddy! I’m not afraid of you. Seager I need for you to be safe, please wear it.” Again he rolled his eyes and accepted that he was wearing the vest. We’re
finally going. I’m so glad to have him here with me.

  We rode for hours. Some of the trails were narrow and extremely dangerous. If you leaned too much the wrong way you could go over the edge and tumble down the mountainside.

  Other trails were like mini dirt roads with little whip-de-dos. I whipped over them trying to get all four tires off the ground. The trails I liked best were the ones that were off the beaten path -- in the woods. I rode between trees that were but a whisker apart. A few times my tires hit a tree causing me to jam every part of my body, mostly my hands and shoulders, forward. I’m definitely going to be sore tomorrow.

  When we got back to the parking lot for lunch, there were three other trucks with trailers there. There was also a lone motorcycle over in the corner and a helmet as well. I wondered if the owner was just a short distance away, and took another look around, but there wasn’t a soul in sight.

  We were full of mud. I kept flinging the mud everywhere every time we hit a puddle. Luckily, I made the sandwiches this morning. My hands were filthy, although that didn’t seem to matter as I ate my corn chips. I gave Seager some Beggin’ Strips and water. It looked like he rolled around in the mud. I got him good a few times. I was definitely going to have to bathe him before we went inside the cabin. After about an hour, we headed back onto the trails. The motorcyclist hadn’t returned before we left.

  I found a decent hill that I could safely ride up and down. When I got close to the top, I floored it, and went flying over the top. I got air several times -- all four tires off the ground. While I played, Seager would run up and down the hill, always getting there before me, as if to watch and make sure I was okay. He hadn’t left my side. With him here with me, alone in the forest, I felt safe. I knew that if there were any danger, he would protect me.

  After playing on the hills, we found an overlook just off one of the trails. There were trees, greenery as far as the eye could see. “Amazing,” I thought, “It would be great to live here.” The view was exquisite and calmness filled me as we sat and enjoyed it for a while.

  “Now Natalia, don’t be alarmed, but I think someone’s been following us. I hear him but can’t smell him, he must be down wind.” Seager lifted his nose upwards, sniffed and tried to get a whiff of the stranger. “Do you want me to chase him up for you? I could sneak up behind him, chase him towards you then you can whack him with that big stick over there. Once he’s down, I’ll wrap my jaws around his throat and you can ask him some questions. Sounds like a really good plan to me. What do you think?” Instead of being alarmed, I just let out a booming laugh.

  “I don’t think we should split up. And what’s with all the hitting and biting? You seem a little violent today. How about we just go back to the parking lot instead? Jesse should be here soon if not already. Keep an ear out for the stranger behind us. If he tries anything then we’ll move onto plan B, the hitting and biting plan, Okay?” He smirked and agreed with a nod of his head.

  Jesse was waiting when we finally got back to the truck. He was all ready to go until he saw us. He cracked up and yelled, “Whatcha do, fall in a giant mud puddle?” At first I got a little irritated but then I looked over at Seager and down at myself. We were even muddier then we were at lunch. I joined in on the laugh fest. I’m going to have to squirt my clothes down a few times before I put them in any washing machine. I couldn't even fathom how long it was going to take me to bathe Seager. The mud was caked into his fur.

  Two hours after Jess and I hit the trails, I called it quits. “I’ve been riding since eight this morning. I still need to clean everything up. I had a really good time, Jess. Oh and thanks for riding with me today.” I looked over at Seager and the ATV – just looking at all the dirt -- I’m exhausted.

  “Me too. Plus, I want to go see when Colleen is getting out of work.” He quickly loaded his quad on his truck. I noticed he took my father’s advice – secured the ramps to the tailgate. That choked me up a bit.

  “Hey Jess – what’s up with you and Colleen?”

  “What do you mean – nothing, why?” He was avoiding eye contact. Fibber. There was something going on.

  “Well I just noticed how close you two are, closer than normal friends. Maybe it’s just my over-active imagination. Never mind…” shrugging my shoulder nonchalantly, I drifted off leaving my last few words hanging out there. My intention was to get him to talk, but instead he shrugged his shoulders and said his goodbyes. Just like that, he left. Well that completely backfired.

  Before I left, I noticed the motorcycle and helmet were still there. I got an uneasy feeling that the person that owned the cycle and the one who followed us were one in the same. All I wanted to do was get out of there.

  When Seager and I got back to the cabin, I squirted myself off. At least I don’t have to worry about getting wet while hosing Seager down. I tackled him next. It took me about an hour. I used up half a bottle of shampoo getting the mud out. Quickly, I attempted to dry him off with towels. Now he was a damp white fluffy pooch. I unloaded the ATV and washed that down too. I was exhausted by the time I secured it to the tree.

  Just as I was about to go in and get a shower, Bradley pulled up. I looked down at my water soaked filthy self, felt the mud on my face and gasped. I couldn't believe it, Now? He has to come now?

  “Hello, Natalia, it looks like you had a really good time playing in the mud today.” He checked me out…from top to bottom…as I fidgeted with my hair and tried to make myself look decent. But, it was no use. Right now, I looked disgusting. As if he heard my thoughts he said, “Wow I didn’t think a woman could look as sexy as you do with all that mud in your hair.” A loud piercing laugh that seemed to echo through the trees followed.

  “Yeah right! You’re being way too kind. I look like I was saved from drowning in the river and feel like it too. It was a great time and worth it. We should go together sometime.” He didn’t respond to that.

  “I just stopped by to make sure you weren’t having any problems with the bears.” He pointed over to where the dumpster used to be.

  “That was you? Papa Smurf… Err, Sam had said some guy asked him to move it. Again, thank you.” He was always rescuing or making it safe for me. I liked it. A huge grin spread across my face.

  “You’re welcome. Just taking care of business. A ‘Knight in Shining Armor’s' job is never done. Here, I brought this for you. It’s the song you wanted a copy of.” He stared down at the ground like it was no big deal as he handed me a CD.

  “Really -- YAY! I’ll listen to it tonight.” I did my happy dance; shook my hips and twirled while waving my hands in the air.

  Thrilled with my response, his head snapped up and his lips curled into that glorious crooked smile I adored. I froze, gaping. He was so handsome. When I looked into his eyes, I melted. “You may have to make me another copy before I leave, I’ll probably have this one worn out by then.” Once I said those words, his face became serious and a frown formed on his lips. “What’s the matter?”

  “Four weeks is going to go by quickly. I don’t think… This may not be a good idea.”

  I knew what he was thinking. The thought had crossed my mind as well. In four weeks I'm going home and we won’t see each other anymore. It was hard to believe the feelings I already had for him when I just met him a few days ago. This was so unlike me. I’d never been drawn to anyone like this. I barely even dated.

  “Bradley, we don’t need to think about it right now. We just met. Let’s spend some time together. It could turn out that you can’t stand me.” Boy, I hoped not.

  He laughed. “I don’t think that’s possible. There is so much I want to know about you. And the questions I have for you…”

  Before I knew it we were sitting on the porch swing and talking. With the sun going down and still soaked to the bone, it was getting a little cold. The chill of the evening sent a wave of shivers through my body. With chattering teeth I asked, “What kind of questions?”

  “How about I stop by tomor
row to go hiking?” He leaned towards me and put his arm on the back of the swing. My body started to get warm all over and I could feel the blood rising in my checks.

  “Natalia, you seem to blush a lot when I’m around. Is it me?” With my face so dirty, he shouldn’t have been able to see me blushing. Embarrassing.

  I avoided his question by simply replying, “You’re so strange, Bradley, unlike anyone I’ve ever met. When will you be stopping by – tomorrow or the next day?” I’d rather know when he’d be coming by so I could be ready, unlike this time. I looked up at his smiling face. The feeling was amazing. I’m totally addicted to his smile. I leaned towards him and put my head on his shoulder, forgetting that I was dirty.

  He sighed, the sound floated like a breeze through my mind. “I’d like to stop by tomorrow afternoon, would that be okay with you?”

  “That would be great. How about three and afterwards, I can make us something for dinner? Do you like burgers and potato salad?” Darn, the words just spewed out of my mouth, making me sound desperate to be around him.

  “Sure, three o’clock is fine. I don’t want you working on your vacation though, so how about I take you to dinner?”

  “Well, how about we go for a hike and see about dinner afterwards. I really don’t want to keep leaving Seager alone every evening. It’s not right. Especially when I have everything I need for dinner here. Think about it tonight and tomorrow. You’re welcome to stay with us.” I tried to persuade him to stay for dinner tomorrow, but I wasn’t sure it worked. I guess I’ll have to wait and see.

  I still had to drag myself into the shower before going to bed but I didn't want him to leave. Exhausted, I started to continuously yawn and tried to hide it.

  Of course, he noticed. “How about you go shower and I’ll wait out here with Seager while he dries? When you’re done and ready for bed, I’ll go.” He gazed down at me before whispering in my ear, “Go on.”