by Sarah Gai
A few minutes later, when Autumn opened the door, the twins and their mother were standing outside. They all smiled with approval.
“You look wonderful, darling,” Mrs. O’Connor beamed. Autumn’s face heated up with embarrassment from the compliment.
“All of my hard work paid off,” Meg puffed up with pride.
“Phenomenal,” Aiden guffawed. “And it wasn’t all your hard work Meg. It’s Autumn, she’s just beautiful is all.”
Meg agreed with her brother and Autumn turned away, seriously embarrassed. Meg grabbed Autumn by the shoulders, maneuvering her down the hallway to the bathroom to finish her hair.
Autumn rolled her eyes. Isn’t this primping stuff finished already?
Autumn
Twenty minutes later, after Meg went over Autumn’s hair with not only a straightener, but also a curling iron and a ton of hairspray wanting to set soft flowing curls or something of that nature, they all piled into the O’Connor’s RAV-4. They drove out to the edge of town by the woods, far enough away from the campsite, for which Autumn was grateful.
Eric was standing by the edge of the woods, dressed in a black tux with a red tie. He grinned as they pulled up, causing Autumn’s heart to skip a beat. He was so handsome standing there and, for the first time, Autumn could see he was nervous. Mrs. O’Connor and the twins wished her well with an over-excited giddiness just as Autumn stepped out of the car.
She watched as Eric pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his brow as she moved closer; she wondered if it was from nerves or just the fact that the weather was hot. Evening may have fallen upon them, but the heat was stifling with an almost unbearable humidity. For one moment, Autumn panicked her hair would frizz out of control. Thanks Meg for making her worry about primping, she reflected.
Autumn felt timid as she walked up to him. He pulled out a small, clear, plastic box from behind his back. Inside, nestled on a bed of white tissue paper, was a corsage of three white orchids, a spray of baby’s breath, and a silken sage-green ribbon. Eric took it out of the box, placing it on Autumn’s wrist.
“You look beautiful,” he said, giving her a nervous smile.
It was adorable and Autumn felt relieved to know she wasn’t the only one affected by the night ahead. “Thank you,” Autumn blushed, looking away to hide her burning cheeks.
“Okay, you two,” Meg cut in. “Smile for the camera.”
They turned around and Meg was holding an old Polaroid instant camera. Autumn completely forgot they had company. Eric wound his arm around Autumn from behind, resting his head on top of hers, and they smiled as the camera flashed twice.
Meg pulled each picture out, waving them in the air to dry, and handing one to each of them. Autumn slid hers into her dress pocket after a quick glance. It was a keeper and whenever she was sad out on the road she knew she would look at it and remember the boy who stole her heart.
The O’Connors piled back into their car with a chorus of good wishes, barely staying more than a few minutes.
As they watched the car pull away, her friends waving from their windows, Eric said, “I have something to show you. Close your eyes.”
She obeyed, almost wanting to peek, but held steady. He took Autumn’s hand tightly, leading her into the woods. Her heart beat excitedly in her chest. She stumbled blindly behind him as he continued to walk a ways, Autumn holding on for dear life. Finally, he pulled her to a stop.
“Okay, now you can look.”
Autumn opened her eyes to find they were in a clearing. She almost cried at what she saw; fairy lights were strung up around the trees encircling the open space, their bright yellow glow illuminating the darkening forest. There was a table set up with a bowl of pinkish punch and a small white iced cake—Ava’s handiwork, Autumn knew without a doubt since her cakes were legendary. On another table, a large, bulky record player sat waiting to belt out a tune.
She could not breathe as she continued to stare at the scene before her. It was like an enchanted storybook, yet it was happening, now, in real life—her life. The summer humidity gifted them with a sight Autumn would never forget—all around, showcased by the lights, were butterflies fluttering in all their beauty, dancing in the warmth. It was magical.
Eric stood tall next to her, his eyes also surprised by what was happening in front of them. Never in her life did she expect someone to do this for her. Thoughts of other teenagers going out with their friends to the movies, sleepovers, parties, and dances were just wishes to Autumn. But here she stood, in the middle of the forest in a dress with the boy of her dreams, looking at this spectacular set-up. Her heart soared and danced just like the butterflies.
“What is all of this?” Autumn whispered, barely believing what she was seeing.
“I figured, since you don’t go to high school, you won’t have a prom. So I got some help from the twins, Ava, Sharon, Mrs. Brooks, and my grandfather,” he answered her, biting his lip unsurely.
“It’s…it’s a fairytale Eric. I don’t know what else to say but thank you.” Autumn faced him, an uncontrollable smile breaking free across her face as she closed the gap, reaching up on her tiptoes to wrap her arms around him. Eric enveloped her in his embrace. They stood that way for an undeterminable time as Autumn accepted the reality of what Eric and her friends did for her.
Eric unwound his arms from around her and stepped away, his warmth and comfort going with him. Walking to the record player, he placed the needle on the vinyl and the smooth sounds of a piano and a saxophone bled into the twilight.
“John Coltrane—best musician to ever walk the earth,” Eric proudly announced as he walked back over to her.
He held out a hand to Autumn, which she took without a second thought. He placed his hands on her hips, holding her close while she clasped hers around his neck. They swayed back and forth to the music, Autumn unsure of her movements, but after a while she didn’t even care. She was there with Eric and that’s all that mattered.
Autumn never felt this way before—sure, yet unsure, of herself; confident, yet hesitant; beautiful, yet self-conscious. These opposing feelings had been happening daily since she first met Eric. Tonight though, Autumn wanted to live in the moment, to feel free and not overthink things. This was a night she never wanted to forget for as long as she lived.
As the music switched over, Eric leaned in; Autumn could see the moment coming. It was one she dreamt about and it was about to happen.
Closing her eyes, she felt the instant his lips touched hers. The gesture was soft and hesitant, as if feeling out those initial hesitations. Autumn responded and the kiss deepened. Her hand rested on the side of Eric’s neck; his pulse racing as much as hers. Fireworks exploded inside Autumn’s mind. Everything else ceased to exist for that one moment in time.
As the kiss softened once again, they pulled apart, slowly opening their eyes. Autumn’s hand involuntarily flew to her mouth, as if testing the lingering feeling on her lips to be real. She was unsure if it was actually possible for your first kiss to be so good.
“I’ve wanted to do that all summer,” Eric confessed, his arms still wrapped around Autumn’s waist.
“Me too,” Autumn replied.
“I couldn’t let you leave without kissing you. I would have spent the next year kicking myself!”
“I’m glad you didn’t.” Autumn finally let her hand drop away from her mouth, still blushing at the moment. She wanted to do that again and again and again.
Eric interrupted her thinking. “Come with me,” he pleaded. He grabbed a western-style blanket that was hiding under the punch table and led her just off to the side of the clearing to where a stream gurgled. Setting out the blanket on the ground, Eric made sure Autumn was seated and comfortable.
Autumn visualized the sections of her life—the one with her father and the one with Eric, intersecting within that stream.
“Cake?”
“Yes, please.”
He went back to the clearing and returne
d with two plates of cake and two cups of punch held precariously in his hands. The strains of the jazz music could be heard emanating from the clearing as they ate Ava’s cake with their fingers.
“I remembered everything, but forks,” Eric laughed.
“It’s fine. No, it’s more than fine—it’s perfect.”
“I’m glad,” Eric smiled, finishing his cake and licking the icing from his fingers. “Come here,” he motioned for her to move closer and they laid back, Autumn’s head nestled onto Eric’s shoulder.
“Will you come back next summer?” Autumn asked.
“I will,” Eric agreed. “I think, even more than meeting you and getting to know my grandpa better, I think I’ve come to know myself better this summer.”
“Really? How so?” Autumn pushed up on one elbow to peer down at Eric.
“Well, I see what my grandpa does and how he helps people. I want to do that—to help people heal and find their way in life.”
“So you want to become a pastor?” Autumn raised a brow. Not that being a pastor was a bad thing, it was good, but looking at the stunning young man before her, she never thought a man of the church could be so…handsome.
“Well…let’s not rush the idea, but yes, right now, I think so.”
“That’s great Eric. I never really thought much about God and all until your grandpa. When you really think about it though, what is the point of life, I mean if there is nothing else out there, like Heaven and all. Well…what’s our purpose? Surely, we’re not born just to work and die right?” Autumn asked with conviction.
“Yeah. You’re right, like there has to be a higher purpose. The difference is I know now there’s a God and I know my Ma is up in Heaven smiling down at me. I just know.”
They lay there beside the stream talking and allowing Miles Davis to soothe their souls. Autumn recounted all the places she lived and worked. Eric spoke about all the trouble he got into over the years and his father’s bike shop.
Autumn just had to know though, so she straight out asked, “Eric, I don’t mean to pry, but I would love to know about your mother. I mean, if you want to talk about her. I’ve just never heard you or your grandfather speak about her is all.” For a brief moment, Autumn felt as if she overstepped the mark as silence lingered between them.
“My ma was great. Honestly, one of the greatest ladies a person could ever know. She once told me the story about how she met my dad and how Grandad was so upset the day she told him she was leaving Ligonier to go live with my father. Can’t say I blame grandpa for being angry. My father was part of a notorious biker club. My Ma…she was sweet and innocent.” Eric grew silent, as if remembering his mother was for a quiet moment, just for him.
Autumn wanted to know more so she nudged him on. “But how exactly did they meet?”
Coming out of his own memories, Eric returned to the story, “Oh right, well, my father and some of his brothers from The Heathens Motorcycle Club were on a run and stopped in at Ligonier for the night. My mother was just finishing work at the real estate office she worked for and was closing up. When she looked across the street from the office front, she saw my father getting off his bike at the gas station,” Eric laughed as if the story was one he had kept close to his heart. “Ma said the moment he took his helmet off and looked her way it was bam! Bam, bam, bam! Instant love. My father took her out the next night and stayed around for a few weeks, much to my grandfather’s disapproval. Three weeks later, Ma followed him back to Memphis and two months after they were married.”
“So your Ma was a true old lady, huh?” Autumn knew a little from the few books she read over the years. That kind of lifestyle definitely was not an option for her.
“Ha, no way. My Ma never quite fit in with the club. Sure, everyone loved and protected her, but she wore bright sundresses and sang Doris Day tunes, a terrible choice and way too outdated even for her, and she sold real estate. She never did anything illegal; she was good to the bone. When…she passed away from breast cancer just over two years ago, my father wasn’t the same. I think he wished he had been a better man for her. So following her funeral he turned in his patch, which wasn’t something you did, but the brothers understood cause they loved my ma, Alice, so much. My father, Alec, still owns the bike shop and works on all the brothers’ gear, but he doesn’t ride with them anymore. So that’s my parents story and up until a few months ago, I never believed the part about love at first sight.” Finishing his parents’ story, he felt lighter, as if a weight from talking about his mother had been lifted.
Autumn sat quietly, remaining enraptured as Eric continued to tell stories of his past. He lived such a normal life; he even pulled out his cellphone, something Autumn was not allowed to have, and showed her games, Facebook, and so much more she never saw before. Why anyone would want a face page in which everyone could see everything about you was strange, Autumn deemed. She knew her thought process showed what a sheltered life she lived. There was so much she had not experienced due to her father’s controlling behavior. Tonight was hers, though. No one could ever take this away from her.
“So, tell me more about you. Let’s hear about your mother,” Eric said.
Autumn let Eric believe her mother passed away, just like his had, but she knew she had to come clean. “Eric, I may have led you to believe my mother passed away, but from what I know, she is alive and well somewhere. Well, at least that’s what Liam tells me.”
Eric pulled Autumn close, tucking her into the crook of his arm. “Impossible. I refuse to believe anyone would leave a girl as amazing as you are,” he comforted with sweet words.
“Well, like I said, that’s what Liam says, but I don’t know. Sometimes I think he might have done something to her. He’s mean enough. It’s just something doesn’t sit right,” Autumn sighed. For many nights, she thought of all the possibilities as to why her mother wasn’t around.
“Do you remember her?”
“No, I don’t. I wish I did. Sometimes I think things and wonder if it was a memory, like blond hair blowing from the car window, the smell of pancakes when we are at Ava’s for breakfast, things like that, but I just don’t know. I do not have any photos of her, nor does my father. If I passed her in the street, I would have no clue it was her.”
Eric pulled her tight to his side as they let their truths settle in. “Okay, enough with the mothers for tonight. Let’s enjoy what is left of quite simply the best night of my life. I think you and I should start a yearly tradition and meet here during the last week of August,” Eric stated.
Autumn’s heart beat fast with joy, happiness, and…love. “It’s a date!” Autumn leaned over and brushed her lips against his, not wanting the perfect moment in her life to end.
They kissed and kissed until Autumn couldn’t breathe a moment longer. He was intoxicating. She could stay wrapped in his arms for eternity and never utter a single complaint.
Things moved slowly, but surely as the night progressed.
“I think we should stop, Autumn,” Eric groaned, pulling away from her lips.
Autumn mewled at the loss of contact. “I don’t want to,” she complained and grabbed Eric’s cheeks, forcing him to look into her eyes. “I don’t want to, please. I want to be with you.”
Eric paused for a moment, an internal war going on inside his head, as he knew he never wanted to be with anyone else. There was no time to contemplate the rights and wrongs of the moment as Autumn pulled him back down and took the lead.
It was the most amazing moment of Autumn’s existence. The experience was different, as they fumbled around, and at times felt awkward and sweaty, having never done it before, but it was positively the best moment of her life. There was nothing but naked bodies, open hearts, and willing souls. The two intertwined and created a memory neither would forget.
As the sun began to rise, the tired and satiated pair closed their eyes. Autumn wished the last twelve hours of her fairytale would never end.
But all good th
ings always came to an end.
Autumn
Autumn woke with a start. The sky peering through the trees began to turn gray as dawn approached. She was only asleep for about an hour, but even that was too long. The sound of the birds wakening in the trees rang out through the woods. She shook Eric, who woke slowly.
“What happened?” Eric rolled over, pulling Autumn to him, not ready to fully wake up.
“We must have fallen asleep!” Autumn said frantically. “I have to get back. My father is going to kill me.”
She kissed his lips softly, a piece of her heart breaking knowing the night was over. She knew her father might possibly be irate she never returned to camp. Her greatest hope was he fell asleep drunk in the back of the truck last night. It was sad Autumn wished for the worst-case scenario as to not have to face his wrath.
“Wait. Let me go with you,” Eric offered, pulling away from her and sitting up, running a hand through his disheveled hair as his eyes searched for his clothing and shoes.
Autumn could sit there all day looking at his adorable, confused morning face. Unfortunately, she did not have time as she, too, searched for her apparel and hastily put it on, preparing to leave. “That would be the worst thing you could do right now. I mean, you have nothing to worry about. I don’t know what your grandfather said that day Liam slapped me, but he hasn’t laid a hand on me since. Honest, he won’t hurt me, but he will be mad if he sees you,” Autumn warned.
“Will I see you again before you leave?” Eric asked anxiously.
“Of course,” Autumn replied, leaning in to kiss him. “I’ll meet up with you later.”
“Okay, then I’ll see ya later,” Eric responded, a little deflated. A bad feeling crept up in his gut; he could not explain it, but something felt off.
“Eric?”
“Yeah?”
“Thank you for this…for all of this. It was the nicest thing someone’s ever done for me. And the last part, well…wow,” she blushed.