by Trisha Grace
For someone who didn’t speak much, even with his closest friends, he was being extremely patient with her. Not once did he roll his eyes at her frantic nerves or show any sign of impatience.
His warm hand on her outer thigh brought her attention back to earth. “Keep a firm grip using your thigh, but keep your waist soft or the horse won’t be able to move properly and your back will ache.”
“When did you learn to ride?” she asked, not realizing that Tyler had let go of the reins.
“Since I was able to, I guess. I can’t remember exactly when.”
“Do you still ride?”
“Whenever I’m free. I own a horse at a ranch near the cabin; I’ll let you ride him when we’re there.”
Laughing softly, she twisted her waist and turned back to face him. “You keep talking as if I’m definitely going. I haven’t even agreed.”
“Good. You know how to turn without needing me to save you.”
Though it was true, she still scowled at him. “Why do you like riding?”
“I never said I did.”
She shrugged. “You won’t get this good at something if you don’t like it.”
“This is the first time you’re riding. I seriously doubt you’re a good judge of that.”
“I was trying to praise you because you’ve been so nice to me, but I’m beginning to change my mind. Is it getting late? Is that why you’re getting grumpy?”
Instead of a rebuttal, he took over the reins and made a series of “click-click” sounds. Then he shifted his body forward and sent the horse sprinting ahead.
She screamed and grabbed onto the horse’s mane while Tyler slowed the horse back to its original pace.
“Sorry,” he said, flashing an apologetic smile. “Bad idea of trying to be funny.”
“Do. Not. Do. That. Again.”
“You have my word,” he said as he bowed his head in apology. Taking out her phone, he returned it to her. “Here, take your photos and enjoy the view.”
Once the phone was in her hand, she tapped on the application for her camera. Leaning back against him, she lifted her hand and took another photo of them.
Changing it to video mode, she twisted around and interviewed Tyler. “So, you haven’t told me why you like riding.”
He turned his face away from the lens, but grinned and answered after seeing that she wasn’t going to back down. “I just like it.” Without notice, he took the phone from her and placed the reins into her hands.
She fumbled for a moment before gaining control.
“How’s your first ride coming along?” Tyler asked, this time with the phone’s camera on her.
“It was fun until someone tried to kill me.” She glowered right at Tyler.
They continued riding for over an hour.
When they got back to the ranch, Mike was already waiting for them. Tyler hopped off the horse and raised his folded arm up for her as she got off.
It wasn’t until she tried to stand that she realized she could barely feel her legs.
She grabbed onto Tyler’s arm as she felt her legs quivering.
“Sorry, I should’ve turned back earlier,” Tyler said.
“No, it’s fine. I’m sure I’ll be all right after a while. I was having lots of fun anyway.” Despite saying that, her legs didn’t seem to be recovering.
Tyler took her hand and hooked it over his elbow, letting her lean against him as they slowly strolled back to the car.
She heaved a sigh of relief as she settled back onto the seat. “I feel like an old lady.”
“We’ll order room service. That way, you can rest.”
“That’s a fantastic idea.”
“Did you have fun?”
“Yeah, but I think there’s a real chance that I’ll be bedridden tomorrow.”
Chapter Ten
Tyler hung the towel over his shoulders as he walked out of the shower in his T-shirt and long sweatpants.
Kate sat in front of the desk, her hair still wet from the bath, transferring the photos and videos that she’d taken into her laptop.
He leaned over Kate and looked at the photos, shaking his head as he saw himself in some of them. He never liked taking photos, but she was having so much fun that he didn’t want to be a wet blanket. “May I?” he asked, his hand hovering over her phone.
“Go ahead.”
Taking the phone, he sent a couple of photos and videos to his own phone. Kate switched off her laptop and went to sit on the bed, watching him scan through the photos.
Yawning softly, she stretched her neck, and her hand kneaded along her a side of her shoulder.
He should’ve known it’d be tough on her. He shouldn’t have taken them out on such a long ride. “Your back aching?”
She flashed a sheepish smile. “A little.”
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s my fault for not exercising enough. Don’t worry, it’s worth it anyway.” She grinned and stretched her back.
“You’re wearing your spectacles again.”
Once the week that she was supposed to stay off her contact lens was up, Kate had immediately returned to them.
He preferred Kate in her contact lens. Without the additional layer of glass, the radiating flecks in her eyes were clearer.
“I was afraid that I might fall asleep with my lens, so I took them out in the shower.”
“Speaking of which, Joseph gave me the contact for the Lasik surgeon.” He picked up his phone from the bed and sent Kate a text before handing the phone back to her. “You should make an appointment. That way, you won’t have to wear your spectacles anymore. Especially since it’s giving you headaches all the time.”
“You sure are making a lot of plans for me.”
He grimaced, realizing he was overstepping his boundaries again. “Sorry, I was just—”
“I was kidding. Maybe I’ll go for it next year. Then I won’t have to fumble around the mansion after the surgery and disturb the rest of you.”
He sighed and said, “You should have it done this year, so you’ll have someone to watch out for you after your surgery.”
Kate yawned again and nodded at his statement, but he doubted she heard a single word.
Almost immediately after dinner, Kate fell asleep.
He switched off all the lights and lay in bed, browsing through the photos on his phone. A grin spread across his face as he thought about the day.
Choosing a photo that Kate had taken of them, he set it as his wallpaper and returned the phone to the table. He got back into bed and smiled, planning their itinerary for the next day.
Kate turned to her side, jostled by another groan. She opened her eyes and rolled herself over as she heard yet another groan. Sitting up on her bed, it took her a moment to remember where she was.
She slipped out of bed and pressed the button on her phone to get some light in the room.
She took a few unsteady steps toward Tyler’s bed. Despite the air conditioning in the room, he was perspiring and appeared to be in pain.
Just as she wanted to ask if he was all right, his head snapped to the side and he groaned again.
“Tyler,” she said softly as she knelt down beside his bed, uncertain if he was awake. “Ty,” she whispered. Gently, she laid her hand over his, thinking of waking him. But he immediately grabbed her hand and pulled it toward his chest.
Tyler squeezed her hand and pinned it tight against his chest as though he was afraid that she might slip away or take her hand back.
She froze, stunned by his sudden action.
She tried to pull her hand back without startling him, but he was holding on so tightly that it was impossible.
She realized Tyler was probably having a nightmare. Her free hand pushed his hair aside, and she saw the fear on his face.
She knew exactly what he was dreaming of.
“Tyler,” she called out again, but he only tightened his grip on her hand.
She didn’t know what to d
o. She didn’t want to jostle him from his sleep, but he seemed better off awake.
She tried waking him a few more times, calling out his name softly, but he seemed trapped in the nightmare.
Not knowing what else to do, she wrapped her hand around his and prayed, “Lord, take away his nightmare. Give him rest.” Still holding on to his hand, she told him that everything was all right.
Though her words appeared to have calmed him, Tyler never eased the grip on her hand. Curling up on the floor beside his bed, she leaned against it and continued to tell him that everything was all right until she dozed off.
Tyler gasped and felt his lungs constricting. The ache in his chest was getting worse as his lungs screamed for air.
He was curled up under the table and could feel the heat as the fire drew closer. He couldn’t open his eyes; it hurt too much.
It didn’t matter anyway. The smoke was too thick for him to see anything.
Then he heard it—his parents screaming his name.
No! Don’t come over! He tried to warn them.
Forget about me! Leave! He tried to scream, but he couldn’t.
He tried again; he had to let them know what would happen if they came over for him, but he couldn’t get his voice working.
He cupped his hands over his ears as he saw a piece of the ceiling fall. Despite having his hands over his ears, he heard it. He heard the bone-chilling scream from his mother as she got pinned by the concrete slab. He heard his father’s cry of agony as he tried to pull his mother out from under the slab.
“Stay under the table,” his father instructed.
He didn’t know what to do. He pulled his legs tighter against his chest and squeezed his eyes shut as the fire crept up on his mother.
His father wasn’t going to leave his mother behind.
Then another slab fell, knocking his father out.
He had once thought he’d be next.
He couldn’t stand the pain throbbing in his chest. He couldn’t fight the dark rims invading his eyes.
But it wasn’t his time.
He felt himself getting hauled out of the house. Then standing outside the house, he stared blankly as the house crumbled.
Soon, everything started to fade.
The noise was always the first to go. The roaring of the fire fizzled out, and the shoutings of the firemen ceased. All that was left was a deafening silence.
Next, the colors disappeared.
He watched the scene as if it were one of those black-and-white silent films. Adults he didn’t know walked about, each wore a grim and solemn expression.
Some of them came over to talk to him, but he couldn’t hear what they were saying.
After that, their faces began to blur, and the same darkness that had invaded his sight returned.
He tried to grab on to something, to someone. But everything he touched always crumbled away.
Eventually, he was the only one left standing in the Stygian darkness.
He began walking, searching. But no matter which direction he took, there was nothing but darkness.
Twenty years: that was how long he had been having this nightmare. And for twenty years, it was always the same.
He would keep moving, keep searching, until the darkness depleted his strength. He would then give up and wait; wait to wake up with an aching loneliness.
But this time as he waited to be consumed by nothingness, he heard a voice.
He heard someone calling his name, then he felt the warm and gentle touch on his hand.
He held on, holding the hand close to him, worried that it’d slip away like everything else and leave him alone in the dark again. As he held on to the hand, a glimmer of light shone through the darkness. Soon the light invaded the emptiness and the darkness left.
The colors returned, and the voice got clearer.
He could finally see the face of the person he was holding on to—Kate.
She was beaming radiantly at him. “It’s all right. Everything is all right,” she whispered, her hand skimming down along his jaw.
The next morning, Tyler opened his eyes and became conscious of the hand he was still holding on to. He jerked upright, pulling Kate’s hand along and jolting her awake.
He released her hand as she gasped and ran her hand through her hair, seemingly disoriented.
When she turned and saw him, she immediately sighed.
“Sorry,” she mumbled. “I fell asleep.” Leaning her elbow against the bed, Kate tried to push herself up from the floor.
She couldn’t get herself up. She dropped back onto the floor and buried her face in the bed. “I can’t feel my legs.”
He got off the bed and scooped her up in his arms, gently placing her onto his bed. “You slept on the floor for the whole night?” he said as he started kneading her calves.
He couldn’t believe he’d stupidly held on to her hand, causing her to sleep on the floor.
“Not technically. I’m not sure what time I woke up,” she mumbled before closing her eyes.
At first, she didn’t have any reaction as Tyler kneaded up and down along her calves. Then she suddenly flung her hands out, grabbed his arm, and screamed for him to stop.
The pins and needles must have started.
He immediately let go, but her fingers dug into his arm.
Her eyes cringed shut, and she bit down on her lower lip, seemingly trying to stop herself from screaming any further. “Gosh,” she said through clenched teeth and leaned back on the bed, using the pillow to cover her face.
He ran his hand through his hair while he kicked himself for being the cause of her pain.
Kate continued to writhe in agony for a few minutes as she wriggled her toes.
Once the pins and needles subsided, she sat up and smiled sheepishly at him. “Sorry for that … um … sorry. I tried waking you up. But you didn’t, and I fell asleep.”
“Kate, please. Please stop saying you’re sorry, I should be the one apologizing. I’m such an idiot. I—”
Kate scowled at him. “What idiot? You were sleeping; you didn’t know.” Then lowering her voice, she asked, “Do you get nightmares often?”
“Every now and then,” he said. “I’m sorry I woke you.”
She lay back onto the bed. “It isn’t your fault, but you can make it up to me by letting me sleep now.” She flashed a toothy grin.
He laughed; it was always easy to laugh around her. “Go ahead. I’ll get breakfast.”
Kate nodded, her eyes already closed. “Goodnight.”
He closed the curtains before leaving the room.
Once he was out of the room, Tyler called Marianne to inform her that they would be extending the trip for another day. She hated it whenever he disappeared without first informing her.
“Kate’s work not going well?” Marianne asked.
“We’ll head back tomorrow,” he said.
“All right.”
When he got back to the hotel room, he was surprised to find Kate awake. Her bag lay neatly by the door, and she was replying e-mails on her laptop.
“I thought you wanted to sleep.”
“I tried, but I couldn’t get back to sleep. Don’t worry, I’m wide awake. I can drive us back to the airport if you want.”
“We’re leaving today? I thought we could do more exploring. We can go hiking at the national park.”
“Hmm, I don’t have any other projects on hand. So if it doesn’t affect your work, then I’m fine with it. ”
“Great. I’ve already extended our stay for another night.”
When he saw her blank expression, he grinned. “Sorry, I thought that even if you didn’t want to stay, you could rest and we wouldn’t have to rush.”
She shook her head but was already smiling. “I’ll call the airline and change the timing, then.”
“I’ve done that as well.”
“Huh.” She glanced around after switching off her laptop. Then she scanned the room again, seemingly
uncertain about something. “So, what should I do now?”
“Eat.” Tyler laid out the food on the desk.
Kate moved her laptop and asked, “Are we really going to the national park?”
“If you want.”
She narrowed her eyes and looked up at him. “Really? I thought you like to make all the decisions.”
He pulled up a chair next to hers. “I’m sorry. I know I overstep my boundaries at times.”
“I was kidding,” she said. “But there will be times when I’ll disagree with your decision. You know that right?”
He leaned forward in his chair, looking right into her eyes. “I know I must seem pushy; making decisions for you, altering plans without first discussing with you. But if you’d said no, even if I had to buy a plane to get us back to the mansion today, I would.”
He waited for Kate to say something, but she reached for her locket and tugged at it.
“I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. I just wanted you to know that if you do disagree with me, I’ll listen.”
Kate turned back to him with a puzzled look.
“You always play with your necklace when you’re uncomfortable or nervous. Unless I’m making you nervous instead of uncomfortable.” He grinned and winked, hoping it’d make her feel better.
“I’m not uncomfortable or nervous,” she said, looking away from him. “The last time someone went out of the way for me was when my grandmother somehow got this locket back.”
“Maybe because you never let anyone do anything for you. You had to do your own laundry, carry your own luggage, open your own doors. And when your sister wants to pursue something that you’ve chosen to leave behind, you see the need to step in to help. Maybe it’s time you let someone do something for you.”
She gave him a small smile. “Then don’t complain when I don’t do anything.”
“I look forward to that,” he countered.
After breakfast, they spent the day hiking up the park. Kate continued taking photos and videos of them and their surroundings.
After two hours of hiking, the dense trees came to a stop; and they were standing by the bank of a river, beside a series of fold mountains.