by MA Lee
“I’m glad you came,” he whispered into the night, as a small smile crept along his face.
“Me too,” I admitted. I folded my arms across my chest as the cool night air washed over me.
Noticing my shivers, Ryan walked over and placed an arm around me. His closeness startled me, yet had me feeling comfortable and warmed instantly.
“Are you cold?” he asked, rubbing his hand along my arm.
“Not really,” I said, as I tried to contain my shivering. I wasn’t sure if it was the chilly night air or the fact that Ryan was so close to me, but my body wouldn't stop shivering.
“Do I make you nervous?” Ryan asked, as he gazed into my eyes.
The answer was hell yes. He totally and completely had my nerves bouncing all over the place, but I couldn’t say that because he would take that as I was afraid of him. Or, that I didn’t want to be out here with the mysterious boy who I didn’t know. Instead, I selected a safe answer.
“No, you make me curious and excited and intrigued,” I rambled on, as I tried to form the right words to express just how he made me feel.
Chuckling, Ryan inched himself closer to me as he kept his hold on me. “I like that answer,” he said, with a smile so bright, it glowed through the black of the night.
Holding each other, we smiled as we both realized what was happening. “Where do you want to go?” he asked, as she reached down for my hand and took it in his.
“Anywhere,” I breathed, as I felt my heart pounding in my chest.
We began to run through the black night toward his truck that was parked by the curb. I wasn’t sure where we would go or what we would do. In that moment, I didn’t care. I was free and I was with my New Jersey Boy.
CHAPTER 3
The night was silent except for our beating hearts and the sounds of our laughter piercing the air. Holding my hand, Ryan drove through the empty streets. Neither of us said anything as we sat side by side in his truck. There were no words to say. Anything spoken would just ruin the absolutely crazy and adventurous high we were feeling as we sped through town. I didn’t know anything at all about Ryan, yet I felt like I knew everything about him, too. I had never understood how people could just fall in love with a first glance, but each time I snuck a look at Ryan, I started to realize that saying could be true.
Noticing my stare, Ryan turned to me and smiled. “Are you ok?” he asked, as he held my hand.
Smiling back, I sighed. “Yes, I am sure my parents will kill me if they find out I snuck out of my house with a boy I hardly know,” I teased. “I am in college and living on my own during the school year, but they still try to control me,” I added with a sigh.
Squeezing my hand, Ryan licked his lips in a move that had me sweating with nervousness. I could barely catch my breath looking at him. With his shaggy blond hair and the glow from the interior car lights highlighting his face, he looked like an absolute dream.
Narrowing his eyes, he pursed his lips like it was difficult for him to breathe sitting next to me. I easily recognized that expression, because it was the same one I was sure I had on my own face. “If you are uncomfortable with this, I can take you home. I don’t want you to get into any trouble with your parents, I just…I had to see you, to get to know you.”
The light ahead turned red and as the car slowed to a stop, I unbuckled my seatbelt and scooted across the bench seat of Ryan’s truck. Lifting myself up, I placed my lips on Ryan’s cheek and gently kissed his soft, sensitive skin. Ryan’s gaze turned to mine as my lips caressed his cheek. With eyes wide, he placed his hand on my face and brushed a loose strand of hair away from my face. I couldn’t take my eyes off of his face, I was somehow mesmerized by his touch, his look, his presence. As our eyes locked, Ryan pulled me to him and crushed his lips to mine. As our movements became heavy and calculated, I found myself climbing on top of his lap, pulling his face closer to mine as our kisses intensified.
Removing my lips from his, I pulled back and caught my breath. Breathing heavily too, Ryan smiled at me as I moved myself away from him and sat back on my side of the seat. “Wow,” I stated, as I touched my fingers to my lips. I had been kissed before, several times, but never in my life had anyone kissed me like that. I swear his lips touching mine made me feel like I was dancing in heaven.
“Madelyn, that was… exactly how I had imagined it would be. Incredible,” Ryan said, as he leaned against the door of his truck.
The light turned green but Ryan didn’t budge. We just sat silent again for seemed like forever. Finally, Ryan placed his foot on the ignition and placed the car in drive again. We began to drive. Nowhere and everywhere all at once. “Where do you want to go?” he asked. “I have no idea where I’m going,” he finished with a laugh.
“I know the perfect place,” I said, as I faced the windshield.
***
Ryan pulled into the parking spot in the empty lot. Not a soul would be crazy enough to be at a neighborhood park at midnight, except for us. Jumping out of the truck, Ryan ran around to the passenger door and swiftly opened the door before I could place my hand on the handle. Opening the door, he grabbed my hand and closed the door.
“What do you want to do?” he asked, as we began to walk down the long and windy cement path leading to a playset area.
“Let’s swing,” I replied, as I began leading him toward the swing-set. I hadn’t swung since I was a little kid and right now I felt like doing something different and crazy and fun.
Breaking his hold on my hand, Ryan ran forward. “Race ya,” he called back to me.
Laughing, I lunged forward and sprinted toward the swings. “No fair,” I called, as I ran to move past him.
We reached the swings at the same time and we both bundled over in laughter as we realized how silly we probably looked. We both jumped on a swing and began kicking and pumping our legs in the air. As I began to soar higher in the air, butterflies danced in my belly as a rush of pure adrenaline soared through me. I hadn't felt this alive in years and I didn’t want to lose that feeling. Looking around, I watched as my legs seemed to disappear into the darkness of the night. For a moment, I pretended like I was an astronaut soaring through space. Alone in the galaxy with only my thoughts and Ryan.
After a few minutes, Ryan broke the peaceful silence. “This is fun and all, but I didn’t come here tonight to sit so far away from you.”
Slowing my pace, I turned to Ryan as I slowly descended back to earth. “What do you have in mind,” I asked with a hint of a mischievous smile.
Jumping off his swing like he was a kid, Ryan walked over and stopped my swing. With both arms placed on the chains holding my swing, Ryan leaned in and placed a sweet kiss on my lips. Without uttering another word, he picked me up and began to carry me toward a large, open space of grass in the park. Toward the back of the park was a lush forest area, but where Ryan was carrying me was open and had a perfect spot to lay and watch the stars. I had remembered coming to this very park when I was a kid. My parents would watch me play on the playground and then we would have picnic lunches in this same open area. I don’t know exactly why I chose this place for Ryan and me to go, but now that we were here, I couldn’t imagine being anywhere else in the world with him.
Laying me down on the ground, Ryan leaned down and placed himself next to me. Placing our heads side by side, Ryan and I began to stare up at the bright stars shining down on us.
“You know, this is one of the best nights of my life,” Ryan said, as he turned his head to look at me.
“I know what you mean?” I asked.
“Why did you want to come get me?” I asked. I knew I was probably ruining the magical and romantic moment with my question, but I had to know. I needed to know him.
Leaning up on his elbows, Ryan chuckled to himself. “I kind of hoped we could just pretend we had been lifelong friends who decided to just fall in love with a wild night,” he mused.
“Come on, I’m serious,” I giggled, as I leaned up
next to him. “I mean, you sort of kidnapped me here. I just want to know who you are.”
“Oh, so I kidnapped you?” he joked back. He threw his head back and I watched as his hair danced around his head. “Okay, well what do you want to know?” he asked.
“What is your favorite type of music? What foods do you love? How old are you? Why are you out at midnight looking for teenage girls?” I asked, as the questions began to pour out of me.
“Wow, I feel like I am being interrogated here,” Ryan mused. “Okay, I like hard rock music. I love pizza and cheese sticks, I am eighteen and start college in the fall at a small engineering college in New Jersey. I didn’t go searching for teenage girls, I went looking for the most beautiful girl I had ever seen in my life. I went looking for a girl who in one smile and one breath stole my heart and made me do something so insane as to sneak out of my grandparent's house in the middle of the night in a foreign town to find a girl who I don’t even know.”
As his words invaded my body, I couldn’t stop the strong beat of my heart as I realized that Ryan, a boy who I had just met from New Jersey, was somehow becoming a spark in my life.
“You know what New Jersey boy, I think I am starting to kind of like you,” I said, as I leaned over and covered my mouth above his. Teasing his lips, I refused to allow mine to touch his. I wanted to see how long he could last before we both went absolutely crazy.
Slowly pushing himself forward, Ryan tried to connect our lips, but I kept moving my face back until I fell back onto the soft grass under me. Leaning over the top of me, Ryan began to kiss me softly, our tongues dancing as I parted my lips to allow him access.
We lay in the grass that night, kissing and talking and sharing our lives and stories with one another. We continued with our mission to get to know the other until the sky began to turn a shade of red and orange as the sun began to rise and light up the night sky.
As Ryan drove me back to my house, I watched as the sun finally made its full appearance in the morning sky. I wasn’t stupid. I knew that tonight was probably the last time I would ever see Ryan. He didn’t live here. He had a life in another state that he would eventually get back to. This was not going to be a mistake. I was going to enjoy every drop of my time with Ryan and remember him as my New Jersey boy.
As I crept back into my house, I turned and watched as Ryan drove away. Leaning against my front door, I sighed and smiled to myself. Walking up to my bedroom, I walked past my parent's bedroom door and listened as they slept silently in their bed. Crawling into my own bed, I curled up in my blankets and closed my eyes and replayed my night with the New Jersey boy in my head.
CHAPTER 4
The next afternoon I woke to the sun shining brightly in my face. With a smile, I stretched my arms above my head. I had dreamed throughout my sleep of Ryan’s face and the possibility of what could have happened. As I rolled over, prepared to get up and spend a lazy afternoon alone, I saw that my phone was bright with alerts of missed text messages.
Checking my phone, I saw several messages from Ryan. To say I was shocked was an understatement.
Ryan: Are you still sleeping?
Ryan: What are your plans for today?
Ryan: Are you still sleeping?
I read over the texts and laughed to myself.
Me: You are very needy.
I teased and bit my lip as I waited for his response.
Ryan: I know, I’m such a girl.
Me: Hey! Anyway, yes I was sleeping. Now I’m awake.
Ryan: Can you meet me in an hour?
I checked my clock beside my bed. It was after ten in the morning and my parents should be arriving home sometime around noon. I needed to get up and shower and clean up a little before they got home and saw the mess I had left in the kitchen.
Me: Sure, but I have to do a few things around here first. What did you have in mind?
I wasn’t sure really what there was to do around this small town. I was sure he had more exciting places to venture to in New Jersey, unlike the horse farms and city fair that rolled into town at the beginning of summer vacation. I could show him around town and maybe hang out at the park for a while, but other than that I wasn’t sure what else we could do. Well, I could think of a couple of things we could do…
Ryan: I’m not sure. All I’ve done here is visit family and go eat at a few restaurants. What do you all do for fun around here?”
Thinking his question over, I decided to be truthful.
Me: We go somewhere else.
Ryan: I will see you in an hour.
I put my phone down and began getting ready for the day. After a long, warm shower I dressed in a pair of cute cut-off jean shorts, a purple tank top, and my favorite pair of brown cowboy boots. Hey, if I was going to show him around my small Kentucky town, I was going to represent while doing it. I somehow managed to get all my dirty dishes collected around the house and piled into the dishwasher just as my parents drove into our long driveway. When they entered the house, my mom waved hello to me as she carried her suitcase to their first-floor master bedroom. My dad made his way to the kitchen where I was busy wiping down the white marble countertops. Everything in our kitchen was white from the cabinets to the tile on the floor, to the countertops. My mom loved a clean and boring house. Me, I wanted a little color. I swore that when I grew up and had a place of my own, I would have a different color in every room.
“Hey Maddi, how was your weekend?” my dad asked, as he walked over to the refrigerator and grabbed himself a cold bottle of water.
I watched as his gray eyes looked around the kitchen, making sure I had kept it clean so my mom wouldn't freak out too much. He looked relaxed in a pair of khaki pants and a navy blue polo shirt. His brown hair looked messy, not gelled and styled like he usually wore it to work. It was nice seeing him comfortable, he was always so busy and stressed with work.
“It was good,” I replied. I sat down at one of the island bar stools. “I worked most of the weekend and then hung out with Reagan and Mariah last night,” I finished.
I decided to leave out my little adventure with Ryan. I didn’t think my dad would want to hear about how I left my house in the middle of the night to see a boy I had just met. My parents were never strict on me or really gave me any rules, but I was certain that information might change that.
“That sounds nice. What are your plans today? I need to go to the office and get caught up on some paperwork and your mom wants to rest from our trip,” he finished as he offered me a smile.
I tried to hide my eye roll as he told me my mom needed to rest from her vacation. Truth was, my mom wasn’t really a mother. Sure she gave birth to me, but besides that, she hadn't really done much for me. Once she realized having a baby wasn’t just playing dress up and was actual work and required her full attention, she had hired around the clock nannies to watch and care for me. She honestly didn’t know what to do with me for much of my years growing up. I had learned to rely on my nannies or myself for anything I needed and that included affection. Once I turned sixteen, my mom got rid of my nannies and I was left to truly be alone and fend for myself. I missed them, not because I liked them or had some deep emotional attachment to any of them. But, I missed having people around. I missed not being lonely.
Shaking my head, I brought myself back to my current situation and out of my own internal pity party.
“I was going to go hang out with a friend, but I am not sure what we are going to do,” I said. I wasn’t technically lying. At least I don’t think I was lying.
“That sounds nice. Driving home, I saw the fairgrounds were busy. Maybe you all could go enjoy some carnival rides and greasy food,” Dad chuckled to himself. Patting me on my back, he left the room and went into his home office. I was sure he was gathering some paperwork to take with him to his law office downtown.
Leaving me alone again, I texted Ryan as I realized what we could do today.
Me: I am leaving my house in ten minutes. How do
you feel about Ferris Wheels?
Ryan: I am waiting outside. And… I love them.
***
Ten minutes later I pulled in front of Ryan’s grandparents’ home. They lived in a cute, ranch style house sitting on five acres of open space. I had passed by their house every day of my life and never paid it any attention. Now, as I looked at the red brick outlining the frame and the white, wrap around front porch, I realized how welcoming the house really was.
Waving, Ryan spotted me as I pulled into the driveway. Walking to my car, he opened the passenger door and got in. I was hit by the sweet aroma of cinnamon and spices and I almost began to drool.
“Hey,” I said as he turned to face me.
“Hey,” Ryan replied back with a smirk. “Where are you taking me today?”
As I began to drive, I made sure to keep my eyes locked on the road ahead and not on Ryan’s charming face. From the light of the restaurant and the dark night, I didn’t really have a good chance to look at his face. Now, in the bright sunlight, I realized he was more than breathtaking. His hair was a golden yellow and his wavy locks were just the right amount of messy. His blue eyes were trimmed in long lashes and his chiseled jaw and dimples seemed to be made out of perfection.
Keeping my brain focused was a difficult task with Ryan sitting beside me. “I thought it might be fun to show you around downtown and then maybe go to the county fair. It is sort of lame, but it’s all we have around here,” I said with a slight smile.
“Hey, that sounds nice to me. I sort of like the slow charm of Kentucky,” Ryan said as he began watching the rolling hills pass by as I drove by several horse farms. “Where I am from in New Jersey, we live in a big city and everything is so fast paced, it’s hard to catch your breath sometimes.”
“I noticed there weren't many cars in the driveway. Where is your family today?” I asked trying to keep the conversation rolling.