The silence between us swelled. Gale was locked up so tight, I didn’t know how to break down his walls and drag us to even ground.
“Sorry if I made you uncomfortable. I have a runaway mouth and tend to say what’s on my mind.”
His cheeks took on color, but he shook his head. “It’s fine. I’m not uncomfortable.”
I laughed. “Yeah, okay. Your pants are on fire, liar, liar.”
I earned another faint smile and inwardly cheered.
In time, he peeked up from under his lashes.
We stared at one another in silence as the rain drummed the Jeep’s hardtop. I wanted to tell him he was cute, but knew it would only freak him out, so I scrambled for another line of conversation.
Spotting his mud-covered camera case in the footwell, I asked, “Can I see that?”
He followed my gaze and frowned. “My camera? Why?”
“I’m bored. I’ll be careful.”
Without waiting for an answer, I snagged the strap and pulled it onto my lap. Unzipping the case, I pulled the fancy device from within. I didn’t know much about photography or cameras, but I examined it like I did. It contained more dials, buttons, and knobs than I expected, and I puzzled them individually, guessing at their functions.
“Where’s the screen? How do you see the pictures you’ve taken?”
“You don’t. It’s a thirty-five-millimeter film camera. I develop them at home.”
“No shit. Is it an antique?”
Gale’s lips twitched before a smile broke through. “No.”
“Huh.” I flipped it upside down and discovered the covered section where the film went. “I didn’t know they still made them like this.”
“They do.”
I removed the lens cap and peered through the viewfinder, aiming out the rain-splattered window. “How do I work it. Everything is blurry.”
“It’s complicated.”
“I’ve got nowhere to be. Talk me through it.”
It seemed to take him a second to decide if I was serious, but he shuffled closer and motioned for me to give him the camera. The tutorial that followed rang with pride. Gale’s face lit up like I’d never seen, bleeding passion for his hobby.
“There are a lot of settings,” he explained. “This is your focus ring, and here is your zoom lens. Don’t worry about the mode. I was already taking pictures, so it’s set properly. Over here, you’ve got your light meter, shutter speed, aperture, and ISO setting.”
“ISO?”
“It determines how sensitive the image sensor is to light. When used in conjunction with your aperture and shutter settings, you can—”
“Whoa. I don’t understand a thing you’re saying. Give me the camera, and I’ll fiddle with it until it works.”
Humor danced in his eyes as he handed it back.
I made a few adjustments, turned knobs and pushed buttons, as I peered from the viewfinder out the window. The worldbeyond was never quite in focus. I wanted to blame the rain for hindering the shot, but the amateur operator was likely the cause.
Gale seemed reservedly amused. His eyes sparkled each time I grumbled and fiddled with switches and knobs.
“What? Am I messing it up?”
“Probably.”
