AllFreeNovel
Share Us
One Year, I Love You!
I SCREAMED AT the top of my lungs as I was launched into the air, hanging on to the side handles of the raft, the force of the water sending more than just mist into my face. If I didn't die from drowning, I would surely die of a heart attack. We were headed down a class IV rapid, and aside from holding on for dear life, I just wanted to vomit from paralyzing fear.
I yelled over the organized chaos in the boat, "I'm going to kill you, Mr. Brandt, if I survive this!" He was sitting right next to me.
"I love you, Bay!" he shouted back.
And there it was. The first time he said “I love you”. I was stunned. Why was he telling me this now? Did he think we were going to die? After we had made it to the calm waters below and were gliding across safely, a couple of people jumped out of the raft to swim while Tessa and Grady chatted with the guide. There were eight of us in the raft, the other three being strangers, and then the guide.
Not saying anything back in regards to the spontaneous “I love you” was giving me anxiety. He had said it in a very stressful situation, and it had already been many minutes after, so it seemed out of place for me to say it back. I wasn't even sure I wanted to address it yet. My stomach was tensing from the apprehension those three little words were producing.
"You okay?" he asked.
"Yep," was all I could say quickly.
Tessa turned to us. "That was awesome. I love this trip. The guide said that was the last class IV, so you can stop killing Brandt now." She laughed.
"Ha-ha." I stuck my tongue out at her.
The guide announced, "We are heading to the rendezvous point to meet with the other groups and set up camp for the night."
Everyone climbed back inside the raft, and we worked together to reach our destination. We hit a few smaller rapids, but those I considered fun. One of the other rafters with us even jumped out and rode the rapid next to us. Brandt was slowly pulling me out of all my comfort zones and challenging my limits. This was high on that list. Saying I was terrified when he mentioned the group trip would be an understatement. It took him a week to convince me, with promises of lots of alone time on the river to get me to go.
I was still waiting for the alone time.
"You owe me," I said in my most alluring voice.
"Oh, I got you covered, babe." He winked.
I was anxious to be alone with him. In a good way. He had been waiting so patiently for me to be ready, and now that I was I couldn’t wait a second longer. This was the first time we would be spending a whole night together. I knew Grady and Tessa had already slept together. In fact, I knew too much. They, at least, waited until she was eighteen, which completely shocked me. Call me old-fashioned, but I wanted the first time to be with someone I loved. And I knew, without a doubt, that I loved Brandt.
Once we beached, the guides for all the groups cooked us a feast, and then we all sat on the riverbed and ate. There were probably about forty or so people camping together. We were all about the same age, and the guides turned a blind eye to the alcohol and occasional joint being passed around. The four of us were on the far end of the crowd.
"I brought something to help us celebrate today." Tessa smiled.
She was digging through a backpack sitting next to her. We were all crowded on a blanket.
"Tessa, you know I don't smoke," I reminded her.
She pulled out a handful of sparklers. "I know, which is why I brought these for you while I smoke." She giggled.
She handed a couple to Brandt and me.
"Babe, let's go find a more private spot," Tessa said to Grady.
As they stood up, Tessa tossed me a lighter for the sparklers.
"Won't you need this?" I asked.
She waved another lighter in front of me. "I always come prepared. See you later." They started to leave, "Oh, and sis, happy birthday." She blew me a kiss.
"Thanks." This trip was Brandt's birthday present to me, and he knew I wouldn't go without Tessa. It had also been almost a year since we had met.
The crowd was getting rowdier as the alcohol started taking effect.
"Let's go down the river a little more." Brandt nibbled on my ear and my body quivered.
I was hoping tonight would be the night we finally slept together. I was twenty-one today and way overdue. Brandt was four years older than me and I knew he wasn’t a virgin, but I chose not to ask details. I wasn’t the girl who needed to know her boyfriend had a past. I wanted to be the girlfriend that made him forget everyone before me.
