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It did. When I first moved back, I was hollow– empty, sad. The rain was suffocating. I hardly went outside at all. I didn’t go hiking or visit the mountains. I didn’t go into the forest. I didn’t appreciate the trees or the smell of the rain on them. I didn’t notice the green. The air didn’t feel light and fresh. I never noticed the saltwater in the breeze– the way it feels now. The world still felt dreary and small, the way it felt in England. I didn’t go to the ocean, not one single time. Not until that morning with Carter a few weeks ago. “At first it still felt like that. But I don’t know, over the last few months I’ve been growing to appreciate it.”
He nodded, as if agreeing with me.
I leaned my head against the window and propped my feet up, watching the shade of the pines and the evergreens become deeper as the day brightened.
Carter squeezed my hand again, and I’d never felt more at home.
? ? ?
The only sound that seemed to echo for miles was the sound of the gravel underneath our feet. Still early in the morning, the path was deserted. Underneath a thick canopy of cedar, we trudged along the seemingly never-ending trail. Even though the morning was chilly, the sun beat down overhead. The trail wasn’t particularly steep, but after what felt like hours (it had been one) of hiking, I was panting.
We’d only stopped a few times. All our breaks had been because Carter found trash on the trail and wanted to stop and pick it up. He even brought an empty reusable grocery bag to fill with any litter he found today, so he could recycle it once we got back home.
“How far is the hike in?”
“Three miles in, three miles out, baby,” he chimed from several paces ahead of me.
“Shit,” I panted.
“We’re almost there, Pep.” He was right, because only a hundred or so yards down the trail, we veered off down an embankment that led to a rocky waterfall.
“Oh my God,” I gasped as the landscape came into full view. The morning sun sparkled, just as Carter promised it would, over crystal clear green water. The only sounds in the space around us were the chirping birds and the creek as it plummeted over the rock face and into the pool below.
I found myself struggling out of my boots as I stumbled, desperate for my toes to touch the calm, crystalline water as it lapped at the shore of the pool. The entire world existed in shades of green and gold in this silent space. The vivid shade of the moss meshed with the evergreen of the trees and the brightly colored wildflowers that sprouted throughout the banks. The water was so transparent that it reflected all the colors around it, including the bright blue sky and the sunlight, making it truly appear translucent opal. “It’s so beautiful,” I whispered as I sat down on the flattest rock I could find along the shore.
Realizing for the first time that he hadn’t said anything, I pulled my gaze from the setting in front of me and looked at Carter. He’d been watching me. His hands were on his hips as he stood above me at the top of the bank. His backpack was still on, his camera hanging around his neck. “Breathtaking.”
An effortless grin broke out from my cheeks.
I nodded towards the waterfall. “Get to work.”
He saluted me. “Yes, ma’am.”
I watched him for a long while. He brought all kinds of camera contraptions that I couldn’t even begin to understand. He’d move all around the area, taking photos of different things. Sometimes he explained to me what he was doing, as if I had any clue what long exposure meant, or why he needed a tripod. Regardless, I’d listen to him forever. I’d watch him forever.
“Pep?” His voice was soft, breaking me from my trance. I realized he was standing ankle deep in the pool of water behind his tripod as his camera sat on top of it facing the waterfall.
“Yes?”
“I asked if you’d put your feet in yet.”
I shook my head. I stood up and stepped forward, into the water. It was exceedingly frigid, but nearly welcoming as the sun beat down on us. I bent down and ran my hand through the water. Despite the waterfall plummeting into the far end of the pool, the water lapping at my feet moved so slowly, it almost appeared still. I watched the ripples my hand created as they cascaded beyond my reach. “Penelope?”
I snapped my head up at him and blinked, wondering if I’d been lost in my own thoughts once again, unable to hear him.
“Will you…will you get in the water?”
I scowled, thinking he was making a joke. “Absolutely fucking not.” The water couldn’t be warmer than fifty degrees.
“Pep.” His voice was an unwavering plea. Almost desperate. “I have never, not once, been interested in photographing another person. Not until now.”
My scowl deepened into something puzzled. “Me? You want to photographme?”
He nodded.
“Why?”
He swallowed. “I’ve never thought anyone was more beautiful than the landscape around them. I’ve always been more drawn to nature than people. Until now. You are more compelling to me than anything else here. You are pulling all of my focus. Let me photograph you. Please.”
