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Forrest Hickman.
He’d turned it all around. My mood, my day—everything.
I didn’t get a whole lot of time with him yesterday, but the little that I had gotten was wonderful. We wound up making another run down a rather long trail yesterday, and all along the way, he’d offered me a bunch of pointers that helped tremendously.
I was by no means a professional snowboarder. I couldn’t even say I was a seasoned enthusiast. I was a beginner, and I was okay with that.
By the time we finished, there was no denying I’d felt the happiest I had in a while. I had genuinely enjoyed myself, and when Forrest asked me if I wanted to meet up this morning to have a full day of riding together, I couldn’t bring myself to turn him down.
Despite the small part of me that wondered if I was making a mistake, I accepted his invitation. Because there was the other part of me that told me it was unreasonable to believe I’d be making a mistake to enjoy a day of snowboarding with a handsome guy who seemed keen on teaching me.
Could he have had other motivations? Sure. But that didn’t necessarily mean his intentions were bad. He was alone on this trip—the same as me. What was the harm in enjoying spending some time together?
It wasn’t as though Forrest had managed to seek me out intentionally, so he could execute some evil plan on me. Our meeting had been entirely by accident.
And deep down in my bones, I was still who I was. I liked people, enjoyed conversation, and loved trying out new things. Maybe Forrest and I hadn’t had any meaningful conversations just yet—something I wasn’t entirely sure I was ready for at this point—but we did have a great time for the short time we were together yesterday. I wasn’t opposed to having more of that, even if that was all that I got.
So, I got up this morning, got myself ready, and left the resort to head over to the lodge, where Forrest and I had decided to meet up with one another this morning. Since he was staying in the private cabins, which were opposite of where I was staying, we figured the lodge was the most logical, neutral spot to meet and not particularly far for either one of us.
By the time I made my final approach to the lodge, I realized we never specified whether we’d meet inside or out. Fortunately, my tardiness worked to my advantage, because Forrest was walking up at the same time as I was.
The moment our eyes locked, his face lit up.
If there was one observation that could be made about Forrest in such a short time, it was the dichotomy between his physical size and the welcoming nature of him. Forrest didn’t put off intimidating vibes, even if his body said the opposite.
Granted, he’d been wearing layers yesterday, so I didn’t have conclusive proof, but I couldn’t miss the truth that had smacked me in the face. The man had no problem easily lifting me back up onto the chairlift when I fell, and I had felt his arms around me when he came around the corner and nearly crashed into me. I was willing to go out on a limb and say there was something impressive waiting beneath all the snowboarding gear.
And from what he’d shown me so far, it was safe to say Forrest seemed like the kind of guy who simply wanted to enjoy life and have fun. He reminded me a lot of myself in that regard.
Though I knew it was hardly possible, I wondered if he had similar reasons for being here on a solo trip, too.
“Good morning, Daisy,” he greeted me, a smile on his face.
Pleasant.
So pleasant.
I returned the smile. “Good morning, Forrest.”
“You don’t know how relieved I was to see you walking up here at the same time as me. I am usually very punctual, so when I woke up late this morning because I’d gone to bed later than normal, I was worried you’d be standing out here in the cold waiting for me.”
Laughing, I revealed, “I’m habitually late to everything, which I know is a serious problem, but at least it worked out in this case.”
His eyes danced. “How are you feeling this morning?”
“Much sorer than I had anticipated, but in a good way, I guess.”
“Are you still up for riding today?” he asked.
I nodded. “Absolutely. I actually feel really good about it.”
“That’s great. I wound up doing some thinking last night after I was back at my cabin. I want you to succeed with this, so even though we did some longer trails in the afternoon yesterday, I think you might benefit from a couple hours on the beginner hill, so you can really practice the basics without the intimidating terrain.”
For a moment, I stood there, silently staring at him.
I didn’t know why, but I loved knowing that even though Forrest and I had gone back to our separate places last night, he didn’t stop thinking about me. I’d spent a good chunk of my night thinking about him—the reason I hadn’t managed to fall asleep at a reasonable hour. Was the reason he’d had trouble falling asleep last night because he was thinking about me?
“Listen, you’ve seen my skills on the mountain. I might have had three or four lessons as a kid, but I don’t remember much from them. If you think I could benefit from a morning of running skills and drills on the beginner hill, I’ll take your word for it,” I returned.
