Windows of the Soul

The day dragged by slowly, and I didn’t really pay attention during any of my classes. Something about log functions and a presentation in English, but my mind was occupied with other things. Namely, Jace.

I stared down the clock that was ticking quietly in Biology last period. My fingertips tapped on the desk as Mr. Thomas droned on and on about ecology. Biology was so not my strong point. I flipped a few pages in my notebook, coming across the tree I had drawn on the day people began talking about Jace. I stared at it, running my finger over the rough-like texture I had drawn. Thinking, I flipped back to my current page of notes and started to draw.

I was so preoccupied drawing that I didn’t even hear the bell ring. Penny tapped me on the shoulder, and I turned in my seat. She was standing up and looking down at me. She glanced at the door and I remembered Jace’s note. I had told her about it at lunch. Jace wasn’t in school today, so we didn’t have a chance to talk at all before our date.

“Thank you,” I whispered to her, dumping everything into my backpack. The drawing would have to wait for another day.

After driving for a while, I pulled into an empty parking space next to the park. It was the first one I found, and I didn’t want to circle around before this one was taken. I jumped out, locked the car behind me, and started to walk through the park. A couple of times I peeked into bushes, trying to find the small meadow Jace had taken me to. Finally I found it, and I couldn’t believe my eyes.

Jace was sprawled out on a picnic blanket, and a picnic basket sat at his side. The sun shown perfectly on his face, leaving me breathless. He didn’t realize I was here yet, and he was looking around the small enclosure. I stepped through, and his head swiveled until he found me. He smiled and I went and sat beside him. He pulled my closer and kissed me tenderly on the lips.

“Hello,” he said flirtatiously. I smiled and leaned into him. “Nuh uh uh, not yet,” he said, leaning me back up. He pulled the picnic basket over and started to lay out food. My mouth watered as he took out the crackers and the cheese, the grapes, and the water. He sliced a chunk of cheese from the square, placed it on a cracker, and gave it to me. The tastes exploded in my mouth.

“And where did you come up with this idea?” I asked him teasingly. He made a cracker for himself and popped it into his mouth. I pulled a grape off the stem and leaned back on my elbows, staring at him with my chin on my chest.

“I’m a romantic; it happens,” he said. I smiled and we continued to eat. I looked around and saw several butterflies playing tag with each other. Birds chirped in the distance. It was so romantic, and sweet. After we finished the cheese and crackers and fed the last grapes to the birds and chipmunks that had scattered around us, Jace laid down next to me on his back. I released the weight off my elbows and we both stared at the blue sky. Clouds were starting to roll in; the black, angry ones that always made Tessa nervous. The sun was still shining, though, so we remained with locked hands staring.

“Thank you,” I said. It was so sweet, and a lovely gesture. A little voice in my head reminded me that he still hadn’t asked me to Homecoming, but I wasn’t worried about that then.

Jace let go of my hand and rolled over, so he was above me, his weight on his hands and knees. I looked up at him, with the sun shining to the right of his head. We stared at each other, and I grabbed his shirt and pulled him down into a passionate kiss. He let his body relax on mine a little more, and I hungrily pulled him until we were body-to-body. A faint sound of thunder happened in the distance, but it didn’t perturb us. We kissed, and I rolled over so I was laying on his stomach. He was breathing heavily, but his arms were tight around my waist. I leaned my head down until it rested on his chest, and we laid like that, not kissing or speaking, but it was utterly romantic.

I didn’t know how long it was later that I got up off of Jace. He looked questioningly at me. My muscles were stiff, so I stretched them and stood up. Jace followed suit. The thunder was growing louder, and I was afraid a large storm would come and wipe this perfect moment away.

I helped Jace roll the blanket up and put it in the picnic basket. I turned and looked over my shoulder, to make sure nothing was left. When I turned back around Jace stood there, the picnic basket by his feet. He took my hands, looked me straight in the eye, and asked, “Will you come to Homecoming with me?”

I squealed, saying “Yes!” He put my hands up around his neck and we kissed. That’s when the rain began to pour. We kissed in the rain, his fingers in my hair and mine in his. We kissed until I was breathless, and soaked. My clothes hung tightly to my body. I could feel Jace’s eyes on me when we went back through the dripping leaves to the park sidewalk. We ran playfully through the pouring rain to my car. I kissed him goodbye and he ran the other direction, winking at me before disappearing around the corner. I jumped into the car, not caring I was completely soaking the seat. The smile didn’t leave my face as I drove back home, water dripping off me.