I'm in the opening of the woods, I dressed to impress, well, the best someone can in exercise clothes. I'm wearing black fitted yoga pants, charcoal Under Armor zip up equipped with thumb holes and a bright aqua wicking tank top just barely visible under the ¾ zipped top layer. I matched this tank to my trail running shoes, it was all very well thought out. I'm nervous, anticipating your arrival, so I kneel down to "double check" how my shoes are tied, making sure no loose laces will increase my risk of stumbling, even though I'm sure my tongue will do all the stumbling I need for the day. As I look up from my third attempt at the perfect knot on my right shoe I see you standing in front of me, hand on your hip, nervous smile on your face. I have to admit I wasn't sure if you would even show up; I had updated my iPod with angry, rage metal just in case you stood me up. I wanted to make sure that I could push out all of my feelings in case the result wasn't what I was hoping for. You are adorable, you are in matching tight lycra navy blue long sleeve top and bottom, mp3 player clipped to the hem of your shirt, a tiny bit of naked abdomen flesh peeking out, my gaze halts there, I hope you don't notice.
I shake myself out of my trance long enough to smile at you broadly, "Glad you made it, I wasn't expecting to kneel in front of you so early in our relationship," I wink and feign concern. You giggle and bring your hand to your mouth, almost embarrassed by how quickly I have disarmed your defenses. I'm charming; I know that, it's my best weapon, why wouldn't I use it? I hop up quickly, wiping my sweaty palms off on my pants, and step towards you to wrap you in a gentle one armed hug. You press your arm closely against my back and linger a little longer than you should. I smile over your shoulder, as I realize we're about to embark on a fun journey that I get to lead.
"So, I thought we would take a nice leisure route today, over some easy-medium trails along the center path to the peak and back. All in all it's about 2 miles, but at an easy pace its completely manageable." I spit that last bit out quickly, hoping to quell any fears you may have.
"Sounds great, I hope I can keep up," you smile slyly and glance ahead of us on the path. We both know you are the better athlete here, but today is not a competition, it's an "active get to know each other date." Or non-date, I'm not quite sure, since we haven't talked about it.
We exchange a few more pleasantries and I gently stretch my legs before we take off on our run. I have my iPod on lightly in the background but only one earbud in my ear. I want to hear you breathing and moving next to me, keeping my senses in tune with your actions. We ramp up to a steady pace side by side, a pace I can maintain for 2 miles, I hope. I take you along my favorite stretch of path, over roots and under branches, along a man-made stone path with a shallow brook on our right. Across a foot bridge with multi-colored speckled stones and light green moss. I turn to our left and lead you a little off the beaten path through an inclined hill that is so narrow you cannot run beside me, but behind me instead. I miss you in this moment, as I am accustomed to my breathing matching with yours. I have no idea what has been playing on my iPod, although in this moment I realize its Christmas Music and this fricking thing has obviously shuffled itself off of my rock mix. I chuckle to myself silently as we get to the top of the incline and I slow my pace to a trot waiting for you to rejoin me at my side. I found this path a few months ago when I got lost while hiking alone because I wasn't paying attention to the map.
As you get to my side, I hear you let out a gentle gasp and I feel you reach out and lightly touch my arm, and I beam knowingly at you as we both stop our trot. "It's beautiful!" you exclaimed breathlessly. "How did you find it?"
"Well that's sort of a long embarrassing story, I will save us both the awkwardness and summarize it as, um, an accident." I turn my gaze to match your line of sight and am again surprised by the beauty of this spot. At the top of our incline is a small expanse of grass that is in the shape of a crescent. At the edge of the crescent the path drops dramatically overlooking a large open field below of tall grass and perfectly scattered trees. Nature's placement may be random, but it could not have been more picturesque in its shaping. There is a clearly visible heart shape at the center of the field made from high and low trees of varying widths, the foliage giving it a blended color range of red, orange and yellow. It looks like it's on fire as it sways gently in the breeze, evoking a warm feeling in my chest every time I see it. Since I found this spot, I make it a point to return when I need to clear my head, the unexpected heart shape was originally what drew me here, but as the seasons changed I've been coming more frequently to see the colors melt into each other. It's the perfect picture of simplicity in a wild, untamed forest. "Do you see it? Can you believe it just formed there?" I ask almost incredulously, like fate had nothing and everything to do with it. You stare off at the view your mouth still slightly open and nod, deep in thought. Your hand is still on my arm, I like the warmth of it, and I touch your hand gently with my fingertips to bring you back to me.
You turn your head quickly toward me when you feel my touch and smile subtly before teasing, "If this is your attempt to seduce me into a second date by showing me the most beautiful, natural heart I have ever seen, then you are succeeding." I smile and blush, looking back at our perfect view and gentle tug at your hand to join me off to the right. There is a flat plane of grass by a large smooth rock to sit on and admire the view; close enough for unobstructed gazing, but far enough from the edge to be comfortable. You come with me eagerly and I feel you fingers dance curiously in my fingers as I can tell you are unsure whether to be lead by your hand or to intertwine your fingers with mine. As though you hear my thoughts you gently slip your fingers between mine and into a loose finger lock.
"I thought we might hang out here a bit and catch up, you know, before I race you back down the trail for snacks," I playfully nudge your shoulder with mine as we sit.
"We'll see about that," you give me a sideways grin.
I unlock our fingers to lean back on the rock, placing my palms flat onto the smooth, cold surface into a slight reclining position. You turn your body slightly toward me, dropping back onto your elbows, I watch as you admire the trees and branches over head. We are at the edge of the upper forest area, but still sheltered from the direct sunlight above us. There is a crispness to the air, clean and spruce-y in smell. Its quiet here, that is until I realize that my iPod is still on and playing Taylor Swift Holiday mix in the background. I groan in embarrassment and switch it to the off position. If you heard it, you pretend not to notice and silently turn off your mp3 player as well. You slip the cord out from under your shirt revealing a slick sweat line on the flat surface of your abdomen as you pull the ear buds out of the bottom of your shirt. I let my gaze linger on the sweat line I know runs under your breasts down your shirt. You put your hand flat on your stomach, still propped up on your elbows and twirl the cord of your mp3 player absentmindedly with your other hand.
"Do you run here a lot?" you ask quietly while looking out over the expanse below, pupils dilated and relaxed.
"I come here when I need to think, blow off some steam, and find myself. Sometimes it's the only place that I feel like I can hear my own thoughts clearly, like, everywhere else it's just jumbled, undecipherable noise," I reply quietly, letting myself look at your profile intently, watching your shoulders rise and fall slowly with your even breathing.
"I can completely see that, it's very peaceful here," you slowly turn your gaze back to me, looking deeply into my eyes with your perfect blue irises.
I look back at you, cataloging the angles of your cheek bones, shape of your mouth, slight arches of your eyebrows. You reach up and brush a rogue hair off of your forehead, gently wiping your brow in the same motion. You smile at me, and I realize I haven't stopped looking at you in what must seem like a long time. I feel the heat rise in my face as I break our eye contact and lean back onto my elbows, mirroring your position.
"You know, you surprise me with your depth sometimes," you say almost as though directed to no one before turning slightly onto your side to face me, "I don't think I would have pegged you as a romantic," you say with a small, warm smile.
"I don't know how I feel about being 'pegged,'" I counter teasingly, "although I guess I could make an exception if it were you doing the 'pegging.'"
You flash a wicked grin and chuckle a deep throaty laugh, raising your eyebrows slightly in mock surprise. I lean toward you instinctively, drawn by the curvature of your lips. You meet me in the middle, slipping your left hand across the distance between us and gently tugging the hem of my charcoal zip up. I stretch my neck towards yours and gently turn my head to lightly kiss your cheek. You shift your weight on the rock to pressing your mouth firmly against mine in a warm, electrifying kiss. I groan quietly into your lips and reach up to cup your face in my hand. When my fingers find their way into your hair I feel you smile against my mouth and open yours slightly, encouraging me to enter with my tongue. I tentatively slide my tongue against your parted lips, quickly met by your own. We dance this close tango as we explore each other's mouth for the first time. I feel your finger tips trace the hem of my zip up, walking a gentle path out to my hip. You slowly flatten your hand on my hip bone, squeezing it softly as you press your mouth more firmly against mine. I let myself lean back on the rock, carefully guiding your head to follow mine with the hand I have holding your face and neck. You lean in easily following my lead and propping yourself up on your right elbow while your left palm lingers at my hip. I run my fingers down your back from your hair line, settling at the small of your back. My left hand gently pulls at your earlobe as I suck you lower lip into my mouth with a quiet popping noise. You purr against my lips and lower the weight of your torso onto mine.
We stay in this rhythm of kissing and gently caressing each other's backs, shoulders, hips for what seems like an eternity. You kiss me deeply, followed quickly by a light peck on my lips and lean back onto your side, careful to keep a deep gaze with me as you change positions. I fight the instinct to follow your body as you resume sidelying on the rock; I am missing the weight of your body on mine. I trace my fingers down the side of your face, along the gentle curve of your jaw and open my palm against your cheek. You turn into my hand and kiss my hand softly, keeping me locked in an endless stare. I prop myself back up on my elbows, leaning away from you slightly, so that I can look at all of you, all the perfect grace of you.
You smile at me and I melt a little, "Well, that was fun," you say with a smirk, "how about I race you back for some lunch?"
I frown slightly, pouting my lip unintentionally, "I could think of better things to do with my time, but, I guess I have to eat," almost on cue my stomach growls in agreement, making us both laugh freely at the appropriateness of the timing. You stand up from the rock first, reaching for my hand to help me up. You wrap your arms around me in a close embrace as I try to catch my balance and kiss me again, rendering me breathless with surprise.
You pull back from me slightly and clasp your fingers into mine, "I'm glad you asked me to come today," you murmur, still close to my face.
"Thanks for showing up," I smile against your mouth as I close the gap between us, kissing you tenderly as though I'm afraid you will break, not really believing this is happening.
The trip back down is more of a hike than run, we speed up and slow down with ease, carrying on a conversation throughout, abandoning the isolation of our iPods. You tell me about your summer, things you want to do, places you want to see, a little about your family. I'm paying close attention to what you say, not to impress you, but because it interests me, and I find talking to you to be easy and freeing. When we get back to the car my hunger is in full monster mode. You reach into your own car, parked near mine coincidentally and pull out a cooler with fruit and waters. You are a great planner.