Leggings or skirt with tights? Becca held out both of them, raising one and then the other as if weighing them. This would be way easier to decide if she knew where they were going. Of course, since she hadn't told Steve they were going on a scavenger hunt, he wasn't telling her where they were going now that he got to choose. All that she knew was it required him picking her up, so she assumed the place wasn't reachable by subway. Becca liked surprises, but she didn't like being underprepared for them.
She wished she had thought to ask when he called her. Well, she could still text him and ask. Actually, calling might be better. He seemed to have an aversion to texting or something along those lines.
"The skirt's cute," Ally offered, poking her head through the bedroom door.
"I know, but the leggings are probably safer," Becca countered, voicing the argument she'd been having with herself. "If it's anything like last time, at least."
Ally leaned against the doorframe and shrugged. "The skirt's still cuter. Besides, worst case scenario, you give adventure man a peek up your skirt." She winked. "Maybe he'll see something he likes."
Becca rolled her eyes. "Thanks. That doesn't sound even a little bit desperate."
That did it. She was definitely not wearing the skirt. Becca tossed the leggings onto her bed and returned the skirt to its clothing hanger.
"You know, you still haven't shown me those pictures," Ally pointed out.
"Oh yeah."
Becca had promised to show Ally pictures from scavenger hunt to satisfy her roommate's curiosity, only she'd been in the middle of making dinner at the time. Flour and cell phones were not a good mix, and afterwards Becca had plain forgotten. Ally, however, was not one to let things go, especially not when it came to men.
Becca swiped her phone off of her bed and pulled up the pictures. Had that been just last week? It was so sunny and nice, while today was cool and overcast.
"Here." She pressed the phone into Ally's hand and returned to the closet to choose something to go with the leggings. Maybe a light sweater.
"Uh…wow," Ally murmured.
"I know."
"He's hot."
"I know."
"I mean, you said he was hot, but I was thinking medium hot not, like…" Ally flipped through a few of the pictures. "Super mega hot. You should take the skirt back out because this –" She waved the phone. "– needs to happen."
Becca pulled out a sweater that was comfortable to move in and wouldn't make her too warm. She didn't need her roommate to tell her how good looking Steve was because that only reminded her of the disappointing fact that he was not currently interested. She tugged on the sleeve of the sweater, glancing up at the skirt. Maybe…
No. She didn't need the skirt. She could be friends without needing to push any farther. Besides, they'd only seen each other a few times. It didn't hurt to get to know someone better first. That was a mistake she'd made before.
Becca shut the closet door. And she could be just friends with someone even if that someone was an attractive guy. It wasn't fair to assume they had to take an interest. She had fun with Steve. That could be enough. For now.
"I told you. We're friends."
Ally made a disapproving noise. "Well, you'd better not just be 'friends' for long because this guy is going to get snapped up. Speaking of which, Danny is coming over in a bit so text me before you come home."
Danny was Ally's not-quite boyfriend that she'd been dating for nearly a month. Becca liked him fine, but she wrinkled up her nose in mock disgust.
"Gross. You'd better not get make out cooties all over the couch," she joked.
"Oh, and who was the one I found making out on the kitchen counter with their boyfriend?" Ally laughed.
Becca held up her hands. "At least I knew the counter was going to get cleaned. Who knows what's all over that couch?"
"Well, I tell you what's gonna be." Ally grinned suggestively. "Lots and lots of cooties."
"Ugh, yuck," said Becca with an exaggerated shudder. "Okay, get your dirty mind out. I've got to change."
Ally held out the phone for Becca to take back and left, calling, "Wear the skirt!" as the door shut behind her.
Becca ignored that advice and changed from her pajamas into the clothing she'd picked out. She put her hair up in a ponytail because the humidity that came with impending rain always made her hair puff up like an angry cat. With some hairspray, at least it looked less unruly.
The last thing Becca reached for were her meds. She didn't want a pain flare up again while she was out. Not only were the flare ups unpleasant, but she might also have to explain to Steve about the compressed and damaged nerves in her spine from the accident.
People got antsy and overprotective when it came to spinal damage of any kind. They questioned whether it was a good idea for her to do this or that. They asked if she was sure she'd be okay. They gave her sympathetic looks when she had to take a pill for the pain. It drove her up a wall.
Maybe Steve would be an exception if she told him, like Ally had been. Maybe he knew someone who'd been injured in the army and knew that she'd preferred to be treated that same as he had been doing thus far. However, she would rather not take the chance, for a while at least. Being with someone who had absolutely no idea about any of this was refreshing and considerably less complicated.
She wasn't a cripple. She had to take Oxycodone to make it through the day. She had a tolerance from taking the pain medication as a kid after knee surgery, so the doctor had to continually up her dosage. But the medication was helping her manage the pain, and without them the pain was so bad she could do little more than lay on a bed.
The worst problem, in Becca's opinion, had been that when she had started taking the tablets, she hadn't wanted to do much more than that anyway. She'd felt like her brain was fogged up, and she'd lashed out, and she… she hadn't loved who she was. Knowing that she was going to need the pain meds for months, she had looked for help. What she'd found was Adderall.
Before taking an Oxy tablet out of the bottle, she habitually checked the label.
Take 1/2 to 1 tablet every 4 to 6 hours as needed for pain.
When was the last time she'd taken one? Becca checked her watch, but that didn't help her to remember. She didn't think it had been four hours. Well, it had to be about three hours, right? She set down the bottle and put in earrings. Probably a little more than three hours. In fact, she was almost positive it had to be about three and a half, and surely taking just one tablet a bit early couldn't be lethal. Then she wouldn't have to worry about taking another one until she got back.
Becca decided that was sound enough reasoning, so she took out a tablet from each bottle. She went to the bathroom so that she could have a glass of water to swallow with the tablet. With that taken care of, she peered at her reflection, rubbing one eyelid carefully to get rid of some smeared eyeliner. All that was left was to brush her teeth and then she'd be ready to go.
The buzzer to the apartment sounded while Becca still had a mouth full of toothpaste. She spat it quickly into the sink.
"Tell him I'll be out in a second!" she yelled down the hall.
She rinsed out her mouth, praying that Ally wasn't adding anything embarrassing to that statement. The thought spurred her to grab her purse from her bedroom at a sprint and hurry for the door, snatching her jacket off the coat rack in case it rained.
"Have fun," Ally said, her finger still resting on the intercom button.
"You too," Becca replied.
Instead of hurtling down the two flights of stairs, Becca took them at a normal pace to avoid the catastrophe of tripping. She found Steve waiting right outside the door, leaning against the railing.
"Hi," she greeted.
"Hi."
There was an amusement in this expression that immediately made her suspect that Ally had said something. Great.
"All right, you might as well tell me what she said."
Steve shrugged. "Just that you'd be right down," he stated in a tone that wsn't at all convincing.
Becca narrowed her eyes at his retreating back, but followed him down the steps and onto the sidewalk. She was going to have to give Ally a serious jab in the ribs if she'd said anything embarrassing. Her roommate was not the best at being subtle. Becca wasn't usually either, except when being candid was sure to make things very awkward.
"So do I get a hint where we're going?" Becca asked, hoping to take his mind off whatever her roommate had gone and said. Steve shook his head. "Aw, come on." She nudged him with her shoulder, certain she could weasel something out of him. "I told you we were going to be in Central Park."
Steve gave her a considering look. "All right…" Ha, she knew it. Easy as pie. "It's not in Central Park."
Not so easy after all.
"That narrows it down," Becca huffed, but then gave him a smile. "It's all right. I can be surprised. As long as it's a good adventure, I'm in."
"Well, I wouldn't be 'Adventure Man' if it wasn't."
Oh, so that's what Ally had said. It could have been a whole lot worse.
"I'll have you know that I had nothing to do with that nickname," she told him with a laugh.
"No?"
"No. See I suggested 'Giant-Competitive-Artistic-And-Occasionally-Sassy-Muscle-Man,' but it was shot down."
Steve chuckled. "It is kinda long." He stopped in front of a taken parking space.
This street was resident parking only, and as long as it wasn't the middle of the night there was usually one empty spot to be found somewhere for brief parking without getting a ticket. That's why Becca had been eyeing all the cars they passed waiting for him to stop.
She hadn't expected the motorcycle. Steve hadn't struck her as someone who rode motorcycles, but all she had to go off of was the stereotype of biker dudes and hunky Europeans. The motorcycle was on the thinner side with large handlebars and a single huge headlight about twice the size of Becca's fist. Her knowledge of motorcycles was next to non-existent, but she knew this one was neither a sports model nor biker gang material. If anything it was giving her James Dean vibes. Well, Steve did have the brown leather jacket to go with it. His hair was long enough, if he sort of waved it back and traded in the kakis for jeans… Except he was missing the bad boy attitude. Ah well, bad boys in real life were jerks more often than not anyway. She would take a man with a motorcycle minus the attitude no problem.
"You haven't been on a motorcycle," Steve noted as Becca continued to stare.
Becca shook her head. "Never, but I'm actually pretty excited." She wouldn't ever try to drive one herself, but she was definitely up for a ride. Only… "Um, am I gonna fit?"
The seat didn't look long enough to fit two people. She guessed that one person could fit on it comfortably with an inch or so to spare, but not much more. There was a little more of the motorcycle behind the seat, which was plain metal framing as far as she could tell, and then there was the wheel cover behind that. She was fairly sure no one was supposed to sit on the wheel cover.
Steve looked at the motorcycle like he was seeing it for the first time.
"The last one I had was… a little different," he said, sounding apologetic. "I'm sorry. I didn't –"
"No, it's okay." Becca looked up from the motorcycle and smiled at Steve. Although she was finding it rather funny that he hadn't even noticed the length of the seat, she decided it wouldn't be nice to make him feel bad. "Lucky for you, I'm fairly compact. Tell you what. We'll try to squish, and if that doesn't work, we'll figure something else out."
Steve touched the back of the motorcycle, thinking. "All right," he agreed after a moment.
"Awesome. And maybe next time consider if two people can fit on a bike before you buy it just 'cause the classic look makes you drool," she teased lightly.
"Yeah."
Steve got on the motorcycle first, putting up the kickstand. As Becca had predicted, there wasn't enough room left on the seat for her to sit. He scooted forward some, but since the metal in front of the seat slanted up at a sharp angle, he could only create a smidge of extra room. Nonetheless, Becca got on behind him, hopping precariously on one foot as she swung her leg over before perching on the back of the seat. She wriggled as close to Steve as she could, pressing up against his back.
"You all right?" Steve asked when she stopped moving.
"Well, I don't feel like I'm going to fall off, so that's good." Of course, she wasn't exactly comfortable. There was an edge between the leather seat and metal plate behind it that was jutting out and pressing against her butt. However, as long as the ride wasn't super long, she thought she'd be okay. Becca checked behind her. "And I'm not sitting on the cover over the wheels."
"Also good."
"Yes." Becca shifted slightly and decided this was as good as it was going to get. "What do you want me to do with my feet?"
"Uh…" He looked down at the footrests, of which there were only two, made of narrow, cylindrical metal.
Becca lifted a foot experimentally. She knew he had to be able to take his feet off the footrests when they stopped, so she placed the tip of her shoe close to the rest of the motorcycle. That would allow him to rest on the outer part of the footrests and take his feet off when they came to a stop. If she kept her foot pivoted at an upwards angle and with the metal holding her foot up right beneath her toes, she wasn't taking up too much space. Plus, she didn't feel like her foot was going to slip.
"That," Steve said. "That's fine."
Becca set her other foot in the same manner, pleased that she had figured this out. She wrapped her arms above Steve's waist to keep herself in place, keeping her head turned to the left because otherwise it would have to be jammed right into his back. This wasn't so bad.
"Okay, I'm ready if you are," she stated.
When the motorcycle rumbled, the vibrations running up her body, her stomach twisted both in nerves and exhilaration. First time on a motorcycle. She really hoped that Steve knew what he was doing, and her being on back wasn't going to throw him off. If she got into another accident, she was going to be seriously put out. Oh god, maybe this wasn't the best idea.
"Let me know if you need me to stop," Steve told her.
"Okay."
Steve picked up his feet, and the motorcycle rolled forward. Becca instinctively tightened her hold around him, feeling momentarily unbalanced. Once they started moving down the street at a steady pace, however, nerves were giving away to adrenaline, and she forgot all about why this would be a bad idea. A grin crept over her lips.
"How're you feeling?" Steve asked, glancing over his shoulder at her when they came to a red light at the end of the street.
How was she feeling when on a motorcycle with a hot guy in a leather jacket? "Like a badass."
"That's… good," Steve said, although he didn't look totally certain.
"Are we gonna be hitting the highway?"
"For little while."
"Good. Let's open this baby up." At least, she was pretty sure that was the phrase for going really fast.
Whether that was correct or not, Steve grinned. "Hold on."
The light turned green and, having no cars immediately in front of him, he gunned the motorcycle around a turn. Becca gasped as they tilted, burying her head against his shoulder and clinging to him as her stomach attempted to take a flying leapt through her chest. As soon as they straightened, she lifted her head.
"I meant on the highway, you jerk," she chided. Yet, as the words came out of her mouth, she knew that she wanted to do that all over again.
Steve must have seen that when he caught her expression in the rearview mirrors because all he said was, "Did you? I must have missed that over the sound of me 'opening this baby up.'"
Since he was driving, Becca resisted the urge poke him. "Oh, hush up, and let's do it again."
"Yes, ma'am."
The drive took about thirty minutes once they were out of New York City. It should have taken longer, but since Steve hadn't yet driven far enough to escape the traffic, he took the chance to put on some speed. Besides, from the few glimpses he got when her head wasn't tucked behind his back, Becca really lit up when he pressed the throttle and they went racing by a few cars. He thought he'd made a mistake when she first stared at his motorcycle with her expression unusually blank, but if she was at all nervous in the beginning, she clearly wasn't anymore.
They were a ways north of the city when he finally pulled off of the highway, navigating through a series of smaller streets to reach Mt. Chambers. He turned into the parking lot and in the second after he turned off his motorcycle, he just looked.
When he'd been trying to decide where to go, somewhere Becca would be impressed with or at least like, Steve spent a long while staring at a computer unsure of what to search for. Knowing that she liked ice cream and games wasn't a whole lot to go off, and he didn't feel caught up enough to try and connect those interests with something modern.
Steve had thought of a few places as he stared at the computer, but they were places he was sure wouldn't exist anymore. He could have found out, but walking around the city was enough to tell him that too much had changed. Each building replaced with metal and shining lights gave him a brief sinking feeling. Places that were connected with specific memories or people he'd known, those Steve avoided outright. S.H.I.E.L.D. had given him a box of files, but while the box had been opened, the files were still untouched. He hadn't felt ready to know if his friends were dead or if the building he'd grown up in was gone. He also knew that he had to start sometime because he might never be ready.
This was a chance. He'd picked the mountain because it was something he assumed wouldn't have changed much and it was a place connected with only a single memory. When he was a kid, he came here for a picnic with his mother. Since he'd already dealt with losing Ma, coming back wouldn't feel like losing her all over again.
Yet, as Steve surveyed the area, he took in the larger parking lot, the cement where there had once been dirt, the glinting cars, the metal picnic tables, and the tall fence that had been put up by the entrance. It was all different. He got that sinking feeling like someone was pressing against his chest, making it difficult to breathe.
"Okay, obviously you like the motorcycle, and I have to say I can't blame you, but since we drove all this way maybe we should take a look around?"
Of course, another reason to come today was that Becca's enthusiasm and good-natured ribbing wasn't going to allow him wallow in much of anything for long. She may be a little erratic at times, but he could use the distraction.
Steve got off the motorcycle, having been so caught up that he hadn't even noticed when Becca slipped off. Becca was looking eagerly to the fence, leaning forward like a dog straining at an invisible leash. Her cheeks and the tip of her nose flushed pink from the ride despite him blocking most of the wind.
"All right. Let's go," Steve said.
At least the mountain couldn't be that different, and he was strong enough this time to do some hiking. Although his mother had wanted to take him places outside of the city once and a while, she was always strict due to his long list of health problems. That hadn't stopped him from wanting to try things though, which was why as they neared the path to go up the mountain, Steve stopped.
"What?" Becca asked.
"The path is in the wrong place."
Steve had spent a lot of that picnic, sneaking glances at the other kids heading up the mountain with their families. Assuming they hadn't moved the picnic area, parking lot, and the street, which was possible but unlikely, then it was the path that had been moved.
"Um…" Becca pursed her lips skeptically. "This path looks pretty worn. I don't think they generally move them."
The path might be open and well traveled, but it was on the wrong side of all the picnic benches and parking lot. He crossed along the edge of the picnic area.
"The last time I was here was a long time ago," he explained.
"Long enough for them to move a path?"
"Yeah."
Plants had overgrown the space between the trees, but since Steve knew the path had been there, he was able to pick it out. The ground was too even to have been untouched. He pointed to it.
"See?"
Becca tipped her head. "Oh yeah. Huh." She pulled out her cell phone. "I wonder why they moved it."
"Let's find out," Steve suggested.
"Woah there tiger," said Becca even as she followed him towards the path. "I'm all for trying new things, but this could actually be dangerous."
"They'd warn people if it was," he pointed out. There were warning signs and labels everywhere for things now. If there ever had been any danger, it was probably past. "And I thought you wanted an adventure?"
"I see we've resorted to using my own words against me…" Becca sighed. "Smart. Of course, going into the woods alone with a man you've only recently met is Dangerous Things You Should Avoid 101."
While Steve felt as though this was the path he needed to take, he also didn't want Becca feel uncomfortable. She might just be ragging, but in case she wasn't, he should say something.
"We can take the main path," he offered.
Becca studied him, then flung up her hands. "I don't know what it is, but I trust you. Come on. Let's venture into the great wild."
Steve laughed. A small mountain was hardly the "great wild," but at least Becca was keen on taking this path. It might join up with the other path further along, but there was no harm in trying.
"You really don't get out of the city much, do you?" he asked.
"Well, I'm currently lacking in the automobile department," Becca explained, once again focused on her phone. "I visit the family once or twice a year, but it's pretty much all NYC all the time. As much as I love it, sometimes I forget nature isn't dotted with skyscrapers and pigeons."
Not that he would let it happen, but Becca was either going to stumble over a rock or run right into a tree if she wasn't paying attention.
"It doesn't have cell phones either," he stated.
"Tch. It does when I'm getting service, even if it is only a bar." Becca flicked her gaze up for a second to check in front of her. "I was just curious if there was anything online about the path being moved."
Steve tensed, nervous that if there was something online, it was going to been from a year that made Becca question why he knew about this old path at all. He meant to start facing old memories, not tell someone that he'd been out of commission for sixty-seven years. He was going to tell her eventually, if she didn't figure it out on her own first, but this was not the time or place. Maybe she'd take it well, but he wasn't taking the risk of losing the one friend he had today.
"Well, there was a rock slide in fifty-eight when a cliff face broke off," relayed Becca before Steve could think of anything to say. "But that looks like about the only interesting thing to have happened, so who knows?" She put the phone back in her purse. "It could be anything."
Relief eased away Steve's nerves. She wasn't going to look into it any further.
"Yeah."
They continued up the path, avoiding any large plants that had grown over what had once been beaten down dirt. With the height of some of the plants, Steve thought Becca might wonder, but she didn't say a thing. She seemed too caught up in gazing around through all the trees and making sure to hop onto every tree root that was even remotely in their way to take much notice. For his part, Steve was enjoying being somewhere that didn't feel new or hectic, while also keeping an eye out anything that would cause them to have to turn around.
"Maybe there was a den of mountain lions up here," Becca voiced after some time, peeling off her jacket and tying it around her waist.
Steve lifted a low-hanging branch so they could both duck under it. "I think mountain lions prefer bigger mountains."
"Okay, Bigfoot then."
"What?"
"Maybe Bigfoot lives up here, and they closed it off so people wouldn't find out." Steve was still trying to work out if Bigfoot was a person or an animal when Becca snapped her fingers. "I've got it. It's like The Descent. Have you seen that movie?"
Hoping that he wasn't digging a hole for himself, Steve answered, "No."
"Well, I'd recommend it, but anyway, in The Descent there's a group of women who go spelunking in this huge cave system and get trapped," Becca explained. "Most of them get eaten by these creepy humanoid creatures that live in the caves, but there is an exit that's on a mountain. Maybe it's based on this mountain right here."
The smile she flashed him was just on the verge of hopeful. Steve almost doubted whether she'd ever been worried that this path might be dangerous. Also, he was going to remember to check on what any movie she suggested was about before he watched it.
"Well, there goes the next trip I had planned," he commented causing Becca to giggle.
"Not so fast now. You're definitely stronger and can run faster. You could probably take a bunch of those things out and make it," Becca mused. She leapt up onto a tree root, following it to the trunk.
"What about you?"
Becca looked at him like he'd asked a ridiculous question. "I'm going to tease them to death, obviously."
Steve imagined Becca in the middle of a cave with a smile on her face teasing a figure with big fangs crouched uncertainly in front of her. He shook his head.
"And if that doesn't work?" he laughed.
Becca shrugged. "Um… hit 'em with a rock?"
"Sounds like a plan."
They had to step off the path as a dense thicket of brambles had crept up over the ground. Since the end wasn't even out of his sightline, Steve was sure they could quickly get around it. However, there was a lot of gray through the trees up ahead that reminded him of the broken cliff Becca had mentioned.
"Hey, speaking of rocks…" Becca commented, letting the rest of the sentence hang in the air.
"I see it," said Steve.
It was the rock slide from that cliff that had caused the path to be cut off. At least, that's what Steve concluded as he surveyed the massive breadth of jagged rocks piled across the mountainside. A few of the fallen trees were rotting on the ground, half buried under boulders.
Becca perched on the flat surface of one of the rocks, letting out a breath that sounded closer to a pant. She took out a bottle of water and, after a gulp, held it out to him.
"I'm all right. Thanks."
A split second assessment of the area told Steve that they weren't going to make it over this. Even if he could figure out a way, it wasn't likely to be a method Becca could follow. He should have stuck to the main path.
"Looks like a dead end," he noted. "Sorry I made you walk all this way."
Becca lowered the bottle with a frown. "What? We're going to give up already? We just got here."
"They did move the path for a reason."
"Tch." Becca nodded over the mass of rocks. "Look around. There might be something."
To humor her, Steve peered up at the cliff, attempting to figure out a way up. The crevasses in the cliff face above him were too small for handholds. Even if they weren't, he had to get Becca up, too. He didn't think much of his chances of convincing her that he could carry her up on his back.
"How do you feel about scaling a cliff?" he invited anyway.
Becca gave him a look that made it clear she didn't think he was trying. "Next option, please."
Steve walked away along the jumble of rocks. Further along the cliff had shorn away a chunk of the mountainside, creating a sharp drop. No way around on this end.
"I might be able to throw you up if you think you can catch the edge," he joked.
"Then, how are you getting up?"
Steve craned his neck to look at the closest trees.
"If you're thinking about climbing those and jumping, forget it," Becca called to him. "This is not an awkward teen movie, and we're not doing it."
"Where's that trust you were talking about?" he replied, although he had no intention of following through.
"I hit it with a shovel and am burying it beneath a layer of sanity."
Steve moved back over to where Becca was waiting. She'd pushed her sweater up to her elbows and had her legs lifted to stretch down to her toes. Her skin was tinged a warm pink with sweat beading her hairline. He should have at least let her know that today was going to involve a lot of walking. He just hadn't thought the path would be quite so steep, and she'd seemed to like the idea of keeping things a surprise. If Becca had needed a break, he thought she would ask. She'd been vocal about so much else. He should have known better. How many times had he pushed himself to do things he physically shouldn't?
"I really don't think there's a way around," Steve said. It was more important to get her back down than determine how to make it the rest of the way up.
Becca lifted her arm, pointing in the direction he'd yet to check. "What about over there?"
"If there was a way over there, then they just would have moved the path there instead," he reasoned.
Becca narrowed her eyes at him. "We're checking." She hopped off the rock, striding towards the line of trees with determination.
"Becca, wait." Steve hurriedly caught up and stepped in front of her. "I think–"
"Steve," she interrupted, holding up a hand. "You're a nice guy, and I like hanging out with you."
"Okay…" Steve said as she took a deep breath, unsure of what was coming next. "Thanks."
She nodded once. "But if I walked all the way up here in a sweater and flats and don't reach the top, I might freak out."
Steve wasn't exactly sure what "freak out" meant, but he was sure from her tone that it wasn't good. Even though he didn't want to upset her, he also didn't want her collapsing.
"We'll check," he conceded. "If you promise to tell me when you need a break."
"I…" Becca lifted her chin, and Steve could read in her expression that she was ready to argue. He wasn't going to back down though. She stared at him hard, her nose wrinkling like a rabbit's. Then, all at once, she let out a sigh and her face softened. "Okay. That's fair."
The reason for not making a new path that cut around was the sheer steepness of the slope on the other side of the cliff. The climb wasn't impossible, but it wouldn't be for kids and their anxious parents or the average hiker.
"If we sort of go diagonally between the trees, we should be able to make it," Becca proposed.
There were a bunch of trees dotting the slope, thin, but strong enough to hold on to. If she needed a break, Becca could rest on one of those. Even so, he considered arguing the point.
"We can try," she pressed.
Steve looked at her, and she gave him an encouraging smile. She really did have a very pretty smile. What convinced him though was the resolute caste of her eyes.
"We can try," he agreed. And he would pick Becca up and carry her back down the mountain with her yelling at him all the way if he thought she was pushing herself too much.
The dirt on the slope was loose, and Steve had to dig in his heels and angle his feet to keep from sliding. Becca was faring worse, and he had the impression that her shoes were the reason since they didn't look too sturdy. They progressed slowly as he was lagging in case Becca needed help. She moved with assurance between the trees despite the unsound footing, resting a few seconds at each one, most likely to show him that she was willing to take small breaks.
About two-thirds of the way up, Becca lost her traction and skidded a couple of inches. It would have been more if Steve hadn't reached out and grabbed her hand. He guided her over to a tree, which she leaned against, breathing hard.
"Maybe we should go back down," he suggested.
Becca shook her head. "We're almost there."
"Why does this matter so much to you?"
"Well, didn't going up this path matter to you?" she replied, but there was something in the way she said those words that made Steve think she was deflecting the question.
"Why does it matter?" he asked again.
Becca stared down at her feet, biting on the corner her lip. Her hands balled up into fists. Steve had strayed onto something and because he didn't know what it was, he didn't know if he had any right to push her. Maybe he already had. He was about to put a comforting hand on her shoulder when she spoke.
"Because I know I can do it," Becca said in a quiet voice. She lifted her head to peer up at him pleadingly. "I know I can."
Whatever was happening, whatever it was that was getting to her, how could he say no to that?
"I believe you."
This time, Steve made sure Becca was moving first so that he could be behind her in case anything happened. Fortunately, they made it the rest of the way up without too many stumbles, finally coming to more even ground.
Becca plopped down straight away, facing the route they'd taken, and took several slow breaths. Steve sat beside her.
"You okay?" he questioned.
"Yeah. Yeah." Becca ran a hand over her forehead and tucked a strand of hair that was stuck to her cheek back behind her ear. "I'm sorry about that. I just got…" She shrugged a shoulder with an apologetic grimace. "You know."
Steve didn't know, but taking that as a sign that she didn't want to talk about it, he said, "Sure."
They sat in silence for a minute, until Becca nudge him with her shoulder.
"Told you we'd find a way if we checked," she said with a grin.
Relieved for her smile, he returned it. "I don't think that's exactly what you said."
"Sure it is. Now go check over there, and you'll probably pick up the path again." She waved behind them.
Instead of protesting, Steve got up and went to look around and see if he could spot the path, all the while wondering what Becca didn't want to bring up. Unless she said something, he would keep his mouth shut, but he was curious what could make her that desperate. Steve resolved to put those thoughts out of his mind when he found traces of the path leading through a grove of small trees further along, near the cliff. Let her talk when she was ready.
"Over here," he called.
Becca got to her feet, shoving something back into her purse. It was probably her water bottle. Hopefully she had enough left to drink for the way down. That walk would, at least, be easier.
They had followed the path for another ten minutes when they began to hear voices. Another five minutes had them spilling out onto the new path with the other hikers. Not long after that, they reached the top.
"This… this is worth it," stated Becca as she surveyed the green trees below them. "You did good."
Some of the clouds had broken, leaving streams of sunlight that hit the stretches of woods. There was a town amongst the trees, but it was far enough off in the distance that the view was almost uninterrupted.
It was a nice view, and standing here Steve felt a little better than he had in a while. Until Becca groaned.
"What's wrong?" he asked with alarm.
Becca heaved out a sigh. "I'm gonna have to find somewhere even better for the next adventure."
Steve grinned. "Good luck."
Author's Note:
First chapter of 2015! Welcome to the new year everyone. I'd say my resolution is to exercise more, but why do it myself when I can have fictional characters do it for me? That counts right? No? Oh well.
For anyone staring at a picture of the motorcycle Steve has in Avengers, shhhh. Yes, there is no way Becca would fit on the back of that motorcycle, but I've just fudged with it a bit.
On a side note, I'd recommend The Descent to any horror movie fan. Horror is my favorite genre, and this movie makes my top five. Do make sure you get the original British version and not the American cut though because, for some reason, they changed the ending when they released it in the US and it's quite lame.
Thanks for the continued support. Becca and I shall have to come up with something good for the next adventure.