He had met her practically his first day on the job and instantly felt drawn towards her wild, carefree ways. He had longed to be able to let everything go – the gossip, the stares, the questions, the whispers – and enjoy life, see the beauty in everything that surrounded him. But he couldn't. He simply couldn't stand back and just let life happen. No – he had to be in control, do things his way: everything on his own, in his own way. Until she approached him one evening as he was leaving the arena…
He was dragging his duffel bag behind him, already beginning to feel the affects of the night's match against Kane. His whole body felt like it was ready to shatter and all he wanted to do was go back to his hotel room and stand under the scalding spray of the shower. As he stumbled towards his rental, he noticed a figure leaning against the back bumper. Coming closer, he realized it was her.
"You took a good beating out there tonight," she said as she reached out and took his duffel bag from his shoulder. "Probably feel like shit, right?"
All he could do was nod and then his eyes widened slightly in surprise as she reached her hand into the pocket of his track pants and extracted his keys. He stared, open-mouthed, for a moment, as she turned to open the trunk, dropping both their duffel bags inside. Rounding the car and unlocking the driver's side door, she looked back at him with a smirk on her lips. "Well, are you coming or what?"
Shaking his head to clear the cobwebs and confusion, he got into the car and sat, looking straight ahead. Realizing he hadn't said anything in a while, he glanced to his left to the woman who had seemingly commandeered his rental car and was now driving him, he hoped, back to his hotel. "Um, not to be rude or anything, but why are you doing this?" he asked as she made a sharp right hand turn onto the freeway. "And where are we going? The hotel is that way," he said pointing behind him, as the car sped through the darkness.
Laughing softly, she watched him for a moment out of the corner of her eye. Reaching out, she patted his thigh gently before turning her eyes back to empty road in front of her. "I know you probably planned on going back to your hotel, ordering some room service, taking a shower, and going to sleep. But you can't live life that way, you know? There's so much to do, so much to see in this world, and if you don't take the time or the opportunity when it's right there in front of you, then you're not really living!"
He didn't know what to say, how to respond to her little speech, so instead, he simply closed his eyes and laid his head back against the seat. He figured that if she was happy driving him to some unknown, random location so he could live his life, then he would let her. Slowly, he felt himself drifting off to sleep and as his head rolled and came to rest against the car's window, she looked over at her passenger. She didn't know why, wouldn't be able to explain it if she was asked, but instinctively, she knew he needed this. Needed to be away from everything, from everyone and just forget the world, at least for a little while.
As he felt the car coming to a stop, he opened his eyes, trying to see something in the darkness that surrounded them. "Where are we?" he asked, his voice husky from sleep.
"Come on," was all she said as she opened the car door, stepping into the cool evening air. Seeing no point in asking her to elaborate, he simply followed her out of the car. Looking around, he noticed they were standing in the middle of a field, a pond or a lake glittering in the light of the full moon, the stars shining brightly overhead.
"It's beautiful…" he murmured as he looked at his surroundings, finally seating himself in the grass, resting comfortably against a tree trunk.
"Why are you just sitting there? Come on! It's summer, so the water's probably warm. Let's go swimming," she called as she made her way towards the lake, taking her shirt off as she went. Scrambling up, he slowly walked through the grass until he reached the bank, listening to the water lapping against the shore. He noticed her shirt and shorts lying in the sand, and a small smile curved his lips. Her voice cut through the night's silence. "It's fantastic. Feels really good on sore muscles…"
He jumped, not realizing she had exited the water and was now standing beside him. "I, um, I don't have a bathing suit," he stammered, trying to keep his eyes from wandering. Shaking her head, she moved to stand in front of him, her hands reaching down and grasping the hem of his t-shirt. Pulling it up and over his head, she let it fall from her hands onto the ground. Her eyes flickered briefly to the waistband of his track pants before she looked back up, his eyes locked on hers, as her slim fingers untied the drawstring. Slowly, almost achingly slow, she placed her hands against his warm skin and pushed the pants down to his ankles. He didn't realize he was holding his breath, until he looked down and saw her kneeling before him. Quietly exhaling, he allowed her to lift one foot, then the other, as she gently pulled his track pants from his legs, leaving him in only his black boxer briefs.
Standing again to her full height, she placed her palms against his chest, running her hands down until their fingers were interlocked. "There, now you can swim," she whispered, before walking backward towards the water. He didn't even try to stop her, instead letting her pull him along, until the warm water closed in around his waist. He watched as she turned from him, diving under the black water, surfacing only moments later, pushing her hair off her face. Turning, she offered him a small smile and as if his body wasn't his own, he moved towards her until he was able to wrap his arms around her slender waist.
Lifting her slightly from the water, he reveled in the feel of her legs wrapping around his waist, her arms around his neck. No words were spoken, as the pair locked eyes. He leaned forward until his lips barely touched her ear, "Teach me how to live. Show me your world. Help me find my way," he whispered as she gasped slightly feeling his warm breath on her skin.
Turning her head so her lips brushed the skin of his neck, she murmured, "I'll help you. But for right now, forget everything. Let's just enjoy the moment…"
Present Day
Good days and sweet nights had followed. A friendship formed between the pair that was seemingly unbreakable – a friendship filled with passionate kisses and soft caresses, but never moving beyond. And now, here he was, about to take the biggest step of his personal life and he was terrified. Terrified to move forward without her, terrified that he would forget how to live, forget to look for and find his own happiness.
He should have been doing something else this night, anything besides what he was currently doing. He should have been in his own hotel room, alone, thinking about all that would take place the next day. But tonight, on his last night of freedom, he was here. On this elevator. Going to an empty hotel room. With her…
As the pair reached their destination, she held the door open to her room, allowing him to enter before her. No words were spoken, no long meaningful looks were exchanged. A comfortable silence surrounded them and as she leaned against the closed door of her room, she watched him walk over towards the bed and sit down, resting his head in his hands, heaving a deep sigh, as he kicked off his shoes. Glancing up as she quietly made her way towards him, he offered her a crooked smile before he settled himself amongst the pillows propped against the headboard of the bed, motioning for her to join him.
She hesitated for a brief moment, not sure that she should be doing this, yet, she still found herself moving towards him, kicking her flip-flops into a corner and collapsing on the bed beside him. Without saying a word, she reached for his hand and entwined her fingers with his, giving his hand a light squeeze. She didn't know how to say to him in words what she was feeling at the moment, how she felt about their entire relationship, about him. She knew she loved him, knew she would probably never care for anyone as she did him, knew she would never find another person who she could say so much to without saying a single word. But to actually say all those things to him, say those three little words? In her mind, those words were spoken far too much, far too easily, and in this time, in this place, she couldn't…no she wouldn't say them to him. Not now, probably not ever.
Rolling towards him, she rested her head on his chest, not letting go of his hand. With his free hand, he began to softly run his fingers through her hair, his breathing deep and even. She closed her eyes and reveled in his warmth, the feel of his touch, because on this night, she needed to be close to him, needed to have him next to her. Why couldn't it always be this way between them? Why couldn't they simply stay in this moment, in this time? Why couldn't they simply let the world go by all around them? Why couldn't they simply waste time and be happy in ignorance?
She knew it was a stretch, knew that tomorrow everything would be different. He wouldn't be lying beside her, combing his fingers through her hair, on the verge of sleep. No, he would be gone – out into the world – a world that no longer would include her. For the past two years, she had tried, with much success to show him the virtues of living life to the fullest. They had traveled together, had hundreds of adventures along the way, almost became lovers on numerous occasions, and just enjoyed each other's company.
"You're awfully quiet tonight," she murmured, shifting her body so she could look into his eyes. "Anything you want to talk about?"
He looked back at her with unblinking eyes, trying to process all the thoughts that were going through his head. There was so much he wanted to say to her, so much he wanted to share, he just didn't know if he had the right words. "Thank you…" he whispered. He watched as her eyes filled with confusion and he felt compelled to elaborate on his muddled thoughts. "For allowing me to be who I am. For all those nights when we just laid under the stars and forgot about everything else going on in our lives. For showing me what life could really be like. Everything that I am, everything I might become in the future? Some part of that will be because of you…" he trailed off, sighing when she didn't say anything.
"Look, I know that tomorrow changes everything for us. And I don't know where. I'm not even really sure how. But what I do know is that this? These memories, the experiences we've shared together? Those will never change. Those things will always belong to us. Just us," he said quietly, as he reached out, placing his hand against her cheek.
She stared at him for a moment, before turning her head slightly, placing a chaste kiss on his open palm. Biting her bottom lip to keep from crying, she glanced at the clock on the bedside table. "You're getting married in twelve hours…" she muttered as she once again laid her head on his chest, tears gathering in her eyes.
"Yeah, I know. Can we not think about that now though? Can we just lay here? Together one last night and just forget the world? Forget that tomorrow everything will be different?"
Nodding her head, she closed her eyes, letting her mind drift. "Randy? Even after you're married? Don't forget to live okay? Don't forget to keep looking for a different sunrise or a new adventure. Promise?"
"I promise, Lita. Now, we have twelve hours. Should we go find a sunrise we've never seen? A tree we've never climbed?" he asked, standing up from the bed and slipping on his shoes. Offering her his hand, she smiled as she put on her flip-flops.
"A lake we've never skinny dipped in? A meadow we've never run through? Yeah, let's go," she said as the pair made their way out of the hotel room and down the elevators.
One more adventure, one more chance, one more time…