Spoilers: After cattle incident and snippets of future episodes
Disclaimer: I own none of these characters, and if I did, I would have never gotten rid of Eric! :D May indeed include fictional shops and stores.
Pairings: C/E, snippets of C/W
Chapter Thirty One
As they entered the lavishly decorated gym, Caitlin couldn't help but feel a rush of adrenaline. This was it. It was her Senior Prom. This would be her last year at High River. She took a deep breath and greeted Nikki and Griffin who were hanging out by the ticket table. Griffin's eyes widened and a big grin formed on his lips. "Wow! So this was what was the big secret hidden in that plastic garment bag," crowed Griffin. "You look great Caitlin."
Caitlin blushed as Nikki, Eric and a couple of other fellow students nodded in agreement. "Thanks," she whispered softly. "Uh, so are we going to go in guys?"
Caitlin motioned towards the crystal beaded entrance that opened the doors to the elegantly décor of the gym. She'd been on the decorating committee and she knew that the crew had done extremely well to make the auditorium look like scene out of gay Paris. They'd flooded the room with strings of white lights and put up scenic street venues that you might find in France.
Eric led her into the gym and she could tell by the expression on his face that he was impressed. "Wow! You guys went all out!" he exclaimed. "Dude, check out the mime!"
Griffin and Eric had spotted a local actor who'd agreed to play a mime on the streets of 'gay Paris'. "Do you like it?" Caitlin chuckled.
Eric turned and looked at Caitlin in amazement. "Do I like it? Man this rocks!"
Caitlin laughed and tugged on Eric's sleeve. "We'd better find a table."
Eric nodded and motioned for Griffin and Nikki to follow. Caitlin made her way through the maze of round candlelit tables. Just as she was about to point to an empty table, Griffin shouted over the music that was beginning to play on the stage. "Hey, there's Jordan and Brett. It looks like they've got room at their table."
Everyone began to change direction over to the table, which was neatly tucked away in a secluded corner. Caitlin glanced over at Taylor who'd obviously went to a beautician and gotten her make up done. Her hair was teased and curled and there was somewhat of a statuesque-like quality to the blonde, prom queen wannabe. Caitlin smiled politely at her and pulled out a chair to sit down.
"Caitlin," cooed Taylor. "I never knew you could clean up so well. Who'd have thought that a little make up and an expensive dress could make you actually look 'decent'."
Caitlin bit her tongue and refused to be goaded into a catfight. Instead, Caitlin smiled and turned her gaze over to Brett and Jordan who looked dapper in their tuxes. "You guys look great. When did you get here?"
Brett puffed on his right hand and pretended to polish his fingernails on the lapel of his black tux. "What did you expect? I always make a tuxedo look good," he bragged, jokingly.
Everyone at the table groaned. "So Caitlin, you got stuck with Eric huh?" Jordan teased.
Caitlin looked over at Eric. "Actually I'm glad Eric asked me. He's been a great date," she said proudly.
Eric seemed to blush at the compliment while their friends made 'ohhhs' and 'ahhhhs' at the revelation. Caitlin smiled at him and winked. Eric suddenly stood up almost knocking over his chair and clapped his hands together. "So would anyone like some punch?" he asked awkwardly.
Brett, Griffin and Jordan looked at each other knowingly and stood up in unison. "Yeah. Sure," Griffin replied. "I'm sure the girls are thirsty, right?"
Caitlin furrowed her brow and looked over at Nikki, Taylor and Alicia, Jordan's date. "Uh, yeah. Sure," Caitlin answered suspiciously. The other girls nodded in agreement.
Caitlin couldn't help but feel a bit curious at the conversation the four boys were having while they made their way to the punch. "What do you think that was about?" she asked the girls.
Taylor was the first to make a face. "Caitlin, if you don't know, then you really need to get out more!" she retorted. "Don't you think ladies?"
Nikki and Alicia seemed hesitant with their reply. "You know Caitlin, I just think that Eric's probably feeling a little nervous," Nikki offered graciously.
Caitlin rolled her eyes. "Why? It's not like we're on a real date," she said half-jokingly, half-seriously.
Nikki and Alicia brows rose questioningly. "Are you sure?" Alicia chirped. "Cause you and Eric looked very cozy walking into the gym."
Caitlin's heart began to race. Did they look like they were on a real date? She knew that it seemed to have that feeling, but Caitlin didn't seem to get that vibe from Eric; that he wanted this to be a 'real' date.
"You're just making something out of nothing guys," Caitlin dismissed. "We're just really good friends."
***
As he made his way to the punch table, Eric wasn't sure what to say. His heart was pounding and his palms sweaty. Eric could hear his three best friends talking around him, but didn't quite hear what they were saying. He was mired in his own thoughts about Caitlin.
"Dude, what was that!" Jordan exclaimed hitting Eric on the back, jarring him back to reality.
Eric tried to play it cool. "What do you mean?" he asked, picking up a punch glass and filling it up with the pink fruity beverage.
"What do you mean?" Brett exclaimed in confusion. "Man, if that wasn't a hint, I don't know what is!"
Eric swallowed. "Seriously guys, like I said before. We're just friends."
Griffin shook his head. "You know there's no getting away from it Eric. You seriously have it bad for Caitlin. And I think she probably likes you too. If you don't act like a complete dork all night."
Eric picked up his two glasses of punch, waiting for the others to fill their glasses. "Guys come on!" he chided. "We're graduating and we're living in different states. Why would I want to start dating her? I mean that is if I actually like her!"
His best friends laughed out loud. "Give it up!" Jordan sighed as he set the ladle down into the punch bowl and began to make his way back to the table.
~ * ~
Eric felt like his hands were all sweaty as he nervously wrapped his left arm around Caitlin's waist and she slipped her hand into his. He cleared his throat and smiled as they slowly moved to Faith Hill's new song, 'Cry'. "So uh, how are you liking our prom?" Eric laughed tensely.
Her dark brown eyes looked into his and he couldn't help but feel the blood rush to his face. She seemed relaxed and at ease with their 'date' tonight; something that Eric wished he could be. But Eric couldn't help but hear the boys teasing him about his feelings for Caitlin.
"I'm having a good time," Caitlin whispered, interrupting his thoughts.
Eric smiled briefly. "Good. I'm glad."
Caitlin suddenly threw her head back and laughed. "Are you really going to be this stiff the entire night?"
Eric frowned. "What do you mean?" he asked pulling away from their close dance position. "I'm not stiff."
Caitlin shook her head and then motioned over to Griffin and Brett whose gaze hadn't left them since Eric had asked her to dance. "You don't have to listen to them you know? They're just trying to get under your skin."
Eric looked back at two of his best friends sitting at their table whispering to themselves. He let out a deep breath and sighed. "You know what they told to me tonight?" he asked.
Her smooth brow furrowed and her eyes darkened. "What? What did they say?"
He laughed as he recalled their conversation. "They're determined to put the two of us together. It's like we can't just be friends, just because I'm a guy and you're a girl," he said exasperatingly. "Can you believe that? I mean we like to hang because we're good friends right?"
Caitlin paused a moment and looked into his eyes. After a moment, she licked her lips and lowered her eyes. "Yeah," she nodded. "We're just friends and just because we like to hang out a lot, doesn't mean that we have to like each other like that."
Eric laughed half-heartedly and stopped dancing for a moment. "Exactly," he replied.
He tried to push away the disappointment he felt as pulled Caitlin close again, and continued their dance. Eric had been right. They were nothing more than friends. It was good that way. He would be leaving for U of M anytime now and he didn't want his concentration to be somewhere else.
***
The dance was winding down and Caitlin was getting a little bit tired and hot in the now, stuffy gym. A lot of the students had decided to go to the malt shoppe, but Caitlin just wanted to be outside. It was a beautiful night, the moon was full and the stars shone brightly in the evening sky. "So what are we doing?" Caitlin asked the near empty table.
Taylor and Brett had gone off on their own, and Griffin and Nikki had joined the group who'd gone to the malt shoppe. The only couple left at their table was Jordan and Alicia. "Well, actually Alicia has to catch a bus back home tomorrow, so we thought we'd just go back to my place," Jordan answered. "But you guys are welcome to come?"
Caitlin looked over at Eric, who seemed nonchalant about the whole decision. "Well?" she asked her date.
Eric's lips pursed and his eyes began to squint in hesitation. "I don't really think we should bother you guys," he explained. "You guys go ahead. We might just go to the malt shoppe after all."
The two couples walked out of the gym and went their separate ways. As Eric held the door for Caitlin as she awkwardly slid into the car, she looked up at him and frowned. "Where are we going?" she asked curiously.
Eric smirked and winked. He had something planned. Caitlin knew it. She didn't know whether she should be excited or worried. With Eric, you never knew what you were getting into.
~ * ~
The Civic pulled into a gravel parking lot. Caitlin had recognized some of the landmarks, which they passed, but the farther they drove, the less familiar Caitlin was with her surroundings. As Eric helped her out of the car, Caitlin couldn't help but wonder what they were doing out in the middle of nowhere. "Where are we Eric?"
Eric just smiled and pushed her gently away from the passenger side door. "Just a second. You'll see," he replied mischievously.
Caitlin watched as he pulled a couple of large backpacks out of the backseat. She hadn't noticed those when he'd picked her up. "Seriously Eric, what are we doing? I'm not dressed for anything in the woods," Caitlin warned, as she peered out into the dark and could make out a wall of trees before her.
Eric grabbed her hand and led her to a medium sized concrete building. It had two entrances. The building seemed to be a public washroom. "Here," he said shoving a backpack into her arms. "Change into those."
Caitlin frowned. "I'm not changing into anything unless you tell me what we're doing out here!" she exclaimed.
Eric shrugged. "Fine, you'll miss out on the fun then." He walked into one of the dimly lit doors.
Caitlin stood there debating for a moment, whether to give in to her curiosity. Finally she slowly walked into the public bathroom and opened the backpack. Caitlin didn't know what to expect to find in the bag, but to her surprise, she found her own clothes.
When she had changed into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, and put on a pair of hiking shoes, Caitlin came out and slung the backpack over her shoulder. Eric was standing outside waiting for her with a grin on his face. He raised his eyebrows and smiled a big Cheshire grin. "Are you ready?"
Caitlin rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Okay, what are you up to?" she asked suspiciously.
***
Eric didn't know if this was a good idea or not, but the more he thought about it during the week prior to the Prom, the more he liked it. So he had gotten together with Dori and asked her if she could steal some casual clothes and put them in a backpack for him. He had informed her of his little adventure he'd planned, and she seemed quite excited about it. "She'll love it," Dori squealed excitedly. "But if I'm not being nosy, why are you planning this for after the prom?"
Eric knew that Brett and Jordan would be doing their own thing with their dates and Griffin would still want to hang out with some of the other guys, but he didn't want to do something so obvious. And what he had planned, was something he'd always wanted to do but something always seemed to come up or his coach wouldn't let him because it would 'hurt the team'. Eric was graduating and now seemed a great time to do it. It would be something to make prom memorable. And Caitlin seemed the type to be up for it.
"Are you ready?" Eric asked Caitlin as he led her through the small grove of trees.
"It depends," growled Caitlin. "Ready for what?"
Eric shone the flashlight out ahead of them and found the opening he had been looking for. When he'd finally made it to the base of the mountain, Eric pointed with his flashlight, up the small mountain that stood before them. "Ready for that," he grinned.
***
Caitlin didn't know what to say. She had run through a million ideas of where Eric was taking her, but to a mountain wasn't one of them. "What are you talking about? What are we doing here?" she exclaimed.
"I thought that it would be a great time to climb this mountain!" Eric explained, his eyes glued on the dark mound.
"'Kay Eric, now I know you've gone off the deep end."
Eric turned to look at her. "Look, I got this idea a week ago. I thought since we're leaving High River soon, we should make our last nights here memorable. We should do things that we've always wanted. And I've always wanted to climb a mountain."
Caitlin was in shock. There was no way she could climb a mountain. It was impossible. They didn't have the equipment. She wasn't made for climbing mountains. The list went on and on.
"Caitlin," Eric whispered, pulling her closer so that she could see his face. "You really don't have to do this, but I'm going to. I mean I've checked everything out. This isn't a really big climb. Actually we don't even need ropes or anything. There's a walking path all the way up. Come on, whaddya say?"
She took a deep breath and let out a big sigh. "Why did you think I would want to do this?" Caitlin laughed nervously.
Eric smiled that mischievous smile. "Because you're always up for a challenge and I know that you're the only one crazy enough to do this with me on Prom night, while everyone else is probably making out?"
Caitlin hit him playfully and shook her head. "I know I'm going to regret this, but okay." She couldn't believe those words were coming out of her mouth. "Okay, I'll do it."
***
Eric had been relieved when she'd agreed to the adventure. By the end of the conversation it seemed less likely she would agree, but finally, when Eric saw that gleam in her eye, he knew she would do it. However by the time they started out the sun had already begun to rise, which brought a new day upon them.
They had stopped a couple of times to rest and drink the bottled water he'd brought. It was during those moments that Eric knew he'd remember that night. He couldn't have thought of a better person to experience climbing that mountain with. Who needed to be making out when you could experience the challenge and exhilaration of reaching the top of a mountain?
"Are we there yet?" Caitlin puffed, wiping her brow.
Eric groped for a tree branch for some leverage to make that last climb up to the mountain peak. "We're almost there."
He grabbed her wrist and helped her up that last doozy of a step. Both climbers lay flat on their backs as they reached the top of the mountain peak. Eric felt like his lungs would collapse and that he couldn't move one more inch. "We made it Caitlin," he chuckled as he lay with his eyes closed.
"Yeah, we made it," she gasped. "And don't you ever make me do that again!"
Eric felt her hit him in the shoulder, which made him finally move. As he slowly sat up and opened his eyes, he couldn't believe the view that surrounded them. The sun was peering out behind the peak of Rockies. The sky was filled with hues of pink, orange, and purple. It was surreal.
It was beautiful.
"Eric?" Caitlin whispered. "I can't believe we're here!"
Eric turned to look at Caitlin. Her face was smudged with dirt and dust. She'd taken out the pins that held her hair up just a few hours before and pulled it back into a ponytail. Her clothes were disheveled and she looked tired and worn. But on top of that, Caitlin had this amazing smile on her face.
He returned the smile and threw his hands up into the air. Eric had found his second wind. "WE MADE IT!" he screamed at the top of his lungs. The words echoed through the valley below, against the walls of rock and dirt.
Caitlin's laugh joined his words in a triumphant melody. "We did it!" she joined in. "We're on top of the WORLD!"
When the excitement and thrill of reaching the top had gone, Eric pulled out of his backpack, Caitlin's camera. "Do you think you could take a couple of pictures of us up here?"
Caitlin's eyes widened. "I can't believe you have that!" she exclaimed, fingering her camera. "I can't believe I would have missed it."
Eric smiled. "We got it the night of the prom. Dori snuck it into my backpack."
Caitlin raised the camera to her face and snapped a couple of landscape shots. "It's amazing up here Eric. Thanks for making me come."
Eric laughed. "I didn't know if you would. I just had a hunch. I figure if I dare you to do something, it will eventually make you come around."
Caitlin lowered her camera and squinted. "You didn't dare me," she corrected. "You just said…"
"I just challenged you…" he interrupted Caitlin.
Eric sighed and smiled. "Hey, can we get a picture together up here? I know I didn't bring a tripody thing, but I don't think it would have fit in the backpack."
Caitlin snapped a couple more pictures and then lowered her camera and smiled. "I'll see what I can do."
Eric watched as she looked around for a flat mount to prop her camera on. Caitlin turned and looked over at Eric. "I think I've found one," she exclaimed.
She climbed on top of the mound and lay flat on her stomach. "Could you move a little to your left?" Caitlin yelled. "I've got to see if I can get us both in the shot from here."
Eric moved over a few inches. "How's that?"
Caitlin raised her hand, though not taking her eyes from the camera lens. "Perfect. Just stay right there," she commanded.
Eric watched her press a button on top of her camera and jump down from the little smooth cliff several feet away from him. Caitlin scrambled over to Eric and wrapped her arms around his shoulder. "Keep your eye on the camera," she said through her smile.
The flash went off and Caitlin scrambled back to the camera. "Just wait," she laughed. "I just want to take one more just in case."
This time, Caitlin tilted her head so that it was touching his as he reached around her waist and held her gently. When the camera flashed, this time Caitlin didn't rush off to check on it. Eric held her right in the same place.
The sun was high above them and it created a glow around her. Her hair glinted in the rays of the sun and small whisps of hair fell into her face. Eric couldn't imagine a more perfect moment than right then. He let his hands drift down to her sides and grasped her hands. Taking a few steps forwards, Eric tilted his head to the left and kissed her gently on her soft ruby lips.
The perfect night.
