A/N: This was one of those chapters where I had to do some researching, but hey, I'm an expert in snakes that resident in Ohio now. Never know when that might come in handy. Anyways, now for something relevant: the song featured in this chapter is called Sweater Song by Hedley. As for the ending of this installment - I'll just let you interpret that the way you want to. Enough with my ramblings, enjoy chapter four of Fireflies.
Long hikes after dinner became almost customary. With over seven different trails that branched out from our campsite, no path was taken twice. Other then those amazing rainy mornings, our daily strolls though nature were really the only times we got to be alone.
"Artie, I think we're lost." Tina perturbed, glancing up at the treetops, half an hour into our trek back to our campsite.
"No, we're not lost." I said, my voice going into a higher register like it always did under pressure – or in this case, denial.
"We passed this tree four times." She said stopping and crossing her arms.
"There's thousands of maple trees in this forest, Tina, they're bound to look alike." I said with a firm push on my wheels.
"But-" She started.
"I'll get us out of here, I promise." I said turning around to face her. When she thought I wasn't looking, she rolled her eyes before catching up with me. Her lack of faith in me couldn't have been blamed – I was a horrible navigator.
The sky turned purple; the color of violets, and the temperature got noticeably colder. Nightfall was close enough to taste, but that didn't necessarily mean that Tina and I made it back. Because her bare arms looked cold, and she was more of a 'suffer in silence' kind of person, I offered her my button down periwinkle sweater. While it fitted me perfectly, the sleeves went well past her metallic purple fingertips. Though she normally wouldn't have been caught dead in a sweater, and joking called the way I dressed an insult to the fashion industry, I couldn't get over how cute she looked in my oversized button down. It was a perfect addition to her low hanging pigtails.
It was the small glow of a lantern in the distance that brought us home; it was the only visible light with the exception of the multicolored luminosity that came off my fore-wheels. It was late so dad probably took Nora in for bed, but mom sat on a log with a novel in her lap. The lantern hung above her shoulder from a branch of a nearby tree. Hearing a squeak that came from the wheel under my right hand, her head shot up, and a sigh of relief came from her mouth.
"Arthur Abrams, I was ready to call a park ranger." She said marking her page before shutting the hardcover book. "I've been waiting outside for you two for hours, do you have any idea what time it is? Artie, you promised you'd be home before dark."
"I'm sorry, really mom. We got lost, that's all – but look, we're home now." I said placing my hand in my lap.
"We'll discuss it in the morning Artie, I'm excused. Goodnight, and please stay out of trouble until then." Mom said standing up.
Tina and I stayed put until she crawled into the tent she shared with Nora and my father. She wasn't really mad, only worried like any good mother of a boy in a wheelchair would. Instead of returning to our own tent immediately, I urged Tina to follow me deeper into the log circle. The fire from dinner was mostly out, with the exception of a few orange-colored charcoals in the center of the fire pit.
"Grab some branches from the edge of the woods, won't you?" I asked Tina.
"Sure." She query responded.
After lowering myself with caution onto the dirt floor, I shifted to a spot almost adjacent to the sedimentary rock circle that kept the fire in place. I couldn't see Tina, but I certainly could hear her as she frolicked around camp – cussing at a rock or two that got in her way. Quietly giggling at her mishaps, I blew at the ashes in hope that the fire would blaze again. My initial plan was smores, but looking up at the stars while munching on raw marshmallows was my backup.
"This enough?" She asked dropping the pile of branches at a knees length before taking a seat in front of me. By then I had a petite flame going that was enough for light, but not for warmth.
"Perfect." I said grabbing a few branches and formally feeding them to the fire.
Before the first roast, I invited Tina to my lap. With a charming smile she maneuvered herself up to my thighs and swung both legs over my lap, pressing her shoulder to my chest. The combination of her body and the fire was a cozy combination, which was much needed considering I was left in a thin cotton button down. I soon learned that she was one of those people who burnt the hell out their marshmallow before consuming. On the other hand, mine had to be evenly toasted, not charred.
"Done now?" Tina pestered as I examined my fresh from the fire marshmallow.
"Hit me up." I said removing it from the stick, being careful not to ruin its beauty. On one of the flatter rocks, she broke two honey colored gram-crackers in half before lining up a piece of chocolate on each.
"To summer." She said holding up her charred atrocity of a smore for a toast.
"To summer." I repeated, copying her actions before taking a mouthful of the overpowering sweet goodness.
If the risk of waking my family, especially my mother, weren't so high I would have fetched my acoustic guitar from our tent for a late night, outdoors sing-a-long. It was the perfect opportunity, especially with Tina right in my arms, to sing one of the songs I covered for her. Better quit while ahead, I thought. Catching me off guard, she kissed the left side of my mouth and rolled her tongue in a circle before pulling away. I raised an eyebrow over the frames of my glasses and looked down at her.
"What? There was chocolate on your face." She giggled, nudging me with her shoulder. This caused an immediate playful eye roll from me.
After enjoying the warmth of the fire for a while, I let it die out to the state it was before we came. On the hike up to our tent, Tina switched my mother's lantern off, leaving only the moonlight to guide us. Against my mother's request from three days ago, I accidentally left our tent wide open while we were gone. Luckily, Tina didn't notice.
"It feels so good to get off my feet." She sighed happily, collapsing face first onto her sleeping bag.
"Oh totally." I said parking my wheelchair next to a canvas wall prior to pulling myself up the length of my own sleeping bag. Tina chuckled at my sarcasm, turning only her face towards me, as I got comfortable.
"You know – there's enough room for the both of us over here." I timidly said, scooting over a couple inches.
"Oh?" She smiled, crawling over to my side of the tent. I held my arms open out to her and she landed between them, nuzzling her face against my chest. From the side, I pulled a cozy fleece blanket over the both of us. Her eyes closed, and just as I thought she drifted into slumber, they shot open.
"Artie…did your leg just move?" She asked, resting her chin on a pectoral muscle.
"Uh, no." I said, trying to keep from laughing at her.
"Are you sure?" She asked, in now a more serious tone.
"Tina, my legs haven't moved voluntarily since I was eight." I said, reassuring her.
"There it is again. Artie, can you at least check?" She asked.
"Fine." I said rolling my eyes, as I flipped my half of our blanket off my body. "Oh damn."
"You okay?" She asked, keeping her eyes glued to my face as she sat up next to me.
"Tina, don't move." I said with wide eyes.
"Artie, what's wrong? You're scaring me." She said following my gaze to our intertwined ankles where a Timber Rattlesnake was coiled. Her eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as she stared down at the serpent. It only took a twitch from its tail to send her into frenzy. With a scream, she shot up, leaving me with the snake.
"Arthur get it out – now!" She panted from a distance.
With some hesitation, I grabbed the snake behind its head so it couldn't strike me. It squirmed and opened its mouth, revealing two venomous fangs, out of irritation. With a gulp, I wrapped the vermin in the blanket Tina left.
"Be careful, Art." I heard Tina say in the darkness as I maneuvered myself to the zipper with the contained snake in my lap. That thing was one of the most venomous snakes in Ohio.
"I-is it gone?" She asked.
"It's gone." I said turning to face where her petrified voice came from. She stood on the seat of my wheelchair as much as the tents height would allow. Good thing I put it on lock before getting out of it myself.
"Are you sure?" She asked looking around as I scooted back to my original placement.
"Positive." I said reaching out my hand, inviting her back to cuddle with me. With a gulp, she tiptoed off my wheelchair, and took my hand before taking a seat between my legs. I wrapped my arms around her waist for comfort and rested my chin on her shoulder.
"It didn't get you, did it?" I asked with concern.
"No, no I'm fine." She said.
"Good." I said kissing her temple, giving her a reassuring squeeze.
To get her to relax and trust the world around her again, I sung softly behind her ear and swayed a gentle beat to one of her favorite songs. When her shoulders dropped and breathing went back to normal, I knew she was going to be fine.
"He said, "back to forever girl, hope you endured the weather girl, now all I wanna do is get you out of that sweater girl."
"Oh really?" She asked, raising her eyebrows and doing a full turnaround in my lap.
"Because, "I love the way you flirt, I'm so glad you didn't get hurt, now let me see you naked without that shirt." She crooned, laying me down with a smirk, and playfully undoing the top fastener of my button down.