'Where are we going today?' he chirped as we walked hand in hand.
'Ravenshollow' I said 'a pond in the middle of nowhere…. it has never ever seen sunlight….hidden among trees'
'Why is it called Ravenshollow? You named it or what?'
'You will see….' I smiled.
'Wowwwww' his eyes went wide as we reached the pond… it had a stone base with glossy black water.… The surface was the smoothest midnight ever…. My father had taken me to see it, for the first time when I was 8.… I was smitten since.
He pulled off his clothes…. as I watched, more and more of his pale skin appeared. I was blushing.…
'Stare later Raven…. I'm not going anywhere….'
'No...um…uh..WHAT! Who's staring? I'm not staring'
'Ya…ya right….' he smiled wickedly 'now join me.'
He jumped in…. Splashing in laughter.…
The water was always ice cold but he was splashing about like it was nothing…. How? What was he made of? Not just pretty huh?
I could've watched him all my life… I swear on all my unseen dreams, at that point, at that moment in my 13 year long life, Ted playing in Ravenshollow was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen…. My mind was running wild...
How?
How can someone be sooooo beautiful?
So undeniably, invariably, unconditionally beautiful??????
What a fool was I? I was looking at the most beautiful thing in the world and not touching it, not holding it….
I literally scraped my clothes off and jumped in…. The water made me shiver…. I dove deeper, swimming to his feet…. I tickled them and floated away.… when I came up, he was smiling wide…. I smiled at him too…. He then disappeared…. I soon felt his hands on my legs…. Were they moving up? My heart started racing away but he just floated away….
When I looked for him, he wasn't there and when I turned, I was greeted with a big splash right in the face....
The bastard had pulled the Lion's tooth….
Hmm….
A minute later, as Ted sat on the edge, coughing water from getting splashed brutally, I was laughing…. laughing hard after months.
I got dressed quickly, shivering and climbed on to a tree, comfortable in it's wooden hug, watching as Ted strode in his underwear like the cold was nothing, like being bare was nothing.…
How little but how brave?
Really, who is he?
My mind and I discussed him and when we stopped, he was next to me on the branch, smiling…
'Don't you wanna get dressed? Aren't you cold?'
'No to both' he said 'I don't get cold easily'
'Ohhh…. cool…. so where do you return to from here?'
'Some boring ass city…' he said
'You don't like cities?' I asked.
'No… how can one like a city…. Everything is so noisy, smelly and crowded… there's not a moment to rest and not a place to laze about…. I would prefer here any day over my cranked up concrete litterbox' his face flushed in irritation.
'Ohhhh, well I hope to move to a city one day.' I said 'I hate it here.'
'Why?'
'My dad…. he hates me. This town is too small. Blah blah blah.'
His eyes went wide. Then normal again. I thought he would ask why, but he didn't. He nodded.
'My father and I were close…. but now he just stays away a lot. He's always in a hurry…. he's always…always....tensed I guess.' he said. A silence followed….
'Hmmm….. so do you have a girlfriend?' God!!!! No wonder I didn't have friends…..
I broke "a my father is tensed" silence with "do you have a girlfriend?" Like seriously.
He smiled 'No… not now… I had one. You?'
I blushed 'No.'
'Never?'
I blushed hard 'No'
'So you have never kissed huh?'
I blushed harder 'No'
'Have you thought of kissing them?'
I was a fucking tomato 'No, haven't thought much about kissing girls.'
'Who said anything about girls?
My mind somersaulted. Then, right then, a strong wind touched us, Ted hugged me tightly, shivering.
'Didn't you say that you don't get cold easily?'
He stopped shivering immediately 'Yes. I don't' He wasn't looking at me, his face was buried in my chest.
'Ted, are you really cold?'
He looked up and smiled 'No. Not really'
I kissed him. It was everything. Everything. Thunder bursting in my head. Electricity running through my flesh. My feet tingling. My breath running uphill. My heart fighting hard. My groin rising up in heat. It was exactly as the songs said.
Soft lips on mine….
Where are we? What is time? What is anything anyway? There's nothing beyond Ted. Ted with his lips.
I broke off. My breath was ragged. He was smiling wide at me. I couldn't help but smile too….
'Thank god…. I thought you never would. You gutless fool'
I smiled at him harder. I hugged him tighter. And I knew, I loved him deeper.
We held each other like that till it was time to go. I jumped first.
'Careful Ted! This lower branch is broken. It's pointy, see that you don't touch it on the way down eh!'
He smiled and jumped into my arms. His feet didn't touch the ground. He wrapped them around my waist and kissed me again. I was hard.
His lips felt so good. His skin felt so soft. He… he was…. He…. ohhh let it be. It's useless describing Ted, who has ever described well, that tingle you get when it first rains? That blush you feel when you first fall for someone?
I only knew that I was holding all the world in my arms and tomorrow I must return it back…..
He got down and got dressed. We walked silently, holding hands, kissing at every other trail...
No wonder we were late when we reached Glorielle.
'Tomorrow you're going eh…. Want to talk after that?' I asked, my face reddening.
'Of course.' he smiled enthusiastically 'But I don't own a phone, do you?'
'Neither do I. I will give you my mom's number.'
He nodded and smiled.
'I'd love that Raven….Early tomorrow please… 7 eh…. I must rush now…' he ran away... leaving me feeling so empty. Homesick of a place I had never been to.
I walked home, slowly. In my room, I pulled out my diary and wrote about him, every caress of his lips. My first kiss. My first love. I inked Ted as best as I could. My plans too, to meet him, to share my contact….. everything…. my eyes felt heavy, so I left my diary on the table and went to bed.…
I slept that night with a smile.
I didn't just wake up, I erupted out of my bed next day….
I pulled on my clothes hastily and just as I opened my door, my blood went cold.
My father stood in front of me.
Adam Vane is a tall man, white as ivory with knife blue eyes. Every bit of a young child's nightmare.
'Where are you going?'
I thought I would faint.
'Um…the…uhh…woohuds.…forah waylkkkk' I managed
'What?' his voice got bitter.
'The woods for a walk' I said.
'I don't like you hanging round there like some urchin'
'Dad please… I really want some fresh air' I begged.
He stared for one cold minute. Stared….stared….stared….
'Ok'
I nodded and walked slowly in his view but as I reached the stairs. I ran for my life...
I reached Ravenshollow in record time. He was there on the tree. Dressed in a pale blue. Smiling. I stood beneath it for him to jump to me but he shook his head, come and get it, his eyes told me. I climbed up to the branch, sat next to him.
We kissed. For ages...and ages. I held his waist in my hands as he put his arms round my neck. Balancing on the branch, we kissed like we were thirsty. We were actually…..
We parted. You gotta breath too, ya'know.
'Raven. I'm so sorry, but we haven't got much time. The number please'
I pulled out the slip of paper from my pocket. He took it, holding it like some diamond. He was smiling but I wasn't.
'I need to tell you something' I said nervously.
'Go on..'
'My name is not Raven'
'Ohhh I knew that.God you really scared me.' he said 'Even mine is just a nickname.'
I smiled.
'So what is your real name?' he asked.
'Amias Vane.'
'Wowwwww…. Never heard before…. Like seriously it's a beautiful na- '
He never finished that sentence.
© Alexis Vane