The Choice (a Painful Past)

147

"Sounds pretty awesome, when you put it like that." He quipped.

I just smiled and finished reading the rest of the sign.

"Enjoy foliage-draped hillocks, crystal clear waters and flora both indigenous and exotic. The park features a restored terrace, new sidewalks, a casino garden and gazebos. Perfect for the entire family, for those romantic dates, or just to clear your head."

"It does look better now than it used to." He replied, as I spoke the final word.

"You haven't even seen inside of it yet." I laughed. "Come on." I grabbed his free hand, without thinking, and pulled him towards the entrance.

"Okay, I'm coming! Remember that I have things in my hands!" He exclaimed.

"Sorry." I said, dropping his hand and instantly feeling chastised. "I forgot."

I lowered my head, thinking that I had probably made him angry. I had just gotten overly excited about going inside. I hadn't been to Radium Springs in a long time.

"It's fine, Cal. I just didn't want to trip and have the cooler bust open or something." He replied, softly, as he brought his hand to my back.

I felt the heat from his fingers, through the fabric of my shirt, as it burned into my skin. The midday sun had nothing on him.

Was he a fucking werewolf or something? It didn't make sense that his fingers were so damn hot. It felt almost like electricity was shooting through his fingertips, into my skin.

"Do you need help carrying anything?" I asked, turning so that I could look at him, and so that his hand would drop from my back.

Emotions were something that I didn't handle very well, especially when I didn't know what they meant.

"No, I got it." He replied, smiling at me.

He didn't look angry.

"Okay." I said, smiling back. "Then, come on!"

When I realized that he wasn't angry, the elated feeling returned, along with the excitement of being in one of my favorite places.

The last time I had been here was before I broke up with Will. I used to bring the kids here to hang out a lot, so that I could just relax. The last nice date that Will and I had was also here.

When we walked under the large, white cathedral entrance, I stole a glance at the large oak tree that was located in the back. It was a nice, shaded area, with soft green grass, a white stone bench, and Spanish moss hanging down from the tree.

Will and I had lay under the tree, on a soft blanket that I kept in my car. We were so broke that we had eaten Lunchables, those small $0.50 bags of chips, and a couple of canned drinks from a vending machine. Afterwards, we had just talked about the future and what we wanted from it.

Will had been so sincere, promising that he would do right. He promised that he wouldn't do the drugs anymore and that he would put me and Ben first.

"I will never cheat on you again, Callie. I swear. I don't know why I did it in the first place. I'm so fucking stupid, but I swear that it won't happen again. I love you so much. You own my heart." He had said.

I looked away from the tree and pushed the memory from my mind. It was all bullshit, just like our entire relationship.

"I forgot how beautiful it was here." Colby said, softly.

"Yeah." I nodded.

Thinking about Will had killed my mood. I had to pull myself back to the present and get out of this funk. So, I faked it.

I pasted a giant smile on my face, and turned to face Colby, while I walked backwards.

"You wanna go read the history plaques first, look at the springs, or just chill? Maybe I can see what's in that cooler that you're carrying?" I said.

He laughed and used his free hand to fix his hair. I remembered him doing that all the time when we were kids, but not as much as he would jerk his head, to get that Justin Bieber swoop.

"Let's find somewhere to set this stuff down, at least." He replied. "We can chill for a few minutes. It's hot out here."

"That, we can agree on." I replied, as I swiped at the sweat that was already beading on my forehead.

God, I probably looked gross.

"How about over under that tree? There's a lot of shade." He suggested, pointing.

I followed his direction and saw that he was pointing at THAT tree. The tree that Will and I had laid under.

"No." I replied, shaking my head. "There are bugs in the moss. Let's go over there." I pointed towards another tree that was on the other side of the springs. "We can enjoy the view better from there and there's still plenty of shade."

"Good idea." He said, smiling. "Lead the way."

I turned back around and headed towards the shady spot that I had suggested. It took us a little longer to get there, because we had to walk all the way on the other side of the springs, taking the little wooden bridges, that wove back and forth over the water. The bridges were more for sightseeing than getting to the other side, but it was also the only way over there.

"Damn." Colby said, setting the cooler down, when we reached our spot. "I didn't think this thing was heavy, but shit." He brought his arm up and started moving it around, to work out the soreness.

I started to sit down on the grass, but he placed his hand on my arm, stopping me.

"Wait." He said.

"Why?" I asked, in confusion. "I thought we were going to rest for a few."

"We are." He replied, as he took the purse thing down off of his arm and started to unzip it.

"What the fuck is that?" I laughed, as I watched him unfold it.

"A picnic blanket." He replied, smiling at me.

He spread the blanket out on the soft grass, then moved the cooler to set beside it.

"Now, you can sit."

"Yes, sir." I laughed, as I sat down. "You have a blanket in a bag."

"I do have a blanket in a bag." He replied, as he got on his knees.

"But why?" I asked.

He opened the cooler and started to take things out.

"Well, honestly, I saw it when I was buying this stuff. There was only one and I thought it would be easier than taking an actual blanket. Plus, I would've had to ask you for a blanket. I don't think the motel would like me taking one of theirs." He said.

I nodded, but my attention was already on the food that he was putting on the blanket.

"We're having a picnic?" I asked, stupidly.

He looked up in surprise and caught my eyes.

"Um, yeah, unless there's another name for it that I don't know." He laughed nervously.

"No...but why are we having a picnic?" I asked.

I didn't understand what was going on. I saw grapes, strawberries, a fresh veggie tray, a few different cheeses, salami, ham, those little snack crackers, pre-made sandwiches, chocolates, peach flavored Nehi sodas, water bottles, and it went on and on.

"Your text didn't sound like you wanted to stop somewhere and eat, so I thought you would like this better." He said, shrugging.