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Thursday, April 24, 2008

SEVEN DAYS - Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Falling

The following morning Nathan was knocking at Elaine’s room. She got up and looked at the time and it was only 6 in the morning. She put on the robe and opened the door. Nathan quickly went inside and said “Pack your things, you are leaving!” and Elaine was shocked to hear him say that. He went for her bag and placed it on the bed. “Come on get dressed in the bathroom I will wait for you, you have to leave now” he said. Elaine was so confused and she did not know what to do. She took some clothes and headed to the bathroom and changed. As she stepped out Nathan carried her bag and went downstairs, she followed him and he went directly for the door.

“Nathan wait! What is happening?” she asked. “No time to explain, you have to leave now!” he shouts at her and he goes out the door. Elaine follows him and closes the door; Nathan quickly opens the trunk of his car and places her bag. “What are you standing there for? Quickly get in now” he said. Elaine was so scared seeing him that way; she could not do anything but follow orders.

The car starts to move and Elaine is looking at Nathan terrified. “Why Nathan? Why all of a sudden?” she asks him. “I can’t explain I’m sorry you have to go” he said and Elaine sits back and pouts. She does not understand what was happening. Everything went well after dinner last night she thought to herself, she does not know why this is happening so early in the morning.

“Wake me up when we get to the station” she told him and she closed her eyes and tried to sleep it out since she said to herself maybe this was just a bad dream.

Elaine felt warm and she heard the car door close so she opened her eyes. The first thing she saw was the car digital clock, it read 7:15 am and so she quickly looked forward. She could not believe what she was seeing, the sand and the water, it was a beach. She quickly went out of the car excited and she saw Nathan at the back of the car taking out two bags. She ran towards him and jumped into his arms.

“I can’t believe it you took me to the beach!!!” she said. “Am I dreaming? This is really the beach but I thought you were sending me home?” she asked him. Nathan smiled and closed the trunk door. “Well I wanted to surprise you so I had to pretend that I was letting you leave. It had to be that way so you could bring your clothes along you know” he said.

Elaine was so excited, “I want to go to the beach now, can we?” she asked. “Come with me then let’s get a cottage” he told her. “Cottage? We are staying here?” she asks. Nathan nodded and Elaine once again hugged him as they walked towards the office are of the resort.

They reach the front desk and Nathan quickly inquires. “Excuse me do you have a cottage with two separate rooms?” he asks. The receptionist checks her computer and shook her head. “I’m sorry sir the only cottage available is a single bedroom, queen size bed” and Nathan takes a deep breath.

“It’s okay I don’t mind, we will take it” Elaine tells the receptionist. Nathan looks at her and asks the receptionist “Does that cottage have a living room with a couch?”

“It does have a living room but the couch sir is made from bamboo” the receptionist states. “That will be fine with me, we will take it” he says and the receptionist presents him a form. “How many days will you be staying sir?” she asks.

Nathan looks at Elaine once again and she shrugged her shoulders. “Two days?” she asks Elaine and she nods her head. “Two day then” he tells the receptionist. After all forms were filled up Nathan was handed the key and they proceeded to their cottage.

As they enter their cottage, it was warm inside. Nathan quickly tested the sofa made of bamboo and laid down. Elaine noticed him and she went near him. “We can share the bed you know, I really don’t mind” she said. Nathan looked at her and smiled, “I will be fine here, it’s therapeutic” he replied.

Elaine went to the room and shut the door, Nathan toyed with the air conditioner settings and after a moment Elaine came out.

“How do I look?” she says. Nathan looks at her and saw her in a skimpy red bikini. He faced the air conditioner and said “It’s getting so hot in here; this thing is even on full mode.” Elaine giggled and playfully went near him. “Why don’t you get changed so we can go to the beach now” she told him.

Nathan quickly dragged his bag and went into the bathroom and change. Moments later they head on towards the beach, Elaine quickly runs towards the water and calls out Nathan who sat along the sand.

“Nathan come quick the water is warm!” she yells but Nathan just waives his hand and watches her. She runs towards him and pulls his hand. “Come on what are you waiting for? Youre not going to let me swim alone are you?” she asks him. Nathan stands up and walks along “Well if you went to your vacation spot alone then you would be swimming alone too wouldn’t you?” he asked. Elaine looks at him and pouts. “I guess you’re right. But now is different, I’m with you so come on lets go” she playfully says and drags him to the water.

They play in the water for an hour then go under the shade of a coconut tree. Elaine sits back on the trunk of the tree and wipes her hair with a towel. “You know what if ever I went alone to a beach I think I would not even enjoy it” she said. Nathan laughed and said “Well that’s what happens if you do rash things out of anger.”

“He is a total jerk that’s why” she suddenly opens up. Nathan sits beside her and shakes off the water in his hair. “Well that’s part of a relationship you know, help him grow out of it. Tell him what you feel so he can improve” he suggested. Elaine looks at him and says “What if he keeps on doing it?” she asked.

“Well it takes time for someone to change, but eventually they will so have patience and understand him if you love him” he adds. “What if he does not change?” Elaine asked further. Nathan took a deep breath and looked at her “Then I will be waiting” he said.

Elaine was surprised and her heart began to beat faster. She looked at him and asked “you will be waiting?” Nathan laughed and said “Yes, I will be waiting for your call to tell me what happened. So be sure to call me when you break up with him” and he kept on laughing.

Elaine pinched him on the side and playfully hit him on the arm. “You always do that, you always play tricks on me” she said in anger. She did not stop pounding his arm as he kept laughing and laughing at her. Elaine stopped and pouted then turned away from him. “You always keep cracking jokes like that, I don’t like them at all” she angrily said.

Nathan leaned against her back and played with the sand. “I will be waiting for that call of yours, for I know that time you will be very sad. So that time when you call I will be waiting to cheer you up” he whispered.

Elaine’s heart pounded once again and she felt so happy. She leaned her head against his back and enjoyed the moment being with him. “I will call you right away” she likewise whispered.

They ate lunch along a seaside restaurant and went for a walk after. The roamed along the seashore telling stories with one another and they seemed tireless. As the sky grew darker they walked back towards the resort both tired and exhausted. A quick dinner at the same seaside restaurant gave back some lost energy in which Elaine decided to go for a night swim. The beach was dark so they had to settle for the pool near their cottage.

Both of them were the only people in the pool, the just floated along the water wasting time. Elaine had many things on her mind, she was thinking about Ronald and at the same time the man with him that time. “Hey Nathan, I only have three more days in my vacation, tomorrow will be spent here, so where do you plan to take on the last two days?” she asked. Nathan opened his eyes and looked at her. “I really don’t know, there are still many places that you have not been to” he answered.

“I know your planning another surprise right? So tell me now” she says. Nathan just smiles and remains silent. Elaine sees him smiling and scheming something so she was curious and drags him down under the water. As he emerges she was laughing. “I know you are planning something again, tell me now” she insisted. “I don’t have anything planned I promise you” he replied and she dragged him down again. Nathan grabbed on to her body and he submerged her too, as their heads come up they both gasp for air.

Their bodies were close to each other, his arms were around her, and their faces were so close to each other and she began to blush. “Tell me now” she softly says. Nathan lets go and moves away from her, he steps out of the pool and she follows him. Nathan grabs his towel and hands him hers, they walk towards their cottage they both enter.

Elaine enters the room as Nathan sits on the wooden sofa, “We can share the bed, I really don’t mind” she says. Nathan towels off and smiles at her. “Don’t worry I’m alright here thank you” he replied. Elaine was about to close the door but managed to ask him “Tell me what your plans are” she says and Nathan lies down and closes his eyes.

“Tomorrow can wait” he softly says and she closes her door.

Elaine woke up and immediately gets up and checks on Nathan. As she opened her door he was not in the living room, she looked at her watch and it was only five in the morning. Nathan was nowhere to be found inside the cottage so Elaine quickly got dressed and headed out to find him. She went to the reception area and asked if ever there was a message left for her but there was none. She did not know where else to find him so she just decided to go for a walk along the beach.

As she was walking she saw Nathan lying down on the sand so she quickly ran towards him. She was about to get mad but she quickly saw the fresh fruits scattered on top of a picnic blanket beside him. “Oh you found me, I guess you read my note” he said to her. “What note?” she asked him. Nathan looked at her and said “the note I left on the table near the wooden sofa” he answered. “I didn’t see it, where did you get these fruits?” she asked.

“Sit down, come on. These are fresh fruits, I thought you might like them so went to buy them” he said. She sat down near him and picked up a ripe mango. “Why did you bring it here and not in the cottage?” she asked him. “Any minute now you will see why” he told her and she began peeling the mango. A few minutes later the surrounding became brighter, the sun was peeping beneath the clouds. “There it is” Nathan tells her and Elaine was speechless with the marvelous spectacle happening before her eyes. Towards the east the sun was about to reveal itself and make their brighter.

“It’s beautiful, it’s my first time to see the sun rise” she said with glee. A few minutes more and the sun was totally out and the water began to sparkle. The sound of the gentle waves and the cool breeze made the experience more memorable. As she looked at Nathan he handed her the plate of peeled and sliced assorted fruits. “You made this? I thought you were watching the sun too?” she asked. “I have seen the sun rise too many times already. Here come on eat it” he said. Elaine started to eat the fruits and enjoyed their sweetness.

“It’s really my first time seeing the sun rise, I did not know it was this beautiful” she said. “Don’t tell me it’s your first time at the beach as well” Nathan joked. Elaine laughed and responded. “No I mean, when he and I usually go to the beach we don’t do this stuff, it’s just all about the water” she revealed. “Well every time I go to a new place I see to it that there is always a lasting memory that stays on my mind forever” he told her.

Elaine looked at him and asked “Like this moment?” Nathan shook his head. “What kind of memory then?” she inquired. Nathan lied down on the sand and looked up at the sky and smiled. “I don’t know yet, but definitely there will be one.”

Elaine finished off the fruits in her plate and thought of what he said. “For me I will never forget this sun rise. I will never forget how you surprised me, bringing me here. The nature walk we had, how I wished the flower you gave didn’t have to rot though.” Elaine said.

“But you can’t tell him any of those memories. The memories you mentioned you just have to keep to yourself or it would cause problems” Nathan suddenly said. Elaine momentarily pondered on what he said and indeed she cannot tell anyone about her vacation. “So you have two more days to make a memory which you can tell him, and for that reason you have to find one good memorable moment, one without me” he said as he smiled at her.

“So you mean you are going to leave for two days?” she softly says. Nathan laughs and looks at her “Leave you? How can I do that? Of course I would never leave you” he exclaims. “So how am I going to make that one memorable moment alone then if I am with you?” she asks him. Nathan’s face turned serious and he looked towards the water. “I’ve also asked myself that question many times and I still don’t know the answer. When you find out tell me so I can make one for myself” he softly says and Elaine could feel the seriousness in his voice. This is the first time he ever opened up his hidden feelings, she knew deep inside he was hurting.

They spent the whole morning and afternoon on the beach where Elaine really enjoyed herself. As the day was about to end Nathan was waiting along the shore holding her towel. Elaine ran towards him and took the towel. Nathan suddenly placed his hands on her shoulders and she felt her heart beat fast once again. He slowly turned her around and she saw the final seconds of the sparkling water and the sun was starting to hide itself. A few more seconds and it was totally gone and turned and looked at him. “Thank you it was another first for me” she told him. Nathan was not looking at her; his eyes were still affixed on where the sun hid itself. “The sun set shows you that everything has an ending” he softly says and looks at her. “Come on lets go have dinner”

After dinner they spend time in the cottage room telling stories to each other. They forgot all about the time but Nathan noticed Elaine was already tired and sleepy. “I can see you are sleepy so let’s stop here and continue some other time” he said and stood up. Elaine held his hand and he turned to face her. “Sleep beside me tonight” she tells him. Nathan smiled and shook his head, “I’m fine, you just sleep okay?” he told her.

“Please just tonight” she pleads and he takes a deep breath. Nathan sits down on the edge of the bed as Elaine moved herself towards the other end. He lied down beside her and faced the ceiling. Elaine turned and faced him. Nathan closed his eyes and Elaine did the same and the room became silent.

“Nathan” Elaine whispers. “Yeah what is it?” he replied without opening his eyes. “Why are you so nice to me?” she asked in a soft voice. Nathan did not move but took a deep breath. “Why should I not be nice to you?” he answered.

“I asked you first” she said to him. Nathan smiled and took another deep breath. “Well first I took you in so you are considered my guest and I have to take care of you” he answered.

“So I am just a guest to you?” she asked him. Nathan did not bother replying since he did not know what to say. “Stop being nice to me” she further said. “Why?” he asked her.

“Stop being nice to me or else I might…” she stopped and Nathan turned at looked her. “Did you ever ask yourself why I am being nice to you?” he asked her. “I did” she answered. “So what answer did you arrive at?” he asked. Elaine blushed and smiled and did not answer.

Nathan closed his eyes and Elaine moved closer to him. “What if the answer on my mind is wrong?” she softly asked. He opened his eyes and stared at her, their face so close to each other. “What if you are correct? What if I truly am…” he stopped and smiled at her. Elaine’s heart was beating rapidly once again and she was really slowly falling in love with him. She stared at him and moved her face closer and their lips were about to touch. Nathan opened his eyes and they stared at each other, he quickly shifted position and faced the ceiling once again.

Elaine felt so embarrassed; she quickly turned around and faced the opposite direction. Her face was warming up and she felt so low at the moment. She felt Nathan move and he placed his arm on her stomach. “Is it okay if I put my arm here?” he asked her. Elaine’s was beating rapidly once again; she could not speak for she was so happy. “I guess not” he said and removed his arm but Elaine quickly held it and placed it back. She moved backwards so she could lean against his body, she didn’t let go of his hand. “Goodnight Elaine” were the final words she heard before she closed her eyes.