Secrets Left Neglected

Chapter 17

Caoilainn

Like a dream come true and not long after our night at the lake, Tadhg and I both take the day off from work for a walk in the woods, soaking up the sun as we go.

I balance carefully on the abandoned train track beam before me. My arms are out at my side, wavering lightly as I try to tight-walk forward. For fun, every now and then I do a little leap, practicing some of my Irish dance jumps.

I point my right foot, lift it up, and then jump forward off of my left, back foot. I pull my left foot behind me so I can land on my right foot, taking two steps and then start the process all over again on my other side.

"I have no idea how you do that, Caoilainn," Tadhg teases. "Be careful. You don't want to fall and break your ankle or something. With the feis coming up, your mom'll throttle me if I bring you home broken."

I turn and stick my tongue out at Tadhg for good measure. "Don't be such a spoilsport. I'm having fun."

He's walking next to me, offering me his hand when it looks like I might fall off the metal.

We're walking across Britches Bridge, which is covered in an old train line. Freight cars used to cross it in the past but it's no longer in use. The bridge is pretty rickety and could never hold the weight of freight anymore, but it is still seems safe enough for humans to use. At least I hope so. It's just the two of us so as long as we don't stumble on stray rocks or wood and fall we'll be ok. I should be more careful like Tadhg says, but I'm having too much fun.

As we reach the end of the bridge, I sigh and jump down from the beam to walk next to Tadhg. As I do, I playfully bang into his left shoulder and smile. With the end of the bridge the tracks sort of fade away into the dirt. A path opens up before us that leads into the woods where nature has reclaimed this passageway.

We've taken the long way today towards our woods. We could have easily entered them from our usual place near home, but going this way takes us around the back of town and into them at the other end. It's a long trail and is on a route almost no one ever uses. We have the place to ourselves. There's not a person in sight for miles. It's always desolate on this side.

It's pretty, though.

There are chipmunks and even rabbits running around on the backside of the path and someone must have planted butterfly bushes at some point in time. This route is literally lined with dozens of them. Consequently, during special times of the year, like now, you can walk down the path and see all kinds of beautiful butterflies floating around you. It's almost magical, and that's why I asked Tadhg to come with me here. I wanted to enjoy it with him.

"Oh, Tadhg, look!" I exclaim. "Aren't they beautiful?" I start to twirl around, taking in the very sight of them, hoping one lands on me.

I turn around to look back at Tadhg and he smiles. "Yeah, they are but not as beautiful as you are, Caoi."

I lick my lips and try to contain my excitement, and then move closer to kiss Tadhg on the cheek. When I turn away from him afterwards he grabs me by the waist and pulls me back to him, sealing my lips with his.

It doesn't take long for us to deepen the kiss into something special. When we finally step back from one another I feel flush. Ever since we started dating, I am more connected to Tadhg than ever. Things have been escalating pretty quickly between us. Having a long-term friendship as part of our history means we've been able to skip a lot of the usual early dating steps. We have such a strong bond between us. It's hard to even imagine a time in my life when Tadhg wasn't there. I can tell we've reached a point where, like the caterpillar, it's time to transform this relationship into something more; something beautiful and sacred.

When I called Tadhg today and asked him to go to the caves with me he didn't hesitate in his response. He's as excited for this day as I am. It's been raining for weeks on end but the last three days have been nothing but sunshine. Unfortunately, the past two of them have seen us both trapped inside the I-S club with work. While everyone else has been soaking up the sun, we've been trapped indoors. Today is our first day off and we're both eager to be outside together, and alone.

Another good thing about today is that, since it's been so sunny this week, the woods have had time to dry out. We won't have to worry about any mud along the way. As we walk along, I start to hear the water of the falls we're approaching. The caves we like to hang out in are a little further past it, but we stop anyway to go down to the creek bank and watch the water rush by.

After a few steps on the rocky trail I grab a small sapling to steady myself and climb down the rest of the way towards the falls. Tadhg's in front of me, in case I should slip, and he puts an arm out behind him to catch me as I make my way. Small pebbles are disturbed in my wake and I'm careful not to let them unearth my footsteps.

We head over to a dry bolder and sit, my back against Tadhg's chest, my backside between his legs. I lean my head against his shoulder and soak up the sun while he wraps his strong arms around me. He caresses my neck, kissing me lightly as first. When I tilt my head around, catching his lips with my own, I smile. "Mmm, this feels good, Tadhg."

He returns the grin and says, "I know, a rúnsearc." He kisses me again and it's as if time stops. It's just him and I on the water. We continue that way for a while. We quietly stop when we're both at a point where we need a break. We don't speak; some things between two people need no words.

Like the water thundering against the rocks before us, I can feel the air around us crackle with energy; a live beast made of it's own arousals. Mist floats in the air, carrying our hearts inside drops of dew that bathe the earth. We have no need of fire; a flame his been lit within the both of us, stronger than any man-made fire that can ever be built.

We are out in the open, but at this moment, it is as if our entire world is contained on the weather-beaten stone beneath us. There is no want or need of anything else but each other.

After some time, Tadhg stands up and extends his hand to me, helping me off the rock, and then back up the banks to the path. We follow the trail in silence, stealing kisses as we go. When we come upon the caves, it's like being called inside a womb.

I smile, putting my hand in Tadhg's while looking up at him. He leans down and kisses me softly, before tugging me inside gently.

There's no guilt in our actions. We're joyful in our love. Nothing else matters. We're on a journey and as long as we walk this path together, nothing bad can happen to us.

If only this moment would last forever.

Life had other plans for us, as we were soon to find out, but for now we had each other in every way possible.

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