Elijah
A half hour into the hike, I was exhausted.
My thighs burned from walking up and down slopes. Trying not to die was just hard.
Dad and I had chosen to do an evening hike, as it fit best with our plane schedule. The sun was gloriously setting over the rocks and the tour guide warned us to keep our flashlights, or phones, out. Thank god for the flashlight app, I thought, as I slipped my phone from my back pocket.
"As you can see here," the tour guide started, launching into a statement about rock types and even more about the formations of the Grand Canyon. A faint but constant sound of a stream filled my ears as I tilted my head to the side.
This was it. This was the desert's ocean.
Tiny streams, rivulets of water.
The desert doesn't have a lot of material to become an ocean, but it used what it had like a genius. A mastermind.
"Now,the sun has almost fully set, so I want you guys to all turn on your flashlights. I have extras in my pack, so we shouldn't run out,"the guide said to us, flipping on her flashlight.
"For this part of the hike, I always like to try a little something."She smiled at us, swinging the backpack back over her shoulder.Muscles in her arm ripples out. Damn, I thought. She's ripped! I always admired people who were dedicated enough to get that fit.
"I usually have everyone split up into partners. But!" she emphasized,getting our attention. "Try to partner with someone new. A stranger. Someone you haven't talked to. Now, I know there's a language barrier between some people, so I'll give them leeway. But the rest of y'all, get ready to split up!"
Shit, I thought. Partners? I've never been a partner person. I either hate the person I'm with or they just don't work like I want them to. I'm horrible with group projects and I can't stand some personality types.
Frantically,I look at my dad, hoping he'll wink at me and say "We can just stay together!"
No such luck.
My dad does look at me, but with an eager, mischievous look.
Shiiiiiiiiiiiit.
"So,who are you going with?" Dad asks me.
"You?"I give a pointed look. He just smiles back.
"I think the group over there is speaking Spanish. I'm gonna try work on my language skills!"
I must've looked crestfallen because his look tempered. "You can join us if no one else is deemed worthy," he adds, before giving me a shoulder pat and a reassuring smile, then walking towards the group of Hispanics.
I look around. There are a bunch of adults, none of whom I feel comfortable talking with...
Then I notice him.
The boy from earlier is standing farther from his mother this time.. His feet are planted into small edge of a rock cliff, a corner of the Grand Canyon. Even though his posture is steady, he still looks haunted by the words that she had said to him
I frown.
Scolding effects didn't usually last that long, did they?
Before I consciously acknowledge it, I am walking toward him. I notice he had a few freckles around his face.
Kinda attractive, a voice in my mind says, but I bat it away, trying to think of what to say.
When I approach him close enough to hear, he was looking solemnly over the canyon. The last rays of sunshine bathed his face. Finals hints of pinks, yellows, and oranges had never looked so beautiful over such a canvas. I was staring in awe, unable to speak at how gorgeous the scene was.
The desert was one hell of an artist.
However,I couldn't stare forever. The boy turned towards me, looking rather defiant.
"Can I help you?" he asked. Stuck in place, I couldn't get my mouth to move.
When in doubt,introduce yourself.
The only thing I could think of was my dad's rule of thumb.
"H-Hi I'm uh Elijah Oliver," I stammered through. Manners extended my hand for a handshake.
The boy's eyebrows knitted slightly. He looked guarded and confused as he shook my hand.
"I'm Asa," he introduced. Sunlight was now lighting up his dark hairlike some sort of ethereal painting.
"I'm guessing you want to be partners?" he asked. He seemed closed off,like he turned off his emotions.
"Yes,"I answered promptly. A small, tight smile was forced onto his face.
"Well it's good I found someone."
We didn't talk much after that.
After the general partner commotion, the guide lead us through the trail to explain the billions of details correlated with the Grand Canyon. Asa stayed next to me, but not too close. After the sun went out and the stars came in, a chill settled over the desert. I shivered in my hoodie, zipping it up all the way and shoving my free hand in a pocket. Sometimes I would glance over to see how Asa was doing, but he would never catch me or look back. He just seemed somewhat gone?
I tried to banish my worries and continue staying with the rest of the group, but I kept getting distracted and falling behind. I couldn't even hear the guide back here. Trying to hurry up, I took long strides.
But Asa still seemed far away. I had to stay with him, so I slowed down,just a tad.
After a long period of complete silence, I asked, "Where are you from?"
He glanced at me.
"California."
"Really?Me too!" He didn't respond. Aphoristic much? I thought to myself.
I cleared my throat a bit. "Um which city in California?"
"Berkeley."
"Oh wow! I'm from Palo Alto!"
"Mm."Jeez, did this kid even talk
Well he could be going through serious stuff right now. Being yelled at isn't easy,one voice in his head claimed.
He should at least talk, said another,smaller and very sassy voice.
He doesn't need to do anything, just give him space.
I bet he's a jackass.
Shut up.
Asshole.
Have some mercy, jeebus.
Motherfucker.
Would you want to fuck your mom if she yelled at you constantly?
Only if I wanted it.
You're sick dude, I'm leaving.
"Does your dad work at Google or something?" I jerked my head to the side, startled that he'd spoken. (Probably felt bad for ignoring me.That's a good sign.)
"No,he works at this publishing company." The conversion felt natural now, in some odd way. Maybe it was the feeling of nature running through me. "He gets pretty into the books he reads."
"I always wished my mom read me books." Asa feel silent for a while.
"Does he like he job?" he asked. I smiled, knowing how much books meant to my father.
"Yeah he loves it. Sometimes, he'll bring back a 'legal' copy of the book he's reading."
A hint of a smile toppled onto Asa's face. Maybe my rant was making him...happy?
"I've only seen him turn down one book. Granted, I've only seen him work like 3 times, but it must've been some bad shit happening because he got this weird look on his-"
"Where's the group?" Asa's voice did a complete 180 from the last time I heard it. Tensity laced through each word. Giving him a glance, his face muscles had tightened too.
"The group?" I asked before it him me. I looked upward toward the trail but saw no one. I looked behind me.
No one.
To the side.
No one.
"Shit,"I whispered. Not a single person lay in sight.
It was just Asa and I.
Lost.