Crossroads (38 page)

“
I love hiking up here.
This view helps me think and takes my troubles away,” Andrew said,
looking straight ahead.

“
I agree,” Austin said,
patting his buddy on the back. He seemed mesmerized by the
view.

“
Is anyone hungry?” Patty
asked.

“
I don’t know about anyone
else, but I’m starving,” I answered.

Before anyone else could respond,
Austin laid a picnic blanket right in front of us.

I had a quick flashback of the day
Michael and I had our first picnic together.

“
Hungry, anyone?” Austin
asked, invading my thoughts. “From my part-time job,” he said,
smiling.

He pulled turkey avocado sandwiches
and several bags of chips out of his backpack. No wonder it looked
so bulky. He had stuffed the picnic items in it.

“
Thanks, Austin,” Patty
said as her eyes widened with delight. She sat down right beside
Andrew.

Austin motioned me to sit down first,
before he sat. When I sat down to pick up one of the sandwiches,
Austin sat next to me. It was silent for a while as we devoured our
lunches, admiring the view.

“
What are you thinking
about?” Austin asked.

If I told him, he would think I was
crazy. “Just the clouds. What kind of shapes do you see in the
clouds?” I asked.

“
I see a happy face and
over there…a bunny,” Patty shouted with excitement.

“
Let’s see. I see a shape
of a lion’s head,” Andrew said.

“
How about you, Austin?” I
asked.

“
This one is hard to see,
but I see Orion,” he said, looking serious.

“
How? Impossible,” I said
with a frown, knowing he was making it up.

“
Okay, I can see a star,”
he said, pointing to five small clouds. “But it doesn’t twinkle
like your eyes,” he said, his eyes looking into mine so intensely
that I could feel the depth of his words.

I blushed and turned away, more from
the embarrassment of Andrew and Patty listening. They turned their
heads, trying to hide their huge grins, but it didn’t work. While
we were still munching on our chips, the white fluffy clouds
disappeared and were replaced by dark gray clouds.

“
What do you see?” Austin
asked me, after silence had taken over our conversation.

I placed my hand out and felt a drop
of rain fall on my palm. “I felt a raindrop,” I said. Last time I
was up here, it was hot, unlike the chilly weather today. I zipped
up my light jacket and put the hood over my head as the cool breeze
brushed against me. “Ummm…,” I said as we all looked at each other,
wondering if it would rain. Without hesitation, we got up quickly
and cleared the picnic blanket.

The dark gray clouds were traveling
faster, darkening the sky. Ominous clouds gathered in bunches,
looking thick and fluffy. It was beautiful, but terrifying, as the
cracking of thunder echoed around us.

“
We better get going.
Andrew and I have umbrellas with us, so don’t worry,” Austin said
to Patty and me. I’m sure our faces looked concerned about getting
drenched.

Andrew and Austin quickly pulled out
umbrellas from their backpacks, and with a click of the buttons,
they opened up. Andrew placed his arms around Patty, and they
headed down the hiking trail. Although I felt uncomfortable sharing
the same umbrella with Austin, I really didn’t have a choice, since
it started raining harder.

“
You’re very lucky today,”
Austin said. His voice was lost to the thunder and rain.

“
What do you mean?” I
asked, practically yelling, gluing my eyes on the trail. The path
had become muddied and slippery from the rain, and I nearly fell a
couple of times.

“
No ugly bugs came out to
scare you.”

“
It’s a good thing because
I would be the first one down, all drenched,” I answered, watching
in revulsion as my black-and-white tennis shoes were being
splattered by Austin’s steps.

“
What are you doing
tomorrow?” he asked.

“
What? I can’t hear you,”
I lied. The thunder cracked just as he had asked his question, and
it was a good excuse to pretend that I didn’t hear. I didn’t know
how to turn him down without hurting his feelings.

We were at the end of the trail when
he stopped and spoke again, “It looks like someone is on your
mind.”

Still standing underneath the
umbrella, my face flushed from walking, I felt hot all over from
embarrassment. Was it that obvious? “What do you mean?” I tried to
sound casual.

“
You know what I mean.
Anyway, don’t say anything. Just listen.” He lifted my chin up so I
was forced to look him in the eyes. “What I want to say is that he
is extremely lucky to even be in the same room with you. I’m the
unlucky one who found you a little too late.”

I didn’t know what to say. I was
stunned that he had such strong feelings for me.

“
So if you need a friend
to talk to, just call. I’d rather have you as a friend than not
have you in my life at all.” He chuckled. “I guess I’m Orion and
you are Merope, the one who wouldn’t love him back.”

I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t
even know if he wanted me to respond. As I was trying to think of
something to say, he gave me a peck on the cheek and guided me
quickly inside Patty’s car.

“
Follow behind us!” Andrew
shouted through the open window from his car, as the rain showered
his face.

As we headed slowly down the curvy
road, I noticed Patty glancing my way several times before she
spoke. “What was that all about?” she asked cautiously.

“
Nothing,” I said
carefully. She understood that I didn’t want to talk about
it.

“
Are you all right,
Claudia?” she asked.

“
I’m just tired, that’s
all.”

Patty and I hardly exchanged any words
as I continued to stare out the window. The thunder continued to
roar with anger while the drops of rain pounded the ground. I
smiled secretly, thinking of what Davin had said to me when we
first met. When I had shed my tears in front of him, he wiped them
and said he didn’t want anyone down here to think it was
sprinkling. As we continued to follow behind Andrew’s car, we
parted ways when we took a different highway.

“
Did you have fun?” Patty
broke the silence.

“
I had a wonderful time.
Thanks for bringing me up there.”

“
Wasn’t the view
magnificent?” Patty asked with excitement.

“
Yes, it was,” I said
matter-of-factly.

“
Wasn’t it nice of Austin
to pack us our lunch?” Patty continued with her
questions.

“
Yes, it was,” I
said.

“
Wasn’t it nice that you
enjoyed Austin’s company?” Patty asked quickly.

“
Yes, it…” I stopped and
rethought what Patty had just said. “You tricked me,” I said and
raised a brow.

She laughed. “Just checking to see if
you’re really listening,” she said. “I know you want to deny it,
but subconsciously you like his attention.”

“
What?” I said.

“
I just don’t get you. You
have this well-educated, well-mannered hunk who practically throws
rose petals for you to walk on, and you’re not even remotely
interested.”

“
He’s not my type,” I said
softly, shrugging my shoulders. It was all I could say. “I’m just
waiting for…”

She didn’t let me finish. “Mr. Right,
Mr. Perfect, Mr. Prince. There is no such thing, honey. There is no
Mr. Angel out there, but if you want my opinion…” she paused and
looked at me to see if I would stop her from speaking her peace. “I
know you don’t want to hear it, but I think Austin is good for you.
And I’m only saying this because I love you like a sister, and I
don’t want to see you go out with another guy like
Ryan.”

I knew she was right. I just didn’t
realize it until recently. With Ryan, everything revolved around
him; but with Austin, everything seemed to revolve around me.
Perhaps if I wasn’t in love with Michael, there could be something
there for Austin. But it didn’t matter because my heart belonged to
someone else, and he was Mr. Perfect in every way. And he was an
angel, all right. I just couldn’t tell her.

After our conversation, all was quiet
in the car except for the soft music. It was a difficult drive in
the heavy rain, so Patty hardly spoke a word. Even the windshield
wipers swishing back and forth on high couldn’t give us a clear
view of the road. Instead, it produced a hypnotic effect on me, and
I didn’t even notice that we had arrived at Gamma’s house. We sat
in the car, watching the rain drench everything around us. Then
Patty finally spoke.

“
I would go inside with
you and hang out, but I’m exhausted.” She looked at me worriedly.
“I’m so sorry. You’re mad at me, aren’t you?”

“
For what?” I asked,
surprised by her words.

“
Because it seemed like a
double date. I honestly didn’t plan it that way. I promise,” she
said, desperately wanting me to believe her.

“
Patty, don’t be silly.
It’s fine. I already told you. I believe you.”

“
Okay,” she said, placing
her hand on my shoulder. “Get some sleep then. I’ll text you
later.” She gave me a long hug, and spoke solemnly, “I’ll see you
in a couple of days at Gamma’s funeral. I’ll be right there beside
you.” Then she squeezed my hand and looked at me with teary eyes.
“You’ve been through a lot. I wish I could make the pain disappear.
I know you miss her.”

She was right. I had been through a
lot; she had no idea to what extreme. I tried so hard to hold back
the tears, but one found its way down my cheek after Patty’s
thoughtful words. “Thanks for everything. I’ll text you later.
Drive carefully,” I said. I had to get out of the car. I knew if
Patty or I said anything else, I would completely fall apart. After
I got out of the car, she drove out of sight, and I got in my car
and headed home.

Chapter 25

I was at the waterfall where Michael
and I had been. Michael was standing at a distance, smiling. My
heart raced excitedly. He came closer, and held me in his arms. He
whispered my name, “Claudia.” He kissed me tenderly, wrapping his
wings around me. My dream couldn’t have been any better.

Suddenly, the waterfall was pouring,
making sounds like thunder. The peaceful water that surrounded us,
falling gently, was now increasingly forming big waves. The
boulders we were standing on started shaking and shifting, leaving
gaps between them. It felt like an earthquake. Next thing I knew, I
was pulled in by a rush of water. Michael and I had separated, and
I couldn’t see him anymore. I was shivering from the icy cold water
that pierced through my body. It was difficult to swim. Trying to
find a way out, I managed to grab onto what looked like roots
protruding from a tree. As I struggled to hold on, I heard a
voice.

“
Claudia!”

I looked up to see Austin standing
above me, reaching out for me. “Grab my hand. I’ll help
you.”

He leaned in further. I was just about
to give him my hand when he spoke again, “You don’t belong with
him.”

I flashed my eyes at him angrily. Why
did he say that? What did he mean by that? And why was he in my
dream? “No!” I said, full of rage. I pushed the water with my hand
to move away from him, accidently splashing water on his
face.

“
Kinda late for a water
fight, don’t you think?” he asked, wiping the water off his face
with his sleeves.

“
What are you doing here?”
I yelled, as I was beyond irritated.

“
That’s a nice way to say
hello to a friend who wants to help,” Austin said calmly. “Let me
help you. You’re just barely hanging on.”

He was right. I felt the roots start
to detach from the strain of my weight and the powerful water
pushing me forward. I changed my tone. “How did you find
me?”

He didn’t have a chance to reply. Our
conversation was interrupted by Michael calling my name.
“Claudia!”