"So, that's how we met." said Jeremy as he glanced over at her. Harriet nodded and blew a bubble with her gum as she sat back in the chair, almost looking as relaxed as Jeremy.

"Go on."

"See, this is my favorite part of the story."

"You've told it before?"

"No, jus' to myself. Jus' to make sure it was real."

"Oh."

____

She kissed me gently on the cheek as we walked through the icy parking lot to the warm looking restaurant. I glanced over at her and tightened my grip on her gloved hand.

"Kiss me again. It warms me." She did and I smiled. "Again?"

"Hey daddy!" she said as she ran and threw her arms around a man who looked to be in his late thirties. I walked over and offered my hand, shining my best smile and trying to keep eye contact. He had a strong grip and my numb hands felt about to burst. We all walked into the warm and inviting waiting area of the Garden's Eden. Someone took our coats and I looked down at my shirt to make sure it was ironed and straightened my tie before Wren took my hand and followed her dad to our table.

I greeted her mother and her younger brother and was introduced to her uncle Ruben and aunt Maddy. They had a baby who wasn't the cutest thing, but there was intelligence in those eyes. And besides, I've heard ugly babies grow up to be beautiful. I mentally wished the kid good luck and hoped, if that was true, I was an ugly baby.

I glanced over at Wren as she sat down and laughed at something her father said. Yeah, I had to be an ugly baby to get her. Or a very, very lucky boy.

"So, Jeremy, how's everything?" asked her mother nicely. I nodded as I scooted my chair in.

"Oh, everything's great. And you, ma'am?"

"Just fine. So, what did you two do today?"

"Jeremy just took me 4-wheeling through the forest earlier, and we had a picnic."

"She ordered a few burgers and took them with us into the woods."

"I told you we should've bought a wicker basket!" she said accusingly with a glare at me. I smiled in response and the rest of the family just laughed. "So, uncle Ruben, how's everything back in Miami?"

"Its good. Hot. I like it here. Its so... cool."

"You sound like an advertisement." I commented. He chuckled and the waitress came then, handing out menus and asking what we'd like to drink. Wren's parents both got some champagne and her uncle and aunt got some Margaritas. I remember she ordered a coke and I a sprite. I wanted a coke, but I figured I could jus' drink out of hers.

The conversation drifted to countless topics and somewhere in the middle of the meal, after talking about the superbowl and the Patriots, we reached a lull in the conversation and Mr. Mosely looked over at me.

"So, son. What dya have planned for your future?" Wren shot him a dirty look, and I really don't know what hurt more. Her the tone her dad used, so condescending, or the look she shot him, like she didn't expect anything either.

I put my fork down and folded my hands together before replying.

"I'm actually hoping to get into Emerson, major in creative writing and minor in journalism."

"Why's that?" asked Mrs. Mosely.

"Well, with the shortage of teachers, you don't have to major in education anymore to become one. You simply teach what you major in, so I want to be an English teacher. Being a journalist is my back up plan." I said as I took a sip of my sprite. Her dad actually looked impressed and even Wren gave me a surprised smile. I replied with a wry smile and excused myself from the table.

Laughter from distant tables and common restaurant background noise assaulted my ears and I desperately wanted to get out of there. But I settled for the bathroom and washed my face. The cold water felt good but I really just felt like an ass. I should've known I wouldn't have fit in here.

I sighed, and decided to finish the meal and decide from there. The bathroom door opened and closed with a quiet click and when I looked up into the mirror, I saw her. I jus' stood there for awhile and waited for her to say something.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. You know, you really shouldn't be in here."

"Don't give me that. What's wrong?" I looked at her in the mirror and waited a moment before answering.

"Your dad asked me what I was gonna do with my life like he expected me to say leech off of you and you jus' gave him a look like you didn't expect much more. So how dya want me to react to that?"

"It's not even like that."

"I know exactly how it is." I said turning around. "I'm your vacation buddy, right? I'm like that guy in Stella Got Her Groove Back. I'm jus' here to make your trip more enjoyable."

"You watched How Stella Got Her Groove Back?"

"Um, no. I read a review or something- That's not the point. The point is if you don' expect anything from me, then maybe these last two weeks have jus' been a waste of my time."

"Oh, nice. To tell you the truth, I gave my father that look because I told him not to do anything like that."

"So, you're embarrassed of me? You didn't want to even mention my future?"

"No, I didn't want him to embarrass you. God, what's the big deal? You handled yourself well."

"And I bet you didn't expect that either."

"What the hell do you want from me?" she snapped. "I try to make sure my dad's not a jerk, you think I'm embarrassed of you, and I try to tell him to stop when he is one, and you think I'm embarrassed of you. And then I come in here to apologize and you bitch at me! So, you know what? Sorry if I've wasted any of your time."

She started to walk out and my mind kicked into gear. I felt that if I let her get out of that door, then I would lose her, and that, at that point, seemed like the hugest mistake of my life.

"Stop!" I said before I could really think about what to say next. She stopped with the door half open and the only sound coming from the hum of the air conditioning. Words have never been hard for me. Never. But my silver tongue failed me and I stuttered in my next words. "I... I'm sorry. Jus' listen to me real quick. I feel as if my next words are going to be some of the most important I've ever spoken."

"Then choose them wisely." she replied coldly. I took a breath and launched into my thoughts verbalized.

"I... I think I love you. I don't know why this is so hard to say, but it is. If any of this comes out wrong, I'm sorry. I always wanna say sorry to you, and I wondered if that was love. But I jus' care so much what you think. And I want you to love me. And I know I look pathetic, but right now, at this very moment, I don't care. So, what I meant to say was... I love you." She just stood there for a moment and finally she let the door swing shut. She turned around and faced me, her face straight and not revealing an ounce of emotion, mine distraught and waiting for her response. I must've looked so desperate.

"Do you really?" I nodded. "Because I can't love someone who doesn't love me."

I smiled and she kissed me then. We'd kissed before, but now it sparked. I felt alive.

____

"Have you ever felt alive?" Jeremy asked Harriet.

"Yes." said Harriet with a distant glint in her eye. "A long, long time ago."

Jeremy nodded and looked around the website, taking in the atmosphere. The light that shone through the huge windows. The flying 747 behemoths outside being refueled or boarded. The tired looking people yelling and running towards each other.

"It was the moment where everything is redefined and all your values and morals and convictions are questioned. Where everything you thought was real and true is shown for what it is and you choose what you believe."

"Like your alive for the first time?"

"Like I was born. In that one kiss, I wanted to write a song. I climbed mount Everest. I went down Niagra falls in a wooden barrel. I bungie jumped, hand glided, and sky dived all at once." He said counting off on his fingers to emphasize. Harriet laughed and he continued with a huge grin on his face. "I met God then. I shook his hand. Nice guy. True story."

"So it was love?"

"Love doesn't begin," he said, pausing for dramatic effect. "To describe it."

"It sounds like the stuff drugs try to achieve."

"But no drug could ever come close. You know they say love is a bunch of chemicals shot off in your brain?" Harriet shook her hand. "Well, its not. Its the universe channeling through you to another person and all you can do is smile. And through this euphoria, we realized that we had three days left. And three days is nowhere near being enough."

____

We had sex in that bathroom. But it was never raunchy with her. And I've had better sex with other people, but when I think about it now, I can't picture myself doing it with anyone else. Touching someone else seems wrong. Dirty even. When I touched her, it was like caressing Heaven.

Afterwards she laughed as she tried to fix my hair. It was shorter then, so it wasn't that hard. Hers was a mess, but she jus' put it up in a tight pony tail and hoped they wouldn't notice. And like that, holding each other's hand, we went back to the dinner.

"Hey, we missed you guys." said her mother.

"Sorry, jus' had to straighten things out." I said with a grin. I pulled her seat out for her and sat down to finish my meal. The waitress had refilled my sprite and her coke while we'd been gone and the family just continued with their conversation. Something about the economy. I zoned them out and looked over at Wren. She was so beautiful. I never wanted to look away, but something caught my eye from behind her.

I smiled and waved at the old man sitting a few tables away, the same old man from the lodge. He gave me a thumbs up and I smiled and gave him an A-ok gesture. He grinned and returned his attention back to his wife, leaving me to return my attention back to my table.

"I'm sorry, what?" I said as I realized they were talking to me.

"I asked if you had ever traveled." asked her Aunt Maddie.

"No ma'am. I went to Texas when I was small, but that was about it."

"Oh, you should get out and see the country, if not the world." added her Uncle Ruben.

I looked over at Wren and saw a thoughtful look in her eye. Confused, I raised an eyebrow and she turned to me and smiled a distant smile.

"Father, I'm not going to be going with you all back to Deleware. Well, not for a while." Her dad lay his fork down and looked over at her.

"What are you talking about, Wren?"

"I'm not going with you. Jeremy and I are going to travel the country until we start school. No need to waste the summer."

"And with what money, dear?" asked her mom. I sat there confused as her dad glared at me like it was my fault. I glanced over at Ruben and Maddie while they kept their heads down and their mouths full of food.

"I have more than enough in my bank account."

"But that money's for college!" argued her father.

"Dad, I've already been offerred scholarships and besides, if I do need money, then I'll work for what I need."

"Its not that easy!" he yelled in response.

"Dad, please. Don't make a scene."

"Did you have anything to do with this?" asked her dad, looking at me.

"Actually, sir, I'm hearing about this for the first time as well." I said as I nervously took a sip of my drink. "But, I don't disagree."

"And do you two think you can survive on your own?" asked the mom skeptically. Wren and I nodded, but they both looked unconvinced. Ruben spoke up then in our defense and I silently thanked him.

"Come on, guys. They have the money and the wits. You know your daughter is smart. And he seems intelligent."

"That's not the point, Ruben." said her dad in a reasonable voice.

"If they have the means, let them go. You guys can afford a vacation for them."

"With no supervision?" countered her mom.

"Listen, they have to grow up some time. They're both seventeen, for God's sake. They can't drink or smoke, so you don' have to worry about them getting beat up in a bar, and they can both drive and get hotel rooms. This is the age you should let them go. Honey, tell them."

"Ruben, does have a point." said Maddie hesitantly. She grinned and gave me a funny look. "I mean, they're young, yeah. But Wrens mature. Enough for the both of them."

"Dad?" asked Wren once more.

"We'll talk about it more in the morning." Something in his voice was evidence of defeat and I smiled as I thought about the ensuing argument with my mom.

"If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go find a payphone to ask my mother." I said, once more getting up from the table.

"I'll go with you." said Wren, once more following. We walked through the place and found a payphone by the kitchen and the bathrooms. I popped in two quarters and it rang a few times before she picked up.

"Hello." I said. "Hey Ma. No, I'm not in jail. No, I'm still at the restaurant. Nah, Wren didn't dump me. Ma, listen. She wants me to go on a trip with her. I dunno know where. I was calling to ask if I could. I could? Thanks Ma- no, I don't have any money. Well, I have like 600 hundred in the bank. I have my college fund too. Ma? You will lend me some? How much? Ah, Ma, thanks. What's that? Don' call you in the middle of your shows. You're breaking up. I jus' want you to know, Ma that- hello? Hello?"

"What'd she say?" asked Wren with a huge grin on her face.

"She said I could go." Wren started to giggle and clapped her hands together. "She said I didn't need to touch my college fund, because she was gonna lend me the money I needed."

"I can lend you money, too." said Wren.

"Nah, that'd be weird."

"Shut up. I'll make you work for it." she said slinging her arms around me and giving me a quick peck on my lips. I smiled.

"I guess I can't complain."

"Good. Be up early tomorrow, ready and packed."

"Okay, but let's go finish dinner, first." I said with a grin. I started to walk back to the table and she stopped me with a hand on my arm.

"I love you." I looked into her eyes, and smiled. Saying that makes you so vulnerable. Every time you say it, it could be the time you get hurt. I gave her a quick kiss.

"I love you, too."