Strong (2 page)

Chase laughs again and I realize that I really like the sound. It makes me feel warm inside, even though it's becoming one of the coldest nights I can remember.

“
Speaking of subzero temperatures, I'm about to freeze my fingers off. Can we head back to the truck?” He smiles.

When we are safe back inside the warming truck, I tell him, “When there's no moon, the stars up here are incredible, too. Cygnus and Orion are my favorites. Once in a while, you can see the northern lights across Lake Superior as well. It's phenomenal. There's something so amazing about being so close to the heavens.”

I feel kind of embarrassed after I've said all of that. Chase doesn't say anything, so I wonder if he thinks I'm a complete dork.

I decide that I don't care because when I start talking about the stars, sometimes I can't stop. I point through the windshield, “The north star is right there. It's so bright that you can see it even when the moon is out. On moonless nights, though, it looks like a candle in the heavens because it's so vivid.  You can also see the knife hanging from Orion's belt on a dark night.”

As we drive back down from the bluff and around town, we lose track of time. Chase and I discover that we have a mutual love of the outdoors. I tell him about the endless skiing, skating, and hiking opportunities in the area. I'm about to suggest that we go sledding together some time, but then I think better of it.

I drive along the cliffs and back through town, to the road that leads to the beach below the bluffs. “There is another breathtaking view, from the beach over there. But we probably shouldn't get out this time because I'm still partly frozen from the bluff.” I inch the truck as close to the beach as I can without getting too far into the snow-covered sand. “Look over there,” I point to a few small caves hidden near the base of the cliffs. “My sister and I used to ride our bikes down here and play in those caves for hours during the summer. Maybe if you come to visit when it's warmer, I can show them to you.”

He smiles and agrees, “I'd like that. How's the swimming here?”

He swims
? I wonder. “It's perfect, if you like rocks. It's great for snorkeling, too. The bottom here is mostly small rocks and pebbles. It's a bit tricky if you have bare feet, but with water shoes, it's great fun. The water stays nice and clear. However, this
is
Lake Superior, so the temperature never gets much warmer than an ice cube. But, speaking of rocks, there are some pretty ones here. I've found some amazing agates. Do you know what an agate is?”

He smiles and nods.

“Sorry, not everyone does,” I continue. “My favorites, though, are Petoskey stones, which you can only find in the Lower Peninsula, so I guess it's not relevant to this beach, is it? Wow, am I talking a lot?”

Chase laughs and says, “Yes, you are! But it's okay. You sound like a tour guide. Oh, wait! You
are
a tour guide,” he nudges me and gives me a little smirk.

“
Well, I'm not planning to do that forever,” I say, rolling my eyes. “I'm finishing my second year at the community college, and I then I have to decide where to go after that.”

“
Do you know what you want to study yet?” He asks.

“
I'm thinking about Occupational Therapy.” I pause and hope for some kind of lead in to ask Chase about his crutches. I decide not to ask just yet because it seems kind of personal to ask why he uses them. I continue, “
My grandmother had a stroke about seven years ago, and I was fascinated by the process she underwent to learn how to cope with her partial paralysis. I'm not sure she would appreciate my use of the word
fascinated
, but it really inspired me to see her learn how to do many things with one hand. She passed away a few years later, but not before showing everyone how much she could do.”

“
Oh, gosh, I'm talking a lot again. Sorry,” I finish a bit awkwardly.

“
It's fine,” he smiles. “Well, the University of Wisconsin has a Master's Program for Occupational Therapy, so you could look into that. I'm at UW right now.”

“
What year?”

“
I'm a senior.”

“
Studying what?”

“
I want to go into medicine, so once I'm done at Wisconsin, I'll transfer somewhere else. Maybe the University of Michigan medical school. Wisconsin has a medical program, too, but I'd like to move away from my family for a bit. I mean, they're great, but I grew up in Madison and...well, it's a long story.  Anyway, I'm kind of lagging behind in making that decision. I should have already applied to med school and I should be preparing to take the MCAT, but I've had a few delays. After the holidays, I'm planning to get serious about narrowing down my choices.”

He's going to be a doctor? This guy just keeps getting better and better,
I smile to myself. I realize we've been talking for a long time and shift the truck into gear.

“
Are you finished with classes already? Mine aren't over until the second week of December.” I remark.

“
I have to go back to Madison for a few finals, but my parents insisted that I join them at the cabin for Thanksgiving. I'll be down there for a few days this week, a few next week, and then I'll be back here until the new year.”

“
So, you're on Brickstone Road?” I ask.

“
Yeah, our cabin is all the way at the end.”

“
And you're staying with your sister, right? Does she live here?” I ask.

“
No, it's my family's cabin. We bought it about five years ago, but we haven't been up here much. My parents, my sister, her husband and Oma, my grandma, are all staying there. My dad is a professor at the University of Wisconsin. He's a high school football coach, too, so he's really busy, but he's taking a break. It's kind of a leave of absence because our family has been pretty overwhelmed during the past few years. He has a friend at the community college here. He said he might try to visit the campus some time, maybe sit in on a class. He even mentioned the possibility of giving a guest lecture. Anyway, my parents really wanted all of us to take an extended vacation together before I graduate from college.”

“
Wow, that's a lot of people under one roof!” I observe.

“
You have no idea,” Chase agrees. “It's a big cabin, but I like to get out as much as I can. Oma isn't with us all the time. She lives in Ontonagon, so she goes home for a few days, and then heads back to spend time with us. It makes more sense than cramming into her tiny house up there.”

I approach the end of Brickstone Road and see a cabin that clearly doesn't belong to Canyon Crest rentals.  It is about twice the size of a rental; it's quite a bit older and more rustic, but it also looks more lived-in. “This must be your place.”

“You've got it – home sweet home.”

Suddenly, I feel a buzz in my pocket. It's a text from my mom:
Where R U???

Oh, shoot! I had forgotten to let her know I wasn't coming straight home. My dad is working late this week. He is a mechanical engineer at a steel plant. He occasionally works nights for a variety of reasons, but for the most part, he has a regular 9 to 5 job. My mom must have just gotten home from the second shift at the hospital. Even though I'm in college, I still try to let them know where I am and what I'm doing.

I quickly text back:
SORRY! Took a friend home. B home soon, OK?

I turn toward Chase and say, “I guess I should get home. I'm sorry I kept you out after your bedtime,” I joke.

“No problem. I can sleep in tomorrow. I'm on vacation, remember? I wasn't really that tired. I just didn't feel like tagging along with my sister and her husband for their dinner date.” He pauses before continuing, “I had a really good time with you, Kate. Thanks for showing me around.” He looks right at me with those beautiful coppery eyes and I start to melt.

“
You're welcome.”

We sit for a few more minutes in silence. I don't know what has happened in the last few hours, but I don't really want to say good-bye.

“Well, thanks for the ride home,” Chase breaks the silence. He opens the door, hops out, gives me a full smile, which is even better than his half smile, and slams the door. He quickly makes his way up his front walk and the wooden steps to his cabin. He handles the crutches like a pro.

I wonder what happened to him.

When I walk into my own kitchen, I find my mom finishing up the dishes that my sister and brother have
not
done,
again
. That's not a big surprise. She looks up at me and laughs, “What's with the silly grin on your face?”

“
W-what?” I stutter. “Oh, nothing. I just had a good time with a friend tonight.” 

“
Oh? Which friend?” She doesn't realize that I'm half way up the stairs because she has turned back toward the sink. 

“
Chase!” I yell as I shut my bedroom door.

I only hear a faint question in return as I flop onto my bed, the silly grin still frozen in place.

“Who's
Chase???
”

I wake up to most irritating alarm ever: the sound of stupid, mechanical chickens, getting louder and louder as my phone begins to buzz along with the clucking. Ugh, my little brother got to my phone again. He's always changing the settings and it's really starting to exasperate me.

I find my phone and turn off the annoying alarm. As I sit up, I remember my fantastic time with Chase last night. I realize that I don't have his number, but then I remember that I
do
know where he lives.

Wow. Stalk much?
I think to myself with a chuckle.

When I stumble into the kitchen and grab a coffee mug, my mom asks if I have a class this morning.

“Mom, it's Thanksgiving weekend.” I remind her. “I'm working the trolley tour today and tomorrow.”

“
Oh, right!” She gasps. “I'm a little off with the extra shifts I've been working at the hospital.”

My mom got her nursing degree when I was in high school, and she's been working the junk shifts at the hospital ever since. She's the low woman on the totem pole, I guess. But she doesn't complain at all; it seems like she loves her job.

“Wow, Mom,” I joke. “I hope you don't get confused like that when you're taking care of your patients!” 

She gives me a mock offended look, and then says, “No, I save my best thinking for being a nurse. I let my brain relax a little when I'm not on the clock. But it was a hectic shift yesterday, so I'm a little more tired than usual.” She comes over and plants a kiss on my forehead and then sits down across the table from me, her fresh mug of coffee steaming in her hands. 

“So, who is Chase?”

I look at her with a mischievous smile, like a little girl trying not to giggle while keeping a secret from her mommy. I watch her blue eyes widen with impatience while she waits for me to spill the details. Her hair is still naturally blonde, although it is starting to show some silver highlights. Even with a few more laugh lines each year, my mom still looks eternally young.

Finally, the dam breaks and I flood her with details all about the wavy-haired, copper-eyed guy who made my first trolley shift of the year so memorable. I can't stop the stupid grin that keeps taking control of my face. “He's really nice. And, well, he's kind of...” I search for the right word, “...disabled. I think.” 

My mom's face shows a little confusion, and I try my best to answer the questions she hasn't spoken.

“He walks with these arm crutches, and I can tell he uses them all the time. I mean, like he's not just using them for a broken foot or something. He gets around on them pretty fast. He even made his way to the top of Lover's Lookout.”

My mom grins and asks, “Lover's Lookout? Really? Your date went
that
well?” She's baiting me, wanting to know
all
the particulars of my outing with Chase.

“
Mom!” I blush. “I just wanted to show him around. It was
not
a date. For heaven's sake, I just met the guy!  And I didn't think to ask about the crutches. I mean, I thought about it, but I figured it wasn't really any of my business to ask about them on a first date. No! It
wasn't
a date! I mean, I didn't want to ask the first time I met the guy!”

My mom is snickering at the fact that I'm getting flustered and stumbling over my words. 

“Besides,” I move on, after regaining my composure, “he's not from around here. He's staying at his family's cabin on Brickstone Road. He's going back to the University of Wisconsin after the holidays. I don't even know his phone number.”

“
Well, that's probably good. You're not ready for anything serious yet. You still have to finish college.” 

I'm tempted to roll my eyes at that last comment, but I resist. First of all, I never said anything about getting serious with the guy. But also, it's a little challenging to feel like a “real” grown up when I'm still living with my parents. Don't get me wrong; my parents have been great about helping me make decisions for my first few years of college. But sometimes, I think they forget that I'm an adult and that college is not just an extension of high school.

We sit and enjoy the sunlight coming through the kitchen window. No one is fooled by the late November sunshine in Eagle Canyon. It's deceptively cold outside, and without a layer of clouds, the temperature will continue to drop. I make a mental note to find my insulated gloves before I head to work this afternoon.

Just before work, I text my best friend, Dani:
Met a super cute guy at work last nite.

I know Dani will get the message immediately, and respond almost as quickly. She lives for social connections.

From Dani
: Dish!

To Dani
: His name is Chase.  Spent 3 hours with him last night.

From Dani
: OMG. Cute?

To Dani:
OFC! He's going to med school too.

From Dani
: Marry him!

To Dani:
LOL. Not quite yet.

From Dani
: Send pics

To Dani:
OK. Got 2 work now. xoxo

Danielle Kyle. What on earth would I do without my best friend? I was almost heartbroken when she moved to Chicago after high school, but she is incredibly faithful and, as I mentioned, very good at keeping in touch via social networks. She was here for Thanksgiving but she had to return to Chicago yesterday. I don't think I could go a day without texting her or talking to her.

“
Hello! Welcome to Eagle Canyon's Christmas Lights Tour.”

As I predicted, it is colder than last night. The sun is just setting and the mercury will continue to drop. I'm glad I remembered wool socks today. 

In all these years, the trolley tour has only been canceled once, due to a blizzard on Thanksgiving weekend, but never due to subzero temperatures. Sam Calkins has braved the snow and cold to give the tour every single year, every single weekend from the day after Thanksgiving to the last day of December. I've been lucky to have this job for four years running. It pays well, and it's my only source of income besides my summer job. My sister wants the job after me, but I'm not quite ready to let it go, yet. But she will be a shoe-in since Sam adores me. My parents have never wanted me to work during the school year – in high school
or
college – but I think that will have to change next year once I transfer to a university. Maybe the University of Wisconsin? I'd never really considered it before, but I spent some time researching UW last night after the “Chase tour.”

I look up to see how many children are on the trolley. I grab a handful of glow sticks and pass them around to the kids. As I near the back of the trolley, I hear a familiar voice, “Excuse me, miss? How long is this tour?” I turn to find myself looking directly into Chase's handsome face. I can't believe I hadn't noticed him, or that I hadn't noticed the tiny flecks of blue in his coppery eyes the night before. 

“You didn't get enough of the cold last night?” I laugh. My heart is racing with excitement to see his face again. “There are four tours tonight, each lasting around of 35 minutes,” my official sales pitch begins. “If you ride all four tours in one night, you will receive this souvenir shot glass free!” The glass has some goofy slogan on it about Eagle Canyon. It only costs $2.50 in Sam's little gift shop, but it is a fun perk for riding the trolley, I guess.

“
That's a tempting offer,” says the sweet face in front of me. His attention turns to my hands, “I'm glad to see you have warmer gloves tonight.”

Suddenly, I hear Sam's voice on the speaker saying, “Folks, we're ready to start the tour as soon as our guide,
Katherine
, makes her way to the front of the trolley.”

I turn in embarrassment and head quickly up the aisle, amidst a few giggles and grins from passengers who had taken notice of my extended conversation with Chase. Endless cups of hot cocoa emit curls of steam from almost every location on the trolley. Another of Sam's specialties: hot cocoa for 50¢, offered at the front of the trolley ticket line. He could make a killing on hot cocoa sales alone. I'm not sure what's in his secret recipe, but people can't seem to resist.

The four back-to-back tours fly by, since I have a pleasant focal point of my own. I look back at Chase every chance I get. Every single time, he's staring back at me. He even manages to embarrass me again with a question about the bluff above the Christmas display, “Is there a name for the highest cliff up there, past the light display?”  

“
Lover's Lookout,” I say. My face turns bright red, and I hear people saying, “aww!” as they look back and forth from Chase to me. 

“
Thanks a lot for making me lose my cool up there,” I laugh as I greet Chase after the last trolley tour.

“
How could anything make you lose your cool? It's downright frigid here!” Chase grabs one of my glove-covered hands and asks, “Can I get a lift back to my cabin again?”

I laugh and ask, “Did you get stranded here on purpose?”

“Of course, I did!” He grins. “I was actually hoping to treat you to a cup of coffee on the way home, though.”

I blush and agree, “That sounds very nice...and
warm
.”

Chase brushes little flakes of snow out of his hair as we enter the small diner on Fort Road. The wetness leaves his hair looking slick and more amazing than before, if that's even possible. I marvel at the color of his hair and notice that he even has a few caramel highlights.

The diner is a bit gaudy and dated. It's decorated with kind of a classic-diner-meets-hunting-cabin theme. The walls are covered with diagonal wood paneling, circa 1970's. The floor is a black and white checkerboard pattern. The bar stools at the counter look like they were once red vinyl, but now, they are a variety of materials and colors, some with the original red vinyl patch-worked into the design. The booths are comprised of black tables and red seats. Suspended from the ceiling are old vinyl records with faded labels. A smattering of pictures featuring Elvis or Chuck Berry are hung haphazardly on the walls.  The décor is oddly broken up by a few moose heads, a bear head, and about ten kinds of mounted fish. 

Regardless, the place is very popular with locals and tourists alike. I'm surprised that we're led to a seat so quickly on a Saturday night.

“Do you want some dessert?” I'm astounded by the smile that accompanies Chase's voice. I feel instantly warmed by his closeness.

“
No, I drank so much hot cocoa on the trolley tour that I can't think about more sugar for the rest of the weekend. But, thank you. Coffee will be perfect.”

Once we're seated, I ask, “So, what
really
possessed you to ride the trolley four times tonight? It's so cold, I can't believe that anyone would stay out there willingly. I mean, clearly
I
had to stay because it's my job.”

“
I really needed this shot glass.” Chase pulls the tiny glass out of his coat pocket and laughs.  “But, seriously, I wanted to see you again.”

My face flushes, and I look down at the steaming cup of coffee that has just been placed in front of me. Did he really just say that? Did he mean it the way it sounded? He wanted to see
me
? “Oh,” is the only response that I can come up with. I'm trying to wait for the blush to wear off before I look up again.

I hear the jingle of the diner's front door and automatically look over, just in time to see my parents walking in with my sister and my little brother. I wave and Chase turns to look over his shoulder. “My family just walked in,” I inform him.

Fiona and Marcus waste no time in rushing over to the table. I suddenly realize that Fiona doesn't know anything about Chase. I feel like I've known him a lot longer than a day. Fiona was out shopping with her friends all of yesterday, and then she had gone out to see a movie and didn't return home until well after I was asleep. She is in a junior in high school. We are normally pretty close but she had slept in quite late this morning, and we haven't had one spare moment to connect until now. I don't want her to feel like I've been keeping something from her, so I make a point of introducing her first.

“
Fiona, this is Chase. Chase, this is my sister Fiona. I met Chase on the trolley tour
last night.
” I try to emphasize to Fiona that I haven't known Chase any longer than that. “And this is my brother, Marcus, my mom, June and my dad, Ed.” I motion toward my parents who have just reached the table in time to shake Chase's hand.

Chase reaches out to my mom and dad, saying, “Nice to meet you, Mr. and Mrs...uh, I guess I don't know your last name.” 

“Galliver,” my dad smiles. “But you can call us Ed and June.”

“
Do you want to join us?” Chase asks. It's a smart move on his part. My parents
always
wants to be involved in my life when guys are concerned.

My mom is about to accept when my dad quickly interjects, “No, thanks.  We'll sit over there,” he says, motioning to the large booth at the back of the diner.