“Look! It’s like I can touch the clouds!”
Her laughter echoed like music to my ears. I watched her in awe, mesmerized by how carefree she was. She had a way of turning the simplest moments into something magical. I would do anything to hear that laugh and see her smile.
With each sway, she threw her head back and closed her eyes, like she was savoring the feeling. I felt so strongly for her, wishing that I was brave enough to confess my feelings to her, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t get the words out. Honestly, sucking it up was okay. I would rather be Daisy’s friend and get to spend these amazing times with her than risk it all with her and have it blow up in my face.
I couldn’t lose her.
I wouldn’t survive without her.
She was my comfort, my joy, my safe place.
She was the moon and the stars.
She was a light in the darkness.
She was everything to me.
As I continued pushing her, I imagined what it would be like to fly and be able to freely explore the world. I dreamed of things like that, but not as much as Daisy. The truth is, although I thought about getting away and seeing other parts of the world, I would never do it. I didn’t need to do it, and I didn’t really want to.
I would gladly stay here for the rest of my life, as long as Daisy was here with me. She was my anchor. She was my best friend, partner in crime, and the one person who truly understood me. Weshared secrets, dreams, and plenty of adventures together.
She was all I needed in this world.
With her, I knew I would be happy.
“Hey, Colt?” I was so lost in my thoughts that I hadn’t noticed she had stopped swinging.
“I’m sorry. Let me push you again.”
“Hold on.” I moved to face her and noticed the look on her face had changed. Her head hung low, and my heart hurt seeing her like that.
“I wish things could stay like this forever.”
I felt a pain in my chest. I wanted that, too. I wanted to stay with Daisy forever. The days she wasn’t at the ranch with me, I felt like I could hardly stand it. I just wanted to be with her, spend all my time in her presence.
“Me, too. We’ll always be friends, Daisy. You can always count on me.”
“Good.” Daisy smiled, and her laughter returned as I pushed her once more on the swing.
? ? ?
“This is nice…just us.” I nodded, knowing exactly what she meant. Moments like this made the secrecy worth it. As hard as it was, I could see the silver lining in it. I pushed her again.
“I wish we could be open about this. About us. I mean, it hasn’t been that bad. I just really want to show you off.”
“Show me off?” I tried to make a joke, but she wasn’t ready for it. I could tell she was serious. “I know. We just have to keep being careful and keep this hidden for a little while longer.” She nodded.
“Then you’ll tell him?” I sighed.
My stomach still did flip flops every time I thought of telling my dad.
After talking with John, I realized why he did what he did, but it didn’t make the idea of having a talk with him any easier. I always found it hard to talk about real things with my dad, something we never really did much as I grew up.
I wanted to sit and hold Daisy in my arms. I squeezed my hand into a fist. Not being able to touch and be with her in the ways that I want, publicly, was so debilitating.
I pushed her a few more times, thankful that I was at least able to touch her in this way. I wanted so much more, but stolen glances and little moments were all we could have right now. Soon, it will change.
After that, I knew we needed to get back to work. My dad hadn’t shown back up from the field and checking on the cattle yet, but I knew it was only a matter of time. The last thing I needed was for him to see me gawking at Daisy.
