Swimming Lessons

Their bodies lay intertwined under a giant weeping willow tree. He runs his fingers through her dark wavy hair as she runs her hands up and down his bare back. The kisses are deep and passionate. Every now and then he'd stop just to stare into those pale blue eyes of hers. This moment is everything he thought it would be and so much more.

Sarah pulls away, "Can we just slow down for a minute?"

Allan holds her face in his hands, "Of course. We don't have to do anything you don't want to do."

"Oh believe me I want to", Sarah's face flushes.

"You know we can't hurt each other here? The willows will absorb our energy for a short while. We can you know fully let go of ourselves."

Sarah smiles, "Good." Then she pulls Allan back on top of her and they begin passionately kissing again.


This romance had taken them both by surprise. After that chance meeting by the creek they kept in touch through regular writing. Allan would share the incredible stories he learned from the trees. His writing was so vivid she could picture every little detail he mentioned. Sarah anxiously ran to check the mail on her kitchen table every day after school, she would become incredibly giddy if she spotted one of his letters in the pile.

After a few months of exchanging letters they agreed to meet up face to face again. Allan insisted on coming her way because he desperately wanted to learn how to swim. They stripped down to their under ware once they got to the lake. Sarah held his hand as they slowly walked into the water until they reached the point where it was waist deep. That day they only worked on underwater breathing. Sarah wondered even though he was born of earth how a sixteen year old boy didn't know how to swim.

The swimming lessons became a regular occurrence every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon. Sometimes Allan would sit by the water's edge and just watch Sarah glide through the water like some beautiful mermaid. A year later he was exploring the depths of the lake with her. Sometimes they liked to play a game of charades under the water until they ran out of breath. Other times they would throw objects into the water only to fetch them like a dog. There was a comfort between them as if they had been friends for an entire lifetime.

Now it was Allan's turn to show Sarah part of his world. He took her through the wooded areas between her village and his as he pointed out all the various types of plants and trees. They would often sit underneath the trees while Allan listened intently then repeated the stories they would tell him. Sarah would shut her eyes following the smooth tones of his voice. She was amazed at his fearlessness when he would scale those tall trees so effortlessly. Every time he would beg her to join him, but Sarah was so afraid of heights and the potential fall.

Neither one is sure when they crossed over from just friends to something more as it was a very gradual and subtle process. There were lingering looks, sitting next to one another with their legs touching, hugs that grew tighter and lasted longer, his arm casually draped over her shoulder. One day when they were saying goodbye Allan grabbed Sarah and kissed her.

Her eyes completely widened. He replied, "I didn't want to have never done that."

Sarah kissed him back, "What took you so long?"



On their way back from their afternoon under the willow tree Allan couldn't stop smiling. Occasionally he would scoop her up in his arms and kiss her. Even though eh was riding out an incredibly high he couldn't help but notice something seemed off about Sarah. "Did I do something wrong?"

She shook her head, "No, you were, are amazing."

He kissed the tip of her pebble nose, "I love you so much Sarah. Promise me you'll meet me tomorrow. I don't want to wait so long to see you again." She looked hesitant. Allan began to plead.

She relented,"Okay, where?"

"Anywhere you want." He pulled her hands up to his lips and started kissing her knuckles.

"The spot where we met, 4 pm tomorrow. I need to get home, see you then." Sarah began to dash off leaving Allan bewildered. He always walked her home, why was today so different? He should have known then that he had already lost her.