His Eyes (8 page)

“Sometimes, you’re just looking for something that’s right.”

Oh, it was a line. It was
so
a line. But it was a good line.

For a moment, his hand cupped my cheek. I was sinking into his touch, anticipating his next movement as he discovered...me. In the darkness behind my eyelids, I was intensely aware of every noise, the sound of his steady exhaling. Mostly, as his thumb stroked my lips, I was overwhelmed by the desire to know everything about him. If only I could see him without his sunglasses. If only... His breath was warm on my skin and his hand had settled against my neck. I wanted to look, but—

“
Ahh
!”

With my heightened senses, the sound of the doorknob twisting brought me into a panic. I jumped away from Tristan just when the door opened. Chris stood in the doorway with his arms crossed. He was dressed in his pajamas, though he appeared very much awake. He knitted his eyebrows as he looked from me, and I was probably white as a ghost, to Tristan. His voice was suspicious. “What are you guys doing in here?”

Tristan frowned. “Nothing. You should be in bed.”

“Dad always told you to keep the door open.”

“Well, Dad isn’t here now, is he?” he snapped.

The boy’s eyes widened and his mouth formed a hard line.

“Listen, I...” Tristan sighed and explained, “I’m sorry. I didn’t know it was closed.”

Chris looked down at the carpeting. “It’s okay... Mom’s just... It’s kinda loud.”

“She can get pretty...excited for parties, you know?” Tristan shrugged. “Sometimes grown-ups play loudly.”

His brother’s face brightened. “Do
you
wanna play a game?”

Tristan’s laugh was bitter. “I don’t know if I’m much competition nowadays.”

“We can play together,” I chimed in quickly. “How does that sound?”

Chris nodded eagerly and ran from the room to find a game. I took a deep breath to calm myself; I was trembling all over. If he hadn’t walked in before, would we have kissed? I tried not to dwell on it. I was here
working
to get money for
college
. I wasn’t falling—no. I swallowed hard and looked over at Tristan, who seemed to be lost in his thoughts. There was no reason for my trembling. None.

Chris ran back into the room with a box in his hands. He slid onto his knees at the foot of the bed and proudly set the game on the floor. He smirked challengingly at me and proclaimed, “Battleship.”

“I’m ready if you are, kid.” I pinched Tristan’s knee as I took a seat on the floor. “And I’m counting on you to destroy his ships.”

Tristan smiled and turned toward Chris. “You heard her. Your naval days are numbered. A4.”

* * *

The Saturday morning sky was slightly overcast. I stretched my arms as I pulled up to the Edmunds’ gate, which was closed. The night before, I’d gone straight to bed after three hours of Battleship and then I laid there forever while I tried to process everything that had happened. The ceremony, the dance, the...seeing.

I wanted to come up with something fun for Tristan and I to do—something that we would both be able to enjoy, something special. However, my list of things I knew he would enjoy and things that would be risky was one and the same: riding horses. The problem was that I’d only ridden horses twice in my life, to little success, and, well, he was blind. But I just couldn’t think of anything else.

Leaning out my car window, I pressed the call button. A minute passed and then a familiar boy’s voice crackled through the speaker. “What?”

“Chris, it’s me! Open up!”

There was a pause and then he replied, “
Sooo
, what’d ya do last night?”

“Beat a little cheater at Battleship,” I teased.

“You did not!”

“Did too!”

“You guys only won once! I won the rest!” the boy huffed.

“Only because you kept telling us we’d missed, when we’d hit your boats!”

My comment was met by indignant silence.

“Chris,
come on
!”

There was a buzz and the gate swung open. By the time I pulled into the driveway, which was now empty of all the catering vehicles, he was waiting for me at the door with an evil little smile smeared across his face. I gave myself a quick pinch on the arm before exiting my car, just in case I’d really slipped into a Stephen King themed nightmare. I skipped up the stairs and tried to slip past him, but he blocked my way.

“So, before I came in, what
were
you doing in Tristan doing?” he asked coyly.

“Nothing. What
were
you doing snooping outside his room?”

Chris raised his eyebrows. “Hearing you scream pretty loud.” I glowered and he casually kicked at the ground. “So, you and Trist are
friends
now?”

I shrugged and fought the urge to tweak his smirking little cheeks. “I guess.”

He blocked me when I made another move to get inside.

“Wha’ch ya doing, today?”

I glared at him. “
Something
, okay?” I caught his shoulder and pushed him aside.

“You’re gonna try to get him to ride Aeris, huh?”

I stopped inside the foyer and spun around. The open door swung in the breeze, but Chris was gone. Creepy little kid. I turned back around and jumped. Tristan was standing in front of me, at the base of the staircase. I let out a small squeak and his face lit with a mind-numbing smile. “Nice to see you, too.”

“I’m sorry. It was just your brother....” I sighed. “Never mind.” I walked forward and took his arm. “Let’s go.”

Tristan walked with me, but asked, “Where are we going?”

“Uh, for a drive,” I said evasively.

He turned his head toward me, skeptical. “Really, Amy?”

“It’s a surprise,” I said with a smile and swung the door shut behind us. I turned to see Chris sitting on the front steps. He jumped up when he saw us and, grinning at me, piped, “
I
know where you’re going!”

I swatted at his head, but he ducked out of the way. I eyed him. “Come closer, kid. I dare you.”

He laughed and slipped back into the house.

“What was that about?” asked Tristan as he climbed into the Camry.

“Oh, nothing.”

When I began to drive, I found that I’d forgotten to grab a cassette tape. I brushed my hair behind my ears, pondering turning on the radio, and then I realized that the silence between us was actually comfortable. A smile brushed my lips when I looked over to see Tristan’s perfect silhouette against the blue-gray sky. I found myself asking, “What are you thinking about?”

He inclined his head toward me and I waited for his answer. Finally, he said, “Just surprised this car’s still running.”

“
What
?” I said in mock-anger and playfully punched his shoulder. He laughed at me. “Tristan, I’m serious!”

“Remember that music you had on when I was first in your car?”

I nodded. “Yeah, Sting—The Police.”

“That was pretty awful,” he deadpanned.

“
Right
.” I rolled my eyes. “Do you even
listen
to music?”

“Of course I do.”

I raised my eyebrows. “Yeah? What’s your favorite band?”

“Coldplay.”

“What?” I cried. “Are you serious? I love them!”

Tristan laughed, “I didn’t think you liked any bands from this decade.”

“
Seriously
.” I pulled the Camry into a parking spot. “Sting is classic.” I switched off the engine. “We’re here.”

“And the surprise is...?”

I said enthusiastically, “We’re at the stables to visit Aeris!”

“Oh.” His face darkened. “What makes you think I want to ride?”

“Because you used to love it.” I walked around my car to the passenger side and opened his door. “Listen, this isn’t for me. The last horse I was on was four feet tall and could only walk in a circle. I was three; I fell in his poop; there were tears. Since then, horses and I—not such a good thing.”

He snapped, “Amy, there’s a reason I haven’t been riding Aeris,” and tapped meaningfully on the edge of his glasses.

I sighed and pulled on his arm. “Oh, come on. I’ll be your eyes.”

“That’s real comforting, after your story,” he said sarcastically and climbed out of my car.

I smiled and slid my hand into his. Tristan’s fingers tightened around mine and I felt my cheeks grow warm. I had to get a grip...on
myself
! Not him! Honestly.

We entered the sky-blue stables. They were beautiful and bright, with a high-beamed ceiling. There were two rows of stalls on both sides of the building. Helmets, saddles, bridles, and other equipment I couldn’t name hung on pegs outside of the stalls. Through the doors, I could see the brilliant faces of purebred horses. I looked to Tristan and asked, “Where’s Aeris?”

He frowned as he thought. “Uh, on the left...halfway down the row. He’s black.”

We walked a little further and then I saw an intense onyx eye staring at me. I stopped and marveled at the handsome animal. His coat was so deeply black that it shimmered navy in the light. His ears were cocked forward while he regarded me. Then he dismissively blew air through his nostrils and, turning toward Tristan, pinned his ears back.

Tristan let go of my hand and took a step toward the stable. “Aeris?” The horse watched him as he held out his hand. “It’s been a while, hasn’t it? I should’ve come.” Aeris watched for another moment and then rubbed his head against his owner’s hand. He patted the horse’s neck and turned to me. “Well, you still want to go?”

“Of course.”

Tristan nodded. “You’ll have to tack him—get him ready. I can’t.”

I eyed the saddle that hung by the stable door. “I don’t think I can put a saddle on right.”

“Well, it’s probably better that way,” he replied. “We wouldn’t both fit in it.”

Wait—what was he saying? Go without a saddle? Was my pony-riding story for nothing? I gasped, “What do you mean?”

“We’ll ride bareback,” he said with a smirk. “We’ll just need the bridle.”

Right.

I gingerly lifted the leather bridle from its peg. The long reins hung down from the bit. I moved toward Aeris, whose ears turned back. Tristan kept a firm hand against the horse’s neck while I slipped the bridle over the animal’s head. He felt me slide on the bridle and then instructed, “Okay, now tighten the straps. The bit’s in his mouth?”

I pulled on the straps. “Yeah.”

“All right.” He held onto the reins. “Open the door.”

I opened the latch and Tristan backed up, leading Aeris from the stall. He felt with his free hand down the horse’s neck to his back. He held out the reins and I took them. I watched, my mouth falling slightly open, as he climbed on Aeris’s back with little difficulty. He held out his hand and I passed back the reins. He laughed, letting the reins fall against the horse’s neck, and said, “No,
you
.”

“Oh.”

I grabbed his hand and was amazed when he lifted me off the ground...that is, until I panicked. How was I supposed to get the rest of the way up?! I began to flail, but he caught me around the waist with his other arm and pulled me on. I awkwardly swung my leg over the horse’s side and, sighing, leaned back against Tristan’s chest. I stayed there, catching my breath, until I heard Tristan clear his throat. I quickly sat up straight, my cheeks bright red.

Tristan reached around me to take the reins. “Okay, tell me where to go.”

I guided Tristan out the stables and onto the fields. We moved through the grass at a gentle canter. Even though I bounced roughly with every step, I found the ride enjoyable. The air blew through my hair and I breathed in the fresh scent. Relaxing, I closed my eyes. A few moments later, I heard Tristan whisper in my ear, “Are we getting close to the fence?”

I shrugged and lazily opened my eyes. My heart skipped a beat. The fence was barely five yards away. I screamed, “
Turn
!”

“How close are we?” he asked calmly.

“
It’s right here
!” I yelled and I turned my head, like we were about to get into a car accident. As we began to rise off of the ground, I felt Tristan press his chest against my back until I was bent over the horse’s neck. With a nearly hysterical laugh, I felt a rush like being on a roller coaster while we soared through the air. The moment was brief and the horse’s front hooves quickly hit the ground.

Tristan pulled me up and I could hear his smile as he scolded, “Amy, are your eyes open,
now
?”

At first, all I could do was laugh. When Tristan brought Aeris to a halt, I managed to sputter, “I-I’m sorry. That was
amazing
! I take it you’ve done that before?”

He brushed a hand against Aeris’s shoulder and said in a dark voice that made me forget my laughter, “I used to do show-jumping. I was at a competition when, well....” His voice trailed off.

“I’m sorry,” I replied softly.

“Hey, you don’t cause genetic retinal weakness.”

“I know....” I was overwhelmed with emotion and I couldn’t say why. I just felt for
him
and things he’d miss seeing. I spun around and threw my arms around his neck. Tristan let go of the reins and we were suddenly hugging each other with a kind of fierceness, like we never wanted to let go. I wondered if he knew why, because my mind reeled to think of it. The blood pounding in my ears made a very nice distraction.

When we pulled apart, he asked, “Have you had enough riding for today?”

I watched his face, wondering what he was thinking. I suddenly wished that I could see him without his glasses but, even more, I wanted to see him happy again. I offered, “From the road, I saw a trail that we could go on.”

Tristan paused for a moment and then a dizzyingly bright smile filled his face. “Yeah, sure.”

Feeling warmed, I turned back around. I tugged on Aeris’s reins, so he began to canter in the direction of the path. “So, Secret Music Fan—”

“I never said that I didn’t like music,” he interjected.

“True,” I conceded. “Do you have a favorite book, too?”

“
Catcher in the Rye
.”

“Going for the classic.” I smirked. “You’re deeper than you look.” I immediately bit down on my tongue. What was I saying? Just because he looked like a model—