Retrace the Lines

Josh

I close my eyes, take a deep breath and prepare for the jump. The passing breeze tickles my skin, and I look up into the sky. My toe is creeps further and further towards the edge of the platform as I attempt to make the suspense of the jump as dramatic as possible. With a parting breath, I fall off the edge. 

From underneath I hear the squeals of the kids who think I'm going to collide feet first into the dirt. Lucky for them, the rope catches me a few feet off and I'm securely fixed in my harness. I flash a grin to the group.

"See! There's nothing to be afraid of. Even if you fall off, you'll be caught." I shout down. Many of the kids look either relieved or still scared. They're probably worried that the rope is about to snap, and I'll come plummeting down.

I'm sure Quinn would love to see that.

It's the second day for our activity team, and today we're doing the high ropes course. The biggest fear everyone has is falling off. So, Jeremy (the camp worker stationed at the high ropes) thought it would be fun for me to do a cheeky demonstration of how safe it is if you happen to slip.

I jump back on the plank, unlatch myself from the top rope and climb down the little stepping stones on the tree. When I land on the floor, I can see Quinn's face properly for the first time.

She does not look impressed.

"Well aren't you just a regular Spiderman," she says dully, picking up a discarded harness on the floor and chucking it with the rest.

"Only if you'll be my Mary Jane." I smirk. She rolls her eyes and walks over to Jeremy, beginning an animated string of questions about the course.

I stare at her back and an odd feeling washes over me. Last night at the bonfire was weird... to say the least. I don't even know what I was thinking when I went over to dance with her. She was just standing there, alone, and before I knew it I was by her side. I've danced with a lot of girls over the last few years.

And I mean a lot.

But there was something different about Quinn. Every pore in my body tingled and I was desperate to hold her closer. Usually when I dance with a girl I'm drunk as fuck. Maybe it was just different because I was sober this time?

Either way, the feeling I get when I touch her is addictive. I need to feel it again. Whether Quinn reciprocates this, that I'm not too sure. She couldn't get away from me fast enough last night when the song ended. Maybe I'll just have to show her what could have happened if she stuck around.

Realising that I'm standing in the middle of the clearing like a useless flamingo, I clap my hands and begin rounding up the campers. Once everyone is sorted, I proceed to lead the first group of kids up the course and Quinn follows behind with the second.

At the end of the course there's a small flying fox which takes you back down. My job will to be to help them clip their harness onto it, and then push them down as Ginger navigates the groups through.

She looked slightly apprehensive when I offered to man the flying fox, but I assured her that I will be very gentle with the kids I push down.

At least the ones that I like.

Getting through the course is slow, the quick campers are held up by the cautious, slightly terrified ones. I help everyone through however and eventually we reach the end. 

There are a lot of nerves surrounding the flying fox, to say the least. I try quell them in the best way I know how: constant talking. When one particularly scared girl, Mary, has her turn, I make her recite the alphabet to me over and over. She's so shocked by my weird proposal that by the time she is all harnessed in she's completely calm.