When the two of them were alone, Jake said, “I think I’ve fallen in love with Sara.” Jim glanced up, “I think that happened before you ever went camping. You guys didn’t do anything that you’re going to regret in nine months, did you?” Jake blushed, “No! She isn’t that type of a girl and I made a promise to you and God that I would wait until I got married.” Jim ruffled his hair, “You will never regret that decision.” Jake said, “Speaking of Sara, I’m going to ride over there for a while, if it’s okay with you.” Jim, being the smart man he was said, “Let your mother know.” Jake smiled and said, “So, you’re taking the easy way out and letting mom be the bad person.” Jim smiled, “Son, I learned a long time ago, that if your mother isn’t happy, no one else will be.” Donna exclaimed, “I heard that! And no, I don’t have a problem with you going over there.” The two exchanged looks and grinned about his mother hearing the conversation.
Jake sent Sara a text saying he was ready to come over, if it was okay. Jake watched his phone for what felt like days, about thirty seconds, before a reply came back that it was fine. Jake got the keys for the car and drove off. It only took about five minutes for him to get to her house. As he drove up, he could see Sara and her father standing in the driveway. Jake parked on the street and greeted her and her father, Bill. Bill said, “Once again, it’s nice to see you Jake. How was the camping trip?” Jake freaked. Even though nothing had happened, he was hoping her father would believe that too. Bill said, “So did anything interesting happen?” Jake’s mind was racing with what to say.
Jake smile and said, “The most interesting thing was Sara trying to show off her fishing skills and fell into the creek.” Jake began laughing about it and tried to cover up his discomfort. Bill had a slight smile on his face, other than that, Jake couldn’t tell what he was thinking. Sara turned a light shade of red from what Jake had said. Bill noticed it and started laughing, “That must have been a sight to see.” He hugged her and said, “What happened? You are always the sure-footed one.” Sara said, “Jake must have pushed me when I wasn’t looking.” Jake had a horrified look on his face and Bill busted out laughing. Bill said, “As much as he likes you, I don’t think he would ever do anything like that to you.” Both Jake and Sara went bright red. Bill played on that. He looked at Jake and said, “I remember being your age and what we did or thought about doing. Just remember, this is my little girl and you will always respect her.”
Jake knew what was coming next and he interrupted him. Jake said, “I do respect her. I respect her so much we got purity rings for each other. We decided that we will wait till we get married before we ever did anything.” Jake held up his ring the wizard had given him and Sara followed along and raised hers. Bill was stunned. He was planning on digging to see what, if anything, had happened on the camping trip. Bill quickly composed himself and said, “Well, that’s a good thing and I thank you for having good morals. Your parents have raised a fine young man.” With that he walked back into the house and left the two of them standing on the driveway.
Sara looked at Jake with a big frown and said, “I’m going to tell my daddy on you for lying.” She busted out laughing and said, “Good cover with the rings.” Jake smiled, “It may be for you, but when I look at this ring on my hand, I look at it as the promise I gave to my parents and God.” Sara said, “From this day on, I will promise to my parents, you and God for my purity.” Jake leaned over and gave her a peck on the lips. Sara again turned red and quickly turned to see if anyone saw the kiss. Jake asked, “Are you embarrassed about me kissing you?” Sara replied, “Never! It was unexpected and I’ve never been kissed with my parents so close by.” Jake got a quizzical look on his face. Sara continued, “To be honest, you’re the only one I have ever kissed.” Jake smile and said, “If we’re being honest, you’re the only girl I’ve ever kissed.” Sara smiled and hugged him, then the two walked inside.
Sara yelled to her father that they were heading to her room to listen to some music. Bill yelled back to her, “You can listen to music just fine in the den.” Sara started to object, but knew the house rules, no boys in the bedrooms and no closed doors with mixed company. She just replied, “Okay, dad.” Jake whispered, “If he only knew how many rooms and places we slept together, he’d freak. As a matter of fact, so would my mother, but that’s another story.” Sara poked him in the ribs and whispered, “Be quite.”
The rest of the summer went about the same way. If Jake wasn’t at Sara’s house, she was at his. It was the same was with George and Tammy. The two groups met all the time to start with, but as the summer went on, they met less frequently. They stayed in touch by phone, but didn’t hang out much. The parents, of all the kids, were comfortable with their child’s pick of boyfriend or girlfriend.
Epilogue
With the end of summer comes the beginning of the school year. As seniors, Jake, Sara, Tammy, and George were allowed to pick classes on a first come first serve bases. The four of them scheduled as many classes as possible with each other. Jake and Sara had five classes together, George and Tammy had four. The four of them together shared two classes. As luck would have it, they all had the same lunch period, giving them time to socialize.
***
As fall arrived. The weather had turned cool rather quick and hunting season was just around the corner. Sara’s parents wondered what had gotten into her when she asked them to buy her a compound bow to hunt. Bill said to Sara, “Do you even know how to use a bow? It’s not something you can just pick up and shoot. It takes years of practice to be accurate.” Sara said, “I can shoot one. Ra…, (stopping short of saying Ralnor) Jake taught me how to shoot with a bow.” Sara’s mother, Julie frowned, I don’t think a lady should be running around in the woods killing animals.” Bill said, “We can stop and look at one if you really want.” Sara smiled, “I would like to as long as mom doesn’t have a problem with it.” Julie shrugged, “I don’t mind. I was just stating my opinion on women hunting.”
They left the sports shop three hundred dollars lighter, and Sara had a beautiful new bow with some very expensive arrows. Sara’s first thought was, ‘I can’t wait to show Jake,’ but knew that would have to wait. Bill looked at Sara in the rearview mirror, “We need to stop and pick up some hay bales for target practice. We don’t want to risk ruining any of the nice new arrows.” Everyone smiled at his comment.
When they arrived home, Bill had an excited gleam in his eyes as he asked, “Would you like me to show you how to properly shoot that?” He nodded at the bow in Sara’s hand. Sara was about to say she could do it by herself when her mother whispered, “Let him or he will pout about it forever.” Sara winked at her mother and said, “Sure dad.”
Bill walked over to the bales of hay and placed a target in the center, then moved to stand near Sara and Julie. He took one of the arrows and notched it, drew back, then released. The arrow struck the ground at the base of the bales. Sara and Julie started clapping. Bill stuck his tongue out and stated, “It slipped.” He frowned, then shot a second arrow that flew over the top of the hay. Sara and Julie couldn’t contain their laughter. Bill handed the bow to Sara and said, “Okay smarty pants, let me see you do better.”
Sara checked the bow over, notched an arrow, sighted in, and then released. The arrow struck dead center of the target. She drew another and placed it right next to the first. Surprise registered on both of her parent’s faces. Bill said, “Look at you. You learn fast. My job here is done.” He turned and walked off shaking his head. Her mom said, “That’s nice shooting, but I think you embarrassed your father.” Sara smiled at the compliment, “I didn’t mean to.” As Julie left
to join her husband, Jake was just arriving.
Julie smiled at him and said, “Robin Hood is out back with her new toy. Don’t let her show you up to much.” Confused Jake continued toward Sara and noticed the new bow. “I would ask what that was all about, but I’m not sure I want to know,” Jake said as he kissed Sara on the cheek. The two of them spent the remainder of the day shooting.
***
Fall had given way to winter and the weather had turned cold and nasty. Jake had settled down for the evening and was laying on his bed talking on the phone with Sara. They said their good nights and Jake turned out the light and went right to sleep. In his dream, Jake was holding a shield and arrows were hitting it, with a tap, tap, and tap. The shield was extremely heavy and his arm was getting tired. Again he heard a tapping noise and realized he was in his bed dreaming and his arm was numb from where he had been laying on it.
It was ten minutes past midnight and Jake was now wide awake. Again he heard a tapping and tried to get out of bed, but his left arm was still numb and he was having trouble. He realized that it was someone tapping at his window, not an animal. Jake was now trying to figure out who would be tapping on his window. The curtains were closed, so he had to go to the window to see who it was. Jake cautiously pulled the curtains back and there before him was Ralnor.
Please enjoy a preview of the next book
Return to a
World Beyond
Yatuku, Book 2
R. F. Pace
CHAPTER 1
Fall had given way to winter and the weather had turned cold and nasty. Jake had settled down for the evening and was laying on his bed talking on the phone with Sara. They said their good nights and Jake turned out the light and went right to sleep. In his dream, Jake was holding a shield and arrows were hitting it, with a tap, tap, and tap. The shield was extremely heavy and his arm was getting tired. Again he heard a tapping noise and realized he was in his bed dreaming and his arm was numb from where he had been laying on it.
It was ten minutes past midnight and Jake was now wide awake. Again he heard a tapping and tried to get out of bed, but his left arm was still numb and he was having trouble. He realized that it was someone tapping at his window, not an animal. Jake was now trying to figure out who would be tapping on his window. The curtains were closed, so he had to go to the window to see who it was. Jake cautiously pulled the curtains back and there before him was Ralnor.
Jake opened the window and told Ralnor to come in. Ralnor, an elven warden, is from the village of Alalda Ostar. He was just over five feet and wore clothing of earthy green and brown, with a cloak of the same colors, covering most of his face and body. He had a weathered dark skin tone and long, dark hair. His most striking feature was his eyes that were a bright golden color. Ralnor said, “I do not have the time to stay. I’m needed back home as fast as I can get there. I’m here to ask you and the others to come back with me.” Jake said, “It’s well after midnight. I can’t just go over and knock on their door and say pack up, Ralnor needs us.” “You’re needed as soon as you can gather Sara, Tammy, and George and return. I will wait for you at the entrance to the cave you returned by. Oh, I almost forgot. Take these.” Ralnor handed him a bag, turned and disappeared into the night.
Jake opened the bag, inside were the traveling clothes he and the others had worn on their last quest. The clothes were not actually traveling clothes, but elven armor made from reinforced leather. Jake smiled at the sight of them and had flashbacks of the first time he wore them. Jake was only 17 and stood just over 6 feet with a solid build. He kept his brown hair short and had eyes that were an emerald green. It amazed him that the clothes fit so well. Jake changed into them in less than a minute, then slipped down stairs. He headed to the garage and grabbed his backpack, two water jugs and a couple of small items. He slipped into the kitchen and raided the cabinets and refrigerator for items he thought they might need for next couple of days.
Jake went out the backdoor to the shed. He got on the four-wheeler and when he went to start it, he realized it would wake his parents up. He got off, and pushed it until it was going down a hill. He hopped on it and coasted toward the bottom of the hill. Once it was far enough from the house, he started it up. Jake took it slow riding down the trails toward Sara’s house. Once he got close to her house, he cut it off and walked the rest of the way.
Sara’s room was upstairs, which posed a problem for him. There was no easy access getting to her window. Jake checked around the back for a ladder, but was unable to find one. Jake took a few pebbles and started tossing them at the window. The second one hit a piece of aluminum and made a loud click. It bounced off and struck the gutter, making a second loud noise. A light came on, he ran over to the bushes and hid. The front porch light came on and shortly after the door opened. Sara’s father was standing on the porch with a shotgun, looking around. Jake thought that his breathing was going to give him away. His heart was beating so hard, that was all he could hear. The front porch light went off and the door closed. Jake glanced up at the window and Sara was peeking out. Jake moved out of the bushes and into her view.
Sara was shocked not only to see Jake standing there, but to see him in the traveling clothes. Sara heard footsteps outside her room, so she slipped back into bed and pretended to be asleep. Her father opened her door and checked in on her, then closed it. She heard his footsteps heading back to his room and his door close. Sara went back to the window and signaled to Jake to give her a minute.
Several minutes had passed when Sara came from around the back of the house. Jake had been watching the other way and felt like his heart skipped a beat when he noticed movement in the other direction. He smiled when he realized it was Sara. She always took his breath away with her bright green eyes and long sandy brown hair. Jake said, “You scared me so bad, I saw my life flash before my eyes.” Sara wanted to laugh but didn’t. Sara walked up and gave Jake a quick hug before asking, “What’s going on?” Jake explained what happened with Ralnor. Sara said, “Let’s get out of here before my father wakes up again.” Jake was all for that. He didn’t want to get caught sneaking out, much less with his girlfriend whose father answers the door with a shotgun.
As they got further from Sara’s house, she said, “Why didn’t you just text me to wake me up?” Jake said, “I don’t know. I guess I didn’t really think too much about how to wake you up, I just came over to get you.” Sara said, “Text George and I’ll text Tammy.” They both sent a text message and waited for a response. Tammy responded first with, “What’s wrong?” Sara replied with, “Ralnor needs us fast.” The reply was, “Why?” Sara replied, “Not sure, waiting for you at the base of the trail.” Jake had to send three additional text messages before George replied.
Jake just sent, “Need you to meet us at the base of the trail. Ralnor needs us. Check with Tammy to see if she can get her four-wheeler without waking her parents. If not, she will need a ride.” George replied, “No problem.” Sara said, “I guess now we wait.” Jake said, “Yea, that is all we can do right now.”
It was close to an hour before the lights of a four-wheeler came into view. When George stopped in front of them, Sara said, “Well it’s about time.” George smiled and said, “It took me a few minutes to get the four-wheeler up the hill and far enough from the house to be able start it without waking anyone up. When I did get it started, I forgot my backpack at the shed, so I had to run back and get it.”
Jake explained what had happened and gave each of them their traveling c
lothes. Sara said, “Where are we going to change at out here?” Tammy said, “And besides that, it’s too cold to undress outside.” Jake just shrugged and said, “You can change later in a more suitable place I guess.” George said, “Once we get into the woods we can find an isolated area to change.” Jake got on his four-wheeler and Sara climbed on behind him. Tammy did the same with George.
***
They rode for just over two hours before arriving at the base of the mountain where the cave entrance was located. George said, “I’m going over here a little way to change before we head up the mountain.” George was about the same height with a slightly lighter build than Jake. His dark blond hair was slightly long, but his eyes were also a brilliant green color. Coming back into view he said, “There are some thick bushes about 20 feet over there, you and Sara can change behind there. We promise not to peek, right Jake?” When George winked at Jake, he was smacked by both Tammy and Sara as they marched past him. Tammy was the smallest, standing five and a half feet, with long dark hair, but very feisty when needed. She and George had been together for a while and were a perfect fit for each other. Changing quickly, the girls returned and noticed that Ralnor was nowhere to be seen.
Jake called out for him several times, but got no response. Jake suggested, “Maybe he’s in the cave waiting for us.” They started climbing the mountain. It took them over an hour to finally reach the cave entrance. Once they arrived, Jake checked inside, no Ralnor. They waited for a half hour before they decided they would go on without him. George asked, “Where is he?” “I hate to go without him, but we may just have to,” said Jake. “Let’s give him a few more minutes before we leave,” Sara said. Tammy added, “I’ll have to agree with Sara, it would be nice to know what is going on.” So they decided to give him more time.