Chapter 14

                                    

                                          
On the next Friday afternoon, as previously arranged, they left on their trip to Mount Rainier National Park. The group was compounded by Maggie and Jeff, Andy, Stone and Iris, Mike, Eddie and Poppy, and Chris and Susan, even if convincing Chris had been a hard task for he was determined not to be near Iris. He knew it would be very hard to see her and Stone together more than just a few hours and he tried to avoid it at all costs, but Susan wanted to go and he ended up agreeing. They rented two vans for the park could only be accessed by car and also because of the luggage, for they all took their acoustic guitars with them. There would always be music. It took them one hour and forty-eight minutes driving from Seattle to the Park through WA-410E to arrive at Betsy's Cabin, the cabin Stone and Jeff had booked for the weekend. They got there just in time to see the sunset behind the peak of Rainier at its all splendor. For a few minutes, the ice at the top of the mountain was showered with a beautiful orange and pink aura that made it look even more divine. That scenario alone would make the trip a success if everything else failed.
                          
The park is almost covered by dense forest compounded by a large variety of tress but it's the Red Cedar that stands out the most. It's majestic. The meadows are to die for. Usually, wildflowers color the wide space in a beautiful seasonal hue. It is a very short period though because in June, these meadows can be covered in snow already which was the case in the time of the year they were visiting. Nevertheless, it was a white spectacle they had in front of their modern wooden cabin. Wild life is also very diverse so in the few minutes the group started taking their luggage inside the house, deers could be seen approaching them expecting to be offered some food.
                          
The two-store wooden house looked amazing from the outside. All windows were incredibly large. The whole front of the house was in pure glass with wood frames. It had a large deck with chairs and a huge swing. There were high lamps scattered over it. The main entrance was to the biggest living room they have seen. It seemed like the entire ground floor was nothing but the living room. A huge fireplace burned at one corner. Hanging from the ceiling a chandelier that mixed classic with modernity channeling the whole decoration. On a door in front of the living room, there was a kitchen. Right in front of the front door there were the stairs that led to the first floor where the six bedrooms were located. All with private bathrooms. When Iris and Stone entered theirs, she dropped her suitcase, threw her coat and scarf on the bed, and smiled.
                          
"Wow..." She said, running to the window. "Look at this..." She pointed at the view. Their window that went from the floor to the ceiling was turned to Rainier.
                          
"Do you like it?" Stone came to hold her from behind and kissed her neck to then look at the magnificence ahead of them, resting his chin on her shoulder.
                          
"I love it!" She giggled, feeling his arms wrap tightly around her. "Who's staying next to us?" Iris then asked, turning her head to look at him by the corner of her eye.
                          
"Jeff and Maggie on that side." Stone pointed to the bed's side. "Eddie and Poppy on that side." He pointed in direction of the small toilet they had inside their bedroom, and then kissed her cheek twice. He closed his eyes while doing so and inhaled her scent. "You smell so good." He whispered, planting another soft kiss on her cheek.
                          
"Being nice?" She smiled, feeling his lips kissing her cheek again.
                          
"I have to give you some nice moments." He retorted. "They say you should say nice things to your girlfriend so I am trying to do that, even if it's really hard." Iris giggled.
                          
"I understand." She laughed. "It's really hard for me to do so too, but hey... they say we have to do it." Stone laughed quietly and kissed her again.
                          
"See... we're perfect together." He said then.
                          
"I hope there's a toilet separating that wall from Mag's bedroom." Iris said and Stone cracked a laughter.