A Leap Of Faith

                                    

                                          
     We've been driving for an hour, and for the past forty minutes I've been sitting in the car with only Mel's soft snoring to keep me company.
     Her face is tense, even while she sleeps. Her nose is scrunched, eyebrows furrowed, like she's fighting a battle even in her dreams. One that she just can't win.
     I'm trying to understand how someone so perfect could be so afraid of something that she hides herself away from the world. From her friends. From me.
     She confuses me everyday.
    I look up and see the small clearing that we've been driving to, parking close to the trail that would lead us to our destination.
     It's in the middle of the woods on the outskirts of town. No one comes here, no one wants to bother with the long drive and mosquito infested trees.
     I look over at Mel and whisper, "Mel? Mel come on." 
     She still snores.
    I chuckle and go to gently shake her shoulder but as soon as my hand touches her, she jumps up and jerks away from my grasp, looking at me with wide eyes.
     I raise my hands in surrender, "Woah, are you okay?"
     She looks around the car, checking to see if it's just me, "You just scared me, that's all."
     "If you say so," I agree reluctantly, "Now come on, we're here."
     We get out of the car and grab our swimsuits from the back.
     It's beautiful out here. It's quiet except for the chirping of insects in the trees. The sun is shining through the canopy leaving little spots of sunshine on the ground. It's just us. And the world. 
      "It's beautiful." Mel says as she follows me down the trail into the woods.
     She's looking all around, at the trees. The calmness surrounding us. She looks more at peace now than she did in her sleep.
     "It sure is." I say, looking at her with a small smile
      She glances over at me, "Why are you always staring at me?" There's a shy look in her eyes. She tucks a strand of her hair behind her ear.
     "You're nice to look at."
     She rolls her eyes and scoffs, "Whatever. You've said to that every girl you see."
     "Only the pretty ones."
     "You couldn't get any more cliche." She laughs.
     I shrug.
     "You didn't bring me out in the middle of the woods to kill me right? That would just make this whole day a waste, and I've kind of had fun."
     I grin, "Admit that you've enjoyed everything we've done." 
     "I didn't say that, I just- wow."
     She stops mid sentence, mid step, mid breath. Her arms fall to her side as her mouth falls open. She's looking ahead of us in awe.
     I follow her gaze.
     Everything hits all once. The sound of the rushing water drowns out any other noise. There's a waterfall across from where we stand, rushing out of the side of a cliff. It looks close enough to run your fingers through but I see the valley separating us.
      I approach the cliff on our side, standing a few feet away from the edge. It's roughly thirty feet high. I look down at the pool of water, splashing against the rock at the bottom. It's so clear I can see the patches of sand and the little rocks that have fallen from the cliff side.
     "Wow." Mel says again, coming to stand next to me.
     We take in the view for a few more minutes before I back away and begin to take my shirt off.
     Her eyes follow me and she shrieks before turning back around.
      "Warn me, next time!"
     I chuckle, continuing to strip so I can put on my swim trunks, "Nothing you haven't see before."
     "Just because we took baths together when we were four doesn't mean I wanna see all of... that now."
     "Keep lying to yourself, you can look now."
     She slowly turns around, sighing in relief as she sees me wearing pants.
     Her eyes linger on my chest before she blinks and shakes her head, causing me to smirk.
     "It's all there to be enjoyed." I tease.
     "Shut up and turn around."
     I laugh and face away so she can change.
     I hear her clothes hit the ground and the teenage boy in me wants to spin around once to see her I'm all her perfection.
      You're disgusting.
     I'm not doing it, just thinking about it.
    "Okay." She says a few minutes later.
     I turn around and see her fully clothed in her wet suit. I smile a little bit at how adorable she looks, raising her clothes in her hands.
     I take them from her and place them with mine at the base of a tree.
     "So how do we get down?" Mel asks me.
     I grin and gesture to the cliff.
     Her eyes narrow, "I know you don't think that I'm jumping off of this cliff."
      "Oh come on, since when has a little water ever hurt anyone?"
      She looks at me incredulously, "Since forever! I- you can't- I am not jumping off of a cliff."
     "Mel, look at me, look."
     "No. I'm not-"
     "Mel, look at me."
     She does. 
     I approach her and smile softly.
     "Do you trust me?"
     She doesn't answer for a moment. I see her take a breath and look me in the eyes. Her beautiful honey brown eyes are staring into mine.
      "I do."
      "Do you want to go on another adventure?"
     She pauses again before nodding.  
     I smile, holding out my hand. She takes it with little hesitation.
     We walk up to the edge up the cliff, my toes hanging off over it.
     I look over at her, "Don't be scared."
     "I'm trying."
     "It's a leap of faith."
     "A leap of faith," she repeats, "faith in who exactly? You?"
      "Yourself. Do you have faith in yourself?"
      She looks down at the rushing water, unknowingly squeezing my hand. She's terrified. But we've come too far to turn back now.
     "I'm trying to." She whispers.
     "On three, okay? One."
     She's squeezing my hand so tightly it's starting to go numb and her knuckles are turning white.
     "Two." 
     My hearts beating so fast. I'm not even scared, I've done this dozens of times. So why is my heart beating so fast when she's standing next to me?
      "Three."
     It's a leap of faith. A leap of trust. And I feel my feet lose contact with the ground. I hear Mel's screaming while she's clinging to my hand like it's a life line. My stomach seems to fall out of my body. But we hold hands the whole way down.
     I feel my body slam into the water, the cold surrounding me, submerging me.
      And she never lets go of my hand.