Kandanga Falls - 2. Chapter 2

-- Chapter Two --

When Nate woke the following morning, to sunlight streaming through the bare windows of the caravan and birdsong filling the morning air outside, he quickly realised that he was alone.

He couldn’t recall Skye having left him through the night, but he could recall almost every other detail: the touch of her skin against his, the faint smell of flowers in her hair, the taste of her lips on his, the feel of her hand on his youthful hardness as she guided him into her warm, moist and velvety inner sanctum.

It was a magical night and one that he already knew he would remember for the rest of his life.

Throwing back the blanket he realised he was naked, and hard once again, spurred on no doubt by the memories of the night flooding his head with a whole mix of emotions, not the least of which was confusion. He’d just had sex for the very first time . . . he had just passed that test, which meant he was no longer a boy . . . he was no longer virginal . . . but was that what he truly wanted? Or would the feelings he held for another – feelings he knew could never be acted upon – forever cast a shadow over this memory?

Sitting up in the bed and swinging his feet over the edge, he ran his hands back through his hair then reached down and picked up yesterday’s clothes from the floor, pulling on his underwear and jeans in one action before standing up to finish fastening the button on the jeans and pulling up the zipper.

Feeling the bulge of his leather wallet in his pocket, he draped his t-shirt over his shoulder and then pulled the wallet from his pocket and opened it. He felt a flash of guilt in doing so, but still, he flicked through his notes to confirm all of his meagre funds were still intact, then once satisfied he returned it to his pocket. He knew, of course, that Skye wouldn’t have taken advantage of him like that, but still he had to do it. He had to be sure. He couldn’t afford not to.

‘So, what now?’ he said aloud, as he wondered what to do next, but it was his growling stomach that answered the question for him. He needed some breakfast, then after that he needed to do something about catching up with Danny and Jake. Before another thought could form, however, there was a knock at the door.

‘Are you decent?’ a now familiar, sweet voice called out.

Quickly, he opened the door to find Skye standing there, smiling up at him while holding a mug of steaming coffee and a plate with what looked suspiciously like a bacon and egg roll sitting on it.

‘Thought you could do with this,’ she said. ‘After last night I figured you might need a recharge.’

‘I think you could be right there,’ he replied, as he took her offerings and then stepped back to allow Skye to enter.

‘Are you okay this morning? I hope last night wasn’t too much?’

‘I’m fine, thank you. And last night couldn’t have been more perfect,’ Nate replied, as he placed the mug and plate on the table, then turned to face Skye, placing his hands on her hips and pulling her close to him.

‘What?’ she asked, as she looked up into his smile.

‘Thank you,’ he said. ‘I never knew it could be so wonderful.’

‘You were pretty wonderful yourself . . . especially for a . . .’

‘For a what?’ Nate asked.

‘A rookie.’

‘Is that right?’ he replied, with a laugh. ‘But I’m not a rookie any more though.’

‘Yeah, I know,’ Skye replied, as she started fumbling with the button on his jeans.

‘Again?’ he asked her.

‘Sorry, not this time . . . have to get back to work . . . but that doesn’t mean you won’t enjoy this just as much,’ she whispered, before dropping to her knees and pulling his clothing down as far as his thighs.

Nate’s cock sprung upwards, but a firm hand soon dragged it down until it was pointing at the girl’s face. What happened next was something he never thought could be as wonderful as it was, with Skye taking him on a journey like nothing he could have imagined; a journey that left him with ragged breath and his legs trembling.

Once done, she stood up and grinned at him, before kissing him deeply, one hand behind his head while her tongue forced its way inside his mouth. There was a taste of something peculiar, yet not unpleasant, on her lips, and it took him just a few moments to realise what that was. It was the taste of him.

As he watched from the caravan door, while Skye walked up the path beside the store to return to her job, he couldn’t help but wonder about how life was continuing to throw these curveballs at him.

His heart was beating as fast as it every had, and there was an odd feeling in the pit of his stomach. Was this really happening? How did he really feel about this girl? Was he falling for her already, or was it just that she was his first? Then there was the matter of Danny, his best friend in the whole wide world, for whom he knew he also had feelings, even though he also knew that Danny was in love with someone else and his own feelings could never be voiced.

‘Fuck! Why does life have to be so complicated?’ he quietly said to nobody in particular, before turning away from the door.

Remembering what Skye had mentioned about the outdoor shower, he figured that after the night he’d had he needed to clean up before facing the world, so he pulled a towel from his carryall, which he flung over his shoulder, then found some clean clothes and his toiletry bag.

When he stepped outside and walked down the path towards the back of the building he found that the yard dropped away sharply behind the caravan, and he soon found the tank stand and the amenities beneath it: a space that was partially filled in with what looked to be woven bamboo panels. He noticed the showerhead and taps, which were at the end of a series of pipes that seemed to come from beneath the house. When he entered the space he could see that there were places where he could look out towards the creeklands and trees, but nobody would be able to see inside, so he figured he would be okay to strip off and take a shower without making a total fool, or spectacle, of himself.

He found a row of hooks along one wall, along with a shelf, so he set down his toiletry bag on the shelf, then hung his towel on a hook, before pulling off his jeans and underwear, and hanging these up as well.

The pipes shuddered and made a colourful noise when he turned on the tap with the red handle, but before long there was hot water coming through the showerhead, which he figured must be coming from the hot water system inside the house. He turned the second tap, the green one, and added some cold water to the mix, then once he was happy with the temperature, he stepped beneath the stream and began to wash away the aftermath of his night of loving, using the cake of yellow Sunlight soap that he found in a dish to one side.

This was a new experience for him, showering almost in the open, and one he found somewhat liberating, while the thought that someone could have possibly been watching was also somewhat exciting. And exciting enough for him to once again find himself chubbing up. There was no time for attending to that, however, as today he needed to find his friends. That was what he was here for.

Just five minutes later Nate found himself heading back towards the caravan with his towel slung over his shoulder and carrying his toiletry bag. Drops of water still clung to his tanned skin, his sun-bleached hair was still damp, but patted down into its usual untidy shape, but he was feeling clean, fresh and alive, and ready to tackle the day ahead.

A loud wolf whistle suddenly pierced the clear morning air, startling him, and causing him to spin around and look up in the direction he thought it had come from. He soon found himself staring into the grinning face of Skye, who was looking out from one of the windows.

‘Well, that’s got to be the tastiest thing I’ve seen in our backyard for a while,’ she said, just loud enough so that only he could hear it.

He grinned back at her, but wasn’t quite sure how to reply to that. Accepting compliments wasn’t exactly something that he was used to.

‘Just come on up to the shop when you are ready,’ Skye added, sensing that he might be feeling a little self-conscious. ‘Maybe you can give me a hand loading up the orders I need to deliver today?’

‘Sure thing,’ he replied, before watching her disappear from view.

Continuing on to the caravan he stepped inside it and dropped his towel and bag on the bed, before setting about making himself look decent once more. Stripping out of his jeans and underwear he finished drying himself off, applied some deodorant, then pulled on a clean t-shirt and underwear, then put his jeans back on. Tidying his hair came next, before turning his attention to packing up all of his belongings, in readiness for heading out once more.

A short while later he was walking up the path to the front of the store, passing an old, brown Ford utility that was today parked in the driveway, which he figured was probably Skye’s delivery vehicle. After dropping his belongings at the side of the veranda he ventured inside the store, with the protesting hinges of the door once again giving away his entrance.

He found Skye was serving a customer as he entered, but she flashed him a smile as she saw him, then continued serving the customer. Out the back, Nate could hear Skye’s mother busy in the kitchen, and after a few minutes she came out and saw him there.

‘Good morning, young man. I hope you had a good night,’ the woman said to him, offering a knowing smile with it.

‘Ummm . . . yeah, I did, thank you. And thank you so much for letting me use the caravan,’ he replied.

‘You are most welcome,’ came the reply. ‘Always happy to help out someone needing a hand.’

Just at that moment the customer left, setting off the squeaking door hinges once more, and Skye joined her mother. The woman could see the two youngsters smiling at each other and could see exactly what was happening here, so she decided to give them an opportunity to talk.

‘Why don’t I leave the two of you to it,’ she said, offering Nate a smile and a wink, then made a retreat to her kitchen.

Nate instantly felt his face flush.

‘Jesus, does she know about last night?’ he whispered.

‘Don’t you know that mothers know everything?’ Skye replied. ‘Besides, we have nothing to be ashamed of,’ she added, before coming around to his side of the counter and looping an arm through his, then dragging him outside onto the verandah.

‘Hello, love! Hello, love!’ the cockatoo screeched at them.

‘But what about all that keeping an eye on you yesterday?’ Nate asked, sounding more than just a little confused.

‘Let’s just say that mum is a pretty good judge of character,’ Skye answered. ‘She was just trying to work you out yesterday, and I would say she came to the conclusion that you seemed okay . . . otherwise you would have been dossing down someplace else last night.’

‘But what about, you know, what happened with us?’

‘She knows what it’s like to be our age,’ Skye replied. ‘And besides, we live in Nimbin, where things are a little less . . . uptight, than other places.’

‘So it seems,’ Nate replied, with a chuckle.

As they continued talking it wasn’t long before something seemed to register in Nate’s head, which caused him to zone out for a moment or two.

‘Are you okay?’ he heard Skye ask.

‘What? Oh, yeah, it’s just . . .’ he said, but then the penny dropped and he was quickly on his feet, standing at the edge of the verandah.

It was a sound that had caught his attention, and it was gradually growing louder. Moments later Skye picked up on it also and went to him.

‘They are coming for you,’ she said, as they both listened to the familiar, deep and throaty vibration that was building.

‘Yeah,’ Nate answered. ‘That’s their panel van. I’d know that sound anywhere.’

The noise was growing louder still, and Nate could feel his heartbeat beginning to quicken, then just a few moments later a familiar sight was coming down the road towards him, while the rumble of the engine bounced off every building it passed as it came into town.

As the burnt-orange-coloured beast drew closer to the general store, where Nate and Skye were still standing on the front verandah, the sun was being reflected off the windscreen, so Nate was unable to see who was driving. It wasn't until the van did a U-turn, almost directly in front of him and sending loose stones on the edge of the road flying, before coming to a stop right in front of the store, that he was able to look through the open, passenger-side window and see a smiling Danny grinning back at him.

‘Sorry I'm late!’ Danny said, before switching off the ignition and then opening the door. By the time he put his feet on the road Nate was there and pulling him out of the car.

‘Fuck, it's good to see you!’ Nate exclaimed, before embracing his friend in a bear hug and planting a kiss on his cheek, much to the amusement of Skye, who was now standing on the edge of the verandah.

‘Man, it’s so good to see you too! And I’m so sorry I didn’t get here yesterday . . . we only got your message last night when we went to the neighbours to do our weekly check in with the families,’ Danny replied.

‘It’s fine . . . I was welcomed to town and kept entertained.’

‘Entertained?’ Danny queried, but then he noticed Nate glance in the direction of Skye, and he immediately understood. ‘Oh . . . I see!’

In a few steps, Danny bounded up onto the verandah and hugged Skye, while Percy the cockatoo squawked his usual greeting of, ‘Hello, love! Hello, love!’

‘Thanks for looking after my mate,’ Danny said to her. ‘I hope he wasn’t too much trouble?’

‘It’s okay. And he was really no trouble at all,’ Skye replied.

‘Hey, are you two talking about me?’ Nate asked.

He had been distracted for a few moments as he took a good look at Danny. He hadn’t changed that much, but there was definitely something different about him. For a start, his hair was longer, and he still looked like the skinny shit he had always been, but he also seemed to have developed some muscle from all that farm work he must have been doing, Nate figured. Nothing over the top, but lean and firm. His mate looked good, he thought. Life here must be suiting him.

‘Just talking about you, not to you, so just pull your head in,’ Danny responded, which only earned him a headlock from his best friend as they began to wrestle around on the verandah, before stumbling off it and colliding with the side of the parked panel van.

‘Boys! Boys! Settle down,’ they heard Skye calling to them, but they were too busy laughing at each other.

When they finally calmed down and let go of each other, Nate managed to ask, ‘So, where’s what’s-his-name?’

‘Jake? He’s back at home waiting for me to get back there with you. There are only two seats in this jalopy, so I just came in to pick you up. Are you about ready to roll? Have you got a suitcase or anything to get?’

Nate simply pointed to the end of the verandah at his swag and carryall, so Danny went and picked them up, before opening the back door of the van and stashing them inside.

‘I just need to grab a few things inside,’ Danny then said. ‘So how about while I talk to Skye’s mum, the two of you say your goodbyes, then we’ll hit the road?’

‘We don’t say goodbye out here in the bush,’ Skye remarked. ‘We just say see you later!’

‘Yeah. Sorry, I keep forgetting that!’ Danny cheekily replied. ‘So how about you two say see you later, and I’ll be back in a minute?’

Without another word he jumped back up onto the verandah and was soon pulling open the squeaking door, while the resident feathered doorbell said, ‘Hello, love! Hello, love!’

‘I’m pleased he hasn’t changed much,’ Nate remarked, as he turned his attention back to Skye.

‘He’s one of the good guys,’ she replied. ‘I always look forward to seeing him and Jake, either when they come to town or when I do deliveries out to their little community.’

‘So, do you visit them often?’

‘Maybe every couple of weeks.’

‘And how about this week?’ Nate enquired.

‘We’ll see,’ Skye replied, while grinning at Nate, who could only grin back at her.

Moments later Danny came flying back out the door, carrying a cardboard box of groceries, which he quickly stashed away in the back of the van, before returning inside. After he came back out carrying another box just seconds later, and stashed that away also, he then closed the rear door and turned towards his two friends.

‘Right then. Are you ready?’ he asked Nate.

‘Are you sure?’ Nate answered.

‘Absolutely. Now let’s hit the road before Jake comes searching for us.’

Turning towards Skye, Nate tried to think of something to say to her, but his mind seemed to go blank. Would this be the last time he saw her? He hoped not, but who knew what the future might hold. He opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out. Fuck. This was weird.

‘I . . . ummm . . . guess I‘ll see you later then?’ he finally managed to say, much to Danny’s amusement.

‘Yeah. I guess.’

‘Thank you for what you did for me. I really appreciate everything.’

‘Everything?’ Skye replied.

‘Oh, absolutely everything,’ Nate answered.

‘Anytime,’ Skye replied. ‘And you’re welcome.’

For an awkward moment they stood there looking at each other, before grins crept over both of their faces.

‘So, yeah, maybe I’ll see you later then?’

‘Sooner or later,’ Nate quipped, before stepping forward and giving her a quick kiss on the cheek, as Danny banged his hand down on the bonnet of the van a couple of times.

‘Come on, Nate, we haven’t got all day!’

They both looked at Danny, who they could see was grinning at them.

‘Get going,’ Skye said to Nate. ‘I’ll be seeing you.’

‘I’m counting on it,’ the visiting boy replied, before jumping down off the verandah and climbing into the passenger seat and slamming the door.

Looking across the bonnet of the van, Danny said, ‘Thanks, Skye.’

‘Oh, just piss off, Dan,’ she replied, laughing. ‘I might call in sometime this week.’

‘I’ll visit old man Cooper’s farm and phone through an order specially,’ he answered, then with a wave he jumped into the panel van and fired it up, before peeling out onto the road, doing a U-turn and heading out of town in the direction it had come from just a short while ago.

Nate had one last chance to hang out the window and wave back to Skye before they rounded a bend in the road, and then she was gone. Slumping back in the seat, he looked across at Danny who was grinning at him once more.

‘What?’ he asked.

‘Fuck it’s good to see you again, man!’

‘Yeah, mate. You too! And I can’t wait to see Jake as well. What’s it been . . . more than a year, hasn’t it?’

‘Yeah. Way too long, babe. Way too long!’

‘Babe?’

Danny just grinned, before saying, ‘Yeah, why not! You know I love you, man. Always have, always will.’

For what seemed like a long time Nate studied his friend, who was snatching glances at him, then looking back at the road, then looking at Nate once more.

‘What?’ Danny asked.

Nate could feel the emotions rising up inside him, but he knew he needed to keep things in check as best he could. He managed something of a smile, but then turned and looked out the window at the passing countryside, all green and inviting, while confusion filled his brain.

Of course he loved Danny. He always had, if he was perfectly honest with himself, but could he actually bring himself to tell his friend that? And if he did, then what might the consequences be?

Not far out of town Danny slowed the car slightly, as they crossed a creek, the loose timber boards of the old bridge rattling as they did so, before then accelerating once again as they began climbing a steep hill. The view from this height of the sprawling valley below was breathtaking, showing a creek or river winding through fertile land, where black and white cows grazed in lush paddocks. But then, just as they had almost reached the summit of the hill Danny slowed once more, this time pulling over and stopping the panel van at a lookout.

When he switched off the ignition and the engine died, the two friends sat there, just looking at each other.

‘I was really beginning to wonder if I’d ever see you again,’ Danny eventually said.

‘Yeah . . . I was feeling the same. But I knew that I had to make an effort though, you know, before I sign my life away. We’ve got a lot to catch up on.’

‘Yeah, we sure do, but I’m glad you’re here . . .’ Danny responded, before reaching out and placing his hand over Nate’s.

Looking down at their hands Nate noticed, for the first time, a leather thong bracelet, darkened by sweat, on each of Danny’s wrists. They suited him. He couldn’t help but have a lump form in his throat. Was this it? Was this where he needed to confess his true feelings for his best friend?

He opened his fingers slightly and Danny let his own fingers slip between them, before they both then allowed their joined hands to close into a ball.

‘Everything happened so fast when you left,’ Nate said. ‘And even after you came back to help your mum, we never really got the chance to talk much.’

‘Yeah. I know. And I’m sorry about that.’

‘It wasn’t your fault. I just . . . there was just stuff I wanted to say to you . . .’

‘About what?’

‘Oh, about how I truly felt about you, I guess. I never really had the chance to do that.’

‘You don’t have to say anything . . .’

‘No, I really do,’ Nate insisted. ‘I . . . I didn’t really understand it myself until you were gone . . . until there was no one at your house . . . until I realised that my best friend was no longer around to just go and talk to whenever I had something I needed to talk about . . . and I was . . .’

‘What?’

‘Alone, I guess.’

‘I know what you mean, mate.’

‘I’m not sure you do,’ Nate replied, before pulling his hand from Danny’s and opening the car door, then walking over to the guard rail and looking out over the valley.

For a few moments Danny just sat there, watching his friend, feeling his friend’s pain, even though he was twenty yards or more away from him. He knew what it was like to love someone and not have those feelings returned. He’d felt that exact same way about Nate in the past . . . but then Jake had come along.

Opening the car door, Danny climbed out and walked over to his friend. He didn’t say anything, he just walked up behind him and draped his arms around him, hugging him tightly against his own body, burying his face into the point at the base of Nate’s neck and holding himself there.

‘It took you leaving for me to realise just how much I loved you, man,’ Nate eventually said.

‘I know.’

‘How could you know that?’

‘Because I felt the same way,’ Danny whispered. ‘But . . . ‘

‘But, what? But, for Jake?’

‘Yeah. I do love him, you know . . . but I love you too . . . only it’s . . . different. Fuck, does that even make sense?’

Nate gave a small laugh, then turned around to face his friend, his own arms now embracing Danny and hugging him close.

‘Yeah,’ Nate answered. ‘It makes perfect sense. You love me, but you’re not in love with me! You have Jake, and I have some place I need to go to, but just know that I’m always going to love you too, man, no matter where I am.’

‘I will. Just as I’ll always feel the same. After this week we’ll see each other again, I promise you that.’

‘Of course we will,’ Nate replied, while leaning back slightly and wiping his eyes with his arm.

‘Jesus. Will you look at the two of us,’ Danny teased, as he did the same. ‘What a pair of pussies!’

‘That’s us!’

‘So, what now?’ asked Danny.

‘Well, there’s something I want to do that I may never get the chance to do again,’ Nate replied.

A kookaburra cackled somewhere down in the trees. The whole bush seemed to be listening to their every word.

Nate could see the question in Danny’s expression, just like he was sure that Danny could see the hint of mischief in his own face, then he placed a hand at the side of Danny’s face, leaned in, and kissed him.

It was a gentle and loving kiss, before they soon parted, each leaning back slightly and appraising the other. They smiled at each other and then Danny leaned in, kissing Nate – really kissing him – as a gentle breeze blew up the side of the hill from the valley below, and birds in the trees chirped all around them.

It was a kiss that would go no further than this moment, but it was a kiss that was needed. A kiss that was years in the making, even if neither had ever known it.

* * *
 

A short while later they were on the road again, climbing to the summit of the peak, then travelling down a narrow and winding road, descending into another valley. For some time there was silence between them, as each contemplated what had just happened, but eventually it was Danny who spoke.

‘So, you and Skye, huh?’ he gently teased as they drove on. ‘You sure moved fast once you got to town,’

‘What can I say? Must be the old Nate charm?’

‘Yeah . . . must be,’ Danny replied, before breaking out in laughter.

Nate looked across at his friend and grinned at him.

‘So, did you lose the old V-card?’ Danny asked.

‘The what?’

‘Did you get lucky, you dumb-arse!’

‘Don’t you know that a gentleman is never supposed to tell?’ Nate replied.

‘Gentleman? Really?’

Danny simply grinned at his friend, before saying, ‘Seems like you’ve turned into a real horndog then, since I last saw you. Getting laid with strange girls in strange towns, then the next day kissing your best friend. Are you swinging both ways these days?’

‘To be honest, I have no fucking idea what I’m doing,’ Nate replied, with a sigh. ‘The only sexual experiences I’ve ever had, up until last night, have been with my right hand . . . and that’s the god’s honest truth! And right now, especially after kissing you, my head is spinning . . . I have no fucking idea what I want or what I’m doing . . .’

‘I think you told me that already,’ Danny replied, before pulling the car over to the side of the road as quickly as he could safely do so. After switching off the ignition Danny managed to turn in his seat, so that he was facing Nate.

‘What?’ Nate asked. For a few moments Danny tried to compose his thoughts, before speaking.

‘We’re all different,’ Danny said to his friend, while reaching out and taking one of Nate’s hands in his. ‘You don’t have to worry about whether you like girls, or guys, or both. When the time comes you’ll find someone you want to just . . . be with. And the only person who needs to be happy about that is you.’

‘Yeah, until someone starts banging on about it. Until society tells me that it’s wrong.’

‘Who gives a fuck what society thinks? Isn’t it more important for us to be happy in life than to conform to what somebody – who we most likely won’t even know, by the way – thinks we should be doing?’

‘And how do you do that, exactly?’

‘Oh, that’s easy. You just move to a farm near Nimbin and don’t go near society unless you really have to!’

‘Yeah, right!’

‘I’m serious, Nate. Just do whatever the fuck you want in life . . . unless it’s robbing a bank or something! Just worry about being happy, not keeping everybody else happy!’

‘Is that what you and Jake do?’

‘Absolutely! We care about each other, not about what people think . . . and believe me, we’ve seen and heard just about everything that can be said or done to guys like us . . . but we just don’t care any more. What we care about is loving each other, and those people who are our friends . . . of which you are most definitely one. You’ll be a lot happier if you just let it all go. Trust me on that.’

To be continued . . .