Page 43 of Waiting for Tuesday

I twisted the strap of my bag at my shoulder, feeling anxious as I watched the mother try to push open the gate with her large body. Her cries shook me with their desperation, and I closed my eyes briefly.

One of the crew who’d been talking to John a moment before must have noticed my distress, because when I opened my eyes again, he was standing by my side.

“They’ll get it open, don’t you worry.”

I bit my lip again, blinking back the tears that threatened to spill over. “It’s heartbreaking, isn’t it?”

He looked about sixty, and between his teeth, he held a sprig of fresh grass. He turned around in the direction of the exhibit and leaned against the post opposite me. “She’d kill herself trying to get to that calf.” He pulled the stalk of grass from his mouth and used it to point toward the enclosure. “That’s why it’s such an emergency. That baby is fine. There are people behind that gate who’ll take care of her, but that mama won’t stop. Even if it means her own demise.” He made a clicking sound with his tongue. “A mother’s love is an extraordinary thing…”

His voice trailed off, and I found myself nodding in agreement, but I was barely listening. My eyes were locked on the mother as she pushed on the gate. I wiped my hands over my eyes, my throat tightening, and my nose beginning to burn.I’d never seen anything more devastating in my life.

A few minutes later, the man with the grass in his mouth gestured to the exhibit with his chin. “Isn’t that your boy out there?”

I turned around, and clear as day, saw John walking along the cement wall at the back of the exhibit. The one that flanked the side of the gate that was stuck. Another man mirrored him on the other side and both scaled slowly closer until they lowered to their bellies and began working at the hinges of the gate.

But whatever they were doing wasn't working, and the mama elephant was growing increasingly anxious. She was almost in a frenzy with their being so close to her baby, and all I wanted to do was call to John and tell him to come back. This was far too dangerous. That mother was out of her mind, and John looked so tiny out there next to her.

Then he threw his legs over the back of the wall and climbed along the opposite side of the gate. The mother began to push and push from the other side. Harder and harder, causing him to shake. I clenched my jaw, gripped my hands tighter on my strap, but there was nothing I could do but watch. I wasn’t even sure he’d hear me if I called out a warning.

The mother continued to ram into the gate, harder and harder, then all of a sudden the gate sprang free and slammed against the far wall. John never lost his grip. His head whipped back at the impact of the door opening, but he didn’t fall.

The baby calf ran out to her mother, pressing her small body against large, protective legs. Cries from both of them mingled in the air as John climbed up the gate again and seated himself at the top of the cement wall.

I wiped at the fat tears that landed on my cheeks and let out a shaky breath, still recovering from the adrenaline rush. That had to have been one of the most emotional things I’d ever witnessed. I turned around, meeting the eyes of the crew member, the blade of grass still pressed between his teeth as he nodded.

He lifted his chin to the other side of the exhibit and nodded. “Some guy you got there.”

I turned around and my eyes found John. He waved to me across the exhibit, and I nodded. “Yeah. He really is.”

Chapter EIGHTEEN

Tuesday

* * *

An hour later, we walked down the large, paved hill to the main level of the zoo. But John didn’t hold my hand this time. We walked side by side, a little slower than before, and occasionally his arm hit the fabric of my skirt. I wasn’t sure if he did it on purpose, or if it was by accident that he touched me, but after witnessing all that happened with the elephants, I was ten times more aware of every move he made.

He looked over at me and smiled, the expression on his face sending a shiver all the way to my toes. “I’m so high right now.” He raked both hands over his face and bit his lip. “I almost cried when that calf made it back to her mama.”

I took a deep breath and nodded. “Ididactually.” I didn’t usually share things like this with others, but for some reason, after all that, I felt closer to him than ever.

He looked at me sideways, his nose wrinkling slightly at my admission. “Are you in a hurry to get back?” He moved in front of me then spun around and walked backward, waiting for my answer.

I shook my head, adrenaline mixed with sexual tension burning my skin. “No, I’m in no hurry.”

“Good.” He grabbed my hand, and before I knew what he was doing, he ducked under an overhanging branch and began leading me down a narrow, darkened path. “Let’s go see who’s awake.”

I laughed and ducked down after him. This wasn’t at all what I was expecting. “Are we even allowed to do this? Aren’t they going to get mad at us?”

He shook his head and kept moving. “Nah, they owe me… Besides, I already told them I’d be giving you a tour.” He looked over his shoulder and winked at me, but all I could focus on was keeping my skirt from tangling up my feet and moving fast enough to keep up with John and his incredibly long legs.

Soon we came out to a main path again, where the overhead lights illuminated the lush, tropical foliage that surrounded us. “Do you even know where you’re going?” I asked, following after the man who was as joyful as a Peter Pan. His whole being oozed with a sense of life, and I wanted to suck it all in, bottle it, and save some for later.

He turned down a little alcove, and I followed after him, realizing before long that we’d entered the gorilla habitat. We came to stand in front of the large window, and his hand that wasn’t holding mine came up to press against the surface of the glass. “I wonder if he’s awake.”

“Who?” I asked in a soft, hushed voice.

He put a finger to his lips but didn’t answer, just kept searching the dark enclosure for something.

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