Page 29 of Always There Bayou
“Yo, are y’all woke yet!” We hear someone shout through the door. It causes us to both jump, and Denny loses their footing, falling onto me and knocking me back onto the bed.
“Shit,” I groan as they quickly get up.
“I’m sorry, Cory! Are you okay?” they ask, helping me to sit up. I nod.
“Yeah, I’m good, love,” I assure them. I turned to look towards the door where someone was knocking frantically. I sigh and get up. I yank the door open to see Cordell standing there smiling. “The fuck do you want, Cordell?”
“I was sent to come wake y’all up,” he says, crossing his arms over his chest. “Everybody is down having lunch, and you two are up here doing God knows what. I know y’all are excited about finally getting to go down on each other, but it’s time to get up,Coraline.”
“One day, yo ass ain’t gon be able to wake up if you keep fuckin’ playing with me,” I threaten, and he smirks. I push him back and slam the door in his face. I sigh and turn back towards Denny, but not even a few seconds later, the door opens again, and I whip aroundto see Cordell standing there, hitting the Dougie. “Cordell, I swear to God…”
“I love you too, big sis,” he says, and I walk back over to him, but he quickly backs away as he laughs. “My bad! My bad! I’ll leave you alone! Mean ass…”
He pulls the door behind him, and I sigh, shaking my head. I swear, he got on my damn nerves. He was never serious, and I felt sorry for whoever ended up marrying his ass. I feel arms wrap around me, and all my annoyance washes away as a smile forms on my lips. I turn around in their arms, and Denny kisses me softly.
“You gotta stop letting your brother stress you out,” they laugh, and I nod, knowing they’re right. “You know his ass thrives on your impatience.”
“You’re right,” I sigh. “Come on and let’s get dressed before they send his annoying ass back up here.”
They nodded, and we walked over to our suitcases to decide on what to wear today. About 30 minutes later, we were fully dressed and heading down the stairs to where our families were busy catching up around the table. When we entered, everyone greeted us, and of course, a million questions were asked. They were still trying to figure out how we finally decided to start dating.
After about 15 minutes of answering their questions in a way that would both satisfy them without going too into detail, they finally changed the subject to what we had on the itinerary for the next few days. After lunch, we were gonna head out and get the tree like we did every year. There was a tree farm in town that had been around longer than I’d been alive. I loved visiting it because the ownerswere always so lovely, and they served the best hot chocolate I've ever had. I could already taste it on my tongue.
Once Denny and I had eaten, we went out to get the snowmobiles ready for the drive down to the town. My dad had a sled attachment that we’d use to bring it back up the mountain. It was attached to two snowmobiles, and the load was distributed between them, making it easier to pull. I grabbed my helmet and passed one to Denny. They thanked me and then climbed on the back of my snowmobile.
As we rode down the snowy mountainside, I could feel the wind whip around me. Although it was cold, the smell of the trees and freshly fallen snow made up for it. I let the serenity of the world around me wrap me up, and I felt like I was being transported to another realm of calm. Being in nature was something that I always longed for, and my stomach danced with the thought that this could be my life 24/7 one day. Maybe soon.
Honestly, as much as I loved basketball, I’d been thinking about retiring for the past couple of years now. I know that I was only 34, but I’d been playing professionally for about 12 years now, and…I don’t know…something inside of me just wanted to take a step back from that. Besides, my chronic back pain was only getting worse with each game, so I figured that I was nearing my end anyway.
But I was a bit hesitant because all I’ve ever known is basketball, and I’ve never had a chance to try anything else career-wise. I mean, yeah, I helped Denny and Lilah around the shop and the studio when I could, but much like Harley, I’d never had an actual job. Yeah, I gave her shit for it, but in reality, I was more spoiled than she was. My siblings and I never wanted for anything after we moved in with our dad. Working was more of a hobby than anything. I knew that I was privileged, but I never took that for granted, mainly because it allowed me to focus on basketball and school without interruptions.
I spent all my free time playing basketball because I was so sure that I would want to play well into my late 30s, but I wasn’t so sure that’s what I wanted these days. I hadn’t told anyone other than Harley and Simone that I was thinking about retiring, not even Denny.
Why?
Well, because I wasn’t entirely sure about anything yet. I had the next couple of months to decide whether I wanted to return next season. Hopefully, by then, I’d made up my mind.
“It feels so good out here,” I hear Denny call behind me, and I nod. Their voice tickled my ear and sent a chill down my spine. They hugged me tighter around the waist. “I wish I could stay out here forever.”
“Me too,” I reply as we pull into the designated parking spots for snowmobiles where the bottom of the mountain meets the edge of town.
A lot of people used snowmobiles to navigate the snow here, so about a decade ago, the town designated a portion specifically for people to park them since they couldn’t be ridden into the town square. We all climbed off and pulled off our helmets. The wind blew a gust past us, and I was glad that I had bundled up with triple layers. I glance over at Denny and hold my hand out for them to take.
Wemade our way down the short path to the Christmas tree farm. Luckily, it was only a few yards from where we’d parked. It used to be in the middle of town, but they relocated it here to avoid people dragging trees through the streets. Now, it was easier for us to pick one out and transport it back to the sled. Everyone loved the convenience.
As our family split to look at the different trees, Denny and I strolled over to the stand where they sold the hot chocolate. I didn’t care about picking out a tree and was always fine with whichever one of the others got.
“Well, look who we have here,” the owner, Jeffery, greets us. “I figured that I would see you soon, Cory. Who’s your friend?”
“Oh, this is my best friend and partner, Denny,” I introduce. “Denny, this is Jeffery. His family owns this tree farm, and he mans the hot chocolate. It’s the best in the world, I promise you.”
“There you go, boosting my head up again,” he laughs before turning towards Denny. “It’s nice to meet you, Denny. Cory has talked about you before, so I can’t believe I’m finally getting to meet you.”
“Oh, she talks about me?” Denny smiles at me, and I playfully roll my eyes.
“Yes, and between you and me,” he says, leaning forward to whisper playfully. “She likes you a lot. Every time she mentioned you, she always had the biggest smile on her face.”
“Well, it’s a good thing she’s my girlfriend, then, huh?” Denny jokes and Jeffery nods, belting out a laugh that could rival Santa’s. I could do nothing but smile as I shook my head.
