Page 33 of Spotlight on Poppy

"There is a spot by the waterfall that I have loved going to ever since I was a kid. I thought I would show you."

"That sounds amazing."

They pulled up to one of the parks outside of town. There were camping grounds and walking trails. This is where the town got its name from, Mystic Falls. If you walk one of these trails a way back you come upon some beautiful waterfalls.

Josh grabbed the picnic basket and blanket. They set off down the trail. A little way down Josh turned off of the trail, but Poppy followed his lead. After a few minutes a narrow trail picked back up.

"We are almost there," he said. Looking back, he smiled that care-free smile he always had, but Poppy was beginning to wonder just how care-free that smile actually was. There was way more to this man than she ever thought.

The sound of rushing water was growing louder. Poppy knew they were getting close to the falls, but she had never been this way before. They came up to what appeared to be a large stone wall about shoulder height to Poppy. Josh put the picnic basket and blanket up on it and turned to Poppy with a smile on his face.

"Up this way," he said motioning his head that she was to climb up the giant rock.

"Umm Josh," she looked down at her body. "I'm not actually built for rock climbing."

"You can do it. My sister can climb up this and I know you can too," he said with an encouraging hand on her arm.

Okay, she was going to try.

"Here let me help you. Put your foot here and grab onto this branch."

She did that and pulled herself up.

"Okay, now next foot here and grab here. Then you should be able to get right up there."

She followed his instructions and was able to step onto the platform. Before she knew it, Josh was right behind her picking up their things. They were so close to the falls she could feel the mist. She turned back to see him watching her and smiling.

"This way." He pointed to a space between two large rocks. Poppy followed him just a little way further. It looked like they were going into a cave of some kind. But as they turned the corner Poppy could see it. There was this perfect little stone ledge with light shimmering in and water cascading down in front of it. They were behind the waterfalls.

"Oh my god. This is beautiful. How did you even know this place existed?"

"I spent a lot of time here as a kid. This has always been one of my secret places." He looked around and took it all in, then got to work setting up the picnic. Laying the blanket out, he motioned for Poppy to join him as he pulled out a bottle of wine and poured her a glass.

She took it, her eyes were still scanning this place. It was filled with this magical glow as the light streamed through the waterfall. He got a cutting board and set out beautiful fresh fruit and cheeses. Then he reached in and pulled out two sandwiches wrapped in brown paper. He handed her one and she took it with a small smile. Poppy had dated for fun in the past, she did lots of things for fun, but something felt more serious about this date with Josh. And it was overwhelming her a little bit.

"This is amazing, I don't think anyone has ever done anything like this for me before," she said quietly.

He gave a bashful smile and set a plate down in front of her. She unwrapped her sandwich and it was something out of a magazine. It was a fresh baguette with arugula, tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, and a balsamic drizzle.

"Where did you get these?” she asked. “They look delicious."

"I made them," Josh said.

"You made these?" she asked. Then she took a bite. It was so good, the bread was toasted and a little crispy, the fresh mozzarella was creamy, and the Balsamic vinegar brought it all together. "These are amazing."

"Thanks, I'm glad you like them." Josh reached into the basket and pulled out a bottle of water and opened it and took a drink.

It was then that something struck Poppy, she had never seen Josh drink. He was at the Elbow Room all the time, bartended at the saloon, was it possible that he didn't drink?

"No wine for you?" she asked.

"Nope, I don't drink," he said as he took another bite of his sandwich. And there it was, yet another layer to this enigma of a man.

"Like ever?"

"Nope. I've never had a drink."

"Like ever?" she asked again, astounded.

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