Light in the Shadows

“That’s fine.  Just remember to take your sunscreen, it’s bright out there today,” she said and I rolled my eyes.  It didn’t matter that today I was legally an adult; she would always treat me as though I were four. 
                  Clay came in behind me and said hello to my parents.  They responded in kind and I left them to chat while I went upstairs to throw on my suit.  It was amazing how relaxed my parents had become with Clay.  I knew they still harbored some distrust toward him, but he had come a long way in proving himself to them.  While, I still saw his daily struggles, my parents were finally understanding that he was a good person and really did love and want the best for me.  And if anything could soften their hardened hearts, it was that.
                    When I came back downstairs, my mom and Clay were laughing over something my dad was saying.  One of his horrible jokes, no doubt.  “I’m ready,” I said, looping my arm with Clay’s and pulling him out of the kitchen.
                  “I’ll have her back before six,” he told my parents who thanked him before I could get him out of the house. 
                    “Hurry up; we have two and a half hours for just us.  I don’t want to waste a minute of it,” I urged, hurrying toward the car.  It only took us ten minutes to pull into the tall grass.  Another five before we were at the water. 
                  I realized, as I watched Clay tug off his shoes and shorts, revealing his trunks, that we always came back here.  These trees, this water, had witnessed a lot of the Clay and Maggie roller coaster.  Whether it was good or bad, we gravitated toward this space as though it were the one spot that was just for us.
                    Once again we were alone.  Over the last year, I had found that less and less people used the old swimming hole, choosing the public pool instead.  Fewer young kids even knew about its existence, thus making it feel even more like it belonged to the two of us. 
                    Clay pulled me into the water and I let out a startled scream.  I swallowed a mouthful of river water.  “You are so going to pay for that!” I yelled, dipping under the water and pulling his feet out from underneath him.  He couldn’t stay upright on the silt bottom and fell over.  Laughing, he grabbed me and dunked me under again.
                    This went on for quite a while, reminding me so much of the first time I had brought him here, over eight months ago.  It was unreal how much had changed but still stayed the same.  We were two kids, who had been through the fire together, bruised and burned for it, but still going. 
                    “I surrender!  No more!” I held up my hands in defeat. 
                    Clay swam over to me and scooped me up in his arms and carried me out of the water.  He had laid a quilt down on the ground and pulled two towels from his messenger bag.  Wrapping me in one, he patted me down until my extremities were dry.
                    “You hungry?” he asked, pulling out a bag of snacks. 
                    “Sure,” I responded, reaching for some chips and a drink. 
                    “So after this, you want to go buy some chewing tobacco and a Play Girl?  How about some lotto tickets?” Clay suggested and I smirked. 
                    “I’ll pass on all of the above.  Though I did register to vote a few weeks ago.  Woohoo for me!” I pumped my fist into the air and took a drink of water. 
                    “Do not underestimate the value of civic duty, Maggie,” he taunted me and I went to punch him in the arm.  He grabbed my hand and gave me a tug, pulling me into his lap.  I dropped the bag of potato chips onto the ground as I bumped my chest into his. 
                    Our noses rubbed against one another and he smirked as I realized how closely I was pressed against him.  I was still bundled up in the towel, so Clay slowly reached up and slipped it from my shoulders, his fingers trailing down my back to settle on my hip.
                    “Happy Birthday, Mags,” he breathed as his hands gripped my skin, his thumbs playing with the string of my bikini bottom.  I was suddenly aware of how alone we were and