Page 62 of The Player in New Zealand
“Come on,” Tane said, rising from the table. “Let’s get the kayak set up so we can be ready to go when it gets dark.”
It did take us time to drag the kayak out to the launch, strap ourselves into life vests, and check our headlamps.
We paused on the shore to watch the sun disappear without much fanfare—it was a cloudless day, and the sky, devoid of a textured canvas, slipped steadily into darkness.
Not long after, we settled into the kayak, and I sat in front of Tane. It was the kind of two-person kayak where you sit on top of the molded plastic. Tane’s legs didn’t quite fit into the footholds, so his big feet went up on either side of my waist.
I belatedly realized we should have done this sooner. I had no experience paddling a kayak before. Tane tried to coach me from behind, but our paddles clicked and clacked together more often than not.
“Claire,” Tane said, sounding amused. “Just let me do it.”
I let my paddle rest on the rim of the kayak as Tane quietly stroked behind me. I had layers on, but wet spots from the paddles were making me chilly and the temperature was dropping.
He knew where we were going, and as it got really dark out, we followed our headlamps into a small inlet. The shore crowded us on either side, trees touching over our heads, blocking out the night sky. In the patches of my headlamp, I illuminated mossy rocks dripping with condensation. It was otherworldly, Jurassic, even.
We slowed, gently bumping against a large rock on my right. When I glanced over, the edges of the light caught Tane’s hand, his big paw gripping the moss, and... not really holding us in place, as the water was calm, but it felt stabilizing.
I reached out and touched the rock myself, poking the moss and giggling when it gave under my fingertips.
One of the spots of light went crazy, bouncing around the vegetation as Tane took off his headlamp. The kayak shifted as he leaned forward, breath whispering into my ear. “Ready?”
My hand went to my headlamp and found the button to turn it off. “Ready.”
“Three... two... one.” We clicked our headlamps off together and I held my breath as we were blanketed in darkness. I blinked, but nothing changed. It was all just black. I sagged a little, disappointed.
“Why aren’t they...”
Tane cut me off with a nudge on my shoulder.
“Look to the left,” he said, mouth still pressed tightly against my ear.
I did. I blinked a few more times, my eyes still adjusting to the dim lighting. Was it... was that... ?
Ohhh...
They slowly came to life—whether they’d been lit up the whole time or not, I wasn’t sure—and Tane and I were surrounded by neon-green pinpricks of light. Where they clustered together, there was enough light to cast a glow over the rocks and moss.
It looked alien. It looked like something out ofAvatar, a microscopic city that quivered and glowed. It looked like the Milky Way, tucked into this little corner of the world, swirling only for us.
There was a light splash as Tane’s feet slipped into the water and his grip around my waist became firmer, hauling me backward toward his chest. I leaned into him, resting my palms on his forearms over my front.
And like that, we drifted.
TWENTY-ONE
There werebathroom blocks in the camping area, and by the time we got back, we had them all to ourselves. I showered quickly, dressing in yoga pants and a T-shirt and hustling back to the tent. Tane was already there, curled up on his side.
I put my things in the truck and tried not to slam the door. The other tents and campers were dark and the night was quiet.
Tane’s face was right inside the screen door of the tent, and when I shone my headlamp in, he squinted. The zipper was loud, and the air mattress let out a plasticky fart noise when I crawled in.
Despite the chill, Tane was shirtless in his sleeping bag, the bare tops of his shoulders peeking out at me over the edge of the zipped-up bag.
“Hey,” I whispered. “Can’t we, like, zip the bags together or something?”
I could barely see the corners of his mouth curve up in a smile. “You want to snuggle, Claire?” he teased.
“I wantsomething.” I trailed a finger along his shoulder, and Tane scoffed.
