2008 Writing D e s e r t E x p o s u r e
September
2008
Rabbit Hunting
Page: 2Ben and I were down to our underduds in a minute and jumped in. Leanne was too modest to dispose of anything but her shoes, but that didn't slow her down. She hit the water with as much enthusiasm as anything she ever did, stopping just once to make sure Ben was okay in the water with just his one leg. Ben didn't mind when Leanne doted on him, because she didn't overdo it.
Before I knew it, another hour had passed, and Ben was climbing out of the water and putting on his dry clothes. I followed suit, although I wasn't enthused about the our night drawing to a close. Still, I sat by my friend on the bank of the pond and backed his instruction to his sister to grow up and get out now.
"Just one more dunk," she pleaded, and then disappeared under the water for a few seconds. She reappeared just inside the bank in front of us and forced herself to climb out.
I could hardly keep myself from laughing when she surfaced. She thought she was so modest wearing all her clothes in the water, but now they clung to her slim little shape like a second layer of skin. It was funny, but she was so beautiful, I tended to forget the humor. I glanced at Ben and was relieved to see that he hadn't noticed my thoughts. He was sleepy, so I wrapped poor drenched Leanne in an old coat from the pickup, and lounged with her on the bank nearby.
We watched Ben drift off to sleep, and then Leanne settled her head on my shoulder and her hand on my chest. I leaned my head back on the cool bank and looked at the sky full of stars and a big full moon. Then my eyes drifted to the south where the Tres Hermanas stood distinctly in the bright night. I turned my head toward the northeast and viewed the Floridas looking like a great random pile of jagged rocks. Leanne always liked to hike those mountains.
I leaned my head down to look at her and heard her whisper, "This is why."
"Hmm?" I asked lazily.
She slid her hand across my chest, gripped my shoulder, and pressed in close to me. She repeated, "This is why I love rabbit hunting."
Danna Stout moved to Deming three years ago from Colorado, and enjoys hiking in the Tres Hermanas. She was also a writing-contest finalist in 2007.