“I
can’t believe we’re doing this,” Lucy said, putting one foot in front of the
other, arms swinging by her sides, her eyes focused on the earth in front of
her feet.
“I
can’t believe we’re almost there,” Sullivan said from behind her.
“I
can’t believe it’s not butter,” Lucy shot back, resolutely walking forward, and
upwards.
“Oh
god, you aren’t having altitude sickness, are you?” Sullivan asked in a teasing
voice, and Lucy looked over her shoulder to smile at him.
“No,
just being silly,” she reassured him.
It
was the sixth day of their hike up Kilimanjaro, using the Rongai trail. The
trail approached the peak from the north, and was one of the less frequently
used trails for tourists – which suited their wedding party just fine. They
didn’t want to fight hordes of tourists or have to share accommodations as they
bunked down each night. They just wanted to be with each other – Lionel and Wendy,
Lucy and Sullivan, Lionel’s best friend Ray, Wendy’s sister Fiona and several
of their close friends from all points of the globe. They were a merry group,
everyone in good spirits and encouraging one another each day of the long hike.
At the end of each day, everyone was still happy and grateful, and thankfully,
altitude sickness had been fairly mild for the entire group. Lucy herself had
had a few headaches, but mercifully little else in the way of side effects.
She
knew she had Spencer to thank for conditioning her so well in preparation for
this entire experience – both her mind and her body.
She
thought back to how much harder this hike would have been if she was still
carrying the weight – and the emotional baggage – she had been from a few
months ago. The Lucy summiting Kilimanjaro now was lighter – in so many
different ways.
Plus,
if she stumbled, she had someone to catch her, she mused, picturing Sullivan’s
smiling face as she kept walking forwards.
The
route featured easy, gentle gradients each day, but Lucy and Sullivan could
definitely feel the altitude growing each day, the air getting thinner and the
walks getting a bit tougher. They had marveled at the alpine desert as they
crossed through it, had stood stock still to watch the sun sink below the
horizon each night when they stopped hiking for the day, and had snuggled
together each night in camp, too exhausted to do much more than kiss each other
good night before falling immediately into deep and dreamless asleep.
It
was by far the most memorable week of Lucy’s life.
It
had also given Lucy time to spend with her brother Lionel and his
soon-to-be-bride, and to talk, really talk about things that mattered – and even
things that didn’t. She hadn’t spent time with Lionel in so long, it was nice
to finally reconnect, and she hoped they would remain close in the future – no
matter where in the world he might be.
She
knew that Sullivan was missing Spencer, and wishing he was here with them on
their adventure. Spencer had cheerfully driven them both to the airport, and
Lucy had actually teared up as they said goodbye to one another. Spencer and
Sullivan did the manly handshake thing, which quickly devolved into a hug, and
Lucy had thrown herself into Spencer’s arms in gratitude once they broke apart.
“I
never could have tried to do this without you. I never could have believe this
was even possible without you,” she said tearfully. “You’ve turned me into
someone who can do this.”
“Nah,”
Spencer said, embarrassed. “I just helped you along the way. You did this. Go – enjoy it. You are
gonna do this, Luce. I know it. And I can’t wait to hear all about it when you
get back. So, go,” he had commanded
gruffly.
She
had nodded once, wiped away her tears, then had linked hands with Sullivan to
head towards their flight out of Monterey.
Brandt
too had been equally supportive – he and Josh had thrown her a farewell dinner
the night before her flight, trading stories and laughing further into the
night than she should have allowed, but she had loved just laughing and
relaxing, and she really liked Josh as well.
And
it looked like Josh was as crazy about Brandt as Brandt was about him, so
hopefully, she thought, he would be a keeper.
Everything
seemed to be falling into place – Sullivan had even admitted during one of
their hikes that Spencer had a new ‘lady friend’ as he put it, and that he was
starting to get a little more serious than usual about her, something he rarely
did with women.
Lucy
had been glad to hear it – Spencer deserved the happiness that she and Sully
had found together.
Lucy
took in a deep breath as she crept closer and closer to the summit – she could
see the destination now, and knew they were closer than they thought they were.
As
they got closer and closer to the peak, she slowed so that she and Sullivan
could walk side by side. He strode forward and then grasped her hand in his,
and with identical smiles of accomplishment, they walked the final yards until
they were firmly planted on the Uhuru Peak.
“You
just walked over nineteen thousand feet,” Sullivan said after a long moment, turning
to face her. “How do you feel?”
Lucy
took a deep breath and let it out with a beatific smile. “Like I’m on top of
the world – for so many reasons.”
They
looked around, drinking in the view, their bodies pressed together against the
cold and wind. Lucy turned to Sullivan, tears in her eyes and smiled. “We did
it,” she whispered, and he kissed her softly.
“We
did,” he agreed simply.
Lucy
snugged herself into his arms, turning her face to the meager sun that lit the
peak around them, feeling it warm her skin.
The
girl she had been months ago never could have realized this moment, she
thought, her eyes absorbing every inch of the view.
She
was glad to be a different girl now, strong and healthy, confident and happy.
And,
as she glanced at Sullivan, who was watching only her, and not the view, she
realized she was one other thing.
Loved.
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