Fallen Love

Light filtered through the tree-tops, showering the couple in light. Brisk autumn winds swirrled by, the bright leaves dancing in the currents. They caught in her red curles, entangling in her hair, but she paid them no mind. Walking through the forest on the most wonderous of all seasons, it felt like heaven to the girl. Even the chatter from the classmates she'd left behind drifting to her ears did not bother her. She walked until the noise was no more than a muffled hum, barely audible over the bird-song and chirping of crickets that filtered through the air. The breeze ruffled the skirt of her dress around her legs, goose-bumps pricking up her skin. she'd worn a sun dress and a pair of sandals despite the teacher's specific instructions to wear jeans, a jacket, and tennis-shoes. A shiver pased down her spine, and she pulled her arms into her.

"Cold?" She jumped at the voice, having not expected someone to be following. Was it Mr. Mckormic? How much trouble would she be in if it was? She spun around, an excuse forming on her lips, but the words caught in her throat. It wasn't her middle-aged photography teacher that stood behind her, but a tall, dark-haired boy - a classmate. "Sorry if I scared you," he laughed. His voice was like velvet, his eyes ice. He was gorgeous in every sense of the word. "You're Tasha, right?" I'm Oscar," he introduced himself, holding his hand out in greeting. "We were assigned to be photo-buddies. I saw you wander off and thought it'd be best if we stuck together." He continued to talk, but Tasha paid little attention. All she could think was how lucky she was and how hot her partner was! Except for his name... If he only had a cuter name... "We could probably get some shots while we're out here, so that we have an excuse for having wondered off."

Tasha blinked, snapping out of her daze. "Wha - ? Oh, yeah, right! Good idea!" Her hands fluttered to the camera hanging around her neck. She flicked the lens cap off, flipping the switch and turning the devise on. Her eyes settled on the camera in her hands, watching the lens rotate out. "What was the assignment again?"

"Fallen love. Open to interpretation." Oscar pulled his own camera from the bottomless pit that was the pocket of his jacket. Along with the camera, bungee cords could be seen poking out from between his fingers. "I was thinking we could position the cameras in the trees and set them to multi-shot."

Tasha nodded, wishing she'd thought about the assignment a little more. "Yeah," she agreed, pulling the camera's strap up over her head. "Yeah, that sounds like a good plan." She reached out her hand, letting Oscar take the camera from her. As he looped the bungee cords around each camera, Tasha tried to think of something, a way in which she contributed to this project. "So what were you thinking for the interpretation part?"

The boy was, by now, setting the cameras up in the trees. "Keep it simple. Stick to the assignment and don't dig too deep." He was hoooking the cord around a branch, pulling on the camera to make sure it was secure, before moving to hook up the next one.

"So," Tasha ventured, peering over Oscar's shoulder to watch him work, "something like love in the fall?"

The boy didn't once stop in his work, but neither did he reply immediately. Tasha didn't mind waiting for an answer. She liked watching him work. His eyes narrowed every time he couldn't find a branch close enough to attatch the bungee cord to, or whenever the camera slipped. But he never got frustrated, never gave up. Nor did he leave to find another perch for the devise. He was determined to set it up there, and nowhere else.

"Love in the Fall?" he mused, wipping his hands on his pants. He had successfully set up both cameras, so all they had to do was hit the button and begin.

"Yeah, I mean, it's Fall right now, and there are so many colors... And we're here to take pictures, right?" The girl shrugged, running her fingers through her hair. "If you think... That is, if you want to..."

"I think it's a great idea!" Oscar inturrupted. "It can't get much simpler than that." He turned toward her, a playful smile spread across his face. He had a scar on his upper lip, unnoticeable until his lips pulled back in a wide grin. "We could dance. Simple and easy shots."

Tasha stared at him. she could feel her cheeks burning at the thought. Dance? With this amazingly gorgeous guy? She couldn't say no, no matter how much even the idea sent her heart fluttering. "O-ok. So, what do we do?"

He hooked his arm around her, turning her toward her camera. "Just go turn on the multi-shot, and come back. I'll lead."

Indeed he did. As soon as Tasha turned around from activating her camera, Oscar scooped her into his arms. He was a wonderful dancer. Waltzing her this way, spinning her that way. It was all so gracefull. Part of the girl felt like she was dancing in air, her feet barely skimming the ground. The other part felt like a puppet being pulled by strings, as she'd lost all control in this waltz of two lovers. Tasha let the weightless part win over. She was dancing with an amazingly gorgeous guy! She was sure to get an A on this assignment. How could it get any better?

Suddenly, Oscar dipped Tasha, giving her a mischivious smile. Then his lips were on hers. The girl melted into his embrace, savering the moment. She could feel her heart shoot toward the sky, her feet lift from the ground. She had to be flying, for she felt as if she'd just sprouted wings. A moment later, the boys was releasing her. She blinked at him a few times, trying to refocus herself on the task at hand.

"I think we should have some great pics now," Oscar was saying. He went to his camera and began taking it down. "We can get together sometime this week and put together the portfolio."

Tasha, dazed, nodded blankly. "Yeah..." she sighed. Oscar turned toward her and laughed. She clearly wasn't going to be getting her camera anytime soon, so the boy got hers down as well.

"Come on," he said quietly, draping his jacket over her shoulders. "They're probably missing us back at the bus."