the rush

April 2087. Tyler Jackson is 23. Maya Bunch is 25.


There was an abandoned mine shaft at the back of the Jackson property that leaked cool air and a dank smell from its barricaded opening. Tyler hadn't known about it when they bought the property, and in fact, wasn't even sure whether this fell on their side of the property line at all. But who wouldn't wonder what was inside? It was only a wonder that nobody ever attempted to open before it in all this time.

Until today, a casual hike and just the right pair of lovers—him full of spontaneity and her full of curiosity, his brawn and her brains—where would life take them together if not into a mysterious cavern?



He would lead the way, swatting aside cobwebs while she told him which spiders were poisonous or not. He taught her how to scale down a rock face, where to put her hands and feet, and he climbed just below her so she wouldn't fall. They made a good team together, and together they reached a glowing grotto deep inside the mountain.



They could hardly believe what they were seeing. They'd heard of places like this, but to find one of their very own was a magical experience.


She looked back at him, full of mischief. "Are you thinking what I’m thinking?"

"Uh, maybe, what are you thinking?"

"Last one to the tide pool is a rotten egg!"

Their faces lit with a shared vision of wet skin in the shimmering refracted light and echoing laughter on the cave walls. They stripped off their clothes and dashed for the water.





They danced and splashed. They grew cold and came back to press their bodies together for warmth.

Sometimes Tyler remembered that just last year, he was dicking around, playing sports and dating random girls, living a life of directionless vacancy. It didn't make him happy or feel fulfilled, and he never imagined that it did. This was always his end game. Now he seized this second chance with Maya and he was ready to run with it.

What's the rush? His mother asked him with a worrisome fret in her brow when he mentioned wanting to propose. He and Maya had been back together for two months, but it didn't feel new at all. There was a fire in Tyler's heart, a hopeless blaze that threatened to consume him from the inside out. The intensity had scared the other girls, but Maya was different. She wasn't afraid of fire. In fact, she seemed ready to dive straight into his fiery heart and live there, and he wanted to let her.

"How long can we keep this place our secret?" she asked.

"As long as you want," he said. "It's all yours. I'll write your name on it."

"Nobody's ever named a cave after me. You're a suave one, Tyler Jackson."

"I've got all kinds of suave in my heart," he said.

"Oh really? I don't believe you," she said with a playful smirk that confessed how she absolutely believed him. "Maybe you should prove it."


So he lifted her up in his strong arms and carried her to the nearest rock where he laid them both over the balmy surface of it and proved his passion to her underneath the dripping ceiling of a mountain.


After, he laid out his shirt and shorts, already scuffed up by the hike, over the dusty rocks for them to sit on. If only they had brought a picnic, but neither of them expected to find anything worth staying for. They were unprepared, but seized the moment anyway, sharing the dregs of a water bottle and a slice of chewing gum.


"This... this is like a dream?" She smiled and nuzzled into his warm side.

"Not a dream, Maya. Because dreams end when you wake up, and we're only just getting started."


"Yes," she said decidedly. Yes, to starting, to seizing the unexpected treasure you never planned to find. Yes, like an answer to the unasked question that seeped from his every word.

"It doesn't scare you?"

"Oh, it does," she said. "But in a good way. Like joining the military to fight aliens. Like jumping out of an airplane. Like forgiveness after a broken heart."

"But worth it, right? What a rush."

"Worth it," she said.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

The way she thought about this question, Tyler knew she wasn't thinking exactly what he was thinking, but so much more instead. Maya had already weighed out the pros and cons, a mental spreadsheet in her mind, a formula that told their statistical rate of success as a couple based on their experiences, their hopes, their dreams, and she smiled at the number like it was a good one.

"Let's get married, Tyler."

—

They didn't get married that same hour, or even the same day. They hoped to be given more credit than that.

They talked about it and thought about it, and they decided, in the end, that the passion and fervor of spontaneous vows appealed to the hopeless romantic in Tyler, and Maya was never much of a princess to dream of a big wedding with all the frills. She didn’t want the stress and expense of a formal ceremony and reception, but he wanted something more flamboyant than a courthouse deal. They both wanted something unique and memorable. He had some ideas.

"Surprise me," she said.

"Wear white," he said, "but something you can hike in."

Technically, they were engaged for nine days by the time they pulled everything together.


They invited their families out to Sierra Nova to join them. Tyler was an experienced tour guide, having been up and down the cavern path a few times now, leading the mystified hikers through to the grotto where Maya waited in white, flowers in her hair, standing beside a licensed Druid Priestess they found on the internet.

"Is this for real?" his brother asked.

"Totally for real," Tyler said.





The vows were simple and sweet. The kiss was sweeter. For Tyler and Maya, this was the perfect backdrop for the binding of two lives with fearless abandon. Of all the weddings that could possibly be, Tyler and Maya’s wedding would feel like skydiving into matrimony.


So they were grateful for April's enthusiasm, if no one else, or if everyone else's enthusiasm would take some time to grow. Maya's parents looked at each other like they weren't sure what exactly just happened here, but they hoped it was a good thing. Tyler's mother knew her son, and even approved of Maya, but worried for them all the same. Beau was just stunned and partly amused.

But April, only April, was all on board from the get go.

—

~pictures outside in daylight~

—

The newlyweds enjoy grossing out their neighbors with kisses by the pool and taking long walks in matching sandals.

They plan to remain in Maya's two-bedroom condo in Sierra Nova for the next couple years while Tyler finishes his trainer certification, and they want to save a little more money for their dream home.

While half of this couple (Tyler) is excited to start their family soon, and they do technically have a spare bedroom that could become a nursery, they both realize that waiting is a good idea. Waiting a little while, at least. Considering they both want three and they've both been exposed to space radiation that could possibly cause them trouble, rushing to get started might actually be the most logical thing for them.



For now, they're excited to welcome a new furbaby to the family.

Gracie is a four year-old pointer coonhound mix with a sweet and curious temperament, and she suits them both perfectly.

—

notes & outtakes: distracted wedding guests // baby whims