Finally I went down the hill. The tent flaps blowing in the strong gusts made enough noise to hide the sounds of my footsteps.
Wind at my face, I closed my eyes with each assured footstep landing square on the tufts of overgrown grass. He did not hear me approach.
I hoped he would poke his head out for a quick drag of one of those hand-rolled cigarettes. It would have spared me the anxiety as I stood outside with my decision. Instead, I stood for what seemed like an eternity waiting, breathing deep and finally after a long exhale, I did it. Tap tap tap on the thick aluminum pole with the bottom of the bottle of red.
He peeked through an opening at the edge of the tent before greeting me through the doorway. Watching secretly, he saw me with my eyes shut in what may well have been a meditative panic. More nervous than I'd ever been, the seconds felt like hours until suddenly, he called out that he was coming.
Hat neatly tilted to one side, the scarf around the brim was new. An old-new, but it was still different than this morning at breakfast. The t-shirt was also a very different one than I'd seen on his tall slender build the past week. The blueish gray tint brought out the brighter tones of blue in his deep eyes.
Pulling the door flap to one side, he extended his hand in a sweeping motion to invite me inside. The two foot thick mattress was the centerpiece. Portable tables and chairs accented the perimeter, but only to make it feel like home. Home away from home it certainly was. Clothing strewn across a chair, candle burning in the corner and a small lantern on a bedside table. Well-worn slippers tossed in the corner waiting for nightfall. So as I entered, he accepted my offering of wine and placed a kiss on each cheek to greet me.
Immediately he began opening the bottle. After pouring a glass for each of us, he handed one to me and raised his hand in an extraordinary touching toast. The words he spoke filled me with an emotion not recently felt.