My uncle invited our family to his lakefront cabin every year and every year no one in our family could make it. Scheduling conflicts, school, new jobs; it seemed that for every year there was another excuse. It wasn't until after I had graduated college and worked in the real world for a few years that I'd been able to take my uncle up on his offer. And shortly after I got off the phone with him I received a text from my sister, Emily, saying she would be able to make it as well. I was excited by this unexpected news. I only saw my sister a couple times each year, usually around major holidays and I always enjoyed spending time with her. We had been pretty close as kids but after our parents divorced, we rarely saw one another. I had lived with our dad while she had moved in with our mom. Not exactly the best of circumstances but we both survived to become responsible adults. Now I was living on my own and working a 9 to 5 job. She was going to library school with plans to graduate the following year. It would be fun to hang out with her and my uncle for a week. We all had a lot of catching up to do.
I left the following weekend with beautiful weather. Warm, blue skies, a summer day that begged to be spent outdoors. The cabin was located in upstate New York, near the Adirondacks. It was about a five hour drive for me and I left early to ensure a leisurely trip. My sister couldn't leave until the following day but she assured me she would be there. It was mid-June and the weather was forecasted to be perfect the entire week. Plenty of time to enjoy the great outdoors, do some hiking and perhaps ride on my uncle's boat. If it was finished. My uncle had been working on the boat for years, always claiming to have a little more to do. He assured me over the phone that it would be up and running when I arrived but I didn't hold my breath.
Five hours later I was pulling into the drive that led to the cabin. I saw my uncle working on the boat and I parked nearby. The cabin was beautiful. A dark brown wood siding with two floors. Large windows in the back gave an unhindered view of the lake and in the evenings, the perfect place to watch the setting sun. There were three bedrooms on the second floor with a shared balcony. I opened my car door and breathed in the pine smell of the forest that surrounded us. Fir trees swamped the area, ringing the lake.
My uncle wiped his hands off with a dirtied rag and shook my hand. "Hiya, Ben! It's been awhile."
"Sure has. Good to see you."
"Well, get your things and we'll get you settled in. Your sister will be here tomorrow?"
"Right. I think she's finishing up her last paper today. She claimed she'd be here by tomorrow's sunset."
"Great. Well, come on in and I'll show you around."
My uncle looked as he always had. He was my mom's youngest brother and worked in construction. He was shorter than me and built like a boxer. He had the muscles of someone who worked outdoors and the tan to go with it. He had once been married years ago but the relationship went sour and he remained single after the divorce. After he showed me around the place, he left me to unpack. I did so, enjoying the view that my bedroom afforded. The sun filled the room and I suddenly felt relaxed. This is gonna be a great vacation, I thought to myself.
Time slipped by quickly that first day. It was spent helping my uncle with the boat and night came sooner than expected. So did the next morning and afternoon. My sister arrived in the evening, shortly after we had finished with the boat. I walked outside to greet her. My sister stepped out of the car and smiled at me, waving. She was five foot four and lean with brown hair that ran down to her elbows, highlighting a pixie face. She brushed some strands of hair over one ear and smiled again, this time at my uncle who just stepped outside.
"Hey, Emily. Have a good trip?"
My uncle hugged her and moved to grab her bags. I grabbed one myself and listened as my sister filled us in with all the latest news. Stress over schoolwork, finding a new job, living with her roommate. As we got her settled in, my uncle left us to cook dinner and I sat on my sister's bed as she unpacked. She was placed in the middle bedroom and I stared at the view of the lake, watching the sun slowly sink behind the mountains.
"By the way, we finished the boat."
"What? Seriously? I thought it would never be finished!"
"Yeah, right? Every year we'd ask during the family Christmas party and he would babble on about something else that still needed to be done."
"Hahaha! Right. He always had some excuse. I almost feel sad it's finished. Now we'll have to find something else to tease him about." She laughed. " How've you been keeping, bro?"
"Really good. Things are going great now. Especially with this vacation. It's been a little stressful at work so I'm glad for the break."
We continued talking until dinner and after cleaning up, we continued until bedtime. The night was restful despite waking up in the early morning and not knowing where I was. Looking about, I remembered I was at my uncle's cabin. Before I fell back to sleep, I heard what sounded like the wind or maybe a moan but forgot about it upon waking.
"Now remember, take her easy. Slow throttle, especially near the shoreline."
"We know, uncle. You've gone over this a dozen times."
Our uncle grinned sheepishly. "I know. It's just, well, I don't want anything to happen to her. Go on, get out of here."
My sister was already aboard the boat and I grabbed the cooler before hopping on board. All morning we had struggled to get the boat into the water. There was no proper boat launch so we had to Jerry-rig one. After getting the boat in the water, my uncle tested the engine and checked the hull for any leaks. It was now afternoon and my sister and I were impatient to get out on the water. My sister slowly pushed the throttle and turned the wheel, taking us away from the dock and out into the water.
"And stay away from the islands! It's too shallow around them for the boat!" My uncle shouted the last warning and we waved in affirmation. It was another gorgeous day. The sky was a deep blue peppered with thick, cotton clouds. I stretched out on the bench in the back while my sister drove. Leaning back, I listened to the engine and smelled the water spraying. It was so peaceful. I pulled the cooler out from underneath the bench and sitting up, cracked open a beer.
"Yo, sis! Want a beer?"
"Sure! I'll be down in a minute."
I looked around and saw the shore off in the distance. All around were pine-encrusted mountains. Rock cliffs loomed, breaking through the trees like giants. It was getting hot in the sun and I extended the awning, creating some shade. My sister hopped down the steps leading from the pilothouse and I tossed her a beer.
"Gonna be a scorcher."
I grunted and took a deep drought of beer. My sister lounged on the bench across from me and as we talked about childhood memories, I occasionally glanced at her. She wasn't exactly beautiful though maybe because I saw her as my sister, but there was a certain cuteness to her. Her hair was disheveled from the breeze and she occasionally ran her thin fingers through it, an endless battle. She was wearing tight jean shorts and her pale legs were bent, showcasing her calves. Her dark blue tee-shirt was tight against her small breasts and as she continued talking, I looked back at the mountains and sighed.
...
