Page 36 of Pity Present
“I was hoping to pass it off as clumsiness on her part, but the other instructor knew better. He gave us all a lecture on the importance of being truthful about our weight. He stared at me the whole time.”
“I would have died,” I tell her honestly.
With her head bobbing up and down, she answers, “That was certainly one of the options I entertained.”
“What did you do?”
“I went home and lost fifteen pounds.”
Looking at her closely, I say, “You could gain fifteen pounds and still look great.”
“That’s nice of you to say, but the whole episode scarred me.”
“Are you ladies ready to go?” Thor interrupts.
We nod our heads in unison which signals Kale to announce, “I just need your weights and we’re off.”
“Two hundred,” Thor says proudly.
“One ninety-seven,” Blake says.
Krista and I share an anxious look. Remembering what I told Ellen last night about being sick of constantly worrying about my weight, I boldly announce, “Two hundred.”
Blake snorts loudly. “You are not. You’re probably no more than one fifty.”
“One fifty? That’s a horrible thing to say.”
“You’re the one who claimed to be two hundred.”
With my hands on my hips, I tell him, “My point was simply to make sure that no one gets hurt when they help me stop. I didn’t want to broadcast my real weight.”
“So, one fifty?” Kale wants to know.
“One forty-two,” I tell him louder than I’d planned.
Krista, who is several inches taller than me, says, “I’m one fifty.” We share a proud look that the world didn’t come to an end by our sharing our weight with other people.
As we tromp through the snowy woods toward the first landing, I’m full of excitement and a small amount of dread. I don’t start to have second thoughts until we’re all on deck staring at the first run. “It seems pretty high up here.”
“We’ll send the veterans first so you can see how it’s done.” Our leader gestures for Thor, who steps forward. Once Kale has all his harness clips attached, Thor holds onto the handlebars and jumps from the platform. He lets out a primal shout as he goes.
Krista steps forward next and while her run is a little less noisy, I’m still nervous. Kale tells me, “The lines are meant to hold up to three hundred and fifty pounds, so if you want, I can double with you on the first run.”
My first thought is that if the line holds that much heft, why in the world does everyone have to state their weight up front? But before I can ask that, Blake offers, “Or she can do the run with me.”
The thought of being in Blake’s arms, flying through the air, fills me with both dread and excitement. For my own peace of mind, I know I should not be that close to him … yet. I consider the possibility for so long that somehow Kale decides this is what I want. He presses the button on his walkie-talkie and tells the guide at the end of the line, “We’ve got a duo coming in around three forty.”
He clips my harness before attaching Blake’s behind mine. All the while I’m trying to form the words to tell him I’ll be fine on my own. Before I can express this, he instructs, “Hold onto to the handles and Blake will hold onto you.”
As soon as I feel Blake behind me, I know I can’t go through with this. I try to force my mouth to share this sentiment with Kale, but at the same moment, Blake steps forward and pushes me off my feet.
The feeling of being airborne is both terrifying and exhilarating. I want to shout at the raw sensation of freedom, but I’m too busy trying not to pee my pants. If I let my emotions loose, I might be in real trouble. Maybe next time.
The first run is longer than I thought it would be and I begin to relish the novelty of the experience. But then I focus on the solid wall of Blake behind me. His arms are holding onto me so tightly I almost can’t discern where I begin and he ends. It’s like we’ve become one entity flying through the woods, and it’s pure magic.
Even so, I’m relieved when I see the next landing come into sight. Blake leans in and shouts, “Keep your feet up and I’ll stop for both of us!” This requires more trust in him than I currently have. But what if I don’t listen to him and somehow wind up hurting us both? I finally close my eyes, lift my feet, and pray.
Before I know it, Blake is squeezing me tighter, and we come to a jolting stop. The next guide unhooks us and pushes us out of the way so that Kale has a safe place to land.
