Chang walked along the sandy beach letting the surprisingly warm sea water lap around her ankles. Her leather riding boots sat on the sh.o.r.e beside Jian who watched her her as she splashed through the water smiling, chin in hand. This place was beyond perfect.After riding for around an hour or so though hilly open country, after leaving the farmland that surrounded the city, they had traveled through a small wooded area. Chang after a while got used to the rocking rolling motion of riding and found herself enjoying the ride through the rolling gra.s.slands filled with wildflowers.
As they had ventured further away from the bustling city through the gra.s.sy knolls headed north, she started to see wildlife around them, small deer and elk and a myriad of other smaller creatures. It looked like it had come straight out of a picture book, she couldn"t help smiling taking in deep lungfulls of the clean, fresh air.
After living in LA for so long she had gotten used to the daily acrid smoggy smell that permeated everything, even the salty freshness of SF which it had from sitting right by the ocean had the tang. This place was completely untouched by any of that, and it had a sweet taste to her. Feeling the bliss bubbling up in her she began to sing lightly.
"Oh it"s a beautiful morning-
I think I"ll go outside
Oh it"s a beautiful morn~ing
Oh yeah"
She couldn"t remember all the words to the song as it had been a long time since she last heard it, but the feeling still fit with what she felt now. It had been one of her father"s favorite to sing.
As they headed north a wooded area started to come into sight. The trees were starting to show just a tint of yellow and red as fall arrived, but still proudly displayed their summer greens. The woods continued and got thicker to their left leading to a mountain range not too far in the distance densley forested in evergreens. They had quickly pa.s.sed through just a fringe of the woods to come across a secluded beach in a small half moon shape at the bottom of a rise. The sparkling white sands had enticed her, making her eyes sparkle. Chang eagerly antic.i.p.ated getting in the water, it had been so long since she had last been to a beach.
Jian dismounted first and helped Chang off her horse as she couldn"t seem to get her leg up and over. Her legs and hips seemed to be stuck stiff in a bowlegged position at first and she had to stretch for a bit to loosen up to walk. Once she was able to walk she raced to the sh.o.r.eline, leaving Jian who was removing the horses" bridles so they could graze freely. She stripped off her leather boots and the shawl and went to the water"s edge. When it hit her toes, she antic.i.p.ated freezing ocean water but was startled by the warmth almost the temperature of bath water.
"Ah it"s so warm!" She couldn"t help exclaiming in surprise. She ran back and took off her pants and threw them atop her boots so that she could venture further into the water. Jian started to come down the rise as she ran back into the water splashing.
Liang Jian Amal listened with a smile on his face as she laughed and played through the water. He had always dreamed of taking her here since hearing that she loved the beach. This had been his favorite secluded spot, but since meeting her, he dreamed of seeing her here, smiling, carefree. Brightening up his world.