8. ‘Ōlena

8

‘ōlena

‘ōlena hurried through the last of her morning chores, filled with anticipation.

A thrill went through her as a truck rumbled to a stop outside. Nate was there to pick her up for a date – a scheduled date this time, asked and answered. Planned for.

Her bookkeeping was done, the house was clean, and the girls were with Nell for the day. ‘ōlena felt a bit guilty about that, since Nell worked with kids all week too. But she had seemed eager to watch them, like she was still trying to pay ‘ōlena back for the ways she'd helped her when she finally left the abusive scumbag that she had wasted years on.

‘ōlena didn't understand the way people keep track, like kindness was a currency that had to be repaid.

She shook her thoughts away and walked to the front door, opening it before Nate even had a chance to knock.

"All set?" she asked.

"The teens are manning the stand, and we're good to go."

"How's it going with them?" she asked as they walked towards the truck.

"They're good kids. They work hard. And when I told them I could only afford to pay one of them to man the stand at a time, they decided to split the fourteen bucks an hour down the middle."

"Really?"

"They only have one car between them," he said as he opened the door for her. "Cody drives, and I think he's sweet on the neighbor girl."

‘ōlena clicked her tongue disapprovingly. "They're just babies."

"So were we," he said with a grin.

"And look where that got us."

"Look where that got us," he repeated, but his voice was soft. He leaned in for a kiss and then straightened up. "Two beautiful daughters, two businesses, and a mountaintop home."

"The home is just some sketches and a dream." They didn't even have blueprints yet. It would be years before they had the money to finish building the place.

"I like where we are," he insisted. His eyes were earnest, and he leaned in for another kiss. ‘ōlena's skepticism and sarcasm faded, all her rough edges smoothed away.

How did he do that?

Nate grinned as he stepped back, and he waited for her to climb up into the cab of his truck. Then he winked and shut the door behind her.

On the road, they settled into a comfortable silence. It had always been like that with them. They could talk about anything, but there was never a need to fill the silence with empty words. They were happy just to be together, cruising up and over the saddle road.

Route 200 crossed the middle of the island, passing between the peaks of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa. It had been a mess when they were kids, with so many potholes and one-way stretches that it had been better to go the long way, hugging the northern edge of the island.

Now it was a long river of unbroken pavement, smooth sailing all the way to Kona. It took them up over six thousand feet, where the air was crisp and the landscape was drastically different from Pualena.

‘ōlena lived surrounded by color, endless green filled with splashes of red and yellow and pink. The constant back and forth between gray clouds and blue skies meant that they saw rainbows nearly every day.

Up between the mountains, though, there was an entirely different world. Native forests gave way to mile after mile of black lava rock, which then gave way to rolling green hills. They were starting to change from green to gold. It never really stopped raining in Pualena, not for more than a day or two, but summers were dry on the Kona side.

They wound down the mountain through grassy fields dotted with wild goats. The views across Pu?uwa?awa?a Reserve were breathtaking, with wide open slopes that gave way to the endless blue of the Pacific Ocean in the distance.

They drove a few more minutes through the lava fields on Queen Ka'ahumanu Highway, and then Nate turned off towards Kiholo Bay.

The long stretch of rocky shore and crystal-blue water had been one of their favorite spots when they were young, back when they had plenty of time for Kona days and camping trips.

She felt a pang of guilt for not making that happen more often with her girls, but after managing the playschool all week, she was always too tired on weekends to take them all the way across the island.

Maybe things would be different with Nate back in their lives. He was slammed with lychee season just then, working eighty hours a week, but once that was done he would have more free time. They could take their girls adventuring, the way they had always wanted to.

Nate took her hand as they walked along the coarse black sand, and her heart lifted. It was a perfect day, warm and sunny without being blindingly hot. Sea turtles sunned themself along the beach, and they paused to admire the honu for a moment before walking on.

"We should bring the girls here," he said, and she squeezed his hand in agreement. Carrying them back in the scorching hot afternoon sun was more than she wanted to take on, but Nate could carry their two girls – both of them tall and strong and wearing clothes sized two years above their actual ages – like they weighed nothing at all.

Keanalele Waterhole was surrounded by tourists, so they walked on without stopping.

When they finally reached the brilliant turquoise water of the lagoon, ‘ōlena dived in without hesitation. Cool water swallowed the heat from her skin, instantly refreshing her after the long walk over black rocks.

Nate jumped in a second later, creating a wave that bobbed her up and down.

‘ōlena spread her arms and floated on her back, staring up at the endless blue sky. Surrounded by kids all the time, she had almost forgotten what peace sounded like.

She luxuriated in the quiet, nothing but the gentle lapping of water on rock. And in the same breath, she missed her wild little girls. Motherhood was strange that way.

As if in response to her yearning for their two little tornadoes, Nate splashed a wave of water over ‘ōlena's face. She dipped under and came up coughing.

"Real mature," she spluttered.

Nate just laughed, and so she splashed him back.

They kept it up for a few minutes, splashing and wrestling and laughing like a couple of kids, before they finally crawled up on the sun-warmed rocks to dry off. ‘ōlena spread her arms again, luxuriating in the heat like a honu.

Nate's hand found hers, and their fingers laced together.

They did that for hours, going between the cool water and the warm rocks. They put masks on and swam with the fish, then dove down and found the spots where hot water filtered up through thermal vents.

They ate the lunch he had packed, jumped in the water one last time, and then started the long walk back.

They found Queen's Bath blessedly empty, and they were able to slip into the shade without shouldering their way through a big group of tourists.

The water, fed by an underground spring and mostly shaded by lava rock, was shockingly cold. It made her gasp after the beating sunshine of the walk back. Smooth rocks covered the bottom, and she got used to the cold as she swam farther into the tunnel.

She could feel Nate right behind her as she stood and picked her way across the rocks. There was another hole in the ceiling farther in, and she walked towards it until she stood right in the beam of sunlight with cold water up to her chest. She raised her face to the sun and drank it in.

"You are so beautiful," Nate said, almost to himself.

She opened her eyes and looked at him. His expression turned mischievous.

"Remember the first time I brought you here?"

‘ōlena laughed and looked away, her cheeks warming. "I remember."

He came closer and took her into his arms, his skin still warm despite the chill of the water.

The sun was low in the sky when they finally climbed out of the tunnel and resumed their walk back to the car. As soon as she climbed into the cab, she checked her phone to make sure all was well with the girls.

She had twenty missed calls.

From her mother, her brother, Lani.

‘ōlena's heart skipped and sped as she fought back a rising panic.

"What's wrong?" Nate asked, peering at her face.

She just shook her head as she went through her text messages, reading them backwards, trying to make sense of them and piece together what had happened.

"Lei, what happened?"

"My dad is in the hospital." Her voice was rough; tears pressed against the back of her throat. "He had a heart attack."