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It was our last day in Iceland, and we were at our last stop before heading back to our hotel in Reykjavik. The year was 2035, and the Cordyceps virus was almost eradicated, thanks to the sacrifice of an immune person whose name I couldn’t quite remember now. Civilization was rebuilding — we could finally breathe again. I had always told myself that I would return to my favorite place on earth if the world ever righted itself again, and so here I was, with Joel and Ellie in tow. My found family.
At Helgafell mountain, the wind was steady, but not threatening. The sky was almost as clear a blue as the water surrounding the volcanic island. I wanted the taste of the Icelandic air to never leave my tongue, to permeate my lungs and cleanse me, make me whole again. If I closed my eyes and let the sun beat on my face long enough, I could almost imagine that it were so. But some stains of the past never fully fade.
Being a mostly remote island, Iceland was one of the few places on earth largely untouched by the Cordyceps. In Reykjavik, of course, there had been mass chaos and casualties, but they were rebuilding now. Most of the population that had resided in the remote countryside had been able to survive, and they all did their part at remaking civilization in the capital city. It was much like the sagas of the ancient Icelanders, when more than a thousand years ago, the vikings found this land and tamed the few areas that they could.
The legend of the mountain was that if one hiked to its peak without looking back or speaking a word, they would be granted three wishes. Ellie, now 16, was ecstatic over this, nearly bouncing up and down with the prospect of having her wishes granted.
“Oh man, when I get up there, I’m gonna wish for —“
“Shhh! You can’t tell someone your wish, or it won’t come true!”
Ellie frowned and crossed her arms. “That’s not one of the rules the guy at the information desk told us.”
“It’s the universal rule of wish-making. Tell her, Joel.”
Joel had been busy staring up at the peak of the mountain when I’d said his name, startling him from his thoughts. “She’s right, Ellie. You ain’t never wished upon a shooting star? Or an eyelash? It’s the same thing — if you’ve got something you want real bad, and you wish for it, you’ve gotta keep it close to you, or it won’t come true.”
He looked over at me when he said it, his eyes dancing with a mirth I hadn’t seen in them for a long while.
“That’s a great way of putting it, Joel.”
“Alright, then. My wishes are too awesome for your sensitive ears, anyway.” And with that, Ellie began to ascend the wooden staircase which wound around the mountain like the body of a snake.
I glanced over at Joel, then made a gesture with an arm to usher him forward. “Ladies first,” I said with a smirk.
“Ha ha.”
Our bodies, used to the physical labor of constant fighting and scrounging and struggling to survive, were near unphased by the steep slope of the mountain. My breaths came heavier, but the ache in my calves was familiar, inviting. I drank in the breeze that rolled in from the sea that lay east of the mountain and didn’t dare to say a word. I had three wishes in mind, and I was going to make them.
My feet had other plans, however, when I caught the edge of a stair wrong and tumbled forward, my knees and palms meeting earth and the wooden planks below.
“Hey, you alright?”
I frowned and nodded at Joel, who nodded in response, an unspoken understanding shared with just a glance. Guilt rushed through me — whatever wishes Joel had were null now, according to the rules. Someone who didn’t know him as well as I did probably wouldn’t think that such a hardened man could have wishes, but I knew better. I hoped that perhaps whatever God, spirit, or nameless thing that was in charge of wish fulfillment would make an exception for someone willing to sacrifice their wishes to help someone else.
Twenty minutes from the time we had begun our journey upward, we finally arrived at the peak. Whatever air had been left in my lungs was stolen away by the view before us. The three of us remained silent as we stepped to the eastern side of the mountaintop, standing near the edge, gazing at the sea which met land then rolling hillside then snowy mountain.
Okay. Three wishes. What’ll it be? I asked myself, shoving my gloved hands into the pockets of my windbreaker.
I guess the first order of business is that I wish the Cordyceps never comes back. That would be pretty sweet. Um... shit, it’s kinda hard to think of what you really wish when you’re up here. My wishes are pretty stupid and typical. World peace, be happy, get the guy of my dreams... I snuck a glance over at Joel at that thought, only to find him with his eyes closed, breathing evenly. Ellie was now facing the northern side of the mountain, sitting with her legs dangling off the edge. I smirked, thinking about how Joel would fuss over her if he saw it.
Right, back to wish making. So, like I said, first wish is no more Cordyceps. Second wish... I guess be happy? Find a way to live in this broken world again? I don’t know.
With an audible sigh, I made my final and most pathetic wish.
This is so dumb. I feel so stupid even thinking this, but... for my final wish, if I could just, like... I don’t know, get the guts to tell Joel that I’m in love with him, or even better, if he could confess his love for me (ha, yeah right, you’re literally wishing) that would be pretty cool. Thanks a lot, uh... whoever this concerns, I guess.
Feeling satisfied with my wishes, I turned away from the sea and walked over to Ellie.
“Hey, kiddo. Like the view?”
She looked at me and nodded, a tranquil smile on her face. “I don’t really wanna leave, if I’m being honest. This place is so much cooler than Jackson. I just wish Dina was here.”
I smirked and asked, “Was Dina one of your wishes?”
She immediately reddened. “I thought you said I couldn’t tell anyone!”
Lightly punching her arm, I responded with a giggle, “I’m just teasing. If you did, though... not a bad wish, I think. She’s a good girl.”
Ellie nodded, smiling again. “Yeah, she is.” Then, a wicked grin spread across her face as she said to me, in a somewhat lower tone of voice, “Was Joel one of yours?”
“Ellie!” came Joel’s gruff voice from behind us, causing me to blush an even deeper scarlet than I was already turning due to Ellie’s comment. “You better get your legs off that edge.”
Rolling her eyes, she stood up without a word and walked back towards the steps, but not before sending me a sly smirk. I shook my head and started to follow her before I felt a hand on my shoulder.
“Hold on just a second,” Joel said, gently turning me to face him.
“What is it?”
“I, uh...” He cleared his throat, looking fixedly at his hiking boots, suddenly looking ten years younger than he was. My heart leapt in my chest. “I don’t really know how to say this. You know I’m no good with words. But, this...” he gestured to the scenery around us, “It kind of makes you want to say things you need to say. Which is weird, I guess. You’d think all the hell we’ve been through would make someone say those things more. Anyway, that’s not important. What I’m trying to say is...” He looked up at me then, his hazel eyes fearful and shy, a look I’d only seen a couple times before. “I... Oh, what the hell.”
I became a frozen statue, eyes cartoonishly wide as he stepped forward, closing the gap between us and pressing a kiss to my lips, embarrassingly dry and cracked from the ever-present wind. For a few seconds, I couldn’t move for being in utter shock and disbelief.
He pulled away then, a look of dismay riddling his features, as if realizing what he’d done. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to overstep—“
That was when I fisted my hands in his jacket and pressed him as close to me as humanly possible, kissing him with a heat I had only daydreamed about. A hand snaked around my waist while the other found a resting place at the nape of my neck, and we stood there kissing for I don’t know how long.
When we broke apart, the wind, which had increased its speed at the peak of the mountain, was whipping the hair back from my face, rendering me unable to hide the blush in my cheeks and a smile that I couldn’t contain even if I’d wanted to.
“Is this okay?” he asked, worry lining his features.
“Yes, Joel. This is... literally what I wished for.”
He blinked, seemingly in surprise. “You wished for me?”
I nodded, my eyes squinting as the sun rose higher in the afternoon sky. It was the time of year when the sun didn’t set until near midnight, and so it would shine upon us until long after we were ready for sleep.
“I couldn’t wish for you, so I figured I’d take matters into my own hands,” he said with a wry grin, his dark eyes creasing and shining with adoration. In a flurry of pent up emotion, I wrapped my arms around his middle, pressing my face into his chest.
“You’ve no idea how long I’ve wanted that,” I mumbled into his jacket, feeling his chin settle atop my head and his arms and encircle my shoulders.
“You can tell me about it on our way down. I’m sure Ellie’s getting impatient.”
I pulled away from him with a nod, lacing my fingers with his as we made our way back down the wooden steps, talking all the while, revealing the truth of our feelings for each other that we’d both kept locked away for so long.
I didn’t even think to take my hand from his as we reached the bottom of the mountain, and in result we were greeted with a “Well, it’s about fucking time!” from Ellie. With a sidelong glance and a chuckle, we got back into our rental car and headed back to Reykjavik, driving away with only the radio to fill the space around us, and all the while I silently thanked whoever had granted my wish.