The Life and Times of Hudson

by David Gibbs / DavidGibbs6

Hudson woke early and grabbed his prepared pack with some nibbles and his hand lines. At fourteen he was allowed to go out by himself as long as his parents knew where he was going. The river was regulated, fairly safe and well stocked with fish, a thrilling proposition for any young fisher. Today however he was less excited about the prospect of catching a fish and more excited that he wasn't going to be alone.

Selina had agreed to come with him this sunny Saturday morning and he suspected she was less keen for the fishing and that her interests were more likely aimed in his direction. At least he hoped that was the case.

He had been thinking about it the moment his brain stopped dreaming and filtered back into consciousness. The elated feeling made him feel light as he walked to their meeting spot just outside the park gates. It was replaced by anxiety for a bit when she wasn't there but checking his watch he realized he was still early and the feeling shifted to a gnawing yearning with a hint of worry.

Of course she was late, which was agonizing, but the relief and joy at seeing her, brought butterflies with it as she approached. She looked way too perfect to be going fishing with her shoulder length blond hair blowing in the slight breeze and her nice new hoodie. It only added to the feeling that fishing wasn't going to be a priority.

They had walked close and he spoke of what the plan was. They would find a nice grassy bank and set some lines and wait. They would take turns pulling the small bait trap and hopefully get lucky. Running out of things to say and fearing he was sounding silly Hudson asked if she had fished before. Luckily she had a little and he reveled in listening to her for a bit. The back and forth became more natural, with the conversation becoming more animated as she pushed him gently with her hip in jest. Hudson wasn't about to be outdone so he bumped her back and they continued the game playfully until she put an arm around his back and pulled him close. Arms around each other, they walked awkwardly in a warm silence.

By the time they reached the river Hudson wished that they weren't fishing but the pretext had been set, so he felt obligated to bait and set the two lines. Selina helped by baiting the shrimp trap with soap and tossing it amongst the reeds. After washing her hands in the river she complained about having cold hands and Hudson took the opening to hold her hand in a clearly opportunistic attempt to get closer. Within minutes they switched grip to interlace fingers and sat talking, hand in hand while Selina rested her head on his shoulder. Despite the brisk cold morning Hudson was anything but cold, Selinas body seemed hot against him and made his blood pump so hard he could feel it in his ears.

Hudson purposefully kept the conversation light and playful and Selina was happy to play along. Several times she mockingly withdrew her hand and teased him in an attempt to make things more physical. She would poke him and he would grab her hand in an attempt to stop her and the whole process would repeat. Several times Hudson got up to check the bait trap and remove shrimps as a protest to her withdrawals.

He yearned for that next base but the first move was so difficult. The fear that he would spoil things weighed heavy on him. At the same time he wanted this feeling to go on forever. Selina kept poking him, tickling his side and eventually he grabbed her in a bear hug. She struggled and giggled before giving up. With his face pressed against her shoulder and his arms around her, Hudson could no longer resist and he kissed her neck. The response was immediate and for a long moment he was terrified he had blown it. She pulled away, staring at him intently before leaning in and kissing his lips gently.

Hudson's heart stopped pounding in relief, he could feel nothing except warmth and her soft, wet lips. All the build up exploded in the best feeling he had ever felt, it was as if his body was a glowing ember sending warm sparks out in every direction making his skin prickle. It was some time before he noticed he was slightly uncomfortable and he lay down pulling Selina with him. Together they lay on the grass in the warming sun and made out for the longest time. All the playful, nervous and insecure feelings were lost now in this perfect moment.

Hudson was so preoccupied that he almost didn't notice the handline spinning on its stake. Jumping up quickly out of instinct, he ran to grab the line before the fish could unspool it. He had something decent on the end and it was work to pull it in as the fish fought to swim into deeper water. Little by little he worked at getting the fish into shallow water and onto the shore. Once on the bank Hudson marveled at the large Golden Perch as it flopped and gasped. It was a prized fish and he smiled at Selina with pride.

Selina had come to stand near him as he had landed the fish and now, like Hudson, was admiring its beauty.

"Quick, let's put it back in the water." Selina said compassionately.

The idea hadn't occurred to Hudson who had been planning to take his catch home. For a long moment he stood considering the proposition. This might be the best fish he had ever caught, the idea of putting such a nice fish back was a hard thing to contemplate. It was the pleading tenderness in Selina's eyes that won out eventually and he unhooked the Perch carefully, picked it up and slid it into the shallow water. It twisted violently making a swirl in the water and snaked off into the deep.

Hudson watched it go with a glimmer of disappointment. It melted away when Selina put her warm arms around him from behind. He didn't bait the line, not caring if he caught anything now, content to just enjoy Selina and finally being able to be close to her. They spent the rest of the day walking along the river paths hand in hand, stopping to make out when the mood took them. For Hudson this was the best day ever and when it was time to go home he wished time would stop and he could live it forever. His mind raced with everything that the future held and he couldn't sleep until late, the warm fuzzies and daydreams refusing to let him crash.

He had no idea that this was also his last day ever and that tomorrow would never happen again.

************

Shelly finished looking at the data for Hudson. She had promised herself that she would at least look at it and delete him at the end of a cycle. Not that it really mattered, the end result was still the same. Deep down she knew it was just to alleviate her own guilt and give her some hope, that one day, if she was in this position, that others would give her that small token of respect. She had her doubts though. There was no sadness, just a feeling of having to do something unpleasant. If she could have just let Hudson continue on forever she would have but the subscription was expensive and the money was too much. Even after looking at the memory she still didn't feel anything more for him than she would have for a character in a book. Someone, so far removed, that their life was little more than a curiosity. She quickly hit the confirm button on the deletion, not wanting the cycle to start again. And just like that her great grandfather's great grandfather winked from existence.