Wildlands

“Yeah, we actually use comfrey as an accelerant for the compost. Along with our little friends in the ground, of course.”

“Oh, really? I didn’t realize you could accelerate it. Thought it was a totally natural process.”

“It is, yeah. But the comfrey leaves are super high in nitrogen, which is helpful since we tend to have way more carbon material in our compost pile. Lots of cardboard from deliveries, you know.”

“Nice. And if I remember right, you guys are starting to experiment with hydroponics?”

“Yeah, we are.”

“You sound surprised.”

“Well… impressed is maybe a better word. You’d be surprised how many people just aren’t interested in how or where their food is grown. It’s not often we get politicians out here asking about hydroponics. We really appreciate you coming by and checking out what we do here.”

“Thank you for doing what you’re doing. This food equity action plan I’m working on is just… I mean, it’s like you said. A lot of people just don’t think about these things. They don’t realize that the entire east side of the city has become a food desert.”

“Well, that’s where you step in, right, Mr. City Council Member?”

“I’m unfortunately fighting a bit of an uphill battle trying to get the council to take notice, but I think working with and supporting farms like yours could really help a lot of the people in the city dealing with food insecurity.”

“Well, let’s just hope for the best and, until then, keep getting our hands dirty. Which, speaking of, is exactly what I have in store for you. Let’s find… ah, there she is!”

This place is incredible. Not a single acre’s going to waste. I don’t think I’ve ever seen resourcefulness like this. Well, not on a local level, anyway.

Integrating animals, crop rotation. It’s like the farm itself is a living organism.

And… there you are. The mastermind of this whole operation, kneeling down in the soft brown soil, wearing gloves two sizes too big and a bandanna around your neck.

“Hey, Tania! Got a work buddy for you!”

You don’t look up at us right away. You’re too focused on what you’re doing, the little seedlings you’re carefully transporting into the ground.

Your brow is furrowed, your jaw set. There’s an air of… intensity about you. But I already knew that about you.

You wipe the back of your hand across your forehead, a little soil smearing across your skin. You rise up from the ground to greet us, but you refuse to look me in the eye.

“Tania, this is—”

“I know who he is.”

“Hello.”

“You two… know each other?”

“She’s shown up to a few council meetings. She’s known for being a… force of nature. ”

“That she is.”

“So, passed the food equity plan you promised yet? Or are you still working on the optics?”

“The plan is actually why I’m here.”

“Okay, I’m sensing some tension here. I can assign different partners if it’s a problem.”

“No. It’s okay, really.”

“No, it’s fine.”

“We can work together, can’t we? We have before.”

“Yeah, I suppose so.”

“Okay, I’ll leave you both to it, then. Please don’t rip his head off, he’s here to help.”

“Duly noted…”

“So… onion seedlings?”

“Onion seedlings. You know how to do this, right?”

“I’m a little rusty. Used to help out on my dad’s farm back in the country—”

“Here. Gloves. You’ve got to be gentle with these. Now you take a seedling from the tray here…”

You haven’t changed at all. Not that I expected you to.

You’ve never let me live down joining the council. You saw it as a kind of betrayal like I was intentionally rubbing shoulders with the people contributing to the problems.

The community’s voices weren’t being heard, and I wanted to make sure they had someone advocating for them. I’ve always been of the mind that the only way to change the system is from within.

And you’ve always been a little more… radical in your approach. Big, loud gestures. Attention-grabbing protests.

We may have different tactics, but we’re working towards the same goal.

I pick up one of the cubes of soil from the tray… and it crumbles in my hand.

“Ah—shit.”

“Careful! They’re delicate. Try again. Gently this time.”

You hand me another one. These gloves are too clunky. I watch you place your seedling in the soil and carefully pat down the earth around it.

“We’re still on the same side you know.”

“Are we? I’ve seen it happen before. Grassroots-types get sucked into the system, then they don’t follow through on their promises. You know how I feel about greenwashing politicians.”

“I’m not greenwashing. I… It’s difficult, okay? The public’s behind the motion, sure. But it takes a lot more than that to get anything passed. I’m trying everything I can.”

“Okay.”

“Yeah?”

“I just… The petitioning, emailing, negotiations: it needs to be done, I get it. But… roadblock after roadblock? It gets exhausting.”

“I know.”

“I don’t know how you have the patience.”

“I don’t know, you’ve seen how heated I can get in meetings. Defending your ideas half of the time.”

“I suppose you can’t go getting arrested, huh? Like I did at the climate protest?”

“You were peacefully protesting like everyone else. That never should have happened.”

Your gaze softens, and my skin prickles with… something. I can’t put my finger on it. I’ve known you for years and I’ve always admired your passion for your community. I wish more people did.

When we do work together… it’s great. Well, when it’s something we have in common.

I can’t say I don’t like you… but, our differences have too often gotten in the way.

“Thanks for bailing me out, by the way. I wasn’t expecting that.”

“Any time. I wasn’t just going to leave you in there.”

I pick up another seedling from the tray. The shoots snap, and the soil falls to the ground.

“Fuck. I’m sorry.”

“Okay, let’s just, uh…”

“I don’t think seedlings are my strong suit.”

“Yeah, maybe stick to your day job.”

You take off your garden gloves and fold them over the edge of the raised bed. You get up with surprising grace for someone as… forceful as you are.

“Okay, ditch the gloves. I want to show you something.”

“I’m getting demoted from seedling transplant, I take it?”

“We can’t have food equity if you’re destroying half the produce. Just, come on.”

Walking side by side with you away from the farm’s main plot, your shoulder brushes against mine. I don’t know where you’re taking me, but I kind of like this feeling, following you into something, somewhere unknown.

“Everything up front is pretty traditional in terms of layout and production. But, back here, we’ve been doing a little experimenting…”

You lead us through a thick, unkempt clearing. As we push further, I see bright pops of color peeking through the grove. Where are you taking me…?

“Oh my god…”

“Worth getting arrested for, right?”

We emerge on the other side of the clearing into… I don’t know what to call it. It’s like a fairy-tale garden. Thriving wildflowers covering nearly every inch of the land, encircling a huge stone spiral in the center.

Everything looks like it’s growing wild, but I can tell there’s some careful design in place here.

I can smell rosemary and lavender, and I think those are chickens free-roaming near the back. I’ve never seen this many butterflies at once.

“The cherry blossom trees were already here when the farm was started, we used those as the center and started growing around them. So? What do you think?”

“It’s beautiful. What is it?”

“It’s a keyhole garden. We closely monitored how everything grew naturally and tried to replicate it. The goal is to make as little waste as possible and make use of all the natural resources so that everything can thrive. Now it’s self-sustaining, for the most part. We work with the conditions, not against them.”

“Like permaculture?”

“You’ve done your homework.”

“See? I’m not just a pretty face.”

“Hm, could have fooled me.”

“Oh, so you think I’m pretty?”

Heat rises in my cheeks. It suddenly occurs to me how close together we’re standing. So close that I can see the soft rise and fall of your chest. The freckles across your cheeks.

“This is exactly what we need, what we should be working towards.”

“So we do have something in common after all.”

“I told you, we’re still on the same side.”

“Perhaps we can… start again?”

I don’t really know what I’m doing… but I lean forward. There’s no hesitation.

“Sorry, I—”

“Don’t be.”

This feels… charged. Heavy. Like we’re about to open up something that can never be put away again.

I wind my arms around your waist, pull you a half-step closer to me. The fallen strands of hair from your bun tickle my face.

You take your time running your fingers up my chest like you’re still considering whether you want to do this or not. And then, you’re pulling me forward, even closer, pressing our bodies together and pushing your mouth against mine, hard.

There’s an urgency about your kiss, like this is something you’ve thought about doing before, something you’ve wanted.

You grab my jacket in tight fistfuls and pull it down my shoulders.

I fumble with the straps of your dungarees, tug on them blindly before you help me peel them down your long legs. Your fingers fumble to unbuckle my belt as I slip my hands under your shirt.

There’s a desperation now in both of us like we can’t bring our bodies together fast enough.

It’s like the whole around me has gone blurry and you’re the only thing in focus.

You pull me down to the grass and roll me on top of you. Our limbs tangle as I slide my knee between your legs. Your breath is hot on my neck and… my whole body is prickling with desire.

Everything we’ve been through, all of the good and the bad, I feel it all rising to the surface.

Your nipples harden in my mouth as I swirl my tongue around each one. You grind against my knee and roll your hips up toward mine.

“Bite them… harder…”

I tug on the waistband of your underwear and drag them down to your ankles. You sit up and press your mouth against mine like you can’t stand to not be kissing me.

“I want your mouth on me…”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

“Lie back.”

I push your legs open and settle on the ground between them. I can smell your sweet scent, mixed with the heavy, salty smell of the earth in the garden.

The sounds you’re making… My whole body tightens, knowing I’m the one making you moan like that.

You spread your legs wider, welcoming me even further into your pussy. You thread your fingers into my hair and hold my head in place, exactly where you want it.

“Oh, god… fuck. Fuck, keep going…”

Your hands are trembling a little. Every time my tongue glides over your clit your whole body jerks. I can feel the muscles in your hands tense and release as you squeeze my hair into your fists.

“I’m going to… Fuck, you’re going to make me cum…”

“Fuck… oh my god. Come here, come here…”

You sit up and roll yourself on top of me. It feels good, the weight of you pressing into me, your sun-warmed skin on mine.

“Please tell me you have a condom.”

“Wallet. My back pocket.”

My dick is hard and thick as you wrap your hand around it.

You stroke me, dragging your thumb around the tip… pumping me with long, slow pulls…

You slip the condom over me and settle yourself just above my dick.

You lower yourself down, slow, and tease my tip at your entrance. I keep my eyes on you, watching you watching me.

“Fuck…”

You bounce on me, and my dick slips in you further and further each time, until I’m fully inside you, completely enveloped in your pussy, pumping my hips up into you, helping you raise up and lower down faster… harder…

I bury my face into your breasts and kiss every inch of skin I can get my mouth on.

I push harder into you, deeper, but it’s so intense… so hard to keep my eyes open with the waves of pleasure crashing down on me.

“Yeah, more… fuck, more, please…”

I push my nails into your hips and try to match your pace.

“Fuck—yes, oh my god—”

You grind your clit hard against me.

Our foreheads touch and your breath is hot against me.

My dick’s fucking throbbing inside you…

“You feel… so… good…”

“Oh, fuck…”

“Oh yeah, faster. Faster, you feel so good—bounce on me. Yeah… Yeah… just like that.”

“God, give it to me. I want more. Fuck me…”

Your nails dig into my chest. My arms are tight around your hips.

Stay close to me… Stay close…

“Oh god, I’m going to cum…”

“Yeah? Yeah, you’re going to cum?”

“Yeah—yeah, fuck—”

“Yeah! Cum inside me… fuck!”

I feel two sets of heartbeats… I can’t tell which one is yours and which one is mine.

“Um…”

“Yeah.”

“Do you think anyone heard us?”

“I think the entire farm probably heard us.”

“Mmm, yeah.”

“Hey.”

“What?”

“Thank you. For everything you do.”

“Thank you.”