Missed the lovebirds’ Jinja Trip? [Catch up on Part 3 here] before diving in.

The funny thing about bungee jumping is that you climb the stairs just to get to the ramp and jump down. In other words, you climb up so that you can fall.

These were the thoughts running through Simon’s mind. He had reached that critical moment in a plan where you are too committed to turn back.

But Alex was the definition of a shock absorber.

Maybe it was the experience of having dealt with people for five years now, or simply the salesperson in him ensuring that no clients ever turned back. But whatever it was, he was good.

To easily talk to both of them, Alex stayed in the middle, with Sandra leading at the front and Simon, well, trailing behind. Catching the fear written across Simon’s face, he had masterfully started a deep conversation with him.

“So, what work are you into, Simon?”

Simon, his eyes locked onto the stairs, hadn’t heard the question the first time. How could he?

“Birthday boy,” Alex called again.

“Oh, sorry, yes, yes. You asked what?”

“What work are you into?” Alex asked again.

“I.T!”

“I see, so you are the guy that ensures a computer and its software are working smoothly!”

Simon’s ears were off again. At this point, they were about halfway up the stairs. He had, as a strategy, stopped looking down.

“You know bungee jumping is like working on a computer,” Alex continued. “You spend hours writing clean code so the system doesn’t CRASH when the site goes live. Here, the harness and cord is our code. It’s been tested thousands of times and hasn’t CRASHED!”

There is something funny that happens in moments like these. It’s like the brain selectively hears what it wants. The only words that Simon heard in this moment were CRASH and CRASHED. Nothing more.

“Haaaa, this guy is really good!” Sandra marvelled, clearly impressed by the I.T connection.

Alex, again sensing from experience that Simon was not ‘responding,’ tried a different approach. They were about 40 steps from getting to the ramp.

“So, since it’s a birthday celebration and you are a couple, our standard procedure at this point is to stop for a photo moment. You know… to capture the journey,” he said to them.

No, it wasn’t standard procedure. But experience had taught Alex that in every couple, there was always one partner who was stronger, bolder, and readier for the jump. He knew the best way to uplift the one who was more afraid was to have them share a moment with the stronger one. And this is exactly what he was up to.

“Aaah, that’s such a sweet idea,” Sandra reacted, not yet aware of Simon’s state.

“Great. So, let me go ahead of you and let the lovebirds have their moment. I will take some photos of you!” he said.

As Sandra looked closely at Simon, she noticed the extreme sweat on his face. True, it was a hot day, but that was the kind of sweat one gets after running a marathon. She turned and stepped back up a few stairs, closing the distance between them.

“Everything okay, dear?” She asked gently.

“Yes, why are we stopping?” Simon snapped, his voice sharper than he intended. He wasn’t mad at her, but the sheer panic was overriding his voice. He just wanted to get this nightmare over with, and any delay felt like torture.

“Oh, you didn’t hear Alex?” As she said this, she noticed his shaking hands as well. That is when it hit her.

He wasn’t being difficult; he was completely terrified.

She hugged him—tightly. She could feel his heart beating fast.

A tear rolled down from his right eye. He was glad she couldn’t see it. But in all honesty, it didn’t matter. For the first time on the journey to the ramp, he felt safe in the embrace of the one he loved.

“Thank you for accepting to do this,” she whispered.

The tear stubbornly rolled down again as he heard her. He held on to her. A gentle breeze blew past them, carrying the cool mist of the River Nile below, but for those few seconds, the height, the ramp, and the entire world outside of her embrace completely faded away.

Love is such a mysterious thing; it has a unique way of flourishing in moments of raw vulnerability. It is as if human souls, when stripped of all defenses, find themselves in the perfect position to connect most truthfully.

And the beautiful irony was that up until this exact moment on the steps, Simon’s entire mission had been to hide his fear. He had tried desperately to maintain the classic masculine front of the unshakeable boyfriend. In trying so hard to protect his pride, he had almost missed the very thing that would lock their hearts together.

“I love you, Sandra.”

It was the first time he had said these words to her. He realized that he was not here because he was crazy or because he wanted to impress her. It was none of that. He was here because he wanted to be with her.

Sandra pulled away from the hug, looked him right in the eyes, and smiled. That, they would later agree, was one of the greatest photos of their lives!

“I love you too, Simon.”

They hugged again.

“Babe, it’s okay if you are not really up for this.”

Simon thought about this for a moment. His mind was screaming YESSSS, but his heart! They say the heart is the custodian of love. His heart was not about to disappoint his princess.

“I really want to do this with you. Let’s go do this!”

She smiled. At this point, Simon was sure that love had done all the therapy he needed! She held his hand and they continued up the stairs.

Alex had registered another success. He had known exactly when to speak, when to lead, and when to step back and let them breathe. Of course, he had also taken one of their life’s greatest photos. In his mind, he thought, My work here is done. With a reassuring nod, he smoothly handed them over to the next team.

They finally stepped onto the open ramp. There, hanging right at the edge of the abyss, was a massive billboard.

“Babe, look at that billboard. Aren’t those the guys who make the hard corns we were eating?”

“Newman’s…” Simon said as he read the billboard. “Yes, oh, they also make pop corns?”

“Yeah. And many other snacks, clearly!” Sandra responded. “Hmmm… but why would anyone put a billboard all the way up here?”

The attendants exchanged a look and laughed lightly. It was a question they had clearly heard many times before.

“Trust me,” one of them said, a subtle smile on his lips. “Of all the things you will remember about today, Newman’s is going to be one of them.”

He was not wrong! The human brain does a funny thing right as you are about to conquer a massive fear. It hyper-focuses, capturing every single detail around you. It’s almost as if your mind is setting itself up to ensure that when you retell the story later, you have everything you need to make everyone listening say, “Wow!”

Whoever decided to put that billboard right at the jumping point knew exactly what they were doing.

By this point, they were fully strapped in, their steps small and deliberate as they were guided to the very edge of the ramp.

“Okay, I am going to count up to three, then you will jump. If not, I will gently push you over.” the attendant said to them speaking so gently about something so scary!

Simon’s brain immediately flagged an error. GENTLY PUSH?

“GET SET!”

“First wait….”

“ONE!”

“First wait….”

Sandra burst out laughing. “Don’t worry, babe, I am going to hold you!”

“TWO!”

“Mama nze! Sir, President, Manager, Secretary General, Siniya, FIRST WAIT, FIRST WAIT FIRST WAIIITTTttttt….”

“THREE!”

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© An original Lapatutu Story.

Oh boy! Did the attendant give in to Simon’s plea? The things we do for love. Find out if he survives the countdown in Part 5. 🪂🔥