These Setting Suns
Copyright 2014 Leslie Williams
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Table of Content
Copyright
December 18, 1916
September 29, 1918
May 3, 1921
April 19, 1931
February 7, 1939
December 7, 1941
About Leslie Williams
These Setting Suns
A short story dedicated to the world.
December 18, 1916- Albany, New York
This was the best day of my life. It was actually the day that started it all, and I remember it like it was yesterday.
“Happy birthday sweetheart,” my mother told me as I walked down the stairs and entered the living room that was turned into a party room. It was my sixteenth birthday. I remember that momma was so happy that I finally turned into a woman, she actually cried. Daddy had to take her and calm her down before my guests arrived. We celebrated at my house. All of my closest friends were there and the evening was lovely. My family got me presents and daddy got me this gorgeous cake. I cut the first piece and then everyone dived in for a slice. It was so much fun to see that everyone was enjoying themselves. The night was filled with laughter, dancing, and cheers.
Although I was having a good time, I needed to get away from everyone and the noise. I grabbed my coat and left my house, running into the freezing Albany air, and ran into my daddy’s garage. He usually kept our picnic blankets in there, along with our snow boots. There wasn’t a lot of snow on the ground that day, but I didn’t want to be unprepared. The only place I would go to get away from the world was down by the river, which was a long walk through the forest, so I wanted to make sure that I had my boots just in case there was more snow down by the river. I also grabbed a heavy blanket to bundle up in so that I would be able to sit on the ground and watch the beautiful horizon. After I had everything that I needed, I crept out of the garage, hoping that no one would see me and pull me back to the party, and darted for the leafless trees that guided me to the river. The forest was covered with snow and I was glad that I wore my snow boots. Nothing is worse than getting snow on the bottom of your feet. The walk was very smooth and it took me about half an hour to get to the river from the woods.
I entered a clearing that was nothing but ground and air. There were no trees in the way, just me, the deep night sky, and the frozen river. The view was breath taking, with the millions of stars gazing down at me from the pitch-black night sky. I walked towards the river and chose a spot a few feet away from the icy water. The closer you sit to the water, the better the few is of the horizon, even though it probably was the coldest place I could have chosen. I placed the picnic blanket on the cold ground, then wrapped my blanket around me and took a seat. I stared up at the moon that glowed brightly in the sky and was mesmerized.
That area was so peaceful and it gave me a chance to think without people being around. It gave me a chance to think about life, the lives of my family and friends. I thought about how life would be different after my father left us to go back to the Marines. He was an officer and he needed to go back and prepare himself and other corps in case we ended up in the war. I was scared for my father’s life, although he told me many times that he’s a warrior made out of metal. No one can touch him, but he can destroy everyone. He used to tell me that when I was little and I used to believe him, but now I wasn’t so sure. How would my mother’s life go on without my father around? How would my brothers or sisters grow up if their daddy wasn’t around? I used to think of the worst things, and I knew that it wasn’t good to think that way, but being alone in a quiet environment usually let my mind run freely and I thought of everything, good or bad.
I stared off into the distance and just thought to myself, until I was interrupted by a crunching sound in the ground. It sounded like footsteps and it was coming from the forest behind me. I turned my attention to the dark trees and was anxious to find out who was walking my way. The noise grew louder and I stood up just in case I needed to run the other way from what or whoever was in the woods. My heart beat quickly and I was about to leave, but suddenly someone called my name. “Marie, is that you?”
“Who’s there?” I answered back in a panicked voice.
“It’s me, silly.” The figure was close enough for me to see who it was. It was Ryan Michaels, my best friend. I should have known since he was the only other person who knew that I would escape down to the river, even at my own party. He walked towards me and he wasn’t wearing a coat. “What are you doing out here, Marie?” he asked me. He reached for my hand and I felt his shivers. He was cold.
I took my blanket off and wrapped it around him and sat us both down on the ground. “What do you mean what am I doing out here? What are you doing out here?” I wrapped my arms around him to try and warm his cold body up. “You’re completely crazy for walking out here without a coat. Jeez, are you trying to kill yourself?”
“Maybe,” he laughed. He was still shivering so I held him to me and started rubbing my arms down his, hoping that I could rub some warmth into him.
“Well don’t try to kill yourself on my time, Ryan. I wouldn’t know what to do with your corpse,” I told him. He looked at me and I smiled at his face. He smiled back and then he turned to look at the view. I followed his gaze.
“Wow! I haven’t been down here in so long, that I forgot how beautiful it was. When was the last time I was here?” he asked me.
“Last summer when my dad got me my puppy, and we walked him here for the first time. The flowers were bloomed and the river was warm. We didn’t plan on it, but we took a swim in the water with only our under garments on. You don’t remember?” I reminded him of the last time that he and I visited this very spot.
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