The Ring

by Sarah Anne Carter

  She wrote him back right away and then didn’t hear from him until after she opened her first letter.

  Amanda,

  I’m glad you accepted these monthly letters. Maybe I’m being selfish wanting you to think of me at least once a month while I’m gone, even though we decided to just be friends (for now). I guess you’ll actually think of me more often if you agree to take care of my plant.

  I thought I would just share a story with you.

  I went to my first air show with my neighbor, Daren, when I was 10. His father worked on the local military base and had overheard Daren and I talking about how I’d never been on the base. We spent the whole day there and went in every airplane that was open. My favorite was the helicopters, though. I collected every free postcard or poster that was being handed out and pinned them on my bedroom wall as soon as we got home. Before then, I just thought about either being a professional baseball player or a businessman like my dad when I grew up. That night, I thought about being a pilot and spending my life traveling the world. I went to the air show every year after that and asked a lot of questions to any pilot who would talk to me. Why didn’t I end up becoming a pilot? Well, that’s a story for another letter.

  Lucas

  Amanda hadn’t followed the news much until Lucas deployed and then she checked it every morning and night, looking for any article about military in the Middle East. There weren’t many on a daily basis, and the first one she came across was about two soldiers who had died after driving across an IED. She was worried and emailed him to see how safe he was while he was over there. It was three days before his reply came through.

  He told her she shouldn’t worry much at all. They didn’t drive around but only left the base if they were in the airplane. It was almost as if he was confined to the base there in Washington and could only leave if they went on a mission. He talked about the gym, the chow hall, and the exchange, which was like a small store filled with snacks, books, movies, magazines, and little trinkets. They took cash, but no coins. Instead they had cardboard disks that were used as coins. He attached a few pictures of the “money” in the email and promised to save a few for her to see when he got home. She felt better after reading the email but still found herself worrying about him every now and again.

  April’s letter told her that he wanted to take flying lessons in high school, but he couldn’t afford it and his parents didn’t really want him to do it as they thought it was too dangerous. When it came time to decide what to do after high school, he thought the military would at least get him close to the planes. He would try to start working on his degree after this deployment and could always apply to become an officer and a pilot as long as he did it before he turned 30. He wasn’t sure yet, though. He really liked his job, and he would have to get a degree first. Time would tell, he ended.

  In the midst of getting ready for the end-of-semester finals and finishing up her research paper, Amanda forgot about May’s letter until a few days into May. Lucas had been on trips a lot, so she only got an email from him about once a week. She was getting better about not thinking about him all the time and thought she was finally convinced to think of him only as a friend. She was starting to look for a summer job, too. Amelie had changed managers, and they were no longer willing to hire as many short-term employees. She had an interview with a tutoring company in Olympia in a few days, which would look good on her resume. She would have to fill out all her applications for student teaching jobs the first week of classes in August.

  Amanda,

  I have a confession to make. The day I asked for your number was not the first time I saw you. I had come into Coffee First a few weeks earlier with a crew before we headed on a trip. I hadn’t known they were planning on stopping for coffee before we left, so I had already grabbed a thermos from my dorm for the trip. I hung back while they ordered. Before fixing their drinks, you took a coffee and muffin over to an older gentleman sitting with a newspaper. He reminded me of my Grandpa. The way you smiled and greeted him caught my eye. I could tell you were a decent person who actually cared about this older customer sitting in a coffee shop, even though you were young. (Okay, I know you’re my age, but we are young.) After all the training I had gone through during the summer and fall, it was nice to see someone being nice to someone else. You kept coming to my mind while we were on that trip, so I knew I would have to stop back and see you. It took me a while to get up the courage, but I’m glad I did.

  Lucas

  She called Juliana right away after reading that letter. He was definitely not thinking about keeping their relationship as just friends. She would really have to decide when he got back if she would want to keep things on the friendship level or let it become a real relationship. She really didn’t know what she wanted to do, but he was slowly becoming a part of her life. Juliana gave her a pep talk and promised to set her up with a few guys as soon as she was home for the summer. For the first time ever, Amanda agreed to let Juliana arrange a few dates for her as long as they were double dates.

  They were getting ready for the first double date at Amanda’s house a few weeks later when Juliana saw June’s letter from Lucas sitting on her desk.

  “June is only a few days away. Let’s open it now.”

  “I’d really rather wait,” Amanda said, but Juliana was already sitting on her bed, opening up the letter. There was really no harm in reading it now, Amanda thought, so she put her eye shadow down on her desk and sat down next to her friend.

  Amanda,

  Welcome to summer! I looked up when and where the state fair is there in Washington. I saw it wasn’t until August, but that it happens right near us in Puyallup. I should be home in time to go. Have you been? I know it seems like a silly question, but I know people often don’t go to events near them. I went to the state fair every year in Columbia. It was about two hours away, and my mom would wake me up early and we would get there when it opened and spend the whole day eating fair food, riding rides, and looking at all the exhibits.

  When I was in high school, I was able to enter some of my woodworking projects through FFA. Yep, I can make things out of wood. My only project to get a ribbon was a yard game of Connect Four. I got third place, but won $50. I had to sell my equipment before I went to basic training since my parents were moving and it wasn’t worth putting in storage. Hopefully I can move out of the dorms shortly after the deployment and get an apartment and start making some things again. Maybe I can make something for you.

  Lucas

  When Juliana finished reading, she looked up at Amanda and found her smiling.

  “He’s one of those 4H fair geeks,” Juliana said. “Perfect for you – they’re always those nice, polite guys who hold open doors.”

  “I had no idea he did that,” Amanda said.

  “At least this one wasn’t too sappy. Let’s go see if you can get your mind off him for a few hours. Thomas is quite charming. Although Matt is better looking, so he’s mine.” Juliana had met the two boys at a party the weekend before. Amanda was sure they would both focus their attention on Juliana, but Juliana really wanted to help Amanda out, so she was willing to play along.

  They went to Phyllos and then to a movie, and while Amanda had fun, she could clearly see both guys were vying for Juliana’s attention and being extra nice and polite to her to make an impression on Juliana.

  Lucas’ July and August letters told her about his childhood pets – a dog named Sally who loved to eat socks and a cat named Prince who loved to eat dog food. They were originally his parents’ pets but kept him company growing up. They died within the same year when he was 11, and his parents didn’t want to get any pets after that. Both letters were filled with stories of the pets and how he wanted to get a dog one day and thought an Australian Shepherd was the smartest dog and the one he wanted to get.

  Juliana didn’t bring up going out on another date until about two weeks before Lucas came home. Juliana convinced Amanda to go out to a
n Irish festival with Anthony by herself. Even Juliana had admitted after the double date that it didn’t work if they were interested in her. Anthony worked with Juliana at the country club that summer, and he was a “nice guy, just like Lucas,” according to Juliana. He went to college across the state in Spokane.

  Anthony picked her up in a small, red pickup truck. He was tall and skinny and had long, wavy blond hair. Her parents were out that night. Anthony opened the truck door for her, and they made small talk on the ride to downtown Tacoma. He seemed very quiet until they couldn’t find a parking spot for his truck. His frustration level rose quickly, and he didn’t want to listen when Amanda offered to give him directions to a parking lot she knew of a few blocks away that only charged $8 an hour. Instead, they drove around for 25 minutes with him muttering under his breath until he found a spot on a street that was free. He then took a deep breath, turned to Amanda, and said, “Let’s go enjoy this thing.”

  Amanda tried to enjoy the music and looking at some of the booths, but it felt awkward. They got some meat pasties for dinner, and they couldn’t find much to talk about while they ate. Amanda decided to end the date early and told him she was starting to get a headache and wanted to go home. The ride home was quiet except for the country songs on the radio. He walked her to the door and while he said he had a nice time and would like to see her again, she knew it wasn’t true. She called Juliana after she got settled and told her all about the night.

  “Well, I guess you might as well keep dating Lucas. You might have to just deal with the military thing,” Juliana said. “But I do need to meet him. I don’t have to leave until August 20, so if he gets back on time, you have to let me see him.”

  Amanda laughed and realized Juliana was right. She was going to have to deal with the military thing. She also knew she was probably going to still date Lucas – if he wanted to, although she was fairly certain that’s what he was hoping for all along.

  CHAPTER NINE

  Lucas had emailed her specific instructions about how to meet him when he came back from his deployment. Her name would be on a list at the gate, and she would need to show her driver’s license to the gate guard. He gave her step-by-step directions on how to get to the base operations building where they would arrive. He told her if she couldn’t come or didn’t want to, it was okay with him, but he at least wanted to meet up sometime soon after he got back.

  Amanda thought he should have someone to greet him when he got back after serving his country on a deployment for six months, so she took the day off of work and made her way to the base on August 15. There was a big crowd inside the Base Terminal, and Amanda felt out of place with all the spouses and children in the crowd. There were a few people in uniform milling around. Amanda kept herself busy by looking at the artwork on the walls of older military aircraft.

  “May I have your attention? The deployed military members of the 7th Airlift Squadron have landed. They should start coming through the terminal in about 20 minutes. It may take an hour for everyone to come through as they have to process through customs and find their luggage. Thank you for supporting all of them while they served their country. Your sacrifices here back at home are appreciated. Thank you.”

  Amanda went over to line the hallways with the rest of the crowd. A woman with short, black hair and a toddler in her arms whose head was lying on her shoulder, stood next to Amanda.

  “Hi, I’m Terri,” she said. “I don’t think I’ve seen you before at any of the squadron events. Who are you waiting for?”

  “I’m waiting for Lucas Weston. He’s a friend of mine.”

  “He’s flown with my husband, Will, a few times,” Terri said. “How did you meet Lucas?”

  “We met at the coffee shop I work at – Coffee First.”

  “I’m so glad you didn’t say one of those bikini coffee shops. I was so shocked when I found out about those up here. Are you from here? What’s your name?”

  “I’m Amanda, and I grew up in Tacoma.”

  Before she could say anything else, the first man came through the doors at the end of the hallway, and a little girl ran down the hall shouting, “Daddy!” Amanda smiled and noticed all the conversations died down as people started watching the doors for their loved ones. Lucas was about the 15th person to come through the doors. Amanda just stepped toward the middle of the hallway as he walked toward her with a big smile on his face and a huge tan duffel bag hiked over his shoulder. She returned the smile, and they walked together toward the exit. Lucas opened the door for her, and after she walked through, he offered her his hand. She took it, and he pulled her in for a kiss. She let herself fall into the moment, and as they finally pulled away, she realized he was definitely more than just a friend.

  CHAPTER TEN

  Amanda and Lucas’ first date after he got back was to the state fair – with Juliana. They ended up spending the whole day there. Lucas made sure they found the 4-H and FFA buildings, and they spent almost an hour looking at the projects kids had done. Lucas was impressed by some of the wooden dressers made by FFA kids. He said he’d have to try making one of those one day. Juliana seemed to get along with him great, and Amanda was relieved that Lucas wasn’t flirting with Juliana. He was treating Juliana like a friend, not a potential date. Juliana grabbed a picture of Amanda and Lucas at the top of the Ferris wheel. Juliana spent a lot of time raving about how nice he was when they chatted on the phone later that night.

  “I approve, Amanda. He seems good for you,” she said. “See where it goes.”

  “If he still wants to date, I think I’d be up for it. I just still don’t know about the whole military thing if this ever gets serious.”

  “I guess you can deal with that if it comes, but at least he doesn’t seem like the typical military guy. He seems more like just a normal guy.”

  “True, but he will have to move one day. They can’t stay in one place forever. I don’t know if I’d ever be able to leave Washington.”

  “Well, that’s a while off anyway. Maybe you’ll just date him while he’s here and then you’ll find someone even better.”

  “Maybe,” Amanda replied. She couldn’t think of anyone being much better than Lucas.

  Lucas called shortly after she got off the phone with Juliana. He had gotten a call from a coworker about looking at an apartment that night, and they had gotten back from the fair just in time for him to get to the apartment.

  “How’d it go?” she asked.

  “It was a really small space, but it did have two bedrooms. We’re going to look at two more places tomorrow before we decide.”

  “That’s smart. I can’t wait to get my own place next year.”

  “So, I heard Juliana say she was leaving the day after tomorrow. We can hold off on going out to dinner until she leaves if you want to spend time with her.”

  “Oh, I’m going to spend all day with her helping her pack and load up her car. She may be smart, but she always overpacks and has trouble fitting everything back into her car. Then she’ll spend the evening with her family. I’m free tomorrow night – unless you were looking for a way out of our date?”

  “Nope. Just trying to be nice. I can’t wait to have all your attention just for myself.” The line went quiet for a few. “I missed you, Amanda. A lot.”

  “I missed you, too, Lucas. I’m looking forward to dinner tomorrow, too.”

  They went to The Keg again and got a booth by the window that overlooked the water. Lucas was fairly quiet until after they ordered.

  “So, Amanda, I think we should talk,” he said, “about us.”

  Amanda looked at him and put her hand through her hair. When she put it back down on the table, he put his hand on hers.

  “I know we’ve only known each other a short amount of time and have only been out on a handful of dates compared to that time, but I would really like to give this thing a shot and see where it goes. I don’t want to assume what you’re thinking and feeling about me, though. So, I wa
nt to ask ...”

  Amanda had grabbed her water glass to stall and after taking a few sips had begun to put it down and it slipped – water went everywhere, but mostly toward Lucas.

  “I’m so sorry,” Amanda said quietly and started sopping up the mess with her napkin. Lucas put his napkin to stop the water from flowing off the table, stood up, and then motioned for Amanda to scoot over on her booth seat. She did, and he sat down and turned toward her.

  “It’s just water, and it will clean up easily,” he said. “Now, before I lose my nerve. Amanda, I like you, and I think we should date exclusively. I want to see where this goes.”

  She looked at him and then down at her hands for a minute before looking back at him to answer.

  “I like you, too, Lucas. I would like to see where this goes, too. But, I have to be honest. I don’t like the fact that you’re in the military. Nothing against the military, but more against knowing you’ll be moving away at some point.”

  “That’s understandable,” he said and turned back toward the spill and started cleaning it up a little more. Their waitress came over to check on them and saw the mess and brought over more napkins. The booth behind them was empty, so she asked them to move to that booth. Lucas sat down on one side and this time, Amanda motioned for him to scoot down and she sat down next to him.